CowboyinAmerica

The Seattle silence is deafening.

Needs more M.I.A. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewRjZoRtu0Y

In speaking of the topic, good Sports Illustrated article about what happened to London after the 2012 Olympics (written by a friend of mine, so gonna link it where possible): http://olympics.si.com/olympics/2014/02/06/olympics-economic-impact-london-sochi

I don't think the goal is development for the IOC. The IOC wants to spread the wealth to multiple countries for sure, but I don't think it gives a shit what happens to those places once it leaves town. It just cares about its own reputation and the idea of "Hey, look at the cool stuff we were able to do!" for that small period. Just look at how hyped it made Athens in Summer 2004, then all the debt and terrible infrastructure it left it with afterwards. I'd imagine the same will happen to Sochi unless Putin forcibly doesn't let it happen.

That's fair, and that's your prerogative as a reader. There's a fine line there, and some journalists are better than others.

I agree with you 100%, and that's why building that stuff up made this the most expensive Olympics in history by a long shot. But that's their rationale, and given the IOC's completely inflexibility towards change, I'd expect to see more of it in the future.

Re journalists: You have to remember, a lot of these people are sports journalists. They're not political scientists. Stuff like the stupid toilet controversy - many nations don't flush toilet paper, you know - is simply because they are used to Western tradition. And I'm not necessarily saying that it's a bad thing that they're reporting from a bubble: remember, all of these journalists are writing to a strictly North American audience that knows about as much of these things as they do, so any discovered worldliness I figure is helpful as the reporter and audience learn more about the world together. While I agree to take everything with a grain of salt, completely discounting them for trying reporting that is clearly out of their element isn't exactly the best option either. And why Sochi? Putin. It's his personal vacation spot, and he wanted to build up the infrastructure around there personally. Plus, he wanted a global stage to reintroduce "post"-Soviet era Russia. The IOC in large part agrees with trying to get its spectacle to as many places as possible, which is why you'll see Brazil 2016 and South Korea 2018 as well. There's also the whole tradition of the Winter Olympics in moderate-sized cities rather than larger ones. (Vancouver was actually one of the largest Winter Olympic cities by Metro area there has ever been. Normally, it's more like Calgary or Salt Lake City.)

Yeah, I think Davos would be interesting. I feel like a lot of people weren't expecting them to have the success they did this quickly, and it would be fun to analyze why.

Been nice to have been your teammate for at least a little bit, best of luck with the next guy!

If I have to edit contract threads again to change this back, I will be so, so sad.

Nice to see that a shift to forward hasn't diminished my ability to hate the world.

1-20: Edward Eldred. But actually: 1. Davos - Kellinger: Even if he doesn't have the top TPE any more, his position and name recognition still would have been best for Davos to trade off for picks. 2. Seattle - Tordahl: While Tordahl and Olsen are about even, Seattle's been noticeably weaker on offense than defense. 3. Toronto - K. Olsen: Toronto needed a defenseman badly, this one's obvious. 4. Calgary - Lindberg: Could have been the perfect second-line center behind Marcellin, then replaced him later. 5. Quebec City - Ball Jr.: They needed a winger, and Ball's been consistent with updating. 6. Seattle (remember, was a draft day trade) - Weber: If Tordahl goes #2, then makes sense to add a defenseman with the next pick. 7. Calgary - Landry: Would have made a hell of a second line along with Lindberg. 8. Helsinki - Collier: Helsinki didn't need a center like Toriyama with Hodgson and Osbourne. They needed a winger. 9. Riga - Toriyama: Then he may have only gotten traded 1000 times as compared to 1001. 10. Vasteras - Namestnikov: Still active and getting better, could have been the centerpiece to the offense 11. Seattle - T. Valiq: Would he have gone inactive sooner if not on Quebec? I think Noah chances it. 12. Toronto - J. Olsen: Remember, he gained lots of TPE quick, and better chance of keeping active if on team with brother 13. Cologne - Zamora: Being picked low might have convinced him to overcome the odds 14. Toronto - GIYGAS: Not a bad haul from Toronto, just like in real life. 15. Quebec City - Not A Bear: Totally was a bear.

Just word count filler. You do a good job with them.

