diacope 2

lol imagine being employed am I right

6th Overall: G Miervaldis Arpa
 
Zach aka 16z has had two previous players, the moderately successful Ryan Busser and the more successful Kasper Kankkunen. Busser played for 4 seasons, Kankkunen played for 6. Maybe Arpa can get to 8 seasons? Arpa earns 10 capped a week and could be a potential call-up next season, but he'd be the backup goalie behind Reinhart.
 
22nd Overall: LW Obi Adesanya
 
atw2592 is a first gen player that played for Houston in his initial season in the league. Usually earning 10 capped per week, Adesanya should be able to jump to the VHL after spending next season in the VHLE. He would be a welcome addition with the retiring of Greene Giant and DaMoose in S83.
 
 
33rd Overall: LW Benjamin Franklin Chang
 
joelunk is another first gen that spent all of last season in Mexico City. Due to earning 6 capped a week I suspect that he will not make it to the VHL for a while. I also don’t have a lot of faith in someone with such a meme worthy player name sticking around, though Riga got a lot of mileage out of RedSus so you never know.
 
54th Overall: C Jack Quill
 
GoldGear88 has had two previous players, Jeff Odinson and Luke Pastrnak. Odinson would’ve failed to make it out of today’s VHLE had it been around when his player existed. Pastrnak played in Cologne in S80 but also failed to escape the VHLE. Earning 4 capped a week, Quill will have to be his best player to date if he wants to play at the VHL level.
 
78th Overall: G Shaun Young
 
shaun1979 is another first gen for the Reign in this draft. A goaltender, he played 5 games for Miami last season. Due to earning only 4 capped per week and the fact he’s behind Reinhart and Arpa on the depth chart, it’s unlikely he’ll play in a Riga jersey for a long time, if at all.

Hello my fellow VHLers – it is time we return to the most important and accurate ranking of the VHLM logos. I have been taking my sweet ass time with getting the full ranking out and it is totally my fault, but I figured I would make it suspenseful given how highly anticipated this was. This ranking will be a little less of a roast on logos, but I will do my best.  IN CASE you somehow MISSED my first ranking, you can definitely find it right here.
 
I shall reiterate that I had no idea who created these logos and this is just my own opinion. So, if you happen to stumble along me chirping a logo you designed – be reminded that its all good and fun and you’re already way better at making logos than I am.
 
 
#5: Saskatoon Wild

 
The only real complaint I have about this logo is – while I understand that ferocious looking animals like this one are in the wild, I just don’t think this represents a logo for a team called the Wild. This instantly screams “Tiger Cats” to me for whatever dumb reason – but either way it does not stop it from being an above average logo. This is your typical “exotic cat being angry” sports logo that you see in every major league. What makes this nice is the ECHL calibre color scheme of tan and light blue trim. This would be the logo of that highschool basketball team that just TERRORIZES a division that they are way too good for – only to get stomped themselves when they play in the AAAAs. What I am saying here is that this logo is neither terrible nor amazing. A very standard sports logo with great colors and angry enough to intimidate others. That’s why this sits at fifth in the ranking, it is ever so slightly above average relative to the rest of the logos in this league.
 
 
#4: Miami Marauders

 
Ok now HERE is where we get into the “goated” logos of the VHLM. I don’t really have anything to complain about them so its going to get a little boring for the reader. This is an absolutely amazing logo and it reminds me of the old Milwaukee Admirals from the AHL. The shading et al in this makes it a fantastic design and not to mention it got a bit of meanness to it. I’m honestly surprised I haven’t made a Miami graphic but will keep that in mind for the next time I want to make one. One thing about logos that I really enjoy is symmetry which is exactly what this one has (the eye patch being very minimal). A great mix of colors as well to be a typical red/white/black hockey team. If I were to give it some criticism is that it doesn’t have any hockey related creativity added to it. It would have been cool to have like two hockey sticks crossing as a logon on the pirate hat – but I’m also not that creative so it would probably look terrible in the end.
 
