Baozi

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XXX Looking to Secure a Playoff Berth
www.VHLHockeynews.com
 
It is an optional day today. Most of the team has gone off to take a rest, go out for the day or just stay away from the rink. None of this even enters Xin’s mind as he works out with a handful of other players in the Saskatoon athletic center. The sweat glistens off his forehead as he moves side to side with the medicine ball on a stretch of court, his grunts resounding off the walls as he focuses towards his singular purpose; he has to be better.
The Saskatoon Wild are only a few points away from clinching a playoff berth, lead by the man nicknamed as the Titan on the ice. With his giant six foot eight frame and strong playing ability, teams have been hard pressed to contain him on the ice at times. Playing a style very similar to that of former NHL star Eric Lindros, teams have been finding out the hard way that when XXX gets going, he can be unstoppable.
 

 
“He can beat you so many different ways, he can play a power game and protect the puck from anyone almost. He is strong on his feet and taking him down is like trying to take down a wild bull. But that’s not everything, if we play him physical, he has the skills to dangle you if you over commit. He has great hands and if you are not careful, he’ll just skip around you like a pylon. He may not be on the same level as Lindros, but they definitely play a really similar game. It is an entire team effort to keep him off the scoresheet really.” – Anonymous Coach
 
So what is next on the Titan’s plan? He takes a short break to give us a few words in broken English as he takes a drink from a bottle to hydrate in between. We also filled in a few words here and there.
 
“Well we have to keep the pace, its hard playing all an entire season putting everything on the line. But we have no choice here, we have to make the playoffs, anything less would be unacceptable. We’ve worked long and hard to get to this point so we just have to push a little more, everyone including myself. I have to hold off on the fun and games for a little bit. It has been ages since I got to wrestle a polar bear here. I tell you guys, those things are cute as hell but when they get mad at you, it gets really ugly.” – XXX
 
 

 
Yes he said polar bear, though likely to see if we could understand or not as he grinned to see our reaction. We chuckled for a bit before he continued, mentioning his major junior experience.
 
“It’s tough here, playing so many games against better players especially. But it’s fun for sure, I wouldn’t have it any other way. The team is relying on me and I have to be in the best possible condition for our upcoming games. When I was playing with McDavid, I didn’t have nearly this amount of pressure but I think this is helping me focus more on developing my game. Also we weren’t a playoff team in either of the two season I played in the CHL, and having a chance at playoffs here I think has an effect as well. Call it what you want, but I want to play to win, I don’t know if I would have the patience to sit around again on a rebuild team.” – XXX
 
No more polar bear jokes this time around, just some more mindless dribble and polite chit chat before we watched him get back at his training. Oddly enough, I think we took more out of his talking about wanting to win than anything else in the chat. Certainly not something unexpected, most players want to win everything they can. But not too many have the stomach or patience to go through struggling times with teams. Seems like this may be a concerning feature for XXX as well. That being said, without him, the Wild may not exactly be in the playoff spot that they currently are sitting in. XXX leads the league in first star selections at 22 and is looking every bit the top prospect that scouts are alluding to.

Sball66’s S36 VHL Mock Draft Pt. 1   Hello folks and welcome to our first annual VHL Mock Draft. I will be your host, Sebastian Ball. As we get closer and closer to the conclusion of the 35th season of the VHL, it could only mean two things. The VHL playoffs and a boat load of mock drafts. Well, seeing as the playoff picture is all but locked in, let me be the first to put out an official mock draft. This season, we saw two teams put out some of the worst rosters to date, those being the New York Americans of the North American Conference and the Riga Reign from the European Conference. And while boasting the worst record in the VHL will not guarantee you the top pick of the draft, it will in my mock draft. So without further ado, here is the unofficial draft order for the S35 VHL Entry Draft.   1. Riga Reign 2. New York Americans 3. Vasteras Iron Eagles 4. Seattle Bears 5. Riga Reign (via HC Davos Dynamo) 6. Toronto Legion 7.  Riga Reign (via Cologne Express) 8. Riga Reign (via Calgary Wranglers) 9. New York Americans (via Helsinki Titans) 10. New York Americans (via Quebec City Meute)   #1: Riga Reign select: Defenseman Godavari Yumalatopinto   The Riga Reign, who possesses four picks in the first round, will really need to rely on the draft to get their rebuild going in S36. With goaltending phenom Mike Szatkowski Jr. set to make his VHL debut in S35, alongside newly acquired winger Brennan McQueen, look for the Reign to go defense with the first pick in the draft. That’s where Godavari Yumalatopinto comes in. A resident of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Godavari is a very dangerous offensive defenseman who isn’t afraid to use his 6’6” frame to his advantage on the ice. A good mix of physicality and offensive prowess, Godavari should be the cornerstone in the Riga Reigns’ rebuild and should become a household name in a matter of no time.   #2: New York Americans select: Right Wing Xin Xie Xiao   Like the Reign, the Americans have a majority of the picks in the first round and a lot of roster spots to fill. Since the Americans already have a promising, young defenseman in Connor Low and goaltender Brick Wahl ready to make his way to the VHL, expect New York to go on the "offensive" with their first pick. With Riga selecting Godavari Yumalatopinto, the Americans get exactly what they hoped for in Xin Xie Xiao. A winger out of Shanghai, China, XXX has quickly made a name for himself in the VHL. Standing at 6’6”, XXX is a big forward who is a prolific scorer, which very rare for a prospect that hasn’t even been drafted yet. Xiao has the potential to become the face of the Americans in no time should he find himself in the Big Apple.   #3: Vasteras Iron Eagles select: Center Robin Gow   Fans of Vasteras are finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. After years of mediocrity, general manager Thomas Corcoran has finally set the Iron Eagles in the right direction. After drafting William Janssen in S34, Leon Leitner in S35, and picking up Mattias Trumbauer and Guido Schwarz in free agency, the Vasteras Iron Eagles are looking to break out of their rebuild. With a solid defense already in place, look for the Iron Eagles to add more offensive power by selecting Robin Gow third overall. Gow is a very well rounded center that can do it all. He is a prominent passer and a very reliable scorer in the VHLM this season, racking up over 127 points so far. While he isn’t the greatest defender, he isn’t a defensive liability quite yet. There will be plenty of time for Robin to hone on his defensive skills as Vasteras looks to make their way to playoff contention in S36.    #4: Seattle Bears select: RW Robert Gow III   Though RGIII is coming off of an ACL tear, he should still be able to be a solid pick up for the Seattle Bears at number four. Oh, wait, this isn’t RGIII out of Baylor you say? Robert Gow III, cousin and Lynx teammate of Robin Gow, is very similar to his cousin on the ice. He is an all-around solid winger who can thread the needle and score with the best of them. The only problem is Robert is not the best skater in the draft and it has hurt his production in the VHLM this season. But, the Bears are already set on the first line, with Sebastian Ball Jr., Giygas and Mikey Blade ready to make the next step in their VHL careers. That means Gow III won’t be pressured to come in right away and make a huge impact for the offense. Robert has shown he has a great work ethic and if he puts in time on the ice, RGIII will fit right in with the youth movement in Seattle.   #5: Riga Reign (via HC Davos) select: Right Wing Damon Tyrael   After selecting Godavari Yumalatopinto with the first overall pick, look for the Reign to go on the “offensive” with their second first rounder. That being said, Damon Tyrael should be a great pick up at fifth overall. Tyrael, the 6’2” forward out of Canada, not only possess wicked speed on the ice, but also boast a knack for putting the puck in the back of the net. The young forward has 18 goals on the season and should keep improving given time. And since the Reigns’ only forward ready to play in the big leagues next season is McQueen, who is more of a two way forward then a pure scorer, Tyrael should be able to produce right away for the new Riga squad.    Well that’s it for this week folks. Next week we will take a look at picks 6 through 10, starting with the Toronto Legion of the North American Conference. Feel free to leave your comments below and don’t be afraid to bash my selections or give me feedback on who you think will go where. For VHL.com, this is Sebastian Ball, signing out.

4-2 Lynx

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FONG WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT WHY CAN'T WE BEAT THE CUP CHAMPS?!