Sure, it’s great that Kendrick offers his opinion in terms of mock drafts. But he is only one source, after all, and as long as he holds his GM spot, his predictions can be taken with a grain of salt. That’s why, in medicine and in life, it never really hurts to have a second opinion. That’s why VHL Inside Scoop’s Zach Warren is set to give his own take into the upcoming S37 Draft now that the players are finalized and the VHLM season is over 80 percent finished. 1. New York Americans (via Calgary) – LW Tom Slaughter Easy. While Xiao and Tremblay are already young, growing offensive weapons, Slaughter could become the next great scoring champion. 2. Riga Reign – D Slaeter Fjorsstrom Mike has been searching for the next great defenseman for about four seasons, and he finally gets the perfect piece to complement last year’s acquired offensive weapons. 3. New York Americans – LW Logan Laich First generation players are great and all, but let's be real: Devise does come with a background in producing high-TPE players. Plus, it’s safe to say that he has a passing familiarity with the franchise and may be happy back in New York. 4. Cologne Express – G Blaine Olynick The big draft for Cologne will be S38 when they have four first round picks, but that doesn’t mean you pass on a franchise goaltender this year. Especially if Chekhov is shipped, this one is easy. This pick allows presumed new GM David Collier to recreate in a different position of need if he chooses as well. 5. Calgary Wranglers (via Seattle) – C Konstantin Azhishchenkov Calgary isn’t winning right away, so long-term activity and star potential are the keys here. Azhishcenkov could be the centerpiece to a new-look Calgary offense, and I believe GM Glasser values offensive firepower over defense with this pick. 6. New York Americans (via Vasteras) – D Ron World Peace New York has already nabbed two offensive players, so it only makes sense they turn to the blue line with Low’s line mate of the future. After a slow December, World Peace has gotten back on track with his training and should be an easy first rounder at his current activity. 7. Helsinki Titans – G Kimmo Salo When will the rebuild begin in Helsinki? If it’s next season, then Salo could be tabbed as the direct replacement to Tuomas Tukio in net. I would imagine GM Higgins does not want to be the agent for another goalie if he continues to manage, and this pick would allow him freedom to recreate elsewhere. Plus, Helsinki wants him here before Toronto selects slightly later. 8. Riga Reign (via Quebec City) – LW Jakob Linholm Once again, activity is the name of the game, and Linholm has been very steadily improving despite getting a somewhat later start than other of his S37 draft mates. Already, Riga could be building a strong second line centered around winger Linholm and either center Damon Tyrael or Robin Gow. 9. Toronto Legion – C Lars Strummer What do you get for the team that has everything? A player that is steadily improving and can contribute far down the road. Strummer is currently collecting welfare more often than not, but that may be fine with a Toronto team that will be right up against the cap line the next two seasons anyway. 10. Cologne Express (via Davos) – C Mikael Svensson Once again, long-term projectability is the name of the game for Cologne as they begin rebuilding. When Svensson’s on, his analytically-based training style will always mean maximum returns. But will he have the drive to continually train? He’s certainly worth the risk with the 10th pick.

