ahockeyguy

1. Why and when did you join the VHL? About two weeks ago. Just looking for an awesome sim and discovered this style. I found it very unique and I'm excited to participate! 2. How do you plan on earning TPE this season? I suppose the normal way. Practice, I love writing articles, so that plus VHL.com articles, reviewing, and press conferences, of course! 3. What do you like and/or dislike in a team discord locker room? I honestly haven't really done it, so I didn't have a lot of expectations. However, guys joking around, providing help for each other on build advice, getting extra TPE, things of that nature. I am really looking forward to discussing the games when they finally happen. 4. What strengths do you bring to the Marauders? I'm consistent, determined, and a hard-worker. In the locker room, I don't do drama, so I'd probably be a calming presence there. From a build perspective, I plan on improving defense, skating, puckhandling, shooting, and the like. I'm really looking forward to developing a D-man who can contribute on the offensive end as well. 5. What's the sports-related achievement you are most proud of? It actually came in a different sport! I played soccer a lot growing up, and going into the summer before my eighth grade year, our club's travel team hosted tryouts (I had only ever played rec soccer before). I actually asked a friend who was on the team if he thought I could make it, and he said no. I worked really hard, and there were some kids there who honestly belonged on the team ahead of me. But coach called and said because of my hard work and speed, I had made the team. It was the best year of club soccer of my life! 6. What are you doing to bring you happiness during the pandemic? Taking in a lot of hockey, spending time with my family, and trying to keep priorities straight. When stuff like this happens, you really want to make sure the things you value are the right ones.

Thanks for this! There's a lot of good stuff here. Because there is so much info, it might be better off segmented into separate paragraphs, possibly with their own sections. Just a suggestion though; this was really good! Score, 9.5/10

I loved this review of the draft. It gave player profiles, but not simply using stats as an input/output thing. Instead, this felt like a real player of a real team, which means you used the stats, player's history, your knowledge of VHL, and what your team needs to draw some interesting pictures for us! This is a very good contribution to the VHL culture; I can't wait to read more about the Phantoms! Score: 10/10

The following is a guest article from VHLM draftee hopeful Wolf Stansson. As I await my very first draft from VHLM, I am reminded of how lucky I am. Not lucky because of how great a prospect I am (I am, on the most recent list, the #23 overall prospect), or because of something innate. Rather, I am lucky to be in the presence of those who will train me, teach me, and coach me. They will do this to benefit their own teams and, ultimately, the future of their franchises. However, this will also benefit me and my career, and fulfill my dream of playing in the VHL. Though it is the VHLM I am starting with, I am neither disappointed nor merely attempting to skate by. It will be tough. Nothing will be handed to me. I will have to come to work each and every day with the mentality that I will outwork the competition; I will do my best to outthink them. Because, at the end of the day, the VHLM team that drafts me isn’t getting a blue-chip prospect. They’re getting the right one.

Nice read! I don't know enough about VHL/M to know the stats, but your guy has 12.72% shooting pct; in the NHL, at least, that's nothing to be ashamed of!

Welcome! I am new to the game also, and it's a great game! Hope you feel welcome here.

Maybe it's an implied possessive? It's the Updater Job Opening's thread. I don't know; just reaching, making stuff up.

I'm in!

In that case, I am interested!

Sorry, new guy. Is the STHS something that I'd need to purchase?

Gives me more time to "bulk up" haha.

Wolf Stansson 1. Where do you see yourself going in the draft? Honestly I am not sure. I'd love to go in the first round, but there are so many good D-men in the VHLM draft this season. 2. What do you think is your biggest selling point to VHL teams? I work hard, and I will consistently and constantly improve. I have a good learning curve, and I'm not afraid to work. 3. How do you feel you add to a lockerroom? I am a nice guy, a good presence, who tries to mediate between players. Thus, we can be unified going into games. I'm pretty social, and that helps. 4. Who will be the first person not in the room with you that you will call once you get drafted? My mother. She has always been my biggest supporter, and she hasn't been able to be around much since I relocated to North America from Iceland. 5. Out of all the players in the VHL, who do you model your game after? Perhaps Berocka Sundqvist. He's a champion! 6. What do you want your legacy to be in the VHL? I want to be remembered as a player who could be a two-way defenseman, but also a tough, lock-down guy when necessary. Basically, I want the VHL quintessential defenseman to be me, when people think of it.

