tcookie

I've been to Halifax twice and love it there, and having been to Pier 21 myself, always thought that Halifax 21st was some of the best branding in the VHL. Though I can see how it's a weird name for anyone who doesn't get it, I think once you do, it's brilliant. Congrats on the new GM role - I think as a pretty new member who picked things up very quickly yourself, you have a lot to offer new members who sign in the M. Best of luck!

Claim week 3/4

Despite a disappointing playoff run, the Malmo Nighthawks appear poised to more-or-less run it back next season after claiming the Victory Cup in S92. They did say goodbye to defenseman Jebediah Big ol Doinks in Amish, completing a pair of off-season trades that saw him head to New York and in return, defenseman Eric Queefson come in from Los Angeles. The Nighthawks will be banking on improvement from young players like third-year pros Savaisk Tzesar and Ronald Johnson MacWallace III, as well as second-year Phillip Rave, while last season's leading scorer Viktor Jensen is seeking a breakout year after threatening to post 100 points last season. With minimal changes, the Nighthawks believe they can contend for a repeat Victory Cup win and a more successful playoff run this time around. In the S93 draft, the Nighthawks spent their first round pick on a goalie once again, searching for their netminder of the future once Ash Sparks retires. They selected Jorgen Lovstrom, who went 48-8-4 with a .918 SV% for the Philadelphia Reapers last season. Lovstrom was the top goalie prospect available in the S93 draft. In the later rounds, the Nighthawks picked up forward prospects Ocean Codoller and Caleb Nowell, who both have shown some progression over the course of their S92 VHLM seasons and if that continues, both could play in the VHL in a couple of seasons.

1) Definitely a night owl. 2) Nope, pretty rarely. Trying to get better at not skipping it though. 3) It's probably Reese Puffs actually but Cinnamon Toast Crunch is awesome too. 1) What's your favourite VHL experience so far? 2) Do you have any career goals for your current VHL player? 3) What is your favourite sports team (any sport)?

Claim week 2/4

Honestly I don't think you necessarily need to re-roll even, just get that DF up as you earn more. You will definitely use all the areas you put points in at some point, except maybe PA. The passing thing is a valid reason, but... as much as people don't like PA as a stat and there are times where it can be unhelpful... there are also plenty of successful players that aren't just built to make a huge gap between SC and PA. It's the "best" build but no harm in not following it exactly. Triller has 200 points in the last 2 seasons with a passing forward. If you want to be perfectly optimal build yeah you'll probably cut the points you put in Passing, but don't feel like you need to do a re-roll to fix some huge mistake. And of course obviously if you WANT to play a different style by all means go for that re-roll! All of this is basically just to say don't worry you didn't like, break your player to the point where you need to re-roll or you're screwed or anything lol Glad to hear you're enjoying your time here!

welcome back!