 
#3: Mississauga Hounds

 
What the dog doin? The Hounds have the best color scheme in the VHLM. You can’t get much cleaner than a blue, black and silver mix. But I’m not here to rank the colors, I’m here to rank the logo, and this is in the A tier of logos across all leagues. Look how fuckin mean this dog looks. This dog is so determined to fuck shit up that Michael Vick just bet fifty dollars on it. I know we are entering an era where a lot of the newly introduced logos are E-sports looking, and I think this one kind of has some shades of it, but still a great hockey logo nonetheless. I like the diagonal look this dog is giving as opposed to the traditional straight forward or profile – pretty unique. One thing I do hate (and I mentioned it with the Houston logo in the previous ranking), is that they have the word HOUNDS on the bottom. Like yes thanks we know what you’re called but this is just supposed to be a LOGO. The big mean looking dog on top of it should be enough to let the world know that they are indeed the Hounds.
 
 
#2: Mexico City Kings
 
 
I will say that I had a very hard decision between this and number one. The decision was so hard I was originally typing this to be #1 but changed my mind midway through the ranking. This logo is so badass that I don’t have one single knock on it. Being the newest logo of the VHLM, a fantastic job was done with the unique color scheme, the detail, and the Mexico City Calaca theme. I mentioned early about how big of a fan I was of symmetric logos and this one is pretty damn close to what I was talking about. There’s the shading on one side to show a bit of darkness to it and that jewel on the crown to give it that bit of extra detail needed. Then of course there’s this furry sash going around the back of the neck to make it look like this king is much more important than other kings. To be honest, if I were to step on the ice for warmups and saw the other team wearing this logo, I’d probably shit my pants before I’d get to the stretches. There really isn’t much else to say other than how much I love this logo and that I’m still considering changing my mind again before I write the review for #1.  
 
 
#1: Ottawa Lynx

 
 
Boy, I am fucking glad that I’m on the last logo here. I absolutely hate writing stuff but I’m pretty damn burnt on graphic making that a nice logo ranking helps. The Lynx and the Kings are both S tier logos across all leagues, and as mentioned in #2, I had a hard time deciding which one to make number one. To show my lack of bias of being a former King, and to a very unique team name – I gave the number one to the Lynx. I’m surprised Carole Baskin hasn’t joined the VHLM to be amongst one of the most exotic cat logos there is. It is the perfect mix of a 2D drawing and a realistic looking Lynx.  This logo is so good, that even with my bonus points to symmetric logos, this still won amongst them all. The color scheme, shape, and detail are perfect.
 
 
Alright folks, whenever I get the willpower to do another media spot, I’ll do the VHLE logo ranking. I hope I didn’t bore whoever stuck around to read this all.
 
Cheers!
 
1130 Words
 
Claiming Week 1/2

Biggie Cheese will lead the United States to victory 

I AM THE ONE PERCENT 

First off, I would like to thank everybody who took a little bit of time out of their days to answer the survey. I first thought of this idea just looking through old VHL posts. I found one about a demographic survey. Over five years ago in September of 2016, Eagles conducted his VHL Demographics Survey. He concluded the following;
 
“Gender: Shockingly we are a sausage fest
Male - 98%
Female - 2%
 
Race/Ethnicity: Mostly white
White - 90.2%
Other - 5.9%
Asian - 2%
Hispanic - 1%
 
Age: Mostly between the ages of 18-31, so we young millennial buhls
14-17 - 2%
18-22 - 33.33%
23-26 - 31.4%
27-31-27.5%
32+ - 5.9%
 
Highest Level of Education Completed or Plan on Completing: Lots of college peoples
High School/GED - 17.6%
Trade School - 5.9%
Associate 2 year degree - 7.8%
Bachelor 4 year degree - 56.9%
Master's degree - 11.8%
 
Estimated Household Income in US Dollar: Incomes are all over the place, don't really see a target group here
0-20,000 - 15.7%
20-40,000 - 23.5%
40-60,000 - 19.6%
60-80,000 - 17.6%
80-100,000 - 9.8%
100,000+ - 13.7%
 
Where do you live?: No major regions really stick out here
Central U.S. -21.6%
U.S. East Coast - 11.8%
U.S. West Coast - none
Canada East Coast - 11.8%
Central Canada - 25.5%
Canada West Coast - 13.5%
UK - 3.9%
Other - 11.8%
 
LifeStyles: Most of us are both gamers and sports fan
Enjoy the arts - 27.5%
Foodie - 37.3%
Gamer - 78.4%
Online buyer - 49%
Photography - 11.8%
Sports Fan - 98%”
 