At VHL.com, we recently got a chance to sit down with VHLM draftee hopeful Wolf Stansson. Check out the interview below: VHL.com: So what do you think of the whole draft process so far, Wolf? WS: I love it. I love the draft rankings, just dreaming about where I might be playing next season, and the whole deal. VHL: Speaking of which, do you think you’re ranked correctly? Is there anything you would change? WS: I would like to see myself, higher, of course. However, the only way to know you’re higher is to truly know where your competition should be. I honestly don’t think I know the others well enough to say who should be where. Who should be ranked below me who is currently ranked ahead? I really can’t say. VHL: How long do you expect to be in VHLM before going to the VHL. WS: As long as it takes for me to be VHL-ready. [Laughs] I know that’s kind of a non-answer. In all seriousness, though, I expect to spend a couple of seasons in VHLM. I can learn a lot, and I can contribute a lot as well. VHL: Call it right now: how many goals will you score? WS: Between 10 and 15. So 12. I’ll go with that. VHL: We’ll hold you to it! Thanks, Wolf.

As promised in our recent article, today we got a brief sit-down with VHLM draftee hopeful defenseman Wolf Stansson. In this interview, we’ll discuss his career trajectory, some things he likes, and even sushi. ME: So, Wolf, great to have you with us today. WS: Thanks, it’s nice of you to have me. ME: You don’t hear of many players coming to the VHL from Iceland. At least, it’s not the most popular place to hail from. What made you so interested in the VHL? WS: Well, as you may know, I fell in love with hockey from a young age. Watching it, playing it, following all the players, teams, and stats (when I got older). The VHL is just a natural place to dream about playing, because it’s where all the great players and teams are. You just want to be the best. ME: Do you think you could play in the VHL right now? Are you good enough? WS, laughing: No, no, not right now. That’s what the VHLM is for. It’s for players like me to get a chance to develop and become stars in the VHLM, so that we can be good enough for the VHL later. ME: That’s an interestingly grounded take. Most guys your age [17] are pretty into ‘tooting their own horn’ [at this point, Stansson cocks his head at me, not getting the reference]—sorry, they want to brag about their own abilities. WS: Well, don’t get me wrong, I am confident. But I am not going to be cocky. I won’t lie, though—I love seeing some of these North American players and their egos. Cocky, arrogant, American? I like that. ME: What do you think is best about your game? WS: Honestly, my defense has improved a lot since I first started. I am a puck-seeking maniac. I’m going to do my best out there to be first to it, and if I can’t be first to a loose puck, to anticipate where it will go from there. Positioning is key in my game. ME: What do you think needs to be improved the most? WS: That’s a tough question [laughs]. I need better discipline and strength. For now, I plan on improving in core skills. These core skills will help me become a better VHLM player, and get me that experience that I need to become a well-rounded player. Improving my skating, scoring, puckhandling—these are all priorities. And don’t forget learning on defense. I am going to have a steep learning curve, and it will be good to keep getting better on what I am already good at. ME: What do you think about the upcoming draft? WS: I am so new here, I really don’t have much thoughts on it. I am excited to be drafted, and very hopeful that it takes place in the first round or two. ME: But at present you’re the #23 prospect, and #10 defenseman. Do you really think you’ll go in the first two rounds? WS: I think it’s possible. Teams have to see the real me, and what I can do. What I can become. ME: What’s your favorite movie? WS: Miracle, or perhaps one of the Rocky movies. Somehow, you end up empathizing with that Drago fellow, yes? His whole country is placing enormous pressure on him. ME: What about favorite foods? Are you into sushi? WS: I love to eat fried fish. But sushi? No thanks. ME: Thanks for joining us, Wolf, and best of luck to you on the upcoming draft and season! WS: Thanks!