Into the DeLorean! Let’s travel back to a long, long time ago, a time before Riga had broken their curse and before Brovy was ever approved. The Season 33 draft, known as the first “Super Draft” in roughly 15 seasons, starred recreated players of Wesley Kellinger, Tomas Valiq, Felix Zamora, and others who were expected to dominate the VHL for a long time coming. However, in the lead up to the draft, a new name emerged that some VHL scouts may not have expected: Oslo Storm defenseman Karsten Olsen. Despite being one of the few players with an agent who did not have a previous player, Olsen quickly made a name for himself through a particularly strong work ethic and impeccable practice skills. When most mock drafts came out, in fact, Olsen was up higher than Tordahl, Toriyama, GIYGAS and many others. The consensus selection for the defenseman was all the way up at No. 3 in the draft — to the Toronto Legion. On Kendrick’s draft day radio show, Olsen to Toronto was the general consensus among all guests, and nobody really questioned the logic. Indeed, Olsen thought he was Canada-bound too: Sandro was the only GM he had spoken with after the season had ended. On draft day, Olsen patiently waited for the phone call to announce his new home. Pick No. 1 occurred, and Wesley Kellinger was no surprise. Then, Olsen didn’t receive a call from Seattle before pick No. 2, so he was all set for Toronto when… “With the second pick in the draft, the Seattle Bears select Karsten Olsen.” Well, that was unexpected. It’s safe to say that Olsen and Seattle have fit like a glove since that time, and Olsen currently holds one of the top TPE totals in the VHL four seasons into his career. But retrospectives are no fun. What would have happened if, say, Seattle went a different direction and Olsen fell to Toronto? We decided to investigate. For Toronto At the time, Toronto was a team desperately in need of defensive help. Sure, they had previous season’s No. 1 overall draft selection Jack Sound, but Mario Linguini was barely improving and the cupboard was bare elsewhere. Toronto was expecting to pair Olsen with Kjellburg, Lehtinen, Lebedev, Sound and Lebeau for a top 6 that couldn’t be beat. However, Olsen was the only consensus top defenseman to take with that selection. (Willie Weber was the only other first round defenseman at No. 6.) Instead, Toronto ended up with Odin Tordahl, who was promptly shipped off along with a first round pick due to his extreme unhappiness with the organization a season later. That first round pick later turned into Naomi Young when Toronto missed the S34 playoffs and Helsinki ended up with the second overall pick. Given Olsen and Young, it’s unlikely that Toronto would have needed to do or have space to do three key moves: moving Lebedev to defense, signing Chico Salmon and trading for Reggie Dunlop. As a result, here would be the potential starting lines for Toronto entering S36: Lindberg – Kjellburg – Lehtinen Namestnikov – Young – Lebedev Sound – Olsen Sixten LeBeau Plus, Toronto still would have held the picks they traded for Salmon and Dunlop. That sound you hear is Toronto fans having a collective aneurism. Of course, Toronto is doing just fine as it is, likely to be competing with Quebec City this season for the North American Conference crown and still likely to be a Cup contender as long as LeBeau is in town. Still, with that defensive corps from S34 on once Sixten came into the fold, it’s not unreasonable to believe that Toronto would have become an instant contender, especially without having to take a step back following Jive’s retirement. Who knows, maybe there will be happy hockey fans in Toronto one day. For Seattle Is it possible that the Bears might have been better off letting Karsten Olsen go in the draft too? It’s a concept that holds a tiny bit of weight, even if that weight is highly hypothetical. GM Noah Lefevre’s reason for drafting Olsen in the first place seems to have held up through the seasons. He claimed at the time that he didn’t believe too strongly in any of the top wings’ ability to be a constant contributor, and seeing how GIYGAS, Felix Zamora, Tomas Valiq, and others have not been as active with current players as they were with previous players, it seems he was correct. One player who was rumored at No. 2, though, is the guy who currently holds the most TPE from the S33 draft class — winger Odin Tordahl. It’s likely that Tordahl would not have been as unhappy in Seattle as he would have been in Toronto, especially considering that he told the Seattle organization that they were in his top three this past free agency period. All things considered, it’s likely he would have been just as active. However, how much difference would Tordahl have made offensively? Toronto still finished 26 points ahead of Seattle in the S35 standings, and it’s unlikely that one offensive player can make that much difference, especially when a top defenseman would be taken away in turn. And before that, Seattle simply didn’t have a goalie solution, whether through an older Vincent Vega or a too-young Steven Smyl. Likely, Sound would not have changed positions until this particular moment in time, making the change much as Olsen just did to provide more offense. Thus, the lines entering Season 36 would have looked like this: Blade – Ball – Tordahl Stamkos – GIYGAS – (Tordahl) Sound – Lefevre Yumalatopinto – Encarnacion/Glass Smyl In my opinion, Seattle would have been in much the same place, possibly not fighting as hard with New York but certainly not on hypothetical Quebec City or Toronto’s level. Thus, Tordahl would have worked out for Seattle just as well as Olsen, but another rumored player might have spelled disaster in Seattle that would have been hard to overcome. Because no Seattle sports team has ever been screwed by bad decision-making

Reign Express FUCK IT, GO BEARS Meute

Titans 3 Iron Eagles 2

And I'll keep on sighing every time.

Not if STHS has something to say about it! (And that's a very real possibility.)

Do I need to accept? Either way, I accept. Power forwards ain't so rare any longer.

Don't worry. Those dirty Brits don't know how to not be racist. WasjokeIloveyou.

Glad to see you back as well, but based on the title, thought this was 100% going a different direction.

Because nobody listens to the statisticians, dammit! WE DEMAND MORE DATA ANALYSIS.