While the S93 VHL Entry Draft was highly anticipated from the moment high-end prospects Gianfranco Del Rocco @Victor and Antonia Bucatini @CowboyinAmerica declared their eligibility - and Jean-Pierre Devote @eagle_3450 and Forum Content @frescoelmo rounded out the top of the draft class nicely - it was a group that was originally pegged by many VHL scouts as lacking in depth. It’s not so much that those scouts missed the mark, but the VHL made a mid-season play to expand their recruiting efforts and all of a sudden, there was a massive influx in talent in the VHLM and, accordingly, in the S93 draft class as well. Several of the new faces brought in have immediately made names for themselves, and a couple of them even threaten to shake up that top of the draft class - although the top two of Del Rocco / Bucatini in some order is essentially untouchable. As a result, the S93 draft now looks like one of the deepest VHL draft classes in a very long time. Here, we’ll take a look at some of the new faces that have made their impact felt during their brief times in the league, and when some of these fast-rising prospects can look forward to hearing their names called on draft day. Lucy Leitner - D - Houston Bulls @LucyXpher The 5’8, 155 pound US-born defender stormed onto the VHL scene at the start of S93 and signed with Houston, where she would go on to rank 4th in the VHLM in defenseman scoring with 76 points in 72 games. That is surely impressive production for a VHLM rookie but it’s off the ice, with her work ethic, that Leitner has impressed most. She is a brilliant skater who moves the puck well and excels in her own end of the ice, though the offensive toolkit (passing and shooting) will need to develop to see the same production at the next level. Leitner has skyrocketed up draft boards and has massive upside - currently ranked 5th in the draft class, Leitner’s name will be in the minds of every GM who isn’t picking in the top-2, and if I were making the call, she would probably be the #3 pick. Benjamin Abenduct - D - Houston Bulls @Schnee The Bulls really scored themselves a pair of great young defensemen early in the year through the VHLM’s waiver process, with Abenduct close behind Leitner all year and actually outproducing her on the scoresheet. He finished the year with 23 goals, 81 points, 170 hits, and 100 blocks in 68 games. Although the stats don’t necessarily bear it out, Abenduct is a little more defense-minded than Leitner but doesn’t get around the ice as well and has a little bit less refined offensive game. He’s currently ranked 6th in the draft class and has his own case to jump Devote and Content on draft day, probably going right after Leitner especially if a team needs a defender. Annie Oaks - RW - Las Vegas Aces @Noodle Enjoyer Oaks signed with the Saskatoon Wild at the start of the VHLM season before being traded to the more competitive Las Vegas Aces at the deadline. Over the season, Oaks totalled 41 goals and 95 points, showcasing excellent vision and a powerful slapshot. Her shot is actually nearly pro-ready, but she does have a lot of work to do defensively before being able to contribute at the VHL level. Oaks is currently the ninth-ranked player in the draft class, the highest-rated forward coming from the increased recruiting efforts, and is a surefire first-round pick with a good chance to break into the top half of the round. UghSike - LW - Miami Marauders @UghSike UghSike has a lot of similarities to the aforementioned Oaks, having signed with the Wild at the start of the year before being shipped out at the trade deadline. UghSike found himself in Miami after the trade and was not as productive as Oaks during the season - he compiled 28 goals and 60 points. Compared to Oaks, UghSike has a slightly weaker shot (but still very good), is even less refined defensively, but is a better passer and skater. He will likely come off the board shortly after Oaks on draft day, somewhere in the middle of the first round. Trimiskez Artav - RW - Houston Bulls @jake Another member of the Houston Bulls, Artav brought it in a big way this season putting up 43 goals and 88 points in 72 games. He’s talented offensively and a little more well-rounded overall compared to the other forwards we’ve discussed so far. Unfortunately, over the last few weeks, there have been reports that Artav’s development has stalled and he’s been missing practice, which could definitely affect his draft stock. For the time being, Artav is still ranked 12th, but it seems likely he will fall into the second or third round based on these recent developments. Nathan Ecker - RW - Houston Bulls @Nathan_8 As you may have guessed, the Bulls were big beneficiaries of the VHL’s recruitment effort, and this is the fourth player they’ve placed on this list. Ecker is an extremely similar player to UghSike, with glaring defensive deficiencies in his game but excellent offensive talent, hands, and vision. With 25 goals and 48 points in 72 games, Ecker contributed to the Bulls’ offense from day one and has shown a steady commitment to improving. He is ranked 15th in the draft right now and will definitely be in the conversation for those GMs picking late in the first round. Gul Dukat - D - Miami Marauders @MSouthworth Dukat is an old-school defender, a stay-at-home, 6’3 200 pound behemoth with a mean streak and above average mobility, the kind of game that fans, scouts, and coaches all love. Dukat even showed some untapped offensive ability with Miami this season, putting up 18 goals and 65 points, even though that’s not necessarily their strong suit. With 163 