CowboyinAmerica

Davos -- Entering the season, many pundits had big expectations for a certain center in Davos. There might have been some ideas about MVP bandied about, or at least a high point total and an all-VHL team. Especially for a strong Davos team, many anticipated there would be a breakout star. Of course, many of those pundits were looking at Antonia Bucatini. But they may have had the wrong Davos center. Through the first quarter of the season, fourth-year forward Johnny Tsunami has exploded onto the scene. Through 18 games, Tsunami leads the entire VHL with 35 points (3 clear of linemate Mina) and 18 goals (2 clear of former linemate Forum Content). Add in his 6 power play goals and 3 game winners, and Tsunami is major reason Davos has started out 13-2-2 and sits in second in Europe. So how does Bucatini feel about Tsunami's rise? She couldn't feel more proud. "You have to understand, I remember when this kid came in a rookie, talking about 'Let's do this hockey, brah,'" Bucatini said. "Seeing him now lead the league in scoring? Not gonna lie, I feel like a proud mama a bit." Bucatini isn't a slouch either, sitting tied for fifth in the VHL with 28 points. Between the two, Bucatini feels big things are ahead for Davos. "There are some teams out there with only one powerful scoring line and not much else. That's clearly not us," Bucatini added. "You can't hide, you're going to have to face either me or Johnny at all times. And that's a powerful thing to have as we want to make some playoff noise this season."

1. I’m currently reporting to everyone from Las Vegas, Nevada, where I’ll be vacationing until tomorrow! This begs the question, out of all VHL/M cities, which one would you most like to visit IRL? Aww, is this excluding Rome from the VHLE? It's probably something in Europe - I've heard good things about Prague honestly, and never been to Eastern Europe so I'm picking that. (I realized a bit ago that I've been to every North American VHL city if you count my layover in Calgary, so that's pretty sweet.) 2. We’re off to a rocketing 9-0-1 start as of Monday, March 17th! Did this dominance come as a pleasant surprise? Not particularly. Honestly, I wouldn't be shocked with a 10-0 start, because that Warsaw game was dumb. I think we've got the team to succeed here. 3. Between the NA and EU, which conference do you expect to be stronger this season? NA will have more playoff-ready teams, and I think most will say that. But I do think the top of Europe will be stronger, particularly Davos and Moscow. 4. What is your favorite active player name in the VHL currently, if you have one? I was reading The First Law series about the same time I recreated, so Logen Ninefingers made me very happy. 6. What do you think the Utah Hockey Club’s mascot will be? C'mon Yeti. You don't need that trademark, there would be no confusion there with random mugs. There's even a brand deal in it! Just go for it. 7. As it is St. Patrick’s Day, are you wearing green? If you are answering after Monday, did you wear green that day? I'm not today, but I spent Saturday drinking alcoholic shamrock shakes at a local bar so that's my contribution to St. Paddy's Day this year. \

I've had players in the VHL for 45 seasons including this one. Which has equaled 24 seasons on Seattle and Davos alone... and 21 for everybody else combined (Cologne, Calgary, Riga, Toronto, New York, D.C., Helsinki). So I've got one NA and one EU team to be connected to, which is nice.

1. There has been some discourse on certain VHL awards. Do you think the Slobodzian (Most Outstanding Player) and the Campbell (Most Valuable Player) trophies should overlap? I like having both, I think it's interesting seeing the differences between the BOG and the public voting. As somebody who has felt FISTED ANALLY BY A CIRCUS MONKEY (edit: goddammit) for awards in the past, I still felt the argument was kind of dumb honestly. Of course "valuable" is subjective, that's part of what makes the voting interesting and fun. 2. What is your main goal as a player or member for S98? It's all about the title. I think Davos has the team to win it all this year, and after getting so close so many times, I really want this to be the year we get over the hump. 3. Did you sign up for VHFL? I did. Only four picks in, but I got Bucatini on my team so of course I'm going to win it all. (I hope.) 4. Getting to 100 seasons in a sim league is a tremendous feat. What do you think has been the most important factor to the VHL’s longevity? Good vibes. I'm serious, actually. In the early years a lot of leagues would have torn themselves apart through in-fighting, but the VHL never fell to that. Then, being a fun atmosphere helps bring in a constant stream of new people, which is helpful over the years. 7. If you watch F1, who do you think will win the Australian Grand Prix? If it's rigged, it's Hamilton in his first race at Ferrari. If it's slightly less rigged, it's Piastri at home. And either way... I could see those two being favorites which would be fun. 8. Do you prefer rainy weather or sunny weather? Sunny all the way. In fact, I'd much rather it be sunny and below freezing than like 50 degrees F and raining. I can always bundle up, just let me outside and not be wet.

No new member looking for awards in the future is going to assume they should look at predictions payouts instead of the post literally titled "VHL Awards". It's really not that hard to edit it in after the fact.

Claim 4

Davos, Switzerland -- Take a tour of the HC Davos Dynamo facilities this offseason, and you might feel a different vibe. The last couple of seasons, the Dynamo were a young team on the rise, with some freewheeling sensibilities and an air of youthfulness around them. They were building something, they knew it, and were aware it would take time to get to the mountaintop. But this offseason, the message is clear: They're at the mountaintop. The time to start winning is now. "Yeah, I think we've started to feel like we not only can compete, but we should actively be considered among the favorites," said center Antonia Bucatini. "We're not the cute upstarts anymore. We're one of the big bads now." That pressure is particularly astute for Bucatini, who is moving into her fifth season - and thus, the back half of what is expected to be an eight season VHL career. Bucatini has been to the playoffs three times, and the finals once, but knows that this season is when the clock truly starts to tick towards retirement. "I'm very much in my prime, and I'm feeling some pressure to perform," Bucatini added. "We all are, really. But it's like they say, pressure can either break you or make diamonds. And it's my expectation to have a very sparkly ring on my hand at the end of the season."

And that's why you get a NTC kids I'LL NEVER DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE

1. Thoughts on Davos’ first round picks: Gingy and Sidney Sheppard? Amazing. Think we absolutely destroyed the draft, and I'm really excited for the future of this franchise. 2. What are you most looking forward to at the start of the season? The past few seasons I thought we were one of the contenders, but did always see teams better than us. This season - I'm not sure if that's true. I think we should be EU favorites. It'll be exciting to see if that comes true. 3. What is your one bold prediction for S98? Whoeever finishes first in the EU will have double the regular season points of their first playoff opponent (the 4/5 wild card winner). 4. Predict how many recreates we’ll get for the big S100! I'm guessing a decent amount. Was a bit surprised to see S100 firsts get traded this offseason, because I think they're going to be an extremely hot commodity. 5. Do you prefer VHFL or Super Coach? I think VHFL is more interesting, but I probably prefer Super Coach more because I like setting it and being done rather than consistently needing to check. 6. Are you in any other sim leagues that you may want to recommend? I feel like the SBA and VHL used to have more cross-over in the past than they do now. But I'm still enjoying my time over there, and affiliate PT access is a big boon.

Claim 3

My thoughts are less the team side and more the player side: I'm a bit worried about the chilling effect on max earners. It's already tough for some in the back half of their career to find a landing spot with the current cap, take the end of Merome Dilson's career for example. If this was applied to this season, take a look at Vancouver's roster and you're probably seeing someone like Wayne Gretzky ending up on a non-competitive team for the prime of their career for cap reasons, just because they're slightly older and slightly more expensive than other up-and-coming players. That isn't super fun. Adding a 1000 TPA player to like D.C. right now isn't magically going to make them a top team, and I think it's either going to lead to some disgruntled max players, or perhaps people dedicing being a max player isn't really worth it anyway (which would really be bad for the league and stifle overall activity).

I really appreciate you putting this together! Any help for new players coming in is certainly welcomed, really think this is great. My only thought at a glance is that while I tend to go a bit more min-max with my players anyway, I'd suggest doing that with Scoring and Passing in particular. The rule of thumb I've always heard is that you ideally want about 10 points or more difference between SC and PA in the sim, otherwise the sim locks up a bit in trying to determine which one to do. While that's tougher with a 200 TPA build where you're just trying to get attributes up, I think it'd be more achievable with a 400 TPA build, and some of those are real close in PA and SC. Without specific numbers on the hybrid attributes, I might actually suggest less OV and more either passing or scoring-centric attributes depending on build, especially for SC on the Offensive defenseman-shooter and the two power forward builds.

Davos, Switzerland -- Since being taken with the first pick of the Season 93 VHL Draft, Antonia Bucatini has bled purple for Davos. She was on the first line since seemingly day one for the rebuilding team, put up great numbers as the team progressively worked its way to the finals in Season 96, and seemed to be a centerpoint of the future for the squad as it builds towards its next generation. Now, what was assumed is now all but official: Antonia Bucatini is set to be a Davos lifer. The forward recently signed a three-year extension through Season 101, which would take her through the next four seasons until her assumed retirement. The deal also comes with a full no trade clause through the life of the deal, not that a trade would be expected anyway with Davos set to contend over the life of the contract. For Bucatini, the extension gives her a chance to do what she always wanted: be a club legend. "I've felt at home in Davos since day one, and I'm glad they feel the same," Bucatini said in a press conference announcing the deal. "My teammates, this club, these fans - this is where I belong." The deal also creates the opportunity for Bucatini to set some records. Notably, with 23 goals and 54 points in Davos' playoff games the past three seasons, Bucatini already sits top ten in team history in both categories. With a few more playoff runs, first in both goals (42) and points (109) wouldn't be inconceivable. But for now, she's simply focused on the Cup. "I'm in the prime of my career with some good runs ahead," she added. "It's great to have the contract stuff behind me, because now I can focus on giving my all on the ice."

2. Where would your player’s dream vacation destination be? Growing up in Italy, there aren't too many more beautiful destinations that I haven't seen already. But with that said - get me off the grid to somewhere in the south Pacific like Fiji. Everybody's gotta get away sometime. 3. Who is your player’s render for graphics, if you have one? Have been going with Taylor Heise of PWHL Minnesota (not sure how I feel about the name Frost yet). Which has worked out well, considering she's top ten in the league in points. 4. In your opinion, do you believe GMs should have rights to their own player (ex. Alex having the priority to be able to have his player, Deadpanda, on Davos)? I could go either way. It used to be tied that way, but I think some GMs didn't like it because they felt rather trapped in their experience. So ultimately I'd just prefer whatever makes GMs happy. 5. The ProAm teams this offseason are: the Flora Vista Foxes, Winnipeg Wheelbarrows, Baie-Comeau Beavers, Pompeii Sour Grapes, and the Hartford Whalers. Which team name do you like the best? Knowing absolutely nothing else, the Sour Grapes is legit. Add in the Italy connection with wine, and it obviously being a hot location, I'm all for it. 6. Did you watch the Four Nations finale? I did while on a plane! And it was fun when I noticed a bunch of other people watching the same... though less fun when the plane landed and the stream cut off with 5 minutes left in regulation. 7. Do you have any plans for this upcoming weekend? Not sure I've mentioned it much here, but I'm a season ticket holder for the local MLS team, Minnesota United. The home opener is on Saturday, and while it'll be cold for now, I'm excited to get some live soccer back in my life.

S98 Donation Transaction ID: 0PD69754JM568334M Doubles Week (Claiming week of 3/2) 5 uncapped TPE (Claiming week of 3/2) 1M Player Store