dogwoodmaple

1. I'm feeling great! We're off to a good start so far. 2. My main thing is to have a huge Waffle House breakfast before every game. It's been a ritual since high school. 3. That's a tough one...I'm going to need some time to come up with a good answer. 4. Right now, it's offensive vision. I want to help run the offense as much as possible. 5. I'm easy, so I've got a hand-me-down. It hasn't let me down yet! 6. ATLANTA! Atlanta is the clear choice.

@Adrest245

Taylor Mourning - F

Vasteras about to throw me back in the ocean after this fantasy draft debacle F - Daniel Janser

D - Max Torq

@ThePerfectNut

Phil The Rock Johnson - F

Aurelien Moreau I think it's @Adrest245? Sorry for the delay!

Tom Eagles - D @Adrest245

After an unfortunate meal at his favorite pre-game meal location, Waffle House, the Iron Eagles and Wolves forward Dogwood Maple had a terrible bout of food poisoning. "It was almost so bad that we had to go to the hospital. I was severely dehydrated and it really put some of the early season games in jeopardy." Maple met with Vasteras' team doctor who didn't prescribe anything, other than plenty of fluids and lots of rest, but he did leave the door open to potential foul play. "Dogwood told me he goes to Waffle House before every single game and gets essentially the same order. So it's a little strange that he would get sick only this singular time. I'm not saying that somebody spiked his food and intentionally poisoned him, but I have been in contact with the authorities about the situation," said team doctor Cal Thadocta. "I'm just focused on getting better, that's all. Whether it was innocent or not is not really a concern for me. I need to be at the top of my game for my teammates and that's why I'm following doc's orders to the letter. Rest, relaxation, and plenty of water. Gotta get better for the regular season." (204 words)

1. VHLE! I'm hoping to win a title...I truly think we can bring it home for our wonderful fans. 2. It's all about hard work for me. There's not a day go by when I'm not going crazy at the gym. 3. I'm not sure I have any tangible ideas, but it's all about activity for me. Something to keep us coming back and engaged. 4. ATLANTA! Great sports town, great location, and it would have a huge following. 5. I'm not going to lie, taking home an MVP trophy would be pretty awesome. A player can dream, right? 6. I want Waffle House at the PC! All about the All-Star Special!

D Jerome Reinhart @ThePerfectNut

@Adrest245

F Paul Atreides

I'm in!

Fresh off winning the championship in Las Vegas this season, I was looking forward to the VHL Draft to learn about my new home. I had no clue when or where I would be drafted, but I guessed it would somewhere in the mid-late first round, and that's exactly what happened! I was selected by the Vancouver Wolves with the 7th overall pick and I'll be joining some familiar faces in my new locker room. I couldn't be more thrilled to be a Wolf and, although it will be a season before I'm officially taking the ice for Vancouver, I'm envisioning big things for our franchise. I won't be shy - my goal is to help lead the Wolves to multiple titles and fill up our trophy case early and often. We not only have great management and a fantastic roster, but we have the best fanbase in the entire league. I've been to a few Vancouver games as a fan and I know first hand how big of an impact they can have. I'm looking forward to seeing it from home ice and skating out to that raucous crowd. Go Wolves! 191 words

1. I am! It's nice to see some familiar faces in here and I'm thrilled to get started in Vancouver. 2. I think I'm happy with my build right now. I tried to put a lot of thought into it each week and I think it's working out well. 3. I'd have an axe. Assuming that requesting a satellite phone would require access to the satellite itself? Not sure if that would count as two items. 4. I'm spread pretty thin right now so assistant GM isn't on my radar. But with the incredible success that I'm sure we'll have, I bet we'll get plenty of qualified candidates. 5. Hell of a season, Tate! Always nice to see teammates impress on the ice. 6. Not only are our draftees talented, but I think the camaraderie between us will be a huge boost to the franchise!

What a season in Vegas! Great locker room, great team, great organization

What a game! This was a classic Game 7 that was decides by the smallest of margins. Early on in the first period, the game was neck and neck and neither team was able to separate from the other. But as the first period clock started to wind down, Moscow kicked it into gear and was able to light the siren thanks to a goal from Wattson Power. That goal clearly gave them some confidence as George Sanderson found the back of the net less than a minute later to give the Menace a 2-0 lead in the first period. But just as Moscow was riding high, Seattle came out with their hair on fire in the second period. Less than one minute after intermission, Zeedayno Chara scored on the powerplay to cut the Seattle deficit in half. And speaking of powerplay, Seattle once again took advantage just a few minutes later thanks to Sigard Petrenko. Petrenko's wrister tied the game at 2-2 as Moscow's momentum shifted completely to Seattle. The third period would decide the game and for the first 18-plus minutes, there were barely any chances. Both teams went back and forth, but neither was able to score the presumptive game-winner. That was until Vinny Detroit lined up a slapshot from the left side and scored for Seattle with less than two minutes left in the game. Despite a feverish finish from Moscow where they threw everything at the Bears in the final minute looking for an equalizer, it was all for naught. Seattle was able to kill the last few moments off the clock as they clinched the Continental Cup. Hell of a game all around.