I love this! As a newcomer to VHL(M), I don't know the history, the players, the famous teams, Hall-of-Famers, anything. This read had me wanting more. I loved the background because it helped me to understand the basic context. You had everything for a newcomer to digest: how the VHLM was structured compared to now, the history of the team, how long players used to stay in VHLM, and how affiliations changed. You drew me in with a tease for how this team that seemingly teetered on irrelevancy used the draft (prior to the draft rule) to construct something league-altering. And now I am dying to know what it is, how it worked--the whole story! Great job, and I look forward to the next one. Score: 10/10.

This is great stuff man; love the rivalry. For those who missed out, it might have been good to include a quote or two establishing the escalating nature, or the seriousness of the back-and-forth. I thought it was great the way you included the quote you did and the analysis. Analysis helps your audience get the main point without it having to be explicit in every quote. I also loved the "wait-and-see" of the developing rivalry, like you would get from a blogger from the outside. Great stuff, keep it up! 9.9/10

Wolf Stansson is now 17 years old. He stands six-foot-two, and his parents, at least, are not sure if he’s done growing. After falling in love with hockey as a young child, his parents sacrificed what they could to be sure Stansson could play. “I wanted to play forward; score a bunch every game,” Stansson recalls, laughing. After a few seasons of rec hockey, the Stanssons could see that Wolf wanted to become more serious about the game. They had him complete a tryout for a spot on an Icelandic junior team. At the age of 13, he found himself dominating the tryouts. “He would just skate circles around them,” claims Jan Stansson, Wolf’s father. “Back then, everyone just wanted to play in the IHL [Icelandic Hockey League]. That was Wolf’s dream, too.” Stansson’s coaches at the time (the leaders of the tryout) got together and decided there was a lot of potential there. But they couldn’t simply let that potential languish a year playing with other kids his age. He had his skill, to be sure, but he wouldn’t develop the needed areas of his game. For example, Stansson didn’t play defense. Whenever his team didn’t have the puck, he would circle center ice or, if he had to, near his own blue line, waiting for either a pass or a loose puck to collect, power into the offensive zone and either try out a new deke or blast it from the faceoff circle. While he could get away with that in his current context, the coaches knew it would only be a matter of time before it caught up to him. “In some cases, it’s worse for a player to be so much better than his peers,” said one of the coaches, who preferred to remain anonymous. “Because then they don’t work. They don’t work, they don’t develop, and no matter how talented they are, eventually they reach a point where the others—who have been working hard every day—are now at or beyond their skill level.” The decision was made: Stansson was going to play with 14-year-olds. They were, on average, bigger, stronger, faster—they had more facial hair. “They also didn’t want to be shown up by a 13-year-old,” Jan laughs. His new coaches didn’t let Wolf play forward—they moved him to defenseman to teach him to play two-way hockey, and would penalize him when he didn’t. At first, Stansson struggled. But he learned, appearing in 18 games and scoring 12 goals with 19 assists. He finished with a +7 and 30 PIMs. Perhaps most impressive: he didn’t record a goal in his first four games, registering just three shots on goal. This was due to his coaches hammering home that defensive philosophy. “Once they felt I had it,” Wolf casually says, “They let me shoot again.” But with the next season came a new challenge for the 14-year-old: blocking shots. After getting control of the fundamentals of two-way hockey, he learned he needed to sacrifice his body. Now playing with 15-year-olds, that could often hurt. This would be his final year before playing major junior hockey. He once again played in all 18 games, this time scoring 14 goals and dishing for 21 assists, while recording a +/- rating of +11 and only 14 PIMs. During his two years of Icelandic major junior hockey, Wolf learned not only discipline, but when he needed to fire up his team. Playing for the Ísafjörður Warriors, Stansson appeared in 71 of 72 games, scoring 37 goals and 43 assists to go with 40 PIMs across two seasons. His final season, the Warriors went 30-5-1 and undefeated in the playoffs to win the Icelandic Major Junior Hockey championship. Stansson captured the Defenseman of the Year Award, and the sky’s the limit for the young D-man when it comes to the VHLM.