hits, 72 PIM, and 123 blocks, it is that defensive element where Dukat truly shines. Ranked 16th in the class to date, Dukat is also the draft’s third-ranked defenseman behind Leitner and Abenduct, which means they should be a lock to be a first rounder. Ondrej Vencko - G - Houston Bulls @Mutti Vencko came to the VHLM as a talented but troubled young netminder, and had some much-publicized concerns about drug usage mar his early days in Houston. We may never find out exactly what went on, but it seems that whatever it was is firmly in the rearview mirror. Vencko quickly claimed the starting role in Houston and improved greatly as the year went on, finishing the season 27-18-3 with an .892 SV% before posting a .917 SV% in 12 playoff games. Vencko has excellent reflexes and rebound control, but struggles with lateral mobility and plays a little small in his net at times. There’s definite upside here though and he is the 3rd-ranked goaltender and 18th-ranked prospect in the draft overall. Vencko should go early in the second round and might sneak into the late-1st if there is a particularly goalie-needy team. Tyler Lawson - C - Houston Bulls @Nyx The Bulls are a veritable factory of brand-new talent! Interestingly, Lawson is the first player on this list that naturally plays centre and is the third-ranked centre in the draft class overall. Lawson has a similar profile to a lot of these players in that he’s got great offensive vision, a good slapshot, and some flaws in other areas of his game, particularly defensively. Joining the Bulls mid-season, Lawson scored at a point-per-game pace in the regular season (56 points in 56 games) but fell off in the playoffs with just 5 points in 12 games. He’s ranked #22 and probably didn’t do enough this season to jump into the first round, but he’s a high upside player who could really reward a team that takes the plunge in the high or mid-2nd. Ray Stanton - D - San Diego Marlins @horoscope Stanton, a 5’10 185 pound defenseman who’s a little more offensively-inclined than most of the others in this draft, really stepped into the league in a big way with the Saskatoon Wild mid-season. He put up 21 points, 61 hits, and 42 blocks in just 18 games before being traded to the San Diego Marlins. Unfortunately, his production tailed off in a more structured system in San Diego leaving some questions as to whether his production was a product of just playing on a bad team or truly being great. Stanton has made some good progression over his short time in the league so far and is projected in the middle of the second round (ranked #25). Cody Toland - D - Houston Bulls @ctoland102 A gritty, 6’4 215 pound offensive defenseman, Toland likes to hit and isn’t afraid to mix it up, giving him a little bit of a different dimension compared to most of the other young defenders in this draft. The two main concerns with Toland at this stage in his career are that he’ll need to develop his defensive game to play a defensive position at the next level and, while his improvement has been consistent over the course of the season, he hasn’t taken the next step in his development like some of the other players in the class have. With 35 points, 213 hits, and 92 blocked shots for Houston this year, Toland definitely has a possible VHL career in his future, and I would expect him to be chosen somewhere in the late-2nd or early-3rd round. Oliver Loo - RW - Miami Marauders @Peiffy Loo is a well-rounded, two-way forward with a little less upside than many of the forwards we’ve covered so far, but has shown steady improvement throughout the year and plays a projectable game without many flaws. Because of his limited offensive upside, at least based on what we’ve seen so far, Loo is more of a project who will likely spend more time at the VHLM and VHLE levels. However, he’s a good skater and responsible defensively, two things that VHL teams love to see. Loo is another player who will probably be selected somewhere around the early-3rd round. Billy Joel - D - San Diego Marlins @The goat of hockey Joel is a similar player to Toland, except even bigger, but less refined defensively. Joel’s brand of defense is simply running guys over and while it’s effective at times and certainly fun to watch, he will need to develop that positioning and poke checking at some point in order to have a VHL career in the future. Joel is a real old school type player, a 6’5, 235 pound physical force who is very willing to drop the gloves. He’s also got a bomb of a shot when he wants to use it. He put up 20 points in 72 games with San Diego but, more importantly, 205 hits and 84 blocks with 106 PIM. The harder he practices, the quicker he will get better but for now it looks like whoever drafts Joel will have a long-term project on their hands, with probably VHL #4 defenseman type upside to him. He’s likely to go off the board in the early-3rd round. Jack Dickins - RW - Houston Bulls @Mystery_boy98 A big, well-rounded winger, Dickins has shown some steady improvement over the season and the consistency to eventually play at the VHL level if he can maintain that for a few seasons, but he’s definitely a couple of seasons away, starting with what will likely be another VHLM season to continue his development. Dickins put up 20 points in 64 games with Houston this year and is in line for a bump up in role with whichever VHLM team drafts him next season. How the next season or so goes for him will be the big determinant in whether or not the VHL is in his future, but he’s surely worth a pick in the 3rd round to figure that out. ~2020 words for the next 4 weeks

Phillip Rave and the rest of the Malmo Nighthawks cleaned out their lockers early amidst harsh playoff disappointment this season, but from a personal standpoint, there were plenty of positives to take away from the season, even if Rave wasn’t feeling up to talking about them in the aftermath of their playoff elimination. The rookie forward – a natural centre who spent the year on the wing to help ease his transition to the VHL – started the season with 18 points in his first 42 games, before putting up 23 points in the final 30 games to finish his rookie year with 41. Rave found the scoresheet with a pair of playoff tallies, too, both in a 3-2 overtime loss in Game 2 of the series. His game as a whole came a long way over the course of the season, with noticeable improvements across the board, and Rave intends to spend the off-season working hard off the ice to improve his strength and skating. From putting up 13 points over an entire VHLE season in Cologne to a 41-point rookie campaign in the VHL, Rave clearly took massive strides in his development in S92. Some scouting agencies predict that Rave, originally picked 17th overall in the S91 draft, would rise into the top half of the first round in an S91 re-draft. The Nighthawks are hoping to see this level of progression from Rave continue over the next few seasons of his career. Breakout seasons from their young, upcoming forwards like Rave, Savaisk Tzesar and Ronald Johnson MacWallace III could go a long way in turning this season’s disappointment into next season’s celebration.

Game Review: Houston vs. San Diego It was a do-or-die situation for the San Diego Marlins in Game 6, but the Houston Bulls raised the stakes early when Charles Losfeld notched his first goal of the post-season just 1:49 into the game and put the Marlins on their heels. Though the Bulls controlled the play in the first period, however, the Marlins did manage to break through. Billy Joel scored their 1st of the playoffs shortly after a powerplay expired, then scored a second goal with 32 seconds left in the frame to send San Diego to the intermission on top 2-1. But Houston's Trimiskez Artav put the team on his back in the second period, tying the game just past the halfway point and then scoring a late 2nd-period goal of his own. His 3rd and 4th goals of the playoffs gave Houston a 3-2 lead coming home. The Marlins put on some pressure in the final period, doubling their shot total for the game as they put 11 pucks on Ondrej Vencko's net. Vencko, however, stood tall and denied all of them, redeeming himself after a tough first period. The Bulls hung on for a 3-2 win and take the series in 6 games.

The Malmo Nighthawks couldn't have scripted the regular season any better, as they mostly dominated wire-to-wire with barely a lull in play all season long. In the process, they set a franchise record in points and captured the Victory Cup with a record of 52-14-6. In stark contrast, they couldn't have scripted the post-season any worse. Sure, they played the 4th-seeded London United close in pretty much every game, with two OT losses and a third game decided by one goal plus an empty netter, but this was a team that won 52 regular season games. Their playoff run lasted exactly four, swept aside by London, with their league-best offense mustering just 9 goals in the series. To give full credit where it's due, London netminder Jesse Teno has been on absurd tear so far this post-season, sporting a 7-1 record and .946 SV%. That mark was .939 for the series against Malmo, as the Nighthawks peppered the London net with 146 shots. They simply couldn't solve Teno. They also couldn't stop Leonard Triller, who has back-to-back 4-game series with 9 points each for the United. Triller is running away with the playoff scoring race so far, and Malmo, despite playing stingy defense all year, also had no answer for him or his line. It was simply a tale of two seasons for the Nighthawks, who couldn't get anything going after such a dominant regular season. "Yeah, it hurts for sure," says Malmo rookie Phillip Rave. "Obviously we didn't expect to be out in four games. This team is better than that... I don't know what happened out there these four games, we just didn't bring our best and they made the plays when they needed to. It stings. It's not what you play for, it obviously takes something out of all that regular season success we had. You know what, we're a pretty young team overall and it's a learning experience for us and we'll be back. But it sucks right now, yeah. It's not fun."

Claim week 4/4

perfect

wrong title

With 6 games left on the schedule for S92, the Malmo Nighthawks have clinched the Victory Cup for the VHL's best record. At 49-12-5 for 103 points, they now sit 13 points clear of the Calgary Wranglers and Los Angeles Stars and 15 points ahead of the Helsinki Titans and Moscow Menace. 18 games into the season, the Nighthawks were 10-6-2, but since then, they have gone 39-6-3, taking 81 of a possible 96 points (.844 points percentage). The Nighthawks offence, once floundering, has exploded in the season's second half. They now lead the league in goals for with 230. Viktor Jensen has rocketed up the scoring charts to sit 8th in the league with 86 points in 66 games, and the Nighthawks boast two of the league's top-5 scoring defensemen in Jacob Stone (81 points) and Reese McFleury (71 points). Defensively, the Nighthawks have been strong all year, and have the league's best defense by a fairly wide margin thus far with just 153 goals against. Ash Sparks, goaltender and team captain, leads the league in wins (44) and is second in GAA (2.27) and shutouts (5) while also being within a couple points of the league leaders in save percentage. Of course, at the end of the day, you play to win the Continental Cup, not the Victory Cup. It will be up to the Nighthawks to stay focused and carry this strong form into the post-season when everything turns up another notch in a few days. But so far, everything has gone just how the Nighthawks drew it up.

Claim week 3/4

The last few weeks have seen the Malmo Nighthawks and Moscow Menace start to pull away from the pack in what was once a tightly-contested European Conference, with the two teams now sitting first and second in the entire league. The Nighthawks, at one point led by their defense and goaltending while their offense struggled, rocketed to the top of the EU once their offensive issues resolved, embarking on a phenomenal 32-game run in which they went 26-4-2. While holding a firm grasp on the European Conference lead, their ascent to the top of the VHL standings was a little slower due to strong play from Los Angeles and Calgary, but they eventually voertook the NA leaders. With 20 games to go, Malmo sports a 37-10-5 record, five points clear of second place. Meanwhile, the Moscow Menace began an incredible surge of their own. Moscow was expected to be in contention for a playoff spot at the start of the year, but probably not as high up the standings as they currently are especially in a conference where Helsinki, Prague, and London all boasted very formidable rosters too. But at around the same time the Nighthawks got going, so too did the Menace, who had at one point won 15 in a row (and, incredibly, only managed to pick up one point on Malmo during that time frame as they had gone 14-0-1 over the same stretch). Though their streak would end in a shootout loss to Seattle, they bounced right back by defeating LA and have picked up points in 17 in a row. That puts them at 35-13-4, sporting the same record as Calgary, tied for second in the VHL. There's a 10-point cap between Moscow and third-place Helsinki, and with a 22-point gap between them and Warsaw, both Malmo and Moscow have essentially assured themselves a playoff berth already. If the two teams continue playing at their current level, they seem destined to meet each other later on in the playoffs with much higher stakes.

