hylands

Review: 7/10
Great job on the logo swap. They aren't as easy as one might think. I like the overall design. I would have liked to see a bit of detail in your render, which was nicely cut out. The background works with your design but I think a touch of lighting would make it even better. Your text is well placed, your font effects are a little too much. This is all subjective and it might be the look you were going for. Well done, keep working.
 

Here we are in the off season between seasons 71 and 72, sitting with an upcoming prospect in Chris Hylands. We asked some questions about life in Mexico City, the upcoming draft and the VHL in general. We caught up with Chris at his apartment in Mexico City where he is staying during his downtime. When asked about the looming VHL Entry Draft, he was very coy stating "I'm really not sure where I'm going to end up. I've had a couple phone calls but nothing really major, I'm just trying to focus on what I can do to generate some interest". It was a somewhat tough season for Hylands this year, only managing 34 points in 72 games but he doesn't seem bothered by that fact. "My play speaks for it self, I think anybody that looks over me for low point production will be kicking themselves".
 
Chris says he is a huge home body, not really getting out too much, but his favourite meal in the city is a huge burrito from a local burrito place. "Honestly, the thought of being around Mexican food all the time was a huge draw initially, because it really is my guilty pleasure". Off the ice Chris has struck up a friendship with the giant Thomas Moore, who recently revealed he is actually a Russian by the name of Viktor Alexei Kamenov. "Honestly I had no idea, because this guy has one of the thickest Canadian accents I've ever heard! He had the whole team fooled. It doesn't change how anybody feels about him, he is still our gentle giant", as Chris laughs.
 
It's pretty clear to see that Chris is headed in the right direction and could turn out to be an asset for any team, but he won't let the hype get to his head. "Oh yea, I've heard what people are saying, but I really try not to read too much in to it. Things can change really fast around here". We're looking forward to hearing more from the upcoming draftee in the coming months.

Here we are in the off season between seasons 71 and 72, sitting with an upcoming prospect in Chris Hylands. We asked some questions about life in Mexico City, the upcoming draft and the VHL in general. We caught up with Chris at his apartment in Mexico City where he is staying during his downtime. When asked about the looming VHL Entry Draft, he was very coy stating "I'm really not sure where I'm going to end up. I've had a couple phone calls but nothing really major, I'm just trying to focus on what I can do to generate some interest". It was a somewhat tough season for Hylands this year, only managing 34 points in 72 games but he doesn't seem bothered by that fact. "My play speaks for it self, I think anybody that looks over me for low point production will be kicking themselves".
 
Chris says he is a huge home body, not really getting out too much, but his favourite meal in the city is a huge burrito from a local burrito place. "Honestly, the thought of being around Mexican food all the time was a huge draw initially, because it really is my guilty pleasure". Off the ice Chris has struck up a friendship with the giant Thomas Moore, who recently revealed he is actually a Russian by the name of Viktor Alexei Kamenov. "Honestly I had no idea, because this guy has one of the thickest Canadian accents I've ever heard! He had the whole team fooled. It doesn't change how anybody feels about him, he is still our gentle giant", as Chris laughs.
 
It's pretty clear to see that Chris is headed in the right direction and could turn out to be an asset for any team, but he won't let the hype get to his head. "Oh yea, I've heard what people are saying, but I really try not to read too much in to it. Things can change really fast around here". We're looking forward to hearing more from the upcoming draftee in the coming months.

Here we are in the off season between seasons 71 and 72, sitting with an upcoming prospect in Chris Hylands. We asked some questions about life in Mexico City, the upcoming draft and the VHL in general. We caught up with Chris at his apartment in Mexico City where he is staying during his downtime. When asked about the looming VHL Entry Draft, he was very coy stating "I'm really not sure where I'm going to end up. I've had a couple phone calls but nothing really major, I'm just trying to focus on what I can do to generate some interest". It was a somewhat tough season for Hylands this year, only managing 34 points in 72 games but he doesn't seem bothered by that fact. "My play speaks for it self, I think anybody that looks over me for low point production will be kicking themselves".
 
Chris says he is a huge home body, not really getting out too much, but his favourite meal in the city is a huge burrito from a local burrito place. "Honestly, the thought of being around Mexican food all the time was a huge draw initially, because it really is my guilty pleasure". Off the ice Chris has struck up a friendship with the giant Thomas Moore, who recently revealed he is actually a Russian by the name of Viktor Alexei Kamenov. "Honestly I had no idea, because this guy has one of the thickest Canadian accents I've ever heard! He had the whole team fooled. It doesn't change how anybody feels about him, he is still our gentle giant", as Chris laughs.
 
It's pretty clear to see that Chris is headed in the right direction and could turn out to be an asset for any team, but he won't let the hype get to his head. "Oh yea, I've heard what people are saying, but I really try not to read too much in to it. Things can change really fast around here". We're looking forward to hearing more from the upcoming draftee in the coming months.