Thanks for the mention! It was only my first week, but I can see I've still got my work cut out for me.

Two more questions! 1) When do we think the next draft will be? and 2) What is a normal timeframe for approved TPE? (as in, how long after submission is it normally approved/rejected?) Thanks for all the help, guys!

Thanks, apparently I didn't save those notes haha. Now I know. Also claimed the +12!

Yet another question haha. You guys have been so helpful so far! I saved some notes on the notepad of my player manager page. Where can I find those notes now?

Wolf Stansson is Iceland’s newest export. He’s not a diplomat, businessman, or government official. He’s not going to address the United Nations. Instead, he’s come to North America as a skilled defenseman, looking for work with any VHLM team that wants to make use of his services appropriately. Stansson is 6’1”, 184 pounds, and just 17 years old. With his attributes having time to grow, Stansson could develop into a nice two-way defenseman. When asked about this, he responded, “I really like to skate out of the zone with the puck, kind of leading the rush.” This is what Stansson does. Although he currently passes far more than he probably should in the training camps this scout has seen, Stansson seems to possess significant upside when it comes to the offensive end. His skating, honestly, could use work. And his puckhandling betrays the fact that Iceland’s junior leagues simply cannot compete with what the United States and Canada have to offer. But there’s a reason he’s here. He’s the best prospect to come out of Iceland in a long time, and Stansson possesses a lot of raw talent. He’s a hard worker, and with that hard work, good things may well result.

Wolf Stansson sighs, barely audibly, and looks to the ground briefly before politely smiling back at his interlocutor. He is tired of being asked the same question, over and over, since he has come to North American shores to play hockey on a more competitive level. “No,” he says calmly, “I’m not from Reykjavik.” In fact, Stansson was born and raised in Ísafjörður, in northwest Iceland. He played hockey in a nation not known for doing so, and now, he wanted advanced training in North America. Stansson had a natural talent for hockey, something that was plain to see to his coaches as early as ten years old. But to his parents, it was noticeable much earlier. “He saw his first hockey game on TV when he was four,” Jan Stansson, Wolf’s father, beamed proudly. “And I think he was hooked from then on.” Wolf played junior hockey in Iceland (not to be confused with the junior level Americans and Canadians are used to) from the ages of 13 to 16. At age 13, he so dominated the others at the early tryouts that they sent him to play with the 14-year-olds. Even as a defensemen, Stansson scored a dozen goals in 18 games, and added 19 assists. The next year he was even more dominant, but this was most reflected in his low penalty minutes and high plus-minus rating. By the time he was 16, he was six feet tall, 170 pounds and destroying his competition day-in and day-out. He knew he needed a change. “It wasn’t like I was tired of winning,” Wolf says, pointing to a newspaper article dealing with Ísafjörður’s junior team capturing the Icelandic championship. “But my dream is to make it to the VHL. And I don’t think I can do that from Iceland.” On the advice of his coaches, and meeting with his parents, Wolf Stansson decided to move to North America. They didn’t have a lot of money, but they did have connections, and these connections paved the way for off-season training. “I didn’t have an off-season. Not that I am complaining!” he laughed. Stansson focused on becoming a two-way player, learning discipline to avoid penalty minutes while playing smart hockey. “It wasn’t like I didn’t know how to play defense,” Wolf says, “But I was just so used to being able to physically dominate. That’s not the case here.” Indeed. In fact, Stansson found himself having to hold, hook, and chase players who were just as big, and just as talented—or more so. “I think it was a real wakeup call,” said Jan, who stays with Wolf most days on a rotating basis with his wife. Building endurance, developing his skills, and learning to anticipate the play were key to his development. “I had to learn to constantly be thinking ahead, while playing out what I was supposed to do in the moment. It is, at first, very overwhelming. But when you get it, it’s very rewarding,” Wolf confesses. He’s hoping that all of the sacrifice, all of the hours, and all of the training is going to pay off with a good draft selection in the upcoming VHLM draft. In our next Media Spot, we will sit down and conduct an interview with Wolf Stansson on what he expects from the upcoming draft and season.

Thanks so much for the welcome!