JCarson

Why is Toronto on there twice. At number 2 and number 6? Did they trade for someone's pick?

Article review: This is a great article, if this is your first as the title would suggest, then well done. The narrative pieces and the conversational nature both added to the overall story you are trying to tell and the graphic added to the overall feel. Keep up the great work hopefully you enjoy your time in the VHLM and can see your player progress throughout the leagues. I give this article a 10/10.

Article Review: The summary of the fantastic European conference and the close war that was fought all season provides for a great read. Two teams were eliminated from the playoffs by a slight margin. The end result may have come down to when GM decided to play their back up goalies, a scoring hot streak or a slightest bounce of a puck. Not sure anyone at the beginning of the season would have expected the results would be decided by a second tie breaker rule. Great article 9/10,

Week of march 12 1) Give me a quick thought on the team performance for season 87? 2) What do you expect will be our GM focus for the offseason? 3) Is there anything about the London United Locker room that you would change? 4) Will your player be doing any new training practices over the off season to prepare for next season? 5) If you had to choose, who do you think will win the cup this offseason? 6)As we have a number of GM positions changing in this offseason, is this a position you could see yourself doing one day?

I do not expect that those who will be making the final decision will even read this article, and even if they do read it, I doubt it will impact on the final decision-making processes. However, if you were to take a moment and ask the London United Team about who they would prefer to have as GM moving forward, I expect you would get a resoundingly unanimous response. Now I do not want to suggest that any of the other candidates are not qualified or that they would not do an excellent job. There are many individuals who are fully qualified for the posting and the London United players would be privileged to work with any of them. What I am suggesting is that the players currently on London United have all had an incredibly positive experience with one candidate. Jacobcarson877 has been a prior GM, mentor, friend, and many other positive things to everyone on the London team. He exhibits a dedication to the players who are on his team that goes beyond just being a manager. He becomes their friend, and as such it helps retain players in the VHL. In truth throughout season 87 Jacob made sure to stop in and connect with the London Team and his past players regularly, I expect it was at least once a day. All this while ensuring that he managed his own VHLM team effectively. To those who must make this decision, the players of London United understand that you have a series of complex decisions ahead of you. We know that you have many competing priorities and that you cannot allow a final decision to be dictated by players. We respect the work you do. However, we also wanted to make sure we expressed our thoughts.

London United ownership have recently announced that there will be a GM change during this offseason. Outgoing GM Dil has been released from his contract to pursue non-hockey related interests. We thank Dil for his time, his expertise and his dedication to the team. We wish that the change in General Management could have been made at a more prosperous time for the team but with the unfortunate regular season performance that was not the case. We do want to stress that Dil was not fired, and that the termination of his contract was based on a mutual agreement. We have heard the many rumors that are circling regarding a rift between the player and Dil, we want to for the last time address these rumors. They are in no way accurate. The ownership and players wish Dil all the best in his future endeavors. As expected, London United will be going through a rigorous screening process as it chooses its’ next General Manager. The VHL commissioners and league representatives along with Team ownership will be screening potential candidates for this coveted position. We will note that London will be focused on a candidate that has a superior understanding of player development, who has a desire to assist players in transitioning into the VHL and the London community. In addition, they must possess superior hockey knowledge, and must be active within the VHL, VHLE and VHLM community. The chosen candidate must be willing to share their strategic vision for the London United, a vision that must include demonstrated tactics for player development, a conceptual framework for team construction, a multi-year plan for player acquisition, and most of all a commitment to performance excellence. During the press conference where the GM change was announced, we had the chance to discuss the changes with team captain Molly the Cat. As Captain of London United I want to take the opportunity to express my heartful gratitude to Dil for his work with London United. Anyone who has been in the league for any length of time knows that the relationship between management and players can sometimes get a little rocky. London was no exception to that, but what the players always appreciated was that Dil had an open-door policy. We were always allowed to speak our mind, air our issues, and then have things move forward. We wish Dil all the best in their future endeavors. The players of London United are committed to moving forward and achieving success, our goal is and always will be the Continental Cup. We understand that new Management is going to want to put their own spin on the team and that may mean that some pieces are moved in the offseason. We will respect the decisions of management, regardless of the impact on individual players. Those who will remain will do our best to build a culture of success that can assist in building the franchise, enabling it to compete at the top levels of the VHL for years to come.