I conducted a nearly identical quiz and my results were the following:
 
Gender: 69 Responses
95.7% Male ( 66 )
2.9% Other (2)
1.4% Female (Sam)
 
Race/Ethnicity: 70 Responses
88.6% White (62)
4.3% Asian (3)
2.9% Mixed (2)
1.4% Hispanic (1)
1.4% Indian (1)
1.4% Native (1)
 
Age: 70 Responses 
28.6% 24-29 (20)
22.9% 30-36 (16)
21.4% 14-19 (15)
20% 19-23 (14)
5.7% 37+ (4)
1.4% 13 or under (1)
 
Highest Education You Have or Plan on Completing: 69 Responses
42% Bachelors (29)
18.8% High School/GED (13)
17.4% Masters Degree (12)
13% Associate (9)
7.2% Trades (5)
 
I skipped the household incomes question.
 
Where do you live: 69 Responses
27.5% Eastern USA (19)
17.3% Eastern Canada (12)
15.7% Central Canada (11)
15.7% Western Canada (11)
13% Europe (9)
7.1% Central USA (5)
2.9% Oceania (2)
 
Check The “Lifestyles” That Apply To You: 70 Responses
92.9% Sports Fan (65)
80% Gamers (56)
52.9% Nerds (37)
41,4% Enjoyer of Arts (29)
37.1% Foodies (26)
30% Fitness (21)
5.7% Photography (4)
Additional 16 Answers
 
Similarities And Differences
 
Gender
 
It seems that over the past six years, the ratio of genders hasn't changed much. We still are a heavily male dominated community as there is still only one female that took the survey. Of course, this does not mean that there is only one female league-wide, just that one took the quiz. Had every member in the league filled this survey out, chances are the ratios would remain around the same. The main difference in the league now is our addition of other genders. We’ve had two members using they/them pronouns join the league and complete the survey since then.
 
Race/Ethnicity 
 
Once again, the league hasn’t changed much demographic wise. Still occupied by a predominantly White membership, 62 out of 70 people in the league are White. Eagles quiz had 90% of members identifying themselves as White. Both numbers are quite similar in both surveys. Eagles had a 5.9% “other” category which in my survey showed to be a mix of different races. I had eight total members who are Hispanic, Asian, mixed, Indian or Native. This was also the first and only time a response was not clicked, Black.
 
Age
 
Age is the most interesting category to me. In 2016, one member clicked Eagles 14-17 prompt. In 2022, 15 members clicked my 14-18 prompt. In my survey, the league is the most balanced it's ever been age-wise. With the exclusion of four 37+ members and one 13 year old, everyone else is evenly spread from 14-36. This sudden increase in younger members can definitely be associated with how much technology is available nowadays. Kids have phones and computers at younger ages now and are able to discover things such as the VHL at a faster rate. Nowadays, the VHL can be stumbled upon in a ton of different ways. Browning reddit, watching youtube or just finding it on the app store isn’t something as common as the mid 2010’s. With the addition of discord in August 2018, the VHL now appeals to a younger demographic who doesn’t need to stay on forums. 
 
Education
 
The VHL somehow remains a pretty educated place. Since 2016, the percentage of people with a bachelor's degree has decreased, while people with a masters has increased. Other than that, numbers have remained relatively consistent. 

 
I skipped over the household income question for no real reason. In my mind there was no real reason to ask it. The numbers would however be quite interesting with COVID and its effects, but probably not a realistic representation.
 
Where do you Live
 
Nothing really surprising came out of this question. The VHL is an english dominated community and has seen mainly english speakers join us. This results in a ton of members across the US and Canada. About 84% of people in Eagles survey were from either Canada or USA, with the hockey country Canada being on top. Six years later, Canada is still on top. Combined with the USA, these two countries are still responsible for 83% of members. Nowadays, we do see many more European countries being represented through members in the league, even if we are still primarily in North America. Eagles article has an 11.8% “other” category making it hard to pin down exactly where they’re from. Chances are they are from other European countries or perhaps Oceania, as two of my survey’s members were.
 
