JeffD

S84
 
Transaction ID: 5FC36953FH754264F
 
Free Week - Claiming week of 06/26
Doubles Week
5 Uncapped TPE - Claiming week of 06/26

Prague receives:
S86 CHI 2nd

Chicago receives:
Red Gaming


This trade has been accepted by all parties and is pending league approval.

The E draft is soon and I'll have to witness on how far AK is going to drop. Or not. He has a good amount of TPE so he deserves to be high. Also, I won't even watch that draft because hedge sleep meme. Don't know much about the draft, I just know Istanbul has 5 picks in the first two drafts, that's wassup. Also, I've been contanced by 3 teams so far. One of them had to move out from talks quickly as they have too much defensmans. But hey, thanks for talking regardless.
 
The offseason is about to end...in a week and half? Good lord, that's a long time. I guess thanks, cause I'm not gonna pay much attention to sim leagues from thursday to sunday and maybe even beyond. I've heard we're finally getting some heat and I'm ecstatic about it. Who cares about sim leagues when you can go to the beach and chill.
 
Anyways yeah, only one trade from Riga so far. Carter had to go and considering he was pending FA. The price was somewhat fine. Got a second rounder plus a player on ELC which certainnly gives us an opportunity to make a decent roster with some depth. Another idea for a trade is swirling around so we may see an interesting trade soon probably. Speaking of which, @Frank is in shambles. His player is still hanging on Toronto and having a very uncertain future cause the cap space and stuff. I guess someone like Chicago is gonna put a cheap ass price to take him and make a decent contender, but hot damn. Also, Oilman retiring just to give Seattle a cap relief, that's some lmao moment. Not much sympathy for this team cause they managed to rob A FIRST ROUND PICK away from NY for pre much a cap dump. They'll be fine I reckon. And they did sign a 5.5M deal with a player who has a questionable build and already used the free reroll option...are they really really trying to go back to back?
 
Anyways, EU conference is still a dogfight. 7 teams are having a chance for the playoffs and only Malmo can relax and dream about winning the first overall pick.
 
Moscow - lost Idaho which is a hella blow imo. I know other players did good too, but not having this player might have a negative effect on offense. Still a major contender;
Warsaw - looks pretty dangerous, but what's up with low skating defs. sheesh;
Riga - the roster not ready yet lol. But should be fine regardless;
Helsinki - finally a decent roster, though defense is a question. Think they should make it this season....to the playoffs, I did say nothing about winning it all;
Davos - Alex is having his quest for the GMoTY award. team is depending too much on two big time forwards and goaltending. Might squeak into the post season;
Prague - trying to step back from contending, but their offense is still decent. Might have some fight left in them;
London - Dil is coasting to the rebuild sooner than later so he didn't do much this season. Probably too mid to make it.
Malmo - no stress.
 
But hey, NA is finally having some life too. DC brought Idaho, Calgary fortifying their D spot, Chicago is somewhere there lurking too. Too bad the playoff fight there is still too predictable but hey, at least some movements there.
 
Ok, enough words. That's it and I'm out.

The feeling when you are a gold medalist is perfection. Team Europe finished 1st in the World Junior Championship after defeating Team Asia 3-2. Fraser Wallace, Phoebe Bridgers, and Harry Hagel each brought a goal to Team Europe for a win. Tomas Sogaard, Leandro Goncalves, Marcel Janser, and P.J. Daniels all provided assists for the team. It was truly an outstanding collective effort to end the season. Team Asia ended up with the silver medals but they had a fantastic performance and it required us to perform with excellence throughout the three periods. 
 
Meanwhile, Team Canada earned a dominant victory over Team USA for a bronze medal in overtime. Bob Chicone and Cameron Elsby's contribution to the team helped overcome Team USA in a thriller. Jake Thunder had a goal and an assist for Team USA but that wasn't enough to pull them over the edge. 
 
For Team Europe, this is sweet revenge and redemption from last year. This time, they can be labeled as winners. There was a winning mentality in that locker room, therefore, they won. Leandrofg deserves all the credit for building this team. He grabbed the attention of the best talent in the VHL. I can't wait to repeat with this group. It has so much potential to become a dynasty in the upcoming years. The feeling of becoming a winner can't be described. The emotions that run through you as a player are immense. Once you become a winner, you'll stay with that winning mentality. That's why the best players to ever play this game haven't lost a touch. 
 
The S84 VHL Entry Draft has been completed and the Los Angeles Stars have picked their goalie for the future, Art Vandelay. The Stars also drafted Callum Murray to help with the defensive end of the hockey stick. Murray finished S83 with 12 goals, 23 assists, 35 points, and 84 shots blocked with the Cologne Express. Las Vegas Aces star Dogwood Maple was drafted by the Vancouver Wolves. Perhaps he is the fire to re-ignite the Wolves' dynasty. The Prague Phantoms also had two picks in the first round, drafting Clueless Wallop and "Faith Hope Love" with picks 6 and 11. 
 
I believe that Napoleon Dynamite will be the best player out of the S84 VHL Entry Draft. His season with the Bratislava Watchmen has been inspiring for any upcoming center in the league. He finished his previous season with 18 goals, 27 assists, 45 points, and 243 shot attempts. He also had a 7 +/- in the regular season. He had 4 goals, 6 assists, 10 points, and 50 shot attempts in the playoffs. That's still impressive for a young center at the age of 16. The sky's the limit for this man and a team like HC Davos Dynamo will develop his traits into becoming one of the best centers for future generations. 
 