Claim week 2/4

A few days ago, Malmo Nighthawks rookie Phillip Rave talked in an interview about living for the big moments. Then, in the next two games Malmo played, Rave scored two goals - breaking a tie in the final two minutes of a 7-5 win over Davos and then scoring the eventual game-winner in a 3-2 win over DC. Rave has scored 8 goals do far in his young VHL career, but 3 of them are game-winners. It goes a little beyond that: 11 of Rave's 33 goals with the VHLM's San Diego Marlins back in S90 were GWGs, and 3 of his 6 goals in this year's world juniors were, too. Rave has only just begun a hopefully-long VHL career and has shown tremendous growth over the past two seasons. His upside is sky high, though he's certainly still developing into it. But he's already got a knack for showing up big in big moments. With a penchant for scoring clutch goals and trips to the VHLM and VHLE already on his resume, Rave is showing not just talent, but the kind of intangibles that teams love.

Note beforehand: I selected players for this based on appropriate ratings, not stats - so it's entirely possible some of the players here are not having all-star calibre seasons, or players who deserve to be at the all-star game were not selected. Also, I made sure every team had at least one player in the skills comp, and the results were determined relatively randomly with some consideration given to the appropriate ratings... I didn't use any kind of script or anything for this. It's all just made up. --- DC: Welcome to Los Angeles for the VHL All-Star Skills Competition! I'm Dan Callaghan for VSN and with me today is Landon Fairhaven. With players from each of the VHL's 16 teams in attendance competing for the All-Star Cup, testing their skills in a variety of different competitions, let's get right into the fun times! LF: First up, we have the Hardest Shot competition. Competitors will get two attempts each and only the best will count. One point will go to the team with the winning player and one point will go to the overall winning team. Your competitors for the Hardest Shot are: John Jameson (Prague) @Frank-- 97 ST, 89 SC, 6'3 215 Wann Kerr (London) @VattghernCZ -- 99 ST, 88 SC, 5'9 189 Todd Cooke (Los Angeles) @KRZY-- 99 ST, 89 SC, 6'6 190 Jimi Jaks (Toronto) @ke1vi -- 99 ST, 90 SC, 6'0 190 ATTEMPT 1: John Jameson 96.4 MPH / Wann Kerr 97.2 MPH Todd Cooke 99.7 MPH / Jimi Jaks 81.4 MPH DC: Well, Landon, three pretty good efforts there and then it looked like Jimi Jaks didn't get much on their attempt, but fortunately, they will all get another crack at it. LF: Todd Cooke is probably the favourite in this event and got a pretty good blast off there! They'll be tough to beat. They're so strong and that 6'6 frame can really get a lot of leverage to rip a puck. Let's see what happens. ATTEMPT 2: John Jameson 98.5 MPH / Wann Kerr 95.4 MPH Todd Cooke 100.1 MPH / Jimi Jaks 99.2 MPH FINAL RESULTS: John Jameson 98.5 MPH / Wann Kerr 97.2 MPH / EU Total: 195.7 MPH Todd Cooke 100.1 MPH / Jimi Jaks 99.2 MPH / NA Total: 199.3 MPH DC: You called it Landon - Todd Cooke comes through and even gives us a triple-digit blast. And his teammate Jimi Jaks is going to come in second here after a much better shot! That puts the North American Conference up 2-0 after the first event. Next up, we've got the Accuracy Shooting competition! Players will shoot until they hit all 4 targets. One point will go to the team with the winning player and one point to the overall winning team. Your competitors for Accuracy Shooting are: Molly the Cat (London) @JCarson -- 92 SC, 91 WS Nikolas Kauppi (Prague) @Tetricide -- 88 SC, 90 WS EU Conference Passer: Babay Shrimp (Riga) @Blazzer (91 PA) Jason (DC) @Jason kranz -- 90 SC, 91 WS Napoleon Dynamite (Los Angeles) @thadthrasher -- 88 SC, 93 WS) NA Conference Passer: Randy Bobandy (Calgary) @AJW (89 PA) RESULTS: Molly the Cat: 4 for 4, 9.1 seconds Nikolas Kauppi: 4 for 6, 15.5 seconds EU Total: 8 for 10, 24.6 seconds Jason: 4 for 5, 13.2 seconds Napoleon Dynamite: 4 for 6, 14.2 seconds NA Total: 8 for 11, 27.4 seconds LF: Molly the Cat shows off the quick release on their wrist shot AND their deadly accuracy with a very impressive 4 for 4, and in just 9.1 seconds - a fantastic performance! DC: The EU ties up the Skills Comp as they grab the team point for this one, too. It was a good performance by Jason here but this one shot here, their fourth attempt, just barely misses the target and rings the iron. LF: It keeps things interesting though! 2-2 after two events. There are a lot of young fans in here right now having a great time, meeting the players and getting a competitive event. That's what it's all about! DC: Well, now we shift our attention to the Fastest Skater competition! This one's a real fan favourite. Each player will get two attempts with only their best lap counting. As with the other events, one point goes to the team with the winning player and one to the overall winning team. Let's meet the competitors for the Fastest Skater: Jacob Stone (Malmo) @scoop-- 92 SK, 6'6 222 Daryl Dixon (Helsinki) @Ricer13 -- 90 SK, 5'10 170 Liv Slater (Vancouver) @Subject056 -- 88 SK, 5'9 148 The Frenchman (DC) @OrbitingDeath -- 90 SK, 5'11 170 ATTEMPT 1: Jacob Stone: 17.206 seconds / Daryl Dixon: 14.069 seconds Liv Slater: 14.401 seconds / The Frenchman: 15.209 seconds DC: Jacob Stone might be the guy with the best top-end speed here but had some trouble with one of the corners and couldn't get it back together. Daryl Dixon had a lightning-quick lap with a real competitive time and it looked like The Frenchman just didn't get up to speed in time, they're capable of better, but let's see how this second run goes! ATTEMPT 2: Jacob Stone: 14.854 seconds / Daryl Dixon: 14.312 seconds Liv Slater: 14.188 seconds / The Frenchman: 14.552 seconds FINAL RESULTS: Jacob Stone: 14.854 seconds / Daryl Dixon: 14.069 seconds / EU Total: 28.923 seconds Liv Slater: 14.188 seconds / The Frenchman: 14.552 seconds / NA Total: 28.740 seconds LF: Well, that was exciting! All four players really flew around the rink on that one. Three of them improved on their times. DC: But ultimately nobody touches Daryl Dixon's first lap here! 14.069 is an excellent time. Liv Slater gave it a really good run, their acceleration and agility was clearly on display. The team score is very close here but it looks like the NA will take that point, countering the point Dixon gets for the EU. LF: So we have a 3-3 tie! But now we get to the real good part... DC: It's time for the Shootout competition! Each player will take two shootout attempts on the opposing netminder. One point is awarded for each goal scored! Let's meet the players: AK92 Wit da Hoodie (Riga) @hedgehog337 -- 94 PH, 78 PS Left Alone (Moscow) @okochastar -- 90 PH, 80 PS Alfred Champagne (Warsaw) @Anthique -- 88 PH, 78 PS EU Goaltender: Fuukka Rask (Helsinki) @Jubis -- 64 PS Skor McFleury (Calgary) @Alex -- 94 PH, 78 PS Severus Targaryen (Seattle) @Banackock -- 85 PH, 74 PS Mac Atlas (Toronto) @v.2 -- 92 PH, 80 PS NA Goaltender: Art Vandelay (Los Angeles) @Gustav -- 55 PS DC: Coming in for their first attempt it's the VHL's current leading scorer, AK92 Wit da Hoodie. LF: 30 goals and 62 points in 39 games so far this year, those are stunning numbers. You know they can put the puck in the net. DC: A lovely little forehand-backhand move there and Vandelay is caught out of position! Chalk up a goal for the EU there! And trying to match that now will be Skor McFleury of the Calgary Wranglers. McFleury comes in with speed and a flurry of moves! LF: I see what you did there. DC: He puts it past Rask and our score is now 4-4! Back to the EU Conference's turn, it's Left Alone. He skates in, toe drag, a great little move but Vandelay stones him! An excellent blocker save from Vandelay! LF: So the North American Conference will have a chance to take the lead here. Severus Targaryen, second-year pro from the Seattle Bears will take the shot. DC: It looks like he bobbles the puck here a bit picking it up but makes a nice recovery, walks in, takes the puck to the backhand but puts it wide. LF: Rask gave him no room there, he tracked the puck really well all the way across. Targaryen was looking for whatever little space was there but there wasn't any. DC: Alfred Champagne, the Warsaw representative here, will get a chance now. He skates in, fires a quick shot but it looks like Vandelay was ready for that one all the way. Now we have Mac Atlas to take the shot. He's got Rask on his heels as he comes in fast, takes a shot and oh my! He scores! That shot couldn't have been placed any better. LF: No chance for the goalie there, that's why Atlas has back-to-back 40-goal seasons. DC: North America has a 5-4 lead here. We'll go in reverse order for the second try, so it's right back to Atlas. He's got the moves this time! Takes it out wide, comes back in, backhand-forehand-backhand and a lovely finish - that's two magnificent goals from Atlas. That one's really got the crowd going. LF: And North America has a 6-4 edge. Champagne is back out to try to narrow the gap. DC: Ohhhh and he wires it off the crossbar! A more promising effort than the first one but Champagne can't quite bulge the twine. It's a chance for the North American team to take a stranglehold here and Targaryen comes back out. Targaryen comes in quick and - oh! Would you look at that, he tries to go between the legs and that would've been something magical but Rask wasn't fooled. LF: A good job by Rask of staying in position with the fancy move happening right in front of him. DC: Left Alone, driving out wide to the left side of the ice and now he slows it down as he cuts back in, fires and scores! LF: Alone catches Vandelay here by changing the angle and beats him low blocker with a well-placed wrister. The lead is back down to one, it's 6-5 for North America. DC: Skor McFleury coming back in here. Flying out wide, now cutting all the way back across the circles and he slides the puck through Rask! LF: McFleury is so smooth out there, not hard to tell why he's one of the best defensemen in the league. He probably would've had a chance in the Fastest Skater and he put that speed to good use there, really put Rask in a bad spot. DC: AK92 Wit da Hoodie is hoping to keep the lead at one before we get into the Breakaway Relay. He pulls up at the dots and tries a slapshot! And it works! Oh, the fans love that. He caught Vandelay off guard by going for the slapper there. LF: And it was a heck of a shot, too! What a rocket. DC: So with that, we have a 7-6 score in the skills comp. And we've got one final event to decide it all! It's the 3-on-0 Breakaway Relay. Teams of 2 forwards and 1 defenseman will take three 3-on-0 attempts against the opposing netminder, with one point awarded for each goal scored. Here are the Breakaway Relay lineups! Yaroslav Bogatyrev (Malmo) @Bojovnik-- 85 SK, 87 PH, 69 PA, 89 SC Leonard Triller (London) @Triller-- 91 SK, 94 PH, 94 PA, 83 SC Pierre Emile Bouchard (Helsinki) @Gaikoku-hito -- 84 SK, 91 PH, 85 PA, 87 SC EU Goaltender: Lachlan Summers (Davos) @kirbithan Francesco Mancini (New York) @GioSivo -- 87 SK, 86 PH, 91 PA, 86 SC Yaroslav Trunov (Chicago) @qripll -- 80 SK, 88 PH, 67 PA, 85 SC Mark Calaway (DC) @Beketov -- 87 SK, 90 PH, 68 PA, 90 SC NA Goaltender: Merome Dilson (Calgary) @MexicanCow123 DC: And here we go! Triller picks the puck up at centre for Europe and he comes in fast! Pass to Bouchard, who one-touches it back to Triller, and oh my! He pulls Dilson out of position beautifully and sends a magnificant feed to Bogatyrev. That's a tap-in for Big Boga and our skills comp is tied. LF: Triller led the league in assists last year and he's one of the most crafty players in a league where shooters get a lot of the attention. That right there is what a great playmaker can do! DC: Mark Calaway moves the puck ahead to Trunov here and the NA team is in on Lachlan Summers. Trunov passes off to Mancini, he throws it back to Calaway who fakes a shot, passes back to Trunov, but the pass is a bit off and bounces away from Trunov, an unfortunate break there. It looks like the EU is sticking with what's working as Triller picks the puck up with speed and flies over the line. Throws on the breaks and gives the puck to Bogatyrev, he sends it back to Bouchard and Bouchard rips the shot home! Suddenly, Europe has taken the lead! LF: Nothing like a good back-and-forth competition! DC: This time Mancini will run the play for North America. He fakes a shot and passes to Trunov who hesitates, drops it back for Calaway and he lets a rocket go! It's off the post and into the back of the net! LF: Calaway is one of those guys with a great shot from the back end and he shows it off there. No defending that one! DC: So, the teams are tied and we have one attempt each left. LF: Oh, the drama! You know, it's just a skills competition but these guys are competitors. They don't want to lose, especially when it gets to the end and it's this close. DC: Triller with a little razzle-dazzle as he puts on a spin move as he picks the puck up! He passes it to Bouchard, to Bogatyrev, back to Bouchard and back to Triller for the finish! Brilliant passing and the European Conference goes up 9-8! LF: That right there is why a 3-on-0 is a goalie's worst nightmare. There's nothing Dilson can do about that. I talked about that Calaway shot earlier being impossible to defend, but this play here is just another level entirely. DC: It's a must-score situation for the NA trio and Trunov picks the puck up. He runs a little give-and-go with Calaway, moves it over to Mancini. Mancini tries a move and OH NO! He lifts it just a shade over the net! Mancini had Summers beat but gets a bit too much on it. LF: That was an excellent move and Summers here goes for the poke check, Mancini just gets around him, this probably should be a goal but he just got a little too excited there and skies it! What a finish. DC: That's a tough one for Mancini, but at the end of the day, this event was for the fans and hey, they got their money's worth! A dazzling display of skills from the VHL's most talented players and a thrilling scoreline overall. Congrats to Team Europe for ultimately grabbing the 9-8 win - we hope you enjoyed the show! --- 2484 words so claiming for the next 4 weeks

With the Malmo Nighthawks sitting at the top of the European Conference, Phillip Rave finds himself in a familiar place about halfway through his rookie year. It's maybe not the place everyone dreams of being when they envision being a professional hockey player, but you won't hear Rave complaining about it too much. Rave finds himself a role player for the second straight year - he's playing more than he did last season for the VHLE's Cologne Express, but the offense just isn't there for him right now. Fortunately, Rave plays a pretty complete game and prides himself on being responsible defensively in addition to providing that scoring touch. He would be the first to admit, though, that the transition to the VHL hasn't gone quite as smoothly as he'd hoped. "It's been fun, for sure. You know, the fastest way to get better at anything is to play against people that are better than you... I'm pretty early on in my career, and there's a lot I can learn from my teammates and from other players, and I'm just trying to get better every shift and learn wherever I can," says Rave. "This is the top level of hockey you'll find. The players here are so, so good. It's taking some getting used to but... it's not a level that I don't think I can get to. It's just going to take some hard work and discipline." Rave has just 5 goals and 14 points in 32 games, but it feels like he's close. He sports a +8 rating, which is good for fifth on the team, and has 106 shots on goal. His shooting percentage of 4.7% suggests he's just been a little unlucky so far, although some might argue it suggests he's just taking bad shots, instead. Among VHL rookies, Rave isn't particularly close to the scoring lead, which belongs to Helsinki's Grimgor Ironhide (31 points in 32 games), but he isn't letting it get to him. "Yeah like I said, this is the best league in the world and those are the best guys in my draft class, so... look I'd have loved to be a Rookie of the Year contender, but at the end of the day, what I really appreciate is looking at the standings and seeing the Malmo Nighthawks in first place." The EU was expected to be the more competitive of the two conferences in S92, and so far, it's living up to that billing with the top-five teams separated by eight points. The Nighthawks have a five-point gap over the London United and Helsinki Titans for second. There's a bit of a gap after the Moscow Menace, eight points down to the Riga Reign, so with 40 games left in the season, the Nighthawks sit in a playoff position by 16 points. Early in the season, it felt like the Nighthawks were fighting the puck a little. Strong play by the defense and from netminder Ash Sparks held them afloat until the offense came around. With a recent surge in offensive production, the Nighthawks are finding their stride. For Rave, who played in the VHLM finals two seasons ago with San Diego and won a Renaissance Cup last season with Cologne, he's exactly where he wants to be. "I live for the big moments," says Rave. "I don't care about how many goals or assists I score in a random regular season game in the middle of the year. I just want to be there when we're fighting for the trophy at the end of the year. And I've been fortunate to the in that position so far in my first two years, and fortunate to be playing for a team that has a chance to be there again this year. That's all I want, man. I want to win games... the rest takes care of itself."

I kinda get it though, there were exactly two teams who didn't have their goalie mentioned at all... dead last Seattle and first in the EU Malmo. Our offense was struggling pretty bad until like two sims before the time of writing, so it's entirely defense and goaltending that got us up there, and Sparks was like a .932, which while seventh, was behind three goalies at .933 (two of whom are now behind Sparks), so no practical difference between that and being tied for 4th... he mentioned a guy who was like 41st in league scoring as leading our offense. It's just a writeup for entertainment in a sim league so like not a big deal at all but I can see where's he coming from. And from someone on the team, Sparks is absolutely our MVP right now.

This was my first reaction to reading that and I'm happy you found it

Congrats! That's our captain