Lifestyles
 
Lifestyles have been pretty much the same. We are still diseased with the presence of too many gamers and nerds. Being a hockey simulation league, it’s no surprise to see still more than 90% of us describe ourselves as sport fans. In 2016, one person said they were not a sports fan, that number has since risen to five. One thing that Eagles survey lacked was a section to add your own interests. I did add this option, here are the highlights.
 
Boob Master
Badass Motherfucker
Jewish (This one isn’t really funny or anything, it just made me realize I should’ve added a religion section)
Chicken Nugget Enthusiast 
Wacking the Meat
Phallic Art Collector (Whoever you are, if this is true please share your collection with the league)
I also received a slew of other responses, mostly genuine activities. 

 
And that’s it. No matter when this survey is done we’ll have similar answers. It’s nice to see the league has become somewhat more diverse, even if it has remained the same. The real change in the VHL is the members' behaviors. And so I invite somebody else to do this quiz in a few years time. Anybody, chances are I won't be around to do it. Maybe a special 10th anniversary VHL demographics survey. I bet you much wont change.
 

Me: I should do my point tasks
My brain: woah Jardy is buttering toast :0

You use the “sharp” side, your roommate and probably Dil are fucked in the head.

Did Calgary ever hold a 3-1 series lead in this series? I wasn't paying much attention to the playoffs but that would be great for the meme. The title is also kind of misleading, Calgary actually took two Ls. 😛
 
It was too bad for Klamasteris, sounds like he played really well in that game six if that shots were that egregious. I agree with your sentiment that Calgary will continue to be a force in the North American conference, but it will be interesting to see how they compete with Vancouver's squad that has clearly found the meta. They may end up always the bridesmaid. 
 
9/10
 
 

What’s Next? - Saskatoon Wild S81 Rap Up
 
As the VHLM Finals come to an end (GG Lynx), there have been a lot of things on VHLM GM or AGM minds. Some are preparing for the S82 VHLM Dispersal Draft. Others are left feeling cold, depressed and nostalgic about their team that unfortunately had missed their mark. I guess as a Saskatoon AGM, it’s my duty to reflect on the S81 Saskatoon Roster.
 
Coming into the season, there were low expectations for the Saskatoon Wild. They were not expected to be a top caliber team by any means. In the S81 draft, Saskatoon traded up for the first overall pick to certify their goalie position, picking up Cole Pearce who was a goalie quickly rising up the ranks. The Wild then went on to pick Connor Johnson, Rusty Cannon and Alessio Simeoni picked in the first three rounds of the draft. Lastly, in the latter rounds of the draft Saskatoon picked Jack Quill and Nick Letty in the 6th and 7th rounds respectively. The Wild evenly balanced out their picks with 3 defensive (Pearce, Johnson, Cannon) and 3 offensive (Simeoni, Quill, Letty) players picked in the draft. It was a successful draft for the Wild, they utilized all their draft picks as best as they could. And hoped to surprise some people when the season commenced. 
 
Not only did Saskatoon gain some skillful players through the draft, but they also acquired many of them through free agent signings. Picking up the likes of Tyler Thode, Sean Murphy, Latavuis Jackson, Chase Taylor, Chris Irons, Blake MacTavish, Jeff Buffy, Bob Rob, Bradley Wall, Ostin Leavens and Jay Saucey along the way. 
 
As games passed on the schedule passed for the Wild. It became clear that the Wild couldn’t keep up with the front runners of the VHLM. This ultimately led them to become sellers during the trade deadline. Trading their top players in Connor Johnson, Alessio Simeoni, Rusty Cannon, Cole Pearce. But for every trade, there has to be compensation. The Wild picked up Dylan Dubnyk, Robbie Robbie, Kyou Fujibayashi and tons of draft picks in return after all was said and done. 
 
Saskatoon finished with 55 points at the end of the regular season. Although it was marginally better than last year’s point total (33), Saskatoon found themselves at the bottom half in the teams standings. Even though this was the case, they managed to squeak into the playoffs to faceoff against the mighty Las Vegas Aces. As expected, the Wild roster was extremely outmatched by the Aces, losing the series 4-0. Which marked the end of the season for Saskatoon.
 
Although the season might be considered a disappointment, I would beg to differ. In my first season as an AGM I’ve learned a multitude of things and I enjoyed contributing a tad more to this community. This is just the stepping stone for what’s to come in my managing career. Sky’s the limit for the Saskatoon team, and I look forward to seeing how far this team will go in the upcoming seasons!

Well, the VHL Finals are all said and done, and most of us now know that the Vancouver Wolves took home the championship...again. Congratulations to them. In order for the Wolves to get to the finals though, they played against a strong Calgary Wranglers team who had them on the brink a couple of times. Let's take a look a Calgary's final 2 games of the playoffs, after holding a 3-2 series lead.
 
Vancouver Wolves vs. Calgary Wranglers  4-3 OT VAN
The 1st Period in this game started off hot, with the Wranglers striking first. At 3:54, Pekko Viitanen scored on the PP to bring it to a 1-0 game. Under 2 minutes later, the Calgary Wranglers struck again, with Nathan Perry giving them the 2-0 lead early. It was 2 early goals for Calgary, but then Vancouver poured it on. Late in the period, Aloe Dear scored at 18:43, then Jivere Zolnek tied the game at 19:31. Vancouver outshot Calgary a whopping 23-9 in the period, and all of a sudden it was a 2-2 game. The Vancouver Wolves didn't let up in the 2nd Period, with 26-3 shots, but goaltender Sirkants Klamasteris shut the damn door for Calgary, and they went into the 3rd Period with the same score, 2-2. In the 3rd Period, it was more even, but Vancouver scored on the PP only 16 seconds in, on a tally by Jivere Zolnek. Then, all the way until under 5 minutes left in the period, Rolf Fizzlebeef Jr tied it up 3-3, and this game headed to OT. In overtime, Vancouver poured it on once again, and then Calgary took a penalty which sent the Wolves to the PP. Corey Kitson would score, and Vancouver would force a Game 7. Shots were 79-28 in Vancouer's favour. Their players are obviously on PEDs. Calgary's goalie Klamasteris tried his best, only letting in 4 goals on 79 shots.
 
Calgary Wranglers vs. Vancouver Wolves  7-1 VAN
This Game 7 was one to forget for the Wranglers. Do or die, and they...died. The 1st Period was very even back and forth, but in the final 10 minutes of the period, Jerome Reinhart scored twice to give Vancouver a 2-0 lead heading into the 2nd. In the 2nd, Nils Tallinder brought the game within 1 goal for Calgary early on, but Vancouver didn't let up. Tyler Reinhart would score at 7:51, restoring the 2 goal lead at 3-1. Aloe Dear scored at 9:23, then Calgary took a penalty late and Henry Tucker scored to give the Wolves a 5-1 lead heading into the final period. Vancouver didn't stop. Jivere Zolnek and Corey Kitson both scored PP markers, and Vancouver would take the series in 7 games with a 7-1 victory.
 
Vancouver would take that momentum into the finals and beat Moscow in 6 games. What does the future hold for Calgary? I would say more playoff runs, because they will push even harder next season.

In late 2016, @Squidward held a VHL demographics survey, to which the results can be found here;  
 
5 and a half Years later, we know the VHL has changed a lot, but how much? That's why I present to you pretty much the exact same quiz, rejuvenated. 
 

I don't know time zones. I have no need to know when the hell cst is. EST is the only time zone that I am worried about. TBH all other time zones don't exist.

I don't know time zones. I have no need to know when the hell cst is. EST is the only time zone that I am worried about. TBH all other time zones don't exist.

Name: Biggie Cheese
Position: Defense
Height: 5’5
Weight: 250 lbs
Nationality: American
 
Pros:
 
Shooting: Biggie Cheese had a near VHL-ready knack for scoring the moment he left the VHLM, and he will only continue to improve as he ages. His wrist shot makes him a threat from anywhere down low and his powerful slap shot makes him a lethal weapon from the blueline. His slap shot also makes him a pain to deal with on any powerplay. He’s been the cause of many broken shin pads. Cheese is able to deliver the puck to the net with deadly accuracy, regardless of how he chooses to send it there. He tied the league lead for goals in the Junior Showcase playoffs, an impressive feat.
 
Defensive IQ: Cheese is a workhorse on the blueline and has the potential to be a top pair player. He played massive minutes in the Junior Showcase for the Royals, logging more ice time in both the regular season and the playoffs than any other player. Biggie Cheese is also not averse to using his big frame to block shots. He again led the Junior Showcase in both the regular season and playoffs in the blocked shot category.
 
