WildfireMicro

I guess so. Idk how it works really

Simulation Hockey League

The other family of sim leagues. Hockey Football and Baseball respectively

Hey guys and gals and everything in between WildfireMicro here to discuss my current thoughts and a few concerns about the VHL. Basically I've been in the VHL for a while now and I have had a while to think about what I do and do not like about the VHL overall and I want to talk to you about them. I do like the VHL overall and it is the only article based league that I am currently in and active in. This league has been good to me but I still do have some things to say so without any further ado let's begin! One thing I really like about this league is how casual it feels overall. There are no game threads where a presenter tries to add tons of drama into. I love the straight to the point sim results you get. You learn who's won a game with a few clicks of a mouse along with the basic stats. You get everything you want real quick as soon as the results are posted and I really like that. I can't really explain it, but it seems to put less pressure on me. I do not like game threads of the EFL and SBA at all. Especially since you have to post on the threads at least once or twice to max earn. The added drama that presenters try to add puts pressure and stress on me because I have to wait to see the results. If you like the game threads I will not diss you for that. However I hope you understand why I do not personally. If the games are not presented through a stream that shows gameplay, just post the results and stats so we can move on with our busy days. Another thing I like about the league, and this might sound a bit odd but hear me out, is the reputation system. You can react to every post to give reputation and I can keep track of how many people do like my articles and give them some appreciation. Yes I know nice comments can do the same thing in a way, but the number is a good reminder of how much I contribute to the league. It may seem superficial but I really like it personally. I just need the reminder sometimes. But there are some concerns I have to share or just one that I have noticed recently. Basically I wish the Discord locker rooms were more active overall. The Philadelphia Reapers locker room was really active overall and had ways to encourage activity with the Reaper Key and various awards. The Ottawa Lynx locker was the same way. But I do wish there was more activity and talking in the locker rooms and yes, I do know that it is also my responsibility to help them be so. I need to talk more in the VHL locker rooms as well. Well that is all from me and I really hope you enjoyed this article. Thank you for reading and I hope to see you all on the ice!

REVIEW: Overall very good read. I wish you could have spaced out the paragraphs, but them not being spaced out automatically is an issue I have too with copy and paste. Locker rooms not being as active as I want is an issue I have with a lot of the league tbh. I do think that having new ways to engage everyone could be a good way to make them active again. Some spelling mistakes do lower my score a bit, but still good read 8.5/10

Dear Dad Armani here again and I have some great news: I have a date coming up with this extremely nice girl! She is Swedish but she speaks English extremely well. Her name is Wilma Nilsson and she is a writer surprisingly enough. It didn't really work out between me and the coffee worker unfortunately because we did not really click in the end. However I feel better about this one because she wants to actually go traveling around the world and see Canada so if things really start working out I'll bring her in to see you and the rest of the town. She is about mom's height if I recall correctly and curvy with blond hair. Me and her are planning a second date soon. But getting onto another topic, the Golden Eagles have had our ups and downs. Unfortunately I do not think that we are at the top of the division anymore but we are trying our best to stay in the playoff picture. I do not know when I can write my next email as things get more busy, but I'll get in touch as soon as I have the time. If I can I'll send you over some Swedish food! Love your son, Armani WildfireMicro here just to say that I almost called the girlfriend Wilma Karlsson to be ironic.

So why are sim leagues so addictive to those who get deep enough into them? Why are so many people do dedication to this niche little hobby that they make complex graphics, podcasts, lomg stories, and even entire sim engines all in the name of sim leagues? Well there are a lot of answers to that question, but I think I will be talking about the main ones I can think of right now. This won't be a ranking of these reasons just a collection of thoughts I had about it along with how it connects to the VHL itself. First off let's start with the community. I know that I did say that this is not a ranking article, but I will say the community is probably the most important aspect to a league in the end. When you first join a community discord, you are greeted by the community welcoming you to the league and showing you around. When you make media and graphics, the community will comment on them to tell you what they think and maybe how to improve. The community is always there in a league, so it pays go get to know them all. A sim league user that doesn't take the time to get to know the community won't get far. A good community in a sim league keeps people in the league. For the VHL, I'd say that the community is pretty welcoming even though I am not the most knowledgeable about hockey itself. But when you join VHL and make a player, especially after the draft but before the trade deadline, you are greeted by the people here. You are given free reign to ask any questions and concerns you have. That's not even talking about team discords which are also insanely helpful. Never be afraid to ask questions because in a league no request for advice is a bad one. A lot of people here want to help you get off the ground running and get used to how things work around here. Now getting onto a different topic, another thing about sim leagues that makes them so addictive is the media. Whether is be reading media or creating media, those who enjoy create stories and backstory or talking about a league topic really enjoy doing it. Media such as mock drafts can also help get you an idea of where you might be going if you are in a draft. The same could be said about graphics even though you could say that getting extremely good at graphics is insanely difficult. Unlike typing and proper grammer which hopefully improve as you go through school, using programs like Gimp and Photoshop require you to learn the program and that can be difficult. So those who get really good graphics can become addicted to doing those pretty quickly. Also the people who have the graphics of thier player can get pretty invested in seeing how other users would do those graphics as well. Well that is all I want to talk about for now. This was inspired by another media I saw about what a sim league, and by extension the VHL, is. Thank you for reading and I hope to see you all on the ice!

I could be a better earner. I'll get more next week

You know what's funny? I didn't grow up watching hockey, and my knowledge of hockey back was limited to the Mighty Ducks cartoon video tape I had as a kid. I have gotten some more knowledge recently as I got more into sports but still. So why does a person who didn't grow up watching hockey stick with the VHL and not stuck with the EFL or the SBA? I think one or the biggest things that has helped me stay is the way games are presented. I can instantly get knowledge of every game I am in with the results being posted instantly without having to worry about a game thread. Game threads are one of my biggest issues with EFL as it makes me have to worry with the games in the back of my mind until they are done hours later. It's just quick knowledge of what happened after the sim without people trying to add drama with thier sim presentations. I know some people prefer the game threads and all the power to them, but it is how I like it personally. Also the league is extra casual or at least it seems so for me so that is another benefit. So yeah good job VHL for keeping me engaged so far.

no I do not know who the mother is because i have not planned who it is yet

For Armani Calamari, life after hockey would probably not be easy. He would have to adjust to not having to wake up early every day to prepare for practices. But here I have a crystal ball that can tell me where he will go after he eventually retires. And no, it will not show me his accomplishments throughout the years as they are too cloudy trust me I tried. But it does show that he would retreat from wherever he lasts plays back to his home city of Toronto to live out the rest of his life. After a year or two doing media appearances, he would get into hockey commentary for Canadian broadcasts. He would become a decently popular color commentator and would get a job doing hockey analysis for various sports networks. But eventually the work would wear on him because or constantly having to agure his points with his partners. He also was not the biggest fan of always having to wear a suit. After 4 years of doing this, he would step down from both of those jobs and would again retreat to his house in Toronto. After a while he writes his memoirs which are eventually published into a popular autobiography. Using the money from this and his previous jobs, he decides to open a coffee shop in a small town outside of Toronto. It would manage to become extremely popular due to Armani getting recipes from his dad's old friend Craig and he would spend most of the rest of his life running the shop. He would also finally get a son, with Eric Calamari being born a year later. I unfortunately cannot figure out who the mother is though. He would get into writing books again and would start writing horror and mystery novels. His most popular novels are "Mystery of the Red Manor" and "The Final Silence of Evergreen". The latter ends up being extremely interesting as it is about a small town where everyone who was born there has no voice due to an ancient curse. It's also extremely hard to leave the town. The former is about a group of young adults investigating an old manor where people supposedly went missing. He would manage to become a best seller with those two and would help work on a movie adaptation called "Silence of Evergreen". After all of that Armani figures that he has led a long and fulfilling life. With his son also getting into hockey he takes retire off from the coffee shop and the movie to help him. He would become a youth hockey coach and would become known for encouraging fair play. He would get a plaque in the hockey gym where he also played youth hockey while he was doing it. He is proud to see his son Eric following a similar path to him and just hopes that he would not repeat his mistakes. Despite starting to grey from age he would still be on the side cheering his som the whole way. I hope this was a fun article for Theme Week! Hopefully I can get that 12 TPE. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you all on the ice!

Dear Dad Your son Armani speaking. I am so glad to hear that you and her are hitting it off so well! There are some nice girls here in Sweden and I have had to tell some of them that I am Canadian, not American. But honestly they may seem nice but you know that I am not really one for relationships. They just do not interest me as much as hockey. You know sometimes that weighs on my mind but I am trying not to think about it too much. But I did meet a Swedish girl that is becoming my friend at least. Her name is Tiffany and she is blond. I do not know if her being blond is important or not, but she is so you got at least an idea of what she looks like. She is a waitress at this coffee and breakfast restaurant I frequent for the waffles. I think you call them baristas or something like that? Or does she even count as one because it is more of a breakfast place? Who knows honestly but the important thing is that I know that she likes to go to the park and we meet up a lot. I do not know if this will end up leading anywhere but we will see. Anyways I hope to here from you soon! Sincerely your son, Armani

Dear Armani This is Dad and I am so glad to hear that you are doing well! I know moving to a new country was going to be daunting but you seen to be handling it well. The woman I am now dating is Elizabeth, you know the woman who used to work at the grocery store? She has quit that job since and now works at a small tech business as a secretary. She actually makes we good money, but don't worry son I am not dating her just for her money. She and I hit it off at the local bar when we had a couple of drinks. You are probably right when you mentioned that your mother would have wanted me to start dating again. She was a really sweet woman and she would understand why I need to do this. Apparently Elizabeth divorced her husband because he ran away with a new wife, can you believe that? I actually got a dinner date with her coming up tonight at the Japanese restaurant near home. You know the one, where we had your 14th birthday and you kissed your now ex-girlfriend in the back of the restaurant? Too bad she was a cheater huh son? Anyways I gotta get ready for my date tonight so see you later! Love, your father John

1. Thats a tough one but I say the Cup. 2. To win a few awards and titles really 3. They are helping Armani get over slight homesickness 4. Guys like Kyle Peace for Armani 5. The person who scores the GWG gets to feed the eagle 6. Armani goes with Kyle, Shaggy, and Willy and has to drive them home because he does not drink

Armani Calamari's mother originally named Jane Derba was a field hockey player and track star in the same school as his father, John Calamari. John was on the school hockey team but was a bit of a goon. He would get into all kinds of fights and arguments on the ice but always seemed to try not to take it too far so he won't get punished. John had long hair back then just like Armani does now, but ironically is bald these days. John crushed hard on Jane as she was the pretty girl next door type, but she personally did not like his attitude in games. One day during their sophomore year Jane was practicing with her teammates while John was doing some writing in his journal nearby. While John was writing about his day, some bullies grabbed his journal and him and ripped a page out before Jane and her teammates made them go away. Jane grabbed the page and saw that it was him writing about his absent father. "So your dad ran away?" Jane said before John grabbed the page away "what happened to your mom?" "She gave me away when I was 4." John sighs "I've been in a bunch of foster homes, probably why those guys thought it would be funny to do that. I'm an easy target" "Well their leader was Butch and I know he is the hockey captain" Jane says raising an eyebrow "you definitely don't have any qualms about doing his dirty work in the ice" "What choice do I have?" John says "he makes us do all of that. His dad is the coach. Doesn’t excuse anything I did I know" he sighs and goes to leave "I'll be seeing you around Jane" "Wait!" Jane says as she walks up to him "Our practice is over and my parents are making me walk home because they are still at work. Can you walk with me?" "Umm...sure!" John smiles as he and Jane walk to her house. This walk would start their friendship and eventual relationship throughout the years. Armani would be born a few years after thier marriage and they would be a happy family until two years afterwards. Jane would unfortunately pass away a couple of weeks after Armani's birthday dueto complications from surgery. After her passing John found himself in a similar situation as his own mom with being a single parent. He was typing on his computer with barely any sleep in the previous day when two year old Armani tried to get his dad's attention. "What do you want son, I'm very busy" John says as he goes up to him and sees Armani holding a very crude drawing of John. John started crying and picked up his son "Armani my son I promise you today that I will take care of you in the best way I can. It's what your mother would have wanted. Now do you want to go to the park?" They both got into John's car and he took a picture of them both, which Armani still has in his apartment in Sweden. He looks at it a lot for motivation and happiness.

REVIEW I love the analysis style of this! It was pretty detailed as well. I wish there was better paragraphs in there as they can go long. The picture is a nice touch though! Gives it a news article feel. Overall I'll give it a 8/10 because it needs better paragraphs but I liked it overall.

I'll be answering as both me and my player Armani Calamari 1. Armani: it feels extremely special! Definitely a lot of history there 2. Armani: It is awesome! It is like being a part of history 3. Armani: how much we support each other and keep each other on the right track 4. Me: his name is pretty fun, but he also likes making BBQ on the grill 5. Armani: we like to caw loudly after we score a goal 6. Armani: I can't choose honestly. I don't puck favorites often

Hey Dad This is Armani speaking. How are you? I am doing well personally. Sweden is a beautiful country and the people there can speak English relatively well. I love thier meatballs too and I found an amazing restaurant for them. Anyways I know that you are finally going to try dating again and I think that is great! I know that moving on from Mom's death has been extremely hard, but I think she would want you to at least try to move amd find someone nice to talk to now that I have moved out. You can't just talk about hockey with Mr.Simon next door forever! Anyways, I hope to be in a position where we can have a video chat soon. It's even extremely busy lately with practice and games that I have not found the time. I haven't checked the standings in a while, but I think we are at least close to the top of the standings. When I eventually get called up I'll be looking forward to talking to you again. Be sure to save me some maple syrup for then! Now the coach is trying to get my attention for the next meeting so I have to bounce. I'll email you again soon! Love your son, Armani

Armani Calamari is not much of a fighter. Indeed, he only really fights on the ice when he is forced to by an opponent. But in the end there are certain lines you do not cross in both life and hockey and one of them was definitely crossed during Armani's sophomore year in high school. He was a relatively well known player on his school team and was mostly known for playing rather clean, having only gotten a few penalty minutes all year. This upcoming game however was against a big rival school across town who had a junior year player named Mark Johnson. Mark was known for being quite the bad boy and had gotten into plenty of fights over his high school career. He was also known for trying to provoke his opponents in any way they can by getting extremely personal in his insults. He would go deep into their history and it was a miracle that he had not gotten kicked off his team yet. However with Armani he would go way too far. During the game, Mark would repeatedly check Armani trying to hurt him or provoke him into a fight. Armani would stick to his guns however and not fight at all. It was not until they got a bit tangled up in the corner that Mark would say the thing that finally set Armani off: "Your mother was a-" I won't be writing what he said as it is extremely inappropriate. I will just provide context: Armani's mother was an extremely sweet woman who his father loved dearly. However she unfortunately passed away two years after Armani was born and it affected his father deeply. If that was not bad enough, they were right next to Armani's dad and Mark had said it loud enough for him to hear. Armani finally snapped and began laying down heavy blows onto Mark. It would take a while for them to be broken up, and Armani was still roaring with rage. Both would get sent to the locker rooms where Armani cried to himself in both anger and despair. The team finally came back with the game being a draw and Armani was able to provide context onto what happened on the ice. The coach said that he would have a chat with the opposing coach and left. Armani's father was eventually allowed to talk to his devastated son when he got back to the car "You know what he called mom huh?" Armani managed to say "Yeah but you did what you had to do in the moment son." His father said as he put his hand on his shoulder "Just remember there will be times that you must fight to be a man. I was sorely tempted to get on the ice myself" "I am glad you didn't." Armani says then sighs "I guess the world is full of goons" "Indeed son but just try not to be one" A few days later they would get the surprising news that Mark was finally kicked off his team due to his unprofessional behavior. I guess the moral of the story is that sometimes in hockey and in life fighting is necessary as long as you are doing it for the right reasons.

REVIEW: Overall very enjoyable! It clearly states the situation with Riga and I get the gist of how the player is feeling. I may not personally like the fact that there are so many spaces, but it is well written. Good luck to Hlozek going forward! Overall I give it an 8.5/10 personally.

REVIEW: A pretty entertaining piece overall. I did chuckle at the Chicken Dance banter! I do have a gripe with the lack of spacing, although I realize that copy and pasting words onto the site removes it. In the end I'd understand if it would have been a pain to put it back in, but it still irks me. Also I might have written it in a more traditional way like a story but I understand your way as well. Overall I'll give it a 7/10 but a very good 7/10.

Good luck everyone!

Prospect Scouting Report Name: Armani Calamari From: Toronto Ontario Canada Height: 5'8 Weight: 170 LB Armani Calamari's VHLM career began by signing a short waiver contract with the Philadelphia Reapers where he started as a role player. He was mostly used in 4th line roles here and was lucky to get a point via assist and a few shots in the eleven regular season games he played. He was just an extra body for the Reapers to use as they try to go for a playoff run but it was great experience for him. However they were unfortunately eliminated in the first round but Armani did not let it bother him. Afterwards he went into the VHLM draft so he could find a more permanent home. He was chosen by the Ottawa Lynx 40th overall and was named one of the captains there after impressing the coaches there with his friendly attitude. He was way more productive there getting 13 goals and 25 assists as he was now on one of the main lines. He also ballooned his shots from just five all the way to 122 in 44 games. He was also a relatively clean player with only twelve penalty minutes. For the short time he spent in Ottawa he was a big part of a team trying to build towards the future. However about halfway through the season or so he was traded back to the Reapers for a few picks. The Reapers were again looking for a capable center and Armani fit that bill. Despite again being on a low line Armani did not complain much and just tried to make the most of the minutes he got. In 30 regular season games he got two goals and five assists in 39 shots. He wasn't quite as clean as before with sixteen penalty minutes but being in a rough and tumble city like Philadelphia probably influenced him a bit. He never got a point in the playoffs unfortunately because the Reapers were swept. He hasn't done much in ether playoff runs actually. Armani was a bit miffed but tried his best to get over it as the VHL draft awaits. Afterwards the Reapers honored him a bit by giving him a alumni jersey in thier ring of honor which is not as good as the Hall of Fame but does mean they acknowledge his time there. Armani has since said that he had hung that jersey in his office. He has also said that he is excited for the VHLE despite some apprehension around the league from other players. He just seems like a guy who just loves hockey no matter where he has to play it so his upcoming seasons will be interesting to watch.

From the Toronto Sports Newspaper written by Hale James: Armani Calamari has had quite a busy week. He was drafted with the 18th pick by the Toronto Legion and then was notified that he was drafted in the 8th round by the Vasteras Iron Eagles. Despite the surprise that he was drafted so late, Armani does not seem to be worrying too much about it. He is currently planning on getting on a plane towards Sweden, but we managed to get this statement from him: "Honestly the VHLE draft results did not bother me too much. I was actually talking to my dad while we ate some waffles when I was notified. I am just excited for the opportunity to play for a new team in a brand new league. After I get done in Sweden I can head back to Toronto to show my stuff to the Legion faithful. It's all extremely exciting" The hype surrounding the European league is definitely exciting and we will hopefully be able to provide updates from Armani's performance in the E. And hey, if he loves waffles, Sweden is full of them and is famous for it. We wish Armani a lot of luck in his upcoming games in Europe!