Idk if Mr. Berocka is still running his All-Star competition but this was the logo I whipped up for it. Location: Washington D.C.
 

You know what really grinds my gears…when we do recruitment drives the days surrounding the VHLM draft. THIS IS NOT OKAY.
 
1) For both the VHL and VHLM drafts, newbies want to be able to have a chance to figure out how to do things before getting chucked into the draft – OR HAVING TO WATCH A DRAFT HAPPEN BEFORE THEIR EYES THE FIRST DAY AND NOT BE ELIGIBLE.
 
2) MAJOR STRESS on GMs. Not only do we have to figure out our draft shit, but we have to deal with an unrealistic amount of recreates and we always have to try and figure out if they are eligible or not and THIS IS NEVER MADE CLEAR AND RECRUITMENT DRIVES CONTINUE TO HAPPEN ON DRAFT DAYS. STOP. IT. AT LEAST DO IT A WEEK BEFORE OR SOMETHING.
 
3) Minimizing TPE earning for newbies. You know how awful it is to tell your players they will never catch up to others TPE because they joined at the draft (or at the start of the season) and will never catch up to the other players who started earning at the TDL. So fun… Awful for retention smh.
 
ALSO STOP PAYING SHIT YOUTUBERS FOR ADVERTISING. SERIOUSLY! THIS IS A WASTE OF MONEY. THERE ARE FAR BETTER ADVERTISMENT STRATEGIES FOR MUCH LESS MONEY WHERE OUR AUDIENCE ISN’T A BUNCH OF 6 YEAR OLDS WITH MOMMY’S IPAD ON YOUTUBE.
 
/rant
 
234 words

1. It's been a tough season but I know we have some young guys with good potential coming up that can hopefully take that next step in the next week or so.
2. I'm a big fan of these rules, should help with retaining new recruits.
3. This is the only league I am in so I have no suggestions.
4. We tend to get outshot a lot every game, and those are some pretty huge guys so it makes sense a few pucks have hit them over the course of the year.
5. Probably just a nice BBQ with the boys.
6. Been really into Call of Duty the last few weeks!

BigTittySmitty's Guide to Recruitment and Retainment
 
Hello all and welcome to my first and hopefully my last guide on recruitment and retainment for the VHL. It's a free doubles week and to be honest that is the only reason why I am even doing this (more on this later). But seriously, for a league that has been around for so long it does make you wonder why the VHL has an issue recruiting people and after recruitment keeping those people. To be flat out honest, when I re-re-re-returned to the VHL my intention was simple. Create a player do enough to earn my free point task for PBE and leave. It's why when my buddy Bayley kept trying to recruit me to join the Las Vegas Aces as a Free Agent for this year it is why I did not want to join him. I didn't want to fuck him over but I did not want to reveal that was my intention because for me that is not cool to my friend and may have gotten him in trouble with VHL. Now you are all probably asking.. Smitty why did you stick around? What kept you coming back?
 
First and foremost that is quite simple. @Motzaburger has been a great GM for our team and has been keeping me engaged and when I had issues with the league he would talk to me about them and understand exactly where I was coming from and essentially did not shut me down and it even allowed for discussion with other members on how to improve the VHL. Which since one of my borrowed ideas is being discussed now with Head Office/Management/etc, I will still include it here as it has not been implemented. So without further ado I will begin my list.
 