Skating: Biggie Cheese doesn’t have the greatest agility due to his large size, but he has great balance which pairs quite well with his great shot. What Cheese lacks in agility he makes up for with speed however. For such a large player Biggie Cheese has blazing speed, and his quick acceleration has left many opposing defensemen in the dust. This speed combined with his quick, powerful wrist shot is a nightmare for opposing goaltenders to handle.
 
 
Cons:
 
Strength: Biggie Cheese is somewhat weak for his large size. In some instances his lack of strength can cause him to be beaten by the forward, despite his superior positioning in the defensive end. His lack of strength is more apparent against opponents who are good at playing on the boards. If he hopes to compete at the VHL level he will have to bulk up at some point.
 
Passing: Beyond the basics, Biggie Cheese is not much of a passer. His passes are usually on the mark but he doesn’t have great vision for making elite level plays with the puck. Cheese recognizes his own flaw and if he has the opportunity to shoot, he will. Goalies can use this to their advantage, but in many instances it doesn’t matter anyway; Cheese’s shot is simply too good.

Nasherov is a wise man, never take a 2-0 lead as a sign of anything because often 2-0 leads to 3-1. We all know that 3-1 seems to be a bad sign in the STHS engine. For the second round I don't think you mentioned it anywhere, but maybe include who your opponents are because I forgot and had to look at the portal . Good luck in the second round of playoffs, I think a lot of people will be happen if you happen to take the series. 9/10

You just advanced to round 2 in the playoffs after beating Seattle 4-2! How do you feel?
 
I feel great, Seattle has always been a rival for us and it is especially good to win these types of matchups, it also is a lot of fun. Going against your rivals doesn't usually happen in the playoffs so we made sure to enjoy every moment on the ice. Us winning the first 2 games were crucial, getting a 2-0 lead in a series right away is a huge advantage to take to the next games, being up by 2-0 we are not as stressed as for example the first game, where a series could end up for the better or the worse depending on how it goes. That did not mean that we should have taken it lightly, if we for one second thought that the series was over before getting the 4th win it wasn't over. That is the downside of going 2-0 in the first games. If you take your opponents lightly bad things will happen, you can never think that a game or series is over before it actually is, especially in the playoffs. Luckily we did not take them lightly and played every game like the first, even though we ended up losing 2 games we still won the series which is what mattered the most at the end of the day.
 
How do you feel going into the second round?
 
Me and the team are as pumped as ever for a new series to start, we will try to win the first couple of games to try to get off to a good start and try to secure 4 wins as safe as possible, I know our opponents are though but I have a strong feeling that we will provail, we have many capable players who can take larger roles when the "star" players don't perform their best, it is a huge upside to our squad and a big reason we played good this year. If we just play our game and listen to what the coach says I believe that we can win this series too, it might be closer than the Seattle series but that's expected as we are meeting very tough teams. This team is a team we have beat before and we should be able to beat them again. As I said before we can not take them lightly because if we do then we can end up in a pinch quickly. If we do end up in a pinch I still think that we coild turn the series around (under the right circumstances). Although I don not think the we will end up in such a pinch as I believe in our team and in our coach to lead us the right way and not make mistakes.  
 
Thank you for your wonderful time Nasherov! Good luck in the next rounds and have a good day!
 
You too! Have an amazing day!
 

Of course, there is an interesting history that goes behind the S81 finals. The story begins in S65 when @InstantRockstar took charge of the San Diego Marlins. For 10 straight seasons he lead San Diego valiantly, but unfortunately never captured a cup. After that 10th and final season ended, beginning S76, a young and new General Manager took over San Diego. His name was @thadthrasher
 
During my time in San Diego, only missing the playoffs my first season, I was able to learn a bit from IR and from the multiple VHLM GMs who were willing to give advice. Of course, the VHLM saw the return of IR when he took over Miami and led the team to two cups.
 
Then, both of us found ourselves applying for a new league, the VHLE. We were both selected to take on brand new teams and build something new and unique. IR took over the Rome Gladiators and I was given the Stockholm Vikings.
 