Article review, outside of a few technical issues with the writing in this article, this article expresses the shock and disappointment of a team that is used to being guaranteed a playoff spot to sitting just on the edge and not knowing if this is the year they will watch from the outside. Having 2 players who are offensive powerhouses no longer is enough in the European conference, it takes an entire team and a lot of work. We will need to see how it all shakes out and the dust settles but reality is Warsaw may be watching from the outside. On the other hand they may see a strong push in the last games and end up being the cause of somebody else's disappointment. This is going to be an exciting push to the end in the VHL this season. I give this article a 7/10.

Article Review, as always the Janser Brothers' article is well written and entertaining. We continue to get a glimpse into the life of Daniel and his highs and lows on the ice. The added details about off ice life add depth to the player and the overall storyline. Keep up the great work in writing these articles . I give this article a 9/10, looking forward to reading the next article.

Recently the Province of Ontario has legalized sport betting (okay it has been a while) and as such there has been a massive influx of online betting apps that have been advertised on television during sports events. It started me thinking, does betting have a place in the VHL? Could a system of betting be introduced into the VHL that could allow people to earn extra TPE for their player? I am thinking of something that would be limited so maybe it is 1-2 Uncapped TPE each week. I have not completely worked out the details but if each person was given an allotment of 10 VHL bucks at the beginning of each week and they are allowed to place bets on a number of things like game results, 1st team to score in a game, over/under, etc., and different options would give different odds. And at the end of the week, you could buy TPE based on the amount of VHL bucks you had at the end. 1TPE would cost 15 VHL bucks, 2 TPE 20 VHL bucks, or something like that. I know it sounds like a lot of programming of an entire system for calculating odds, managing finances, allowing purchase of TPE and application to a player but it is an interesting concept given that sports betting is becoming a standard part of the professional sports culture. I fully understand that the idea I have above would be lots of work and is not fully thought out, but it is something that could be flushed out and expanded on and potentially implemented and would provide a new and unique experience as an add on to the current VHL experience.

Molly the Cat, you are 64 games into the season and only have 52 points. Can you talk about how the season has gone and what you are doing to impact the team? This season has not gone as expected at the beginning of the season. There are two definite items that have contributed to my low production. First management asked me to take on a different role this season. I was put on the second line to add leadership and to provide a defensive spark to the line. It has been a tough adjustment to both playing increased defensive minutes and keeping my production where I wanted it to be. I still believe I have had a productive season but would have liked the numbers higher. I have had the chance to sit down with team ownership to discuss how this season has progressed, and I expect we may see some changes for next season. I cannot say anything more than that now. The second item of note is that I have been fighting a couple of injuries all season. Playing a more physical, defensive game is rough on the body. Early in the season I took a stray stick to the wrist which interfered with my ability to shoot, a little later I twisted my knee while in the corner grinding for a puck. Both those injuries slowed my production down a bit. In this league it only takes a couple games of low production, and you fall behind. The VHL is the top talent in the world. Molly the Cat, you are involved in a very tight fight for the playoffs. Did you expect such a tight race in the European conference, and do you expect to make the playoffs, or at least the play in tournament? As I mentioned before the VHL is made up of the top talent from across the world, as every game is a fight to win. Now I am not sure anyone would have predicted such a tight race in the European conference, the fact that we are sitting with 8 games remaining in the season and position 2 through 7 are all fighting for the chance to make the playoffs is not typical, but it does make for exciting hockey. London is in a tough position, 6 of our last 8 games have been against Davos and Calgary, two of the better teams in the league. If we cannot pull out wins against those two teams, we are not going to make the playoffs this year. We are going to need to play some of the best hockey we have had this season to make sure we get into a playoff position. Hopefully, the other teams have as tight of a schedule as we have. Molly the Cat, a more lighthearted question. I hear that you are close to signing an endorsement deal with Tourism London. Tell me about your thoughts on this. I few weeks ago I was approached by my agent, he received a phone call from Tourism London, they are looking at putting together some advertisements for the tourist areas around town and want to entice those people coming into town for VHL games to stay a little longer and see some of the other sites. My agent is working through the details, and I expect that the agreement will be finalized shortly. We will be looking at filming the commercials during the offseason