My journey with the Chicago Phoenix has started. It's been a fun season with the Stockholm Vikings, now it's my time to shine on the big stages. This is an opportunity that only comes once in life, so put out your best effort for others to see.

Julia Waffles has accepted a Signing Offer from Chicago:

S84: $2,000,000

The Board Game Clue On Skates has accepted a Signing Offer from Chicago:

S85: $1,000,000 (NTC)

S86: $1,000,000 (NTC)

S87: $1,000,000 (NTC)

S88: $1,000,000 (NTC)

S89: $1,000,000 (NTC)
Option: Mutual

Hey @Baby Boomer welcome to Chicago! I accepted this while away on a trip so I couldn’t give you a proper welcome but I’m super glad we could add you to the squad.
 
Hoping to do big things over the next few seasons here.

Hello everyone, 
 
Welcome to the thirtieth chapter of Baby Bob's life story. In this life story we will talk about the life of Baby, when he was young, his thoughts and his impressions before the drafts, during the seasons and during the playoffs. Baby Bob will also respond to questions from the fans, from the GMs and from the leaders of the VHL, the VHLE and the VHLM. I know, I know and I am very very sorry guys. This has been a very long time since the last chapter of Baby Bob’s life and again, I am sorry, but I am here now. I could give you a lot of different excuses, but I don’t have to and I don’t want to lie to you all. In this chapter, we will do a recap of the entire S83 of Baby Bob and what happened in this very early off-season. We will also talk about Bob’s future in the VHL. 
 
After having more than 30 goals, 90 points and a differential of at least +30 in his first two season in the VHL with the Prague Phantoms, Baby Bob’s objectives were very high. Even though, he was only at his thirs season, Bob was starting to become a veteran in the locker room. He is a very good player and he knows how to show the way to his teammates. Even with all the expectations and the objectives, it was not an easy season for Baby Bob. With only 83 points in 72 games, it was the worst season in terms of points for him. This season was not all bad as he scored 39 goals, his personal best, and had a differential of plus/minus of 41. Bob also had an incredible amount of shots (520) and finished 9th for the most shots in the league.  
 
Baby Bob, who had some difficulties in the past playoffs, scored 6 goals and added 5 assists for a total of 11 points in 10 games. Even if the team did not make it too far in the playoffs, Bob can be proud of what he did in the playoffs. 
 
Yesterday, Baby Bob heard a big news that was going to change his career. He got traded. Baby Bob’s contract has only one year left and he was going to be free to go everywhere. Bob saw that the team was going no where after a couple of good season, so he decided to talk to Acyd @Acydburn, Prague’s GM, and he asked for a trade. Acyd agreed and Baby Bob got traded to the Chicago Phoenix in exchange for a S85 CHI 1st round pick. The Phoenix are a team getting out of a rebuild and are getting ready to compete in the playoffs. 
 
Here are Baby Bob’s comments about the trade : 
 
« The Phantoms are entering a rebuild and I don’t think that I would have been of any help on the team, so I decided to ask for a trade. I would like to thank the entire organization of the Phantoms Prague for the incredible last three years and I wish them the best of luck in the future. I am really excited to start playing with the Phoenix next season. » 
 
Thanks for reading and see you next week for more of the life story of Baby Bob. 
558 words 
13 june – 19 june 

Hey @Baby Boomer welcome to Chicago! I accepted this while away on a trip so I couldn’t give you a proper welcome but I’m super glad we could add you to the squad.
 
Hoping to do big things over the next few seasons here.

It is theme week and I finally have a player again so it is time to talk about who I appreciate within the league. I’ve been in and out of the VHL since the very start almost 15 years ago, and returned to full activity almost exactly three years ago, so I have interacted with a lot of different members from different eras during my time here. I’m not quite sure which direction this article is going to go in yet but let’s see where typing this up takes me. Let’s talk about some of the people I appreciate most in the VHL.
 
@solas - Jean Pierre Camus was my first draft pick as the Chicago Phoenix GM and he, along with most of the core selected in those first couple of seasons, decided to take a flier on me as a general manager and play their entire careers with us. Solas quickly became one of my favourite VHL members while talking to him in our locker room and his personality was definitely a huge part of why those early Chicago locker room days, despite all the losing and lack of players, were bearable. Between his insane Jeopardy knowledge and his willingness to really just talk about anything he is an enormous reason why the Chciago locker room became what it did during the peak years, and I have no doubt in my mind my tenure as Chicago general manager would not have been nearly as enjoyable as it has been if I had no selected his player 7th overall all those season’s ago.
 
@fishy - Mine and fishy’s VHL interactions did not get off to the best of starts way back when I drafted their player, Matty Socks, 22nd overall in S73. It was my first draft as a VHL general manager and while I reached out to players I considered with my top end picks, I had not reached out to fishy before selecting Socks. Of course since then Socks ended up playing his entire career with the Chicago Phoenix, and there are many things that I appreciate about fishy, but the first thing was that they gave me perspective on what it meant to be a general manager and how much even a low effort thing such as reaching out to a prospect, even if they are not one at the top of draft boards, can mean to that person. Ever since then I have made an effort to reach out to a lot more players in draft classes and the positive feedback I have received from doing so has made it completely worth it.
 
@Quik - Although he isn’t around too much anymore Quik is a user that I have always appreciated in the VHL. I first was in leagues with Quik before the VHL was a thing and Scotty was running leagues using a Playstation 2, and we interacted every once in a while. However when I selected Christian Mingle second overall in the S74 draft and had him join the Chicago locker room I knew immediately I had made the right selection. Not only was Quik, with all of his experience throughout the years in the VHL, a great resource for myself as a new general manager, his personality and willingness to bring activity to the Chicago locker room really galvanized that core into the powerhouse it became. Quik would instantly answer any questions I had and would often give me suggestions that would lead to further success for the team, but his biggest contribution was his ability to make friends with everyone on the team and really keep those users together. Quik was the special ingredient that made those Chicago teams what they were and for that I appreciate him and hope he can make a return in the future.
 
@Blazzer - Blazzer is no longer active in the VHL but still comes by the Chicago locker room every once in a while and it is always a nice surprise when she does. My first interactions with Blazzer were when she, Quik and myself would be talking in the VHL general chat early in the mornings and the topic of conversation often turned to Quik’s post-coffee bowel movements. After selecting Quik’s player with the second overall pick in the draft, and knowing how social Blazzer was with Quik and myself, I made it an absolute priority to pick her player, and it may have been one of the best picks I ever could have made. Blazzer soon became my first, and only to date, assistant general manager and was an immense help to me in my role. Someday we will have to play some Valorant if you still do.
 
I guess this just kind of became a Chicago Phoenix appreciation post but honestly it would be kind of hard for it not to be. These four users, all of whom played their entire careers for the Phoenix, made what would normally be a very tough job as a VHL general manager very easy.  While building this early Chicago core I tried to prioritize the members over the players but even I had no idea that this group would become what it did. I am just very happy that through the tough times that the pandemic brought upon us I could have this small group of users that I could pretty much talk to about anything without judgment, and I hope all of them felt the same way. I’m not sure I truly appreciated what we had at the time but if I had not had that locker room to distract me throughout those times of isolation I’m not sure how I would have coped with that terrible situation. The ability to just hop into Discord at any moment and be able to talk about anything was a godsend during those times.
 
Anyway this has kind of dragged on at this point, and I did not expect to write this much so late on a Sunday, but it kind of just happened. There are of course many other members I appreciate for many different reasons, but these were the four that popped into my mind first, and it kind of fit a theme.
 
1039 words - claiming 5/29 and 6/5

Condition: S86 LDN 3rd becomes S86 LDN 2nd if Johnny Xavier signs a minimum 2 year extension with London @Rayzor_7

Sunrise van de Schubbekuteveen has accepted a Signing Offer from Chicago:

S84: $3,000,000

Well now that the season is officially wrapped up, I suppose it is time for some reflection. Going into this season, Scotty Sundin already achieved his main goal which was getting to the big leagues for S83. Mission achieved. It was a lot of hard work, but Sundin was able to make the jump and join his fellow rookie teammates for what ended up being a hell of a first season in the Windy City. If you look at the stats, you can see that an extra season of grooming may have been optimal. Both the Board Game Clue on Skates and Bo Johansson opted to spend a year over in Europe to fine-tune their games before coming over to Chicago. On paper, it seems like that was the right call as they both put up superior numbers to Sundin's, but at the end of the day, everyone on the team chipped in and played their best. All of these players have some experience under their belt now and going forward they will be mentoring the next wave of young talent to come up to the Phoenix. This team is just getting started, and the best is yet to come!

@youloser1337can you add me to the ping list? I should start doing this stuff.

Getting drafted into the VHLM should be fun - can't wait to go through the draft process as a player for the first time in a VERY long time.
 
 
From a general managers perspective I really liked it. It was fun to watch players come up with different builds rather than the same old with the old system. Should be fun to see it evolve.
 
 
Miss Vickie's Jalapeno is probably my favourite of all-time. So good.
 
1. Let's say you get asked to play one song at a party - which song are you choosing?
2. What is your favourite part of the VHL off-season? How about your least favourite?
3. If you had to choose one team that you think will win the championship in the VHL next season who would it be?

It is theme week and I finally have a player again so it is time to talk about who I appreciate within the league. I’ve been in and out of the VHL since the very start almost 15 years ago, and returned to full activity almost exactly three years ago, so I have interacted with a lot of different members from different eras during my time here. I’m not quite sure which direction this article is going to go in yet but let’s see where typing this up takes me. Let’s talk about some of the people I appreciate most in the VHL.
 
@solas - Jean Pierre Camus was my first draft pick as the Chicago Phoenix GM and he, along with most of the core selected in those first couple of seasons, decided to take a flier on me as a general manager and play their entire careers with us. Solas quickly became one of my favourite VHL members while talking to him in our locker room and his personality was definitely a huge part of why those early Chicago locker room days, despite all the losing and lack of players, were bearable. Between his insane Jeopardy knowledge and his willingness to really just talk about anything he is an enormous reason why the Chciago locker room became what it did during the peak years, and I have no doubt in my mind my tenure as Chicago general manager would not have been nearly as enjoyable as it has been if I had no selected his player 7th overall all those season’s ago.
 
@fishy - Mine and fishy’s VHL interactions did not get off to the best of starts way back when I drafted their player, Matty Socks, 22nd overall in S73. It was my first draft as a VHL general manager and while I reached out to players I considered with my top end picks, I had not reached out to fishy before selecting Socks. Of course since then Socks ended up playing his entire career with the Chicago Phoenix, and there are many things that I appreciate about fishy, but the first thing was that they gave me perspective on what it meant to be a general manager and how much even a low effort thing such as reaching out to a prospect, even if they are not one at the top of draft boards, can mean to that person. Ever since then I have made an effort to reach out to a lot more players in draft classes and the positive feedback I have received from doing so has made it completely worth it.
 
@Quik - Although he isn’t around too much anymore Quik is a user that I have always appreciated in the VHL. I first was in leagues with Quik before the VHL was a thing and Scotty was running leagues using a Playstation 2, and we interacted every once in a while. However when I selected Christian Mingle second overall in the S74 draft and had him join the Chicago locker room I knew immediately I had made the right selection. Not only was Quik, with all of his experience throughout the years in the VHL, a great resource for myself as a new general manager, his personality and willingness to bring activity to the Chicago locker room really galvanized that core into the powerhouse it became. Quik would instantly answer any questions I had and would often give me suggestions that would lead to further success for the team, but his biggest contribution was his ability to make friends with everyone on the team and really keep those users together. Quik was the special ingredient that made those Chicago teams what they were and for that I appreciate him and hope he can make a return in the future.
 
@Blazzer - Blazzer is no longer active in the VHL but still comes by the Chicago locker room every once in a while and it is always a nice surprise when she does. My first interactions with Blazzer were when she, Quik and myself would be talking in the VHL general chat early in the mornings and the topic of conversation often turned to Quik’s post-coffee bowel movements. After selecting Quik’s player with the second overall pick in the draft, and knowing how social Blazzer was with Quik and myself, I made it an absolute priority to pick her player, and it may have been one of the best picks I ever could have made. Blazzer soon became my first, and only to date, assistant general manager and was an immense help to me in my role. Someday we will have to play some Valorant if you still do.
 
I guess this just kind of became a Chicago Phoenix appreciation post but honestly it would be kind of hard for it not to be. These four users, all of whom played their entire careers for the Phoenix, made what would normally be a very tough job as a VHL general manager very easy.  While building this early Chicago core I tried to prioritize the members over the players but even I had no idea that this group would become what it did. I am just very happy that through the tough times that the pandemic brought upon us I could have this small group of users that I could pretty much talk to about anything without judgment, and I hope all of them felt the same way. I’m not sure I truly appreciated what we had at the time but if I had not had that locker room to distract me throughout those times of isolation I’m not sure how I would have coped with that terrible situation. The ability to just hop into Discord at any moment and be able to talk about anything was a godsend during those times.
 
Anyway this has kind of dragged on at this point, and I did not expect to write this much so late on a Sunday, but it kind of just happened. There are of course many other members I appreciate for many different reasons, but these were the four that popped into my mind first, and it kind of fit a theme.
 
1039 words - claiming 5/29 and 6/5

Well we did, but my thoughts before the last game would have been yes as well. Coming into the series, on paper, I think DC would have probably been viewed as the better team but after winning the first two we definitely were in the drivers seat.
 
 
Probably the guy that is a board game playing hockey.
 
 
Some people seem to believe so but in my time as a GM here I have never really noticed any tangible difference to it being added to a player.
 
 
Well answering this as the GM, I do have a pretty gnarly beard growing right now. Gotta trim that up for wedding season.
 
 
I don't think anyone in the league, myself included, would have had us making the playoffs AND winning a series just a season after we finished dead last in the league. Just shows how far a strong core can get you.
 
 
Brandt Fuhr had a hell of a season and should be a stud in the VHL for many seasons to come.

It is theme week and I finally have a player again so it is time to talk about who I appreciate within the league. I’ve been in and out of the VHL since the very start almost 15 years ago, and returned to full activity almost exactly three years ago, so I have interacted with a lot of different members from different eras during my time here. I’m not quite sure which direction this article is going to go in yet but let’s see where typing this up takes me. Let’s talk about some of the people I appreciate most in the VHL.
 
@solas - Jean Pierre Camus was my first draft pick as the Chicago Phoenix GM and he, along with most of the core selected in those first couple of seasons, decided to take a flier on me as a general manager and play their entire careers with us. Solas quickly became one of my favourite VHL members while talking to him in our locker room and his personality was definitely a huge part of why those early Chicago locker room days, despite all the losing and lack of players, were bearable. Between his insane Jeopardy knowledge and his willingness to really just talk about anything he is an enormous reason why the Chciago locker room became what it did during the peak years, and I have no doubt in my mind my tenure as Chicago general manager would not have been nearly as enjoyable as it has been if I had no selected his player 7th overall all those season’s ago.
 
@fishy - Mine and fishy’s VHL interactions did not get off to the best of starts way back when I drafted their player, Matty Socks, 22nd overall in S73. It was my first draft as a VHL general manager and while I reached out to players I considered with my top end picks, I had not reached out to fishy before selecting Socks. Of course since then Socks ended up playing his entire career with the Chicago Phoenix, and there are many things that I appreciate about fishy, but the first thing was that they gave me perspective on what it meant to be a general manager and how much even a low effort thing such as reaching out to a prospect, even if they are not one at the top of draft boards, can mean to that person. Ever since then I have made an effort to reach out to a lot more players in draft classes and the positive feedback I have received from doing so has made it completely worth it.
 
@Quik - Although he isn’t around too much anymore Quik is a user that I have always appreciated in the VHL. I first was in leagues with Quik before the VHL was a thing and Scotty was running leagues using a Playstation 2, and we interacted every once in a while. However when I selected Christian Mingle second overall in the S74 draft and had him join the Chicago locker room I knew immediately I had made the right selection. Not only was Quik, with all of his experience throughout the years in the VHL, a great resource for myself as a new general manager, his personality and willingness to bring activity to the Chicago locker room really galvanized that core into the powerhouse it became. Quik would instantly answer any questions I had and would often give me suggestions that would lead to further success for the team, but his biggest contribution was his ability to make friends with everyone on the team and really keep those users together. Quik was the special ingredient that made those Chicago teams what they were and for that I appreciate him and hope he can make a return in the future.
 
@Blazzer - Blazzer is no longer active in the VHL but still comes by the Chicago locker room every once in a while and it is always a nice surprise when she does. My first interactions with Blazzer were when she, Quik and myself would be talking in the VHL general chat early in the mornings and the topic of conversation often turned to Quik’s post-coffee bowel movements. After selecting Quik’s player with the second overall pick in the draft, and knowing how social Blazzer was with Quik and myself, I made it an absolute priority to pick her player, and it may have been one of the best picks I ever could have made. Blazzer soon became my first, and only to date, assistant general manager and was an immense help to me in my role. Someday we will have to play some Valorant if you still do.
 
I guess this just kind of became a Chicago Phoenix appreciation post but honestly it would be kind of hard for it not to be. These four users, all of whom played their entire careers for the Phoenix, made what would normally be a very tough job as a VHL general manager very easy.  While building this early Chicago core I tried to prioritize the members over the players but even I had no idea that this group would become what it did. I am just very happy that through the tough times that the pandemic brought upon us I could have this small group of users that I could pretty much talk to about anything without judgment, and I hope all of them felt the same way. I’m not sure I truly appreciated what we had at the time but if I had not had that locker room to distract me throughout those times of isolation I’m not sure how I would have coped with that terrible situation. The ability to just hop into Discord at any moment and be able to talk about anything was a godsend during those times.
 
Anyway this has kind of dragged on at this point, and I did not expect to write this much so late on a Sunday, but it kind of just happened. There are of course many other members I appreciate for many different reasons, but these were the four that popped into my mind first, and it kind of fit a theme.
 
1039 words - claiming 5/29 and 6/5

On paper, and in many sportsbooks across the world, Chicago was heading into their NA Wild-Card matchup with the DC Dragons as major underdogs. DC had made major moves this season to bolster their roster and had planned to be competitors in this year's playoffs. After a somewhat disappointing regular season, the Dragons would be forced to play a best-of-five versus the Chicago Phoenix in order to get to the NA Conference Semi-Finals. On the flipside, the Phoenix exceeded many expectations this season. Coming off of one of the most dismal season's in franchise history, Chicago continued rebuilding this season with their sights fixed on the future. However, the Phoenix surpassed pretty much every projection set out for this season, but despite that, they were still considerable underdogs for this series.
 
But although things often look good on paper, that's why you have to play the games. Chicago came flying out the gate and never looked back. They would go on to sweep their best-of-five series convincingly and now they are looking to shock the world one more time as they take on the NA powerhouse, the Seattle Bears in the NA Semi-Finals.

It is theme week and I finally have a player again so it is time to talk about who I appreciate within the league. I’ve been in and out of the VHL since the very start almost 15 years ago, and returned to full activity almost exactly three years ago, so I have interacted with a lot of different members from different eras during my time here. I’m not quite sure which direction this article is going to go in yet but let’s see where typing this up takes me. Let’s talk about some of the people I appreciate most in the VHL.
 
@solas - Jean Pierre Camus was my first draft pick as the Chicago Phoenix GM and he, along with most of the core selected in those first couple of seasons, decided to take a flier on me as a general manager and play their entire careers with us. Solas quickly became one of my favourite VHL members while talking to him in our locker room and his personality was definitely a huge part of why those early Chicago locker room days, despite all the losing and lack of players, were bearable. Between his insane Jeopardy knowledge and his willingness to really just talk about anything he is an enormous reason why the Chciago locker room became what it did during the peak years, and I have no doubt in my mind my tenure as Chicago general manager would not have been nearly as enjoyable as it has been if I had no selected his player 7th overall all those season’s ago.
 
@fishy - Mine and fishy’s VHL interactions did not get off to the best of starts way back when I drafted their player, Matty Socks, 22nd overall in S73. It was my first draft as a VHL general manager and while I reached out to players I considered with my top end picks, I had not reached out to fishy before selecting Socks. Of course since then Socks ended up playing his entire career with the Chicago Phoenix, and there are many things that I appreciate about fishy, but the first thing was that they gave me perspective on what it meant to be a general manager and how much even a low effort thing such as reaching out to a prospect, even if they are not one at the top of draft boards, can mean to that person. Ever since then I have made an effort to reach out to a lot more players in draft classes and the positive feedback I have received from doing so has made it completely worth it.
 
@Quik - Although he isn’t around too much anymore Quik is a user that I have always appreciated in the VHL. I first was in leagues with Quik before the VHL was a thing and Scotty was running leagues using a Playstation 2, and we interacted every once in a while. However when I selected Christian Mingle second overall in the S74 draft and had him join the Chicago locker room I knew immediately I had made the right selection. Not only was Quik, with all of his experience throughout the years in the VHL, a great resource for myself as a new general manager, his personality and willingness to bring activity to the Chicago locker room really galvanized that core into the powerhouse it became. Quik would instantly answer any questions I had and would often give me suggestions that would lead to further success for the team, but his biggest contribution was his ability to make friends with everyone on the team and really keep those users together. Quik was the special ingredient that made those Chicago teams what they were and for that I appreciate him and hope he can make a return in the future.
 
@Blazzer - Blazzer is no longer active in the VHL but still comes by the Chicago locker room every once in a while and it is always a nice surprise when she does. My first interactions with Blazzer were when she, Quik and myself would be talking in the VHL general chat early in the mornings and the topic of conversation often turned to Quik’s post-coffee bowel movements. After selecting Quik’s player with the second overall pick in the draft, and knowing how social Blazzer was with Quik and myself, I made it an absolute priority to pick her player, and it may have been one of the best picks I ever could have made. Blazzer soon became my first, and only to date, assistant general manager and was an immense help to me in my role. Someday we will have to play some Valorant if you still do.
 
I guess this just kind of became a Chicago Phoenix appreciation post but honestly it would be kind of hard for it not to be. These four users, all of whom played their entire careers for the Phoenix, made what would normally be a very tough job as a VHL general manager very easy.  While building this early Chicago core I tried to prioritize the members over the players but even I had no idea that this group would become what it did. I am just very happy that through the tough times that the pandemic brought upon us I could have this small group of users that I could pretty much talk to about anything without judgment, and I hope all of them felt the same way. I’m not sure I truly appreciated what we had at the time but if I had not had that locker room to distract me throughout those times of isolation I’m not sure how I would have coped with that terrible situation. The ability to just hop into Discord at any moment and be able to talk about anything was a godsend during those times.
 
Anyway this has kind of dragged on at this point, and I did not expect to write this much so late on a Sunday, but it kind of just happened. There are of course many other members I appreciate for many different reasons, but these were the four that popped into my mind first, and it kind of fit a theme.
 
1039 words - claiming 5/29 and 6/5

Hello everyone, I have been around now for a decent amount of time. My first-gen was made in season 74 and I am currently in my rookie season on my second player. Over the time I've been here I have gotten to know a decent amount of people in community, whether that be players, management, league staff, mods, updaters, or anything in between. There's a ton of great people in  our community and over time I have shouted out a lot of them, but for this specific theme week, I wanted to mention some people I've never really publicly recognized before. So without further ado, here are a few people I'd like to chat about!
 
@JeffD/ @MubbleFubbles / @Shindigs
(My Chicago family)
 
So right off the bat, I am clumping these three individuals together, because we are all currently linked together via the Chicago Phoenix organization. First off, Jeff is our general manager, and I was lucky enough to get to know him a bit over the winter while we got addicted to the same MMORPG.  I normally don't like playing games online with others, but Jeff has such a chillness to him, and was super easy to get along with pretty much immediately. I really enjoyed our time playing Lost Ark together, and even though he is a filthy Boston Red Sox fan,  I still think he is pretty great. As fate would have it, Chicago was in a great position to draft me this past offseason in the VHL Entry Draft. I was hoping to end up in Chicago, and sure enough I got my wish. I am committed to making Chicago a successful team and a lot of that is because of the respect I have for Jeff.
 
As for Mubbles and Shindigs, these two are both teammates of mine and I knew they were solid users, but until I actually got to Chicago and got in the locker room, I had no idea the extent of their awesomeness. When I was still working as an AGM under Cow for NYA, I had scouted both these guys for their draft class. They both seemed like slam dunks, but they both said they would love to play together, and for us in New York at the time, it wasn't something we could accommodate so we passed them up. Thankfully Jeff was able to draft one and then trade for the other shortly after! Mubbles  is an analytical god and is hitting us with all these amazing stats of our sims and players performances. It really is nice to have an extra layer of data to look at to really see where the team is thriving and where improvements could be made.  Shindigs is also an absolute madlad. He's in on engaged with almost everything on the forums and recently he even got into the BoG. I really respect how much thought and passion both these guys bring, and it really helps me stay motivated to keep my own activity up. On top of that, they are both just class dudes and have been great teammates.
 
@Dil
 
I may have said this in a couple of other more closed conversations in the past, but I feel like Dil does a ton of work for this community and a ton of people aren't even aware of a lot of it. We have hands-down the best portal (that I am aware of anyways) in all of sports sim leagues and none of that happens without a ton work on the back-end coding and making everything run smoothly.  Granted, it isn't solely Dil, but he does do a ton of work and often times doesn't get the praise he deserves. Aside from all the coding he does for VHL, he's also just a super kind hearted fella. I've slowly gotten to know him better over the past handful of months and I am really glad for that. I don't have a ton of reasons to direct my attention to gen-chat, but I will always have time to yuck it up with Dil, he's good people.
 
@rory
 
Rory is probably one of the more polarizing figures in our community. Rory has been known to stir the pot at times, and certainly has never shied away from offering up their opinion on many a topic. But honestly, that's what I love about them. Does Rory like to "TROLL" sometimes... yeah I think so, but it's an online community, and sometimes you need a little excitement to liven things up a bit from time to time. Rory and I had a really interesting process we had to work through when I drafted Tavish DeGroot during their draft class. Despite some heated player negotiations, we managed to come out of it still on good terms. Outside of all the VHL stuff though, I really love that I can goto Rory and talk restaurant drama with them. We both work in restaurants and rory we both really understand each others pain when it comes to work bullshit, so we have a bit of a bond there lol. I always love just shooting the shit with rory about hockey, VHL or anything really. Also rory is a NYA Superfan, which is dope.

@Moon
 
Moon is a guy I've gotten to know really well over the past year or so. We chat almost on a daily basis. Outside of VHL-related stuff, we talk about all sorts of things. Hockey, baseball, ROMANCE, pretty much anything really. Also Moon and I share the bond of both being raised as dope ass 5-pin bowlers.  Unlike cowards who play ten-pin bowling, five pin bowlers are the true elite athletes of the sport.  It's nice to have Mooner around to chit chat with, even if he doesn't know what or where Mount Olympus is. 
 
Well that is it this theme week. There are lots of great people out there in the community if you take the time to go out there a talk to some of them. Of course it isn't ALL good, but there's definitely good people out there. Cheers VHL!
 
(I will be claiming this for two weeks)

sorry for bullying you into scouting but also thanks for drafting me in 73

It is theme week and I finally have a player again so it is time to talk about who I appreciate within the league. I’ve been in and out of the VHL since the very start almost 15 years ago, and returned to full activity almost exactly three years ago, so I have interacted with a lot of different members from different eras during my time here. I’m not quite sure which direction this article is going to go in yet but let’s see where typing this up takes me. Let’s talk about some of the people I appreciate most in the VHL.
 
@solas - Jean Pierre Camus was my first draft pick as the Chicago Phoenix GM and he, along with most of the core selected in those first couple of seasons, decided to take a flier on me as a general manager and play their entire careers with us. Solas quickly became one of my favourite VHL members while talking to him in our locker room and his personality was definitely a huge part of why those early Chicago locker room days, despite all the losing and lack of players, were bearable. Between his insane Jeopardy knowledge and his willingness to really just talk about anything he is an enormous reason why the Chciago locker room became what it did during the peak years, and I have no doubt in my mind my tenure as Chicago general manager would not have been nearly as enjoyable as it has been if I had no selected his player 7th overall all those season’s ago.
 
@fishy - Mine and fishy’s VHL interactions did not get off to the best of starts way back when I drafted their player, Matty Socks, 22nd overall in S73. It was my first draft as a VHL general manager and while I reached out to players I considered with my top end picks, I had not reached out to fishy before selecting Socks. Of course since then Socks ended up playing his entire career with the Chicago Phoenix, and there are many things that I appreciate about fishy, but the first thing was that they gave me perspective on what it meant to be a general manager and how much even a low effort thing such as reaching out to a prospect, even if they are not one at the top of draft boards, can mean to that person. Ever since then I have made an effort to reach out to a lot more players in draft classes and the positive feedback I have received from doing so has made it completely worth it.
 
@Quik - Although he isn’t around too much anymore Quik is a user that I have always appreciated in the VHL. I first was in leagues with Quik before the VHL was a thing and Scotty was running leagues using a Playstation 2, and we interacted every once in a while. However when I selected Christian Mingle second overall in the S74 draft and had him join the Chicago locker room I knew immediately I had made the right selection. Not only was Quik, with all of his experience throughout the years in the VHL, a great resource for myself as a new general manager, his personality and willingness to bring activity to the Chicago locker room really galvanized that core into the powerhouse it became. Quik would instantly answer any questions I had and would often give me suggestions that would lead to further success for the team, but his biggest contribution was his ability to make friends with everyone on the team and really keep those users together. Quik was the special ingredient that made those Chicago teams what they were and for that I appreciate him and hope he can make a return in the future.
 
@Blazzer - Blazzer is no longer active in the VHL but still comes by the Chicago locker room every once in a while and it is always a nice surprise when she does. My first interactions with Blazzer were when she, Quik and myself would be talking in the VHL general chat early in the mornings and the topic of conversation often turned to Quik’s post-coffee bowel movements. After selecting Quik’s player with the second overall pick in the draft, and knowing how social Blazzer was with Quik and myself, I made it an absolute priority to pick her player, and it may have been one of the best picks I ever could have made. Blazzer soon became my first, and only to date, assistant general manager and was an immense help to me in my role. Someday we will have to play some Valorant if you still do.
 
I guess this just kind of became a Chicago Phoenix appreciation post but honestly it would be kind of hard for it not to be. These four users, all of whom played their entire careers for the Phoenix, made what would normally be a very tough job as a VHL general manager very easy.  While building this early Chicago core I tried to prioritize the members over the players but even I had no idea that this group would become what it did. I am just very happy that through the tough times that the pandemic brought upon us I could have this small group of users that I could pretty much talk to about anything without judgment, and I hope all of them felt the same way. I’m not sure I truly appreciated what we had at the time but if I had not had that locker room to distract me throughout those times of isolation I’m not sure how I would have coped with that terrible situation. The ability to just hop into Discord at any moment and be able to talk about anything was a godsend during those times.
 
Anyway this has kind of dragged on at this point, and I did not expect to write this much so late on a Sunday, but it kind of just happened. There are of course many other members I appreciate for many different reasons, but these were the four that popped into my mind first, and it kind of fit a theme.
 
1039 words - claiming 5/29 and 6/5

It is theme week and I finally have a player again so it is time to talk about who I appreciate within the league. I’ve been in and out of the VHL since the very start almost 15 years ago, and returned to full activity almost exactly three years ago, so I have interacted with a lot of different members from different eras during my time here. I’m not quite sure which direction this article is going to go in yet but let’s see where typing this up takes me. Let’s talk about some of the people I appreciate most in the VHL.
 
@solas - Jean Pierre Camus was my first draft pick as the Chicago Phoenix GM and he, along with most of the core selected in those first couple of seasons, decided to take a flier on me as a general manager and play their entire careers with us. Solas quickly became one of my favourite VHL members while talking to him in our locker room and his personality was definitely a huge part of why those early Chicago locker room days, despite all the losing and lack of players, were bearable. Between his insane Jeopardy knowledge and his willingness to really just talk about anything he is an enormous reason why the Chciago locker room became what it did during the peak years, and I have no doubt in my mind my tenure as Chicago general manager would not have been nearly as enjoyable as it has been if I had no selected his player 7th overall all those season’s ago.
 
@fishy - Mine and fishy’s VHL interactions did not get off to the best of starts way back when I drafted their player, Matty Socks, 22nd overall in S73. It was my first draft as a VHL general manager and while I reached out to players I considered with my top end picks, I had not reached out to fishy before selecting Socks. Of course since then Socks ended up playing his entire career with the Chicago Phoenix, and there are many things that I appreciate about fishy, but the first thing was that they gave me perspective on what it meant to be a general manager and how much even a low effort thing such as reaching out to a prospect, even if they are not one at the top of draft boards, can mean to that person. Ever since then I have made an effort to reach out to a lot more players in draft classes and the positive feedback I have received from doing so has made it completely worth it.
 
@Quik - Although he isn’t around too much anymore Quik is a user that I have always appreciated in the VHL. I first was in leagues with Quik before the VHL was a thing and Scotty was running leagues using a Playstation 2, and we interacted every once in a while. However when I selected Christian Mingle second overall in the S74 draft and had him join the Chicago locker room I knew immediately I had made the right selection. Not only was Quik, with all of his experience throughout the years in the VHL, a great resource for myself as a new general manager, his personality and willingness to bring activity to the Chicago locker room really galvanized that core into the powerhouse it became. Quik would instantly answer any questions I had and would often give me suggestions that would lead to further success for the team, but his biggest contribution was his ability to make friends with everyone on the team and really keep those users together. Quik was the special ingredient that made those Chicago teams what they were and for that I appreciate him and hope he can make a return in the future.
 
@Blazzer - Blazzer is no longer active in the VHL but still comes by the Chicago locker room every once in a while and it is always a nice surprise when she does. My first interactions with Blazzer were when she, Quik and myself would be talking in the VHL general chat early in the mornings and the topic of conversation often turned to Quik’s post-coffee bowel movements. After selecting Quik’s player with the second overall pick in the draft, and knowing how social Blazzer was with Quik and myself, I made it an absolute priority to pick her player, and it may have been one of the best picks I ever could have made. Blazzer soon became my first, and only to date, assistant general manager and was an immense help to me in my role. Someday we will have to play some Valorant if you still do.
 
I guess this just kind of became a Chicago Phoenix appreciation post but honestly it would be kind of hard for it not to be. These four users, all of whom played their entire careers for the Phoenix, made what would normally be a very tough job as a VHL general manager very easy.  While building this early Chicago core I tried to prioritize the members over the players but even I had no idea that this group would become what it did. I am just very happy that through the tough times that the pandemic brought upon us I could have this small group of users that I could pretty much talk to about anything without judgment, and I hope all of them felt the same way. I’m not sure I truly appreciated what we had at the time but if I had not had that locker room to distract me throughout those times of isolation I’m not sure how I would have coped with that terrible situation. The ability to just hop into Discord at any moment and be able to talk about anything was a godsend during those times.
 
Anyway this has kind of dragged on at this point, and I did not expect to write this much so late on a Sunday, but it kind of just happened. There are of course many other members I appreciate for many different reasons, but these were the four that popped into my mind first, and it kind of fit a theme.
 
1039 words - claiming 5/29 and 6/5