thadthrasher

I did not expect this...

As the season continues onward and upward for the Bratislava Watchmen, one player has been watched by many VHL scouts this season, Napoleon Dynamite. Dynamite is a relatively new player in the VHL world, signing late last season to the Saskatoon Wild. During his short stint with the Wild, he made his name known by capturing a cup with the team. Now, in the VHLE, Dynamite is hoping to excel above his peers, make his name known, and find himself bring drafted early on in the VHL. As with any young player, Dynamite is confident in his ability but is willing to learn more and more from veteran players and trainers from around the league. While he finds himself with limited ice time given his age and experience, he is making the most of it. Right now at 22 games into the season, Dynamite has 4 goals and 6 assists. While he continues to work on his shooting, Dynamite is doing well as a center, winning 54.20% of the faceoffs he's taken. As a 16-year-old kid, this is mighty impressive!

Simple, we need to destroy, crush, and humiliate Vasteras! It's really reassuring! It helps our confidence on the ice for sure. To move up the lines! Pittsburgh Penguins baby! Pittsburgh Penguins, of course! My wife would either want to stay home and do something simple or go out camping.

Howdy everyone! @Ricer13, @Moon, @Frank, @rjfryman and me are excited to be working together as your VHL Recruitment Team. Our goal is rather simple, bring people here and keep them here! One thing you can do to help us out is fill out this survey. It won't take you very long and it'll help us work through some ideas. Of course, we are open to suggestions and are looking forward to hearing from you. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to reach out to us either in this thread or through DMs.

Stockholm has made a FA Offer.

1. Well, I'm responding to this just after the start of the season, and things are going well! 2. No, not at all. STHS knows they aren't serious and will give people false hopes. 3. No, and I think Napoleon might want to start a rivalry with Kisslinger. 4. I think it will be tough, depending on how our training goes. 5. Fast, Aggressive, Accurate 6. Well, my player is currently in Bratislava, so if I become a fan favorite in Stockholm then we have a problem lol.

@Spartan we're done!

Thanks!

Don't get me wrong here, I actually do really like this graphic. However, you're missing a rather important "chip" that PJ Daniels has, and that's his Stockholm Vikings Chip. Don't worry though, we won't take it too personally! Anyways, I really like what you've done with this graphic, especially the way you presented the name. I love the blurred line effect above and below the name. The color swap on the sweater could use some work around the white on the arms, but nothing too bad. Overall, 8/10.

Well, I have to say that I haven't seen anything like this before. It's rather impressive, and I love the style of it all. This took a lot of creativity, and it definitely shows here. One thing I really appreciate is the logo on the wall in the background. It's not tacky, nor does it look like it's fake, it actually feels like it's really there, which makes this whole piece come together nicely. Well done! 10/10

An artist's depiction of the Stockholm Vikings setting sail into the Baltic Sea, on course for Oslo. There is a tradition in Stockholm that has only recently caught the attention of VHLE fans around the world. It’s something that the Stockholm Vikings has done since the beginning of the VHLE in S80, but is only recently gaining any sort of international and world-wide attention, while it has become sort of a holiday in Stockholm. It’s the annual “Longboat Sail.” A rather risky, yet well received tradition. S80 The first game that the Stockholm Vikings had was not only a home game, but was against a fellow Swedish team. In their first game in S80, the Stockholm Vikings hosted the Vasteras Iron Eagles. As a way to hype up the crowds, and call the city of Stockholm together, the entire team and staff of the Stockholm Vikings boarded a Longship, sailed up to Vasteras, blew Viking War horns, and returned to Stockholm. It became a symbolic gesture, something that called back to the fighting spirit of the original Vikings. S81 After seeing the pride that exuded from fans and players, the organization decided to do this again in S81 when the Vasteras Iron Eagles hosted the Stockholm Vikings. The Vikings, again, boarded a Longship and sailed up to Vasteras. This time, after blowing the Viking War horns, they left the ship and headed to the Iron Eagles arena. S82 While everyone was behind this growing tradition, S82 threw a curveball at the team and organization as a whole. If they wanted to continue this tradition, they had to decide what to do if their first game was an away game for a team that was not within easy sailing distance. Well, S82 had the first Vikings game against Oslo, in Oslo! Without a direct route there by boat, the team had to think of something. After talking with players and staff, everyone agreed that the tradition was meaningful, and worth keeping despite the dangers of sea travel. So, everyone boarded a Longship at the Port of Stockholm, and they set sail in the Baltic Sea. They stayed close to the shore along the way, travelling around 16 knots, which got them to Oslo in just under 2 days. Because the team would need to rejuvenate after such intense travels, they left a few days before the first day to allow for travel and recuperation time. The trip brought 0 complications, and even though they were tired, the tradition that lived on breathed life into the team like never before. They truly felt like Vikings. S83 When the VHLE announced that S83 was going to start the same exact way, the Stockholm Vikings knew what they wanted to do. Set sail. They followed the same procedure as they did in S82, and with the knowledge that they had from the previous trip, confidence was even higher this year. The team collectively learned various songs to sing, drank heavy amounts of mead, and feasted on the Longship whenever they could. It was as if Odin was truly smiling upon the team. This time, though, the Vikings not only landed in the Port of Oslo, but they marched throughout the city, blowing their Viking War horns, and they made their presence known. While some have criticized this tradition, no one is made to participate who does not wish to do so. And, to this day, no player nor staff person has ever turned down the opportunity to dig deep into the roots of the Viking. To Valhalla! A sample of what a Viking War horn sounds like. Imagine this echoing throughout your city....terrifying.

F - Anze Miklavz @adison

Yea, you can pick your goalie now

D - Jerome Reinhart @jRuutu

F - Zeedayno Chara @adison

G - David Davis @jRuutu

My bad! I misunderstood the rule on that then. I thought the skip meant you lost the turn until your next one. Thanks for clearing this up! No thank you. But, now that we’ve cleared this up would you like to stay on here and keep going? This is my first time as a group manager so I’m sorry I made a mistake on that.

@jRuutu’s selection was skipped, therefore Papa Emeritus is still available.

The time after Strider’s pick has exceeded 12 hours, so @jRuutu has been skipped. On his next turn he’ll get two picks. D- Battre Sandstrom @adison you’re on the clock

I think this graphic has a lot of great potential, and it really doesn't look all that bad. But, as @Zack so kindly suggested, the overall brightness of this is way too high. Of course, one could say, "That's exactly what I was going for," but the rest of us who look at it think, "no." Literally, the only thing I would change in this is the brightness, definitely decrease that. I think if you do that the graphic would turn out much better. 7/10

I think my absolute favorite thing about this graphic is not the lights, not the colors, not even the render itself, but actually the little swirls that are up around the head of the player and in the crowd. It's a neat little addition, and I enjoy it. This is a clean graphic all around. The lighting is nice and well done, the flares add some uniqueness to this. The two things I would work on are the font and the logo swap. The logo swap isn't too bad, just needs to be tilted down and in a bit more, and the font isn't terrible but I think there is a better one for this. Overall, 8/10!

We are looking like serious playoff contenders for sure! The only team we really need to worry about are those Vikings! Do whatever it takes to win. I'd say 10/10 for sure. No mistakes, this time... I'm not sure what your question is here, but I'll assume you're asking what my thoughts are about them going into S83. In that case, I think it was a great move, especially grabbing Dynamite and Live. Absolutely, I'm always looking for branding opportunities. I do. Dynamite is still very young, and progressing at a rapid rate, so I'm confident he'll do well!

The S82 VHL Awards have come and gone and the league is still buzzing in excitement from the festivities. Due to a variety of changes in rules and regulations within the VHL, which take effect in S83, the S82 VHL Awards were unique, and incredibly special. While every fan had their favorite player to watch, many were expecting to see one player’s name listed for the final time in his career, Thadius Sales. Sales, as many know, began his career as a waiver signing with the Halifax 21st of the VHLM. He then was drafted to the Miami Marlins, traded to the Las Vegas Aces, and eventually made his way up to the New York Americans. In his rookie season he was named the starter for the New York Americans, which was a load of pressure that some thought was too much for a rookie goaltender. While he handled it the best that he could, the New York organization seemed to struggle with the formation of a solid team, which left Sales to bear the brunt end of the responsibility on the ice. With only 1 playoff appearance in 5 seasons with the New York organization, the team was looking rough. Then, it all changed. Sales was notified that he had been traded to the Vancouver Wolves while New York received a S81 CHI 3rd, a S81 VAN 4th, and a S82 VAN 2nd. Moving only for picks, Sales didn’t cross paths with anyone on the way out, and frankly he wasn’t sure how this trade was going suit him. But, quickly, he learned that he wanted to play hard for the Wolves. Knowing that his career wasn’t going to last much longer, Sales had a fire that was lit under him by the Vancouver management, and wow did it show up on the ice. For example, Sales’ best season with the New York Americans was S78 where Sales went 32-28-4, had a .919 SV%, a 3.27 GAA and 1 shutout. Compare that with Sales’ best season with the Wolves which was his final season in the VHL, S82, where he went 49-11-4, had a .926 SV%, a 2.89 GAA and 3 shutouts. This move was clearly a good one for both Sales and Vancouver. While Sales only saw playoff action with New York for 4 games in S78, he would see 32 playoff games with Vancouver, helping the organization to capture 2 Continental Cups during his time with them. Sales’ performance on the ice was not only recognized by the Wolves organization as being outstanding, but by the VHL as per their most recent awards show. Sales walked away with the following awards: Victory Cup (S81, S82) Continental Cup (S81, S82) Greg Clegane Trophy (S81, S82) Aidan Shaw Trophy (S81, S82) Daisuke Kanou Trophy (S82) All VHL 1st Team (S81, S82) After the show, Sales had this to say: “I always dreamed of this, but I never thought I would get here, especially at the beginning of it all. I found myself missing the New York organization after the trade, but Vancouver was such a different environment. They wanted to win, and that lit something in me that I didn’t know about. The chemistry on the ice and off the ice was phenomenal, and I couldn’t have asked for a better team to spend my last 2 seasons with. Now, I look forward to what retirement has to bring to me. I can’t sit still for very long though, so who knows, maybe you’ll see me again as a coach or working with young players. Anyways, to everyone who has cheered for me, given me constructive criticism, supported me, and challenged me to do better, I couldn’t have gotten here without you all. Thank you for this and thank you VHL for the second chance in life. This is Prison Mike saying “see ya later” for the last time." --- 650 words, claiming week ending 17 April 2022

This was clearly a win for both.