1) The European Conference is a tight race for the second through seventh position, where do you think London will finish the season? 2) If we had a couple days break between games what is one thing your player would do? 3) You are responsible for free agent signings in the off season, what position are you targeting and why? 4) You have to pick the next Theme week, what will be the topic? 5) Yun Chiang currently sits 10th in league scoring, will they end the season in the top 10? 6) Three of our next 8 games are against Calgary, how many of those will we win?

Article Review: This is a great article, the continued comparator of the mediocrity that is at the hart of this rivalry is what makes rivalries in the VHL work. We really have not much in common, we both got drafted (so that is something) but I will compare myself to you until my last retiring breath. You are the bane of my existence. Even though neither of us has accomplished anything to note you will be my rival (will you agree to be mine). I like that the author went to the lengths to gather actual data to make their point. 9/10 because my scoring is as arbitrary and pointless as the heroic goaler ability of STHS.

Article Review: Being a newer player it is great to hear of some of the history that has gone on in the league, of rivalries that mattered. It is true that the game day jostling between players on teams has quieted down in the public forum anyway. It would be nice to see some of that again, in a friendly and respectful manner but to see loyalty and competitiveness on display. Maybe season 87 can be a catalyst for that, the European conference being as close as it is. Who will win? Who will bring their team honor. Great article, 8/10.

1) We have 21 games remaining until the end of the season, what do you think our final season record will be? 2) Give one reason why we should make the playoffs? 3) Does fighting belong in the VHL? 4) Calgary and Los Angeles are currently tied with 67 points, which one will have more points by the end of the season and why? 5) Who do you predict will have the most goas in the VHL for season 87 and how many goals do you expect they will get? 6) What was your thought on theme week?

Season 87 of the VHL has created a buzz among hockey analysts. The European conference is in a tight race for playoff spots. With only a 12-point difference between 1st and 7th. That slim margin with a maximum of 22 games left to play for any given team will mean that this season will see a push right up to the end to determine who makes it and who watches. It makes great hockey for the fans, but it makes fantastic hockey for analysts. If you pay attention to the various reporters and commentators that get to voice their opinions within the VHL hockey community, you will quickly realize that the world is buzzing with speculation. Who is going to make it, who will step up as a team, as a player. Who will fall from grace, who will get blamed for a bad outing? Right now, at the trade deadline the focus is on the GM’s, which one will make the trade that will secure their playoff spot, who will make the mistake of giving up the key piece. Will the fear of missing out cause more trade action or will it paralyze GMs into nothingness? Then there are the growing comments of that last team, team 8, sitting so far outside the competition that one can only expect that they will be selling here at the deadline, to position themselves for a brighter future. Oh, poor Helsinki the proverbial can being kicked around by the European Conference, you can only watch as everyone else fights for glory. The analysts rarely speak your name and when they do there are rumors of an irate team owner who may finally call for a management change. Will you one day find yourself among the leaders of the league fighting for the glory of a championship or will you remain that proverbial can, being kicked around for seasons to come.