All of that history led up to the S81 VHLE Renaissance Cup Finals where GM @InstantRockstar and GM @thadthrasher faced off with their respective teams.
Below you will read a brief recap of each game, followed by my own thoughts and “thank you” notes.
Game 1
This game opened the series at home for Stockholm. Standing in front of the fans, and in front of Rome, Stockholm seemed to be ready and eager for the series to begin. And man oh man did they show it on the ice. In the first period Stockholm found themselves responding to Rome’s goal with three of their own. They continued this momentum in Period 2 with two more goals, and finally a 6th one in the 3rd. Frustrations reached its peak for Rome when Deke Rike @JCV instigated a fight and ended up being ejected from the game at 18:54 in the 3rd period. The game ended with a 6-2 victory for Stockholm.
Game 2
In a similar fashion, Stockholm began this game with 3 goals. And, much like in Game 1, Nezuko @Baozi scored two of them. Rome’s Robert Wilk @Tomat0 responded with two of his own, ending the period 3-2 Stockholm. Only 12 seconds into the second period, Nezuko sent in another goal, grabbing the first Hat Trick of the Renaissance Cup Finals. The crowd went absolutely nuts. Then, the Loch Ness Monster @LuluSalesAway sent in another one. Rome responded soon after and that was the final goal of the game. The game finished 5-3 Stockholm. The series was now 2-0.
Game 3
Now that the series moved to Rome there was a growing hope that @InstantRockstar and the Gladiators could secure a win. They started by scoring the first goal of the game. From there, Stockholm scored, and the rest of the game saw Rome scoring twice, then Stockholm twice, then Rome twice, then Stockholm twice. In the third period Stockholm upped the pressure by scoring two more goals, propelling them to a 7-5 lead. With just over a minute left in the game, Rome’s Biggie Cheese @a_Ferk sent in Rome’s 6th goal of the game. Now, in the final minute of the game, Rome needed to up the pressure to tie it all up. Unfortunately for them, they did not pull through and the game ended with a 7-6 victory for Stockholm, now up 3-0 in the series.
Game 4
This was the game that Rome needed to show up the most to. They needed to absolutely forget the three previous games and make this one count, or it would be the end for them. Unfortunately, the home-ice-advantage did not do much for them. In the first period Stockholm silenced the Roman fans with 4 goals to Rome’s 1. With a breath of fresh air, and after a heated speech from the GM himself, period 2 started off well for Rome with the goal from Tyler Steel @tylerwest. This goal gave hope to both the players and fans of Rome. However, it would be the last goal that Rome would score in the S81 Renaissance Cup Finals. Stockholm went on to score 4 more goals, sweeping the series after an 8-2 Game 4 victory.
Words from Stockholm General Manager @thadthrasher
I want to begin by saying just how happy I am with the way this season went. The beginning of the season was not looking the best, and halfway through we were not ranked very well. According to @KaleebtheMighty, in this article, and rightly so, we were looking to be 5th overall and lose to Cologne in game 7 of the Semi-Finals. Fortunately for us, that’s not how it went down.
 
While it’s hard to pick out any one player to be called our Most Valuable Player during the playoffs, the statistics clearly point to one. Playing all 9 games, and with more than 2 points per game, totaling 20, this player was a clear selection for MVP (at least in my eyes). With 9 goals, 11 assists, and a 12+/-, Florida Man @zepheter was clearly the Playoff MVP. Of course, every player on the Vikings contributed to the overall victory of the team.
 
I want to extend a special thanks to my amazing Assistant General Manager @Kisslinger. This man was ready, willing and able to talk shop at any point. Multiple phone calls were had between us throughout the season, and many hours were spent strategizing, redoing lines, and figuring out what we would do with trades. On top of that, he was happy to take the reigns of Stockholm over the last few days while I’ve been adjusting to being a father. He submitted lines for the last few series, and kept the team hyped. Truly, I don’t think I could have done this without his help!
 
Finally, and as corny as possible, I dedicate this Renaissance Cup victory to my son, Wesley. As @BarzalGoat pointed out in our VHLE GM Corner, “it wasn’t fair that I had to play you immediately after you got a child, that’s unstoppable power.” You, sir, were correct. We couldn’t have done this without the unstoppable power of Wesley (the future supreme overlord of VHL).
 
#thanksBabySales
---
1024 words claiming weeks ending 16, 23 January 2022

@N0HBDY