Weird Ass Recruitment Times Let's be honest, the league decides to push recruitment at the weirdest times and I re-re-re-joined the VHL as I promised I would discuss later. I rejoined VHL from the PBE affiliation and to make a big push for the league recruitment mid-season with such a huge demand of people is crazy. If you want to recruit people from another league it would make more sense to have the start at the beginning of the season. 
  The Race to the Draft When I joined during a major recruitment time to get the next draft which was a few weeks to a month away from when I joined yet however when joining I thought I had an ample chance to potentially catch up and be a really good draft pick in my draft class. Oh boy was I wrong. Then now adding this new draft class for s73 which is after my s72 draft class. It makes me feel like asking myself the question. "Why bother?" For those who do not know the VHL allows players to earn TPE who have reached a benchmark for other players they made in an effort to try to keep those players around. However, that added perk just continues to make new prospects feel so far behind. I have earned 80 TPE and as per s72 Draft Class Rankings I am now ranked 32nd as per TPE. Where the top spot in my same draft class has 215 TPE lead over me and 37 TPE lead over 2nd place. Really? How can a new recruit feel welcomed and able to contribute if they feel they are always playing catch up. Then to add insult to injury the s73 Draft Class Rankings have just been released and I am already behind the leader there by 22 TPE. I am a year sooner into regression compared to them and I am already behind. What incentive or drive do I have to try to compete with them? What possible solutions could there be? Because I am already behind recruits if they feel they need to play catchup as let's be honest. If I am a GM why would I rather invest in an 80 TPE player right off the bat when there are players who have 3 times as much TPE compared to myself as a hot commodity. The only way I could feel the potential to catch up is the other avenue which is "pay to win." Is that what we want recruits to feel like the only way they could catch up to anyone in their draft is to buying loot boxes of TPE so they can catch up and maybe feel useful to their team? Solution 1: Scratch this and in place insert the ability to keep money between all players of a member When doing this they are forced to keep up and re-run the dog show race to earn TPE and keep things balanced assuming all were to start at the beginning of the season. The only added advantage they would have is they can buy a single piece of equipment compared to the other prospects without waiting. That in itself is a smaller gap to be able to climb compared to what we see now to my previous point about the weird ass recruitment times. Solution 2: With returning to Point 1 players who join at these times have missed time not through their own fault so I would propose a late joiners TPE that would allow these players to catch up on tasks (75% given to those based on schedule of maximum TPE they could have earned). 
  The Stupid Ass Rules for Point Tasks
Let me be real for anyone who is willing to listen and accept change and potentially make change for the better and the league is one where it has a reputation where if I may. It's like being in school all over again or for the younger audience being in school after school. Seriously? This is a league where we are here to escape the real world of professionalism and have a good time. However, the VHL has rules for Point Tasks that people can lose TPE for grammar. Seriously? Why would I be so inclined to write a media piece if I am being graded like I am in school and can earn less TPE because I am not great at grammar? I am a person acting as a hockey player who would release an op-ed to the media. It's not going to be perfect. It's not going to be pretty. It's going to be me writing to you all and maybe 6 people at most will read it with 2 being those who grade the pieces. Please see my random picture I have posted to be able to make sure I am eligible for all 6 TPE as per the rules. It's gotta be pretty you know. So, that means a random ass picture is required per the rulebook.
  The Old Boys Club When you hear from teams that the people running this site are slow to change and willing to adapt to even further better the rules and create a better form of parity and veterans mentioning "they are discussing your idea however it probably won't be implemented and it will take forever for them to potentially put in the idea if they even agree to". Many recruits will not feel welcomed about sharing ideas or wanting to participate with the general discussion of the league. Recruits see this as off putting non-inclusive so they go where they are welcomed and wanted. It's why other leagues don't have such an issue like this about recruitment. Between them and their older members it creates an us vs them mentality as the precious veterans don't want to lose their status.  
So here you have it folks. These are the biggest things that prevented me from coming back and if it wasn't for my GM who would listen to my concerns and make me feel valued then I probably would have dipped on them but I have grown to like Motza as a human being after coming in with the mindset of just coming in. Cashing my free PBE TPE and moving on. However, these major issues are the stumbling block for the VHL and they need to be addressed right away if the league is serious about retaining new members.
 
 
Word Count: 1,378 - April 20 - April 26 - Theme Week Doubles  
 

This should be marked as NSFW because it's TOO DAMN SEXY

@Hylands33

1. We are the best at not winning!
2. Been working on my passing, trying to rack up some Apples.
3. EDGE LORDS 4 LYFE
4. When Halloween comes around and people leave out a bowl of candy that has a sign that says "Please take just 1" I ALWAYS take 2
5. I can't really speak French but I understand it enough to get by.
6. We're gonna take away his Photoshop! >:C

Week ending 3/29/2020
 
1. What's your favorite skill to work on in practice? I love to do power skating. Just skate, skate, skate.
2. What's a question you'll use to get to know your new teammates? What is your favourite song?
3. How do you feel about the new measures to limit TPE inflation? As a brand new player in this league, I have not heard of these new measures.
4. If we had to postpone the VHLM season for some reason, how would you spend your time? I would probably be hitting the gym as often as physically possible.
5. What's your pump up song for the first game? Has to be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ql9-82oV2JE
6. Why do you think Motza likes Taylor Swift so much? Who doesn't like Tay Tay?

Week ending 3/29/2020
 
1. What's your favorite skill to work on in practice? I love to do power skating. Just skate, skate, skate.
2. What's a question you'll use to get to know your new teammates? What is your favourite song?
3. How do you feel about the new measures to limit TPE inflation? As a brand new player in this league, I have not heard of these new measures.
4. If we had to postpone the VHLM season for some reason, how would you spend your time? I would probably be hitting the gym as often as physically possible.
5. What's your pump up song for the first game? Has to be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ql9-82oV2JE
6. Why do you think Motza likes Taylor Swift so much? Who doesn't like Tay Tay?

Acepto
 
After careful consideration, I have chosen to sign with the Mexico City Kings. I would like to say thank you very much to the teams that have put in offers for me.