Molly the Cat, I want to discuss some of the rivalries you have in the VHL. Let us start with those people on your team. Is there anyone you have a rivalry with, even if it is a friendly rivalry? As hockey players we are naturally competitive, it drives us to push harder, faster, it pushes us to be better. Not surprisingly, we compare ourselves to others and thus build rivalries with other players. From a team perspective I have always compared myself to Ivan Retoslav. Maybe it was because we started in London at similar ages; we played on a line together several times and had a similar goal on the ice, to put the puck in the net. It became a natural rivalry, one that I was leading the first two years I played in London, this year he has picked up his game and is doing very well. I do not count myself out yet, but it will be a big push for me to catch his production pace. Let us broaden our view for a moment, are there players outside the London organization that you have rivalries with? There are some players that I have rivalries with, I cannot deny that. Some of them are friendly, we push each other to be better. On the other hand, there are some that are fiercer in nature, not as friendly and sometimes combative. Let us be honest, any time you gather a large group of unique people into a close-knit community there will be those that bond together and then there will be those that always have some friction going on. If I had to name individuals, in the first group you would find Landon Wolanin, he is a great guy, talented player, and great friend but our rivalry runs deep. There is a level of competition that we bring out in each other. In the second pool I would recently put Milan Dvorak, honestly, they were taking a few liberties with their stick near our goalie, so although it may not have been the best option, I chose to stand up for Jesse and let Milan know what they were doing was unacceptable. Milan got the message but if I need to, I am not afraid to remind them that London’s goaltenders are off limits. Molly the Cat, from a team perspective are there any teams that you have rivalries with? I am not sure London has any long-standing rivalries that are still recognized. For us right now it really has been a year-to-year type of thing. Our goal has been to get to the playoffs and more recently push into the second or later rounds. The European conference this year (excluding Helsinki) is one big rivalry, at this point it is only a 3-point difference between 2nd and 7th. That is a tight margin and has created some fiercely competitive games. There are going to be 2 teams that fought a hard season that will end up watching the playoffs unfold. London is hoping to take over either 2nd or 3rd place and secure a payoff space without having to go through the play in tournament. This is going to be some great hockey for fans to watch.

Article review: I love that this media spot is a story about the player off the ice. It captures the concept of an encounter on the street, was it happenstance of did the photographer stage it. Where will it lead in the end. The article itself would have been spectacular if it included a copy of the picture that she took. Would live to see how this story continues. I give this article an 8/10 for its fun nature and expanded narrative of the player outside of the traditional on ice perspective.

Article review: From a person who has been scorned by Spartan (season 84 draft review) I have a good understanding of how someone can have a rivalry with Spartan. In addition Spartan seems to be the only updater that rejects my great contributions (like this review). I do however appreciate the end conclusion of this article, sometimes you just have to show some love to the haters and use their hate to drive you further towards success. Great Theme week article. I give it a 9/10

For the week ending Feb 19 2023 1) London appears to experiencing a slump, what are you doing to help the situation? 2) We are about half way through the season, are we meeting you expectations? 3) Did you attend a Superbowl party this week? 4) What player, not on London has influences your time in the VHL the most? 5) What is your favorite side dish? 6) I recently took up playing Dart's in a league, I am really inconsistent but it has been fun, have you ever taken up a hobby that you sucked at but found it fun anyway?

I am calling this article Beware the Bot. I have no statistical evidence, but I have heard numerous comments about Bot goals in the VHL league over the last couple of weeks. London has also experienced this and had our Bots contribute a goal to our cause. Now I am not suggesting that it is Bots scoring for teams that are regularly playing a bot to fill a position. No these are entire lines of Bots playing and scoring. How do we have the system putting Bots out to play when proper lines have been submitted? It could potentially be the result of the following, but it would seem overly coincidental. Players have been suspended – If you had several players kicked from a game because of penalties/fights it may result in a line of bots playing. Players playing greater than 30 minutes- I have been told that the sim engine will not play players for more than 30 minutes (roughly) so due to weighting issues on the line up combined with significant penalties it could be that certain players had to be sat to not cause line issues. Okay so I produced two unlikely scenarios that could result in Bots playing enough time that they could be scoring goals. I doubt either of these situations occurred and are the result in the significant uptick in Bot scoring. If anyone has done any research or has an answer as to why Bots are scoring, I would love to hear it. It could be the fact that I am jealous of the Bot that has scored in the last week when I have gone on a goalless streak and am not contributing. If this continues we may have a Bot take the most improved player this season.