1. I'm a little late this week, but I honestly felt confident throughout the series. After that scare in the semis, I knew we wouldn't be denied 2. I think Velociraptor Greg should bring home some hardware. Same goes for GMoTY for Shindigs. 3. My favorite Aces memory is probably Draft Night. Just getting welcomed into the locker room and celebrating with everyone was a ton of fun. 4. Depth. Every single skater on the third line could be a prime-line player for almost any other franchise and each of them can take over the game at a moment's notice. 5. I had a cold spell there for a bit, but I'm glad I was able to turn things around there at the end. 6. I was rooting for literally any Canadian team to win just so they could break the streak. It will live on, though...

With the fourth pick in the VHLM Draft, the Las Vegas Aces select Dogwood Maple.... That was the moment I became a Las Vegas Ace and from the beginning, I knew I was joining a special franchise. In the pre-draft process, I spoke with Shindigs at length about his plan for the Aces, my potential role on the team, and everything in between. From then on, I had my fingers crossed that's where I'd end up. When I got the notification that I was headed west, I was overjoyed. And it didn't take long to see that all of Shindigs' grand talk about the franchise wasn't just smoke being blown...he had a plan and it worked to perfection. At the beginning of the regular season, I was happy just to get on the ice. Then I realized that we were not only a pretty good team, but one of the best teams in the entire league. I think a lot of that was due to our depth. Seemingly each week we had a different player step up when it came to goals, assists, hits, blocks, and plus-minus. When one of us had a bad stretch of games, one of our other players picked up the slack in a major way. Just having that pressure off our shoulders was huge. Knowing that not one player had to carry the entire team or bear the weight of whether or not we won or lost was incredibly freeing. When you combine that depth with our leadership, it was a very fast recipe for success. When the postseason began, everyone on the roster knew that winning the Founder's Cup was a more than realistic goal, but also that the postseason is an entirely different ballgame. Playoff hockey is famous for its intensity and often its unpredictability and we knew we had to be prepared for that. And let me tell you what....that semifinal series was the definition of chaotic. We quickly fell down 0-2 to Ottawa and you could hear a pin drop in our locker room. We knew it wouldn't be close to a cake walk because Ottawa is a fantastic franchise and has a great team, but we could see all of our goals teetering on the brink. Fortunately, we were able to win the next two games to even the series at 2-2, before clinching our place in the finals against San Diego. At this point, we knew our hardest test as right in front of us and it would take the best hockey of the season to take home the Founder's Cup. We split the first two games, which was a bit of a relief after the slow start in the semifinals. We had a setback in Game 3 to go down 2-1, but quickly rebounded in Game 4 to once again tie the series up. That left us with essentially a best-of-three miniseries against the Marlins for the Founder's Cup, and the rest, they say, was history. We put together two great games back-to-back and brought home the Founder's Cup to Las Vegas and our incredible fans. What an incredible season for the Aces and it's been made bittersweet by the fact that I've been officially released as I take the next step in my VHL journey. I'll forever be thankful to Shindigs, my Aces teammates, and all of our fans across the country. I couldn't have pictured a more perfect rookie season in the league and no matter where my career takes me, I'll always be a Las Vegas Ace and a Founder's Cup Champion. 597 words

It took just four games for Las Vegas to advance to the next round as they swept the Philadelphia Reapers in the opening round. Las Vegas outscored Philadelphia 15-5 in the series with just one game being decided by a single goal. "We're playing some of our best hockey of the season right now and really clicking as a team," said center Dogwood Maple. "Philadelphia is a great team and I'm just glad we were able to advance." Next up for Las Vegas is a semifinal date with San Diego, perhaps the best team remaining in the playoffs. "This is going to be a huge test for us. The Marlins have an elite offense, a great set of defenders, and a hell of a goalie. We'll need to continue playing our best hockey to have a chance. I could definitely see this series going a full seven games." Maple clearly thinks highly of their next round opponents. "We can't take them lightly. We finished the regular season with the exact same number of points so you know they're legit. As far as we're concerned, this may as well be for all the marbles." (193 words)

In a shocking request, officials from the San Diego Marlins have reached out to the Las Vegas Aces and asked that their upcoming series be played in the ocean. "We figure we're the Marlins, so it makes sense that we'd want to tango out in the open water. I'm honestly not sure if any of the Las Vegas players can swim...our guys literally have fins so I think it's a huge advantage," said one unnamed source out of San Diego. The idea was thought to be a joke, but apparently the Marlins are completely serious. "The way those guys are talking makes it sound like they're some sort of man-fish hybrid. Like their actually marlins. I mean, that's not biologically possible, right? (nervous laughter). I'm not saying I'm scared of mermen-fish things, but....well now that I think about that I think I might be scared of playing something like that. Do they really all have fins?" Las Vegas center Dogwood Maple was clearly shaken by the prospect. Dogwood continued: "I can swim, but swimming and playing at the same time? How does that even work? Where's the ice? Is this water polo? I don't understand what's going on, to be honest. First I thought it was a joke but I talked to a friend of a friend and they said that every player who gets drafted by San Diego has to have gills surgically implanted so they can breathe underwater. But that's a joke...right?" Two members of the head office could not confirm or deny where the game would be played and simply referred any questions to the pre-published postseason schedule that showed the first game starting in Las Vegas. However, the San Diego Marlins recently sent a care package to Las Vegas consisting of scuba gear, flippers, and floaties in what was either an intimidation tactic or simply a preparatory shipment with the impending water battle looming. To make things even more interesting, there is now evidence that the Marlins were behind the flooding of the Las Vegas arena that happened earlier this season. It was originally thought to be a power outage, but now there is evidence that San Diego was simply preparing for the coming sea battle between these two teams that seemed inevitable. "I'm not saying San Diego deliberately thawed our ice, but it really makes you think, y'know? And come to think of it, I could've sworn I saw someone in a Marlins hoodie the day before the flood happened walking near our facility. I know they have a huge fanbase so it's not uncommon to see some of them in Vegas, but like I said...it really makes you think," continued Maple. Regardless of where the game is played this series is sure to be an all-timer as both teams finished the regular season with the exact same number of points, which was tied for the most in the entire league. They were also first and second in goals scored, goals allowed, goal differential, wins, and virtually every other team statistic. The oddsmakers agree that this will be a close battle and have the two sides with the exact same betting odds to advance. One thing is for certain, though - whoever wins this series will have a leg, or fin, up in the next round and will likely be the favorite to win the championship. (560 words)

1. Not one moment stands out, but I'd say maybe the clinching game in its entirety. Just a really solid game all around and it felt nice to go ahead and punch our ticket to the next round. 2. It's huge to know that we have an advantage in the circle right now. We're able to set up and run our offense no matter where we are on the ice which also takes some pressure off the defense. 3. It's going to come down to our forwards against their defense. If we're able to break through and score some early goals, I like our chances. 4. He's playing with unreal confidence right now. He's as hot as any player in the league and I'm not sure he can be stopped! 5. Hey, if we keep on winning we could rename the team the Las Vegas Bots for all I care! Ceson + Bots = Wins, so might as well keep it up. 6. the JST was a great experience for me last season - I was able to meet a bunch of new users and it was a nice entrance to the sim and navigating box scores and the like.

BREAKING NEWS OUT OF LAS VEGAS: On the eve of the VHLM playoffs, someone has broken into the Las Vegas Aces' team facility and kidnapped the unofficial team mascot and good luck charm, Ace the Raccoon. Ace has an indoor/outdoor enclosure that allows him to visit various dumpsters and other trash locations at night, while offering him a safe place to rest, relax, and cheer on the Aces during the day. It appears that the raccoon-napping happened yesterday and Las Vegas recently received a letter from Ace's captors demanding a ransom. Instead of money, they're demanding that the Aces intentionally lose in the playoffs. "I honestly can't believe it. Ace has gotten us through some tough times this year and to think that someone kidnapped him just to maybe win some more hockey games? It's unfathomable," said center Dogwood Maple. "I remember hearing about when Ace first got here...when some players rescued him after he was hit by a car a few years back and how they nursed him back to health. He IS Las Vegas. He's a part of this team and it just breaks my heart to see him stolen like that. When we find who's responsible, there'll be hell to pay." So far the investigation has resulted in no leads, but some members of the team have their own thoughts on who is behind this. "I'll probably get fined if I say who I think it is. Let's just say that we'll settle this on the ice."