CowboyinAmerica

Dynamo 3-2

Quebec City, QC -- After a massively disappointing regular season offensively for Bears winger Karsten Olsen, which precipitated a loss in interest in practicing, Bears fans weren't expecting much from the fifth-year veteran come playoff time. After all, the Bears barely snuck into the playoffs, relying on a last day win against the Americans to do so. With the Quebec City dynasty looking for one last hurrah, it was all but assured that Seattle, and Olsen by extension, would fail once again. But a funny thing happened on our way to a Legion-Meute Finals: Karsten Olsen's hard work actually started to be worth something. First, the winger posted one goal and two assists in a 1st Star performance in Game 1. Then, through the series' first 6 games, he was tied with center Ethan Osbourne for the most points in the league. And then Game 7 happened. You could tell from the very beginning that Olsen wanted the win. And I mean the very beginning. Look at this play-by-play: With the Bears now taking on the Legion in the North American Conference finals, Olsen is feeling more rejuvenated than he has in perhaps two seasons in the league. "It's hard to get consistently beat down and still come up empty," Olsen said after the game. "But this here, this feels good. And I'm hoping it's the start of a nice trend."

Money.

I'm honestly not sure why we even played the first six games.

Welp. I tried.

Someone took my pregame pizza away. Nobody takes my pregame pizza away.

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Bears Reign Bears Reign

Roar.

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User Name: CowboyinAmerica Cup Winner: Chicago Blackhawks EASTERN CONFERENCE (1) Boston vs (4) Detroit Winner: Boston # of Games: 5 (2) New York vs (3) Philadelphia Winner: Philadelphia # of Games: 7 (1) Pittsburgh vs (4) Columbus Winner: Pittsburgh # of Games: 6 (2) Tampa Bay vs (3) Montreal Winner: Montreal # of Games: 6 WESTERN CONFERENCE (1) Anaheim vs (4) Dallas Winner: Anaheim # of Games: 6 (2) San Jose vs (3) Los Angeles Winner: San Jose # of Games: 7 (1) Colorado vs (4) Minnesota Winner: Colorado # of Games: 6 (2) St. Louis vs (3) Chiacgo Winner: Chicago # of Games: 7

Yes. Yes it does. That's what I get for doing this the same time as watching the NCAA Tourney.

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And now to be that guy: Unless I'm missing a cut somewhere, this trade would put Riga 750k over the cap. Please see the finances Google doc for how this trade would place Riga over cap. Please rework. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AlR6i_xtFUobdHBLdHhoUnMtRmZKSTlJUXlOa3BRQ2c&usp=sharing

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I like seeing how many people read these things

When does a three game stretch for a fourth-place team one-quarter of the way into the season become extremely important? When that three game stretch features presumably winnable games against Vasteras (twice) and Helsinki, and that team is a Seattle Bears squad that is currently underachieving. “I’m looking forward, not back,” Seattle Bears winger Karsten Olsen told reporters after practice. “I think that we can beat these guys coming up. Honestly, we may not have much of a choice.” Coming off a huge shootout win against North American Conference rival Toronto, Seattle will first play conference-leading Quebec in their next game. Following that, though, comes that three game stretch that the Bears are placing such importance on. For Olsen, the key comes in the offense. “I only have six assists; that’s not acceptable,” Olsen said. “I need to learn how to better play with my linemates and get back to what works: quick passing, highly-efficient hockey.” Originally expected to be a point-per-game scorer or more, Olsen has only posted 15 points in 18 games thus far. If his offense can pick up in this stretch, then it could be the spark he needs to turn his season around. And if not? Well, let’s just say we don’t want to be in the streets of Seattle in that case.

Does hitting matter? 18 games into the VHL season, Seattle Bears winger Karsten Olsen has 100 hits. That’s not just a high number; it’s pure insanity. Riga Reign winger Brennan McQueen, who has worked extensively on his checking ability in practice, has 90 hits. Reigning Defenseman of the Year Conner Low has 85 hits. No other VHL player has more than 80. At this rate, Olsen would finish the season with 400 hits. That wouldn’t be a record, but it would be close — Tukka Reikkinen had 430 hits with the New York Americans in Season 32. 400 hits would place Olsen fifth on the all-time list, moving ahead of previous record holder Sam Pouza’s 376 hits in Season 32. However, the Bears still just sit fourth in the North American Conference. Olsen’s massive hit total hasn’t helped him too terribly much in the win-loss column, it seems. So we decided to ask: Is that normal? The Seattle Times went back through the seasons for each of the top four big hitters in VHL history. #1 Tukka Reikkinen – S32 – New York Americans Reikkinen finished Season 32 with 430 hits, which remains a VHL record. Of course, this was the season to be a big hitter, as David Smalling, Clark Marcellin, and Jarvis Baldwin all registered at least 350 hits, and all four players sit in the top 15 single-season hits list. The key for Reikkinen wasn’t only that he was talented defensively; he sat sixth in the goals and assists rankings as well for the season. Behind his offense, Daniel Braxton’s defense, and Benjamin Glover in goal, the Americans grabbed 102 points during the regular season. And even better? It was the year that New York finally broke the curse and defeated the Riga Reign in 7 games. #2 David Smalling – S27 – HC Davos Dynamo Unlike Reikkinen, who was at the end of his career, David Smalling was just entering the prime of his career when he put up 423 hits in Season 27. Always built to be a big hitter on the front lines, nobody could keep up with his production this season — only Jarppi Leppälä and his 362 came within 90 hits of Smalling. But to this year’s Karsten Olsen, Smalling didn’t excel on the offensive end, and not a single Davos player finished in the top eight of goals or assists. It showed in the final standings, as Davos finished with the third-worst record in the VHL. #3 Leeroy Jenkins – S26 – Helsinki Titans Jenkins was known for his team hopping and his championship winning ability, but some may not remember just how great of a hitter he became at the peak of his career. Although he would top 300 hits four times in his career, sis 414 hits in Season 26, his fourth season, was his tour de force. In addition to being the only player above 350 hits, he also led all players with an astonishing 152 points. However, it wasn’t enough to lift Helsinki past the eventual champions Vasteras, and his team fell in five games. #4 Nick Fisher – S28 – Helsinki Titans Just two seasons after Jenkins, the Titans featured another hitting machine, although Fisher was much less heralded than Jenkins. The only defenseman on this top list, he didn’t have the offensive prowess to come anywhere near Jenkins as well, somehow leading the team with only 71 points on the season. Much of Fisher’s high point total can be attributed to the fact that other teams spent an inordinate amount of time in the Helsinki zone, leading to plenty of hit chances for Fisher. And, as you might expect, Helsinki’s point total wasn’t that great either, and Helsinki finished with the second-worst record in the league. So what have we learned? A high hit total can certainly help, but it doesn’t mean very much unless it’s paired with a strong offensive game. Karsten Olsen may certainly go for the hits record, but unless he steps up his offensive game as well from its current depths, the Bears could be in trouble.