Molly the Cat, it is Superbowl Sunday, and a significant amount of North America will be watching. Will you be taking time out of your schedule today to watch the game? I have never been a huge fan of North American Football; it was the fact I grew up in Canada and hockey was the predominant sport. Now that does not mean I have never gone to a Superbowl party, I just tend to go more for the food and friends than I do for the game. Molly the Cat, London United have been struggling as of late, currently sitting 5th in the European conference. Can you provide some insight into what management is doing to address the situation? I have had several conversations with management over the last few days. We have not been able to identify any one aspect of our game that we believe is causing the slump. As such, we will be addressing several areas at the same time. I would expect that you may see a few line changes, we will be adding in some extra practice time and there is also the consideration of permanent player changes. Now I am not trying to start rumors, there is no specific player looking at being traded, and there are no deals being discussed. I am only noting that it is something management will consider, if it will make us a better team. Molly the Cat, what are you doing personally to try and improve game play? As captain of the team, I expect the most from my own game play. I will admit it has been spotty at times over the last week. I need to play a more disciplined game, taking less penalties and spending more time on the ice. I need to trust my teammates to make the proper plays and do what I do best. I need to be positioned in front of the net during 5 on 5 play and I need to be rotating out to the hashmarks on the powerplay. I am a goal scorer; I need to have myself in the best position to do that and trust the others to get the puck to those places. I was doing that well in the beginning of the season. Molly the Cat, you have your first game of the season against the Calgary Wranglers and your friend Landon Wolanin coming up this week. How are you feeling about that? It is always an intense situation playing against Landon, he is a talented player, and good friend. That noted, the rivalry between us pushes each of us to do our best. This may be the push I need to get back to form and start playing some great hockey again. Calgary is doing well this season and it would be nice to see them do well in the playoffs, it would be an interesting series if the finals were London and Calgary. Molly the Cat, thanks for sitting with us this afternoon. Good luck with your games this coming week.

Article review: This article is fairly disjointed (okay really disjointed) and a little off the wall, but again we received that warning before ever reading anything. Honestly I think that more than 1 of the topics could have been expanded to be a full article and would have made this seem more cohesive and structured. Short of a few spots the sentences structure was reasonably well put together and spelling wasn't too bad so everything considered it is a reasonable article even with half of it being done drunk. I'll give the article a 7/10.

Article Review: I can feel for this top tier player being on a team that is just not playing up to the expectations that have been set out for them. Sometimes after doing everything you can to not be the problem you still can't be the reason for success as it is a team game. It is evident that this player takes their leadership role to heart and I expect that Moscow will turn things around before season end. Good luck on the season. This article is fun, well written and provides player depth that adds to the overall story. 9/10 on this article.

Week of Feb 12 2023 1) Which member of the team is most likely to get in trouble with the police? 2) If you were able to ask all of your teammates 1 question they had to answer, wat would you ask? 3) Your player has a minor injury they are playing through, what injury is it and how did they get it? 4) If you could meet any of your teammates in person which teammate would you choose? 5) If you won an all expenses paid trip to any of the VHL/VHLE/VHLM cities which one would you choose and why? 6) Does pineapple belong on pizza? Provide your input to this world wide arguement.

In a prior season I authored an article on fun ideas for theme week and thought that I would mention the topic again. If you had to choose a topic for season 87 Theme week, what would you choose? Noting that you cannot reuse anything that has been done in the last 5 seasons and preference would be that it is something that has never been done before. Here are a few ideas that I came up with: You must choose a mascot for your team, tell us what it is, what you have named it and what role it will have at games. Write a media spot introducing your mascot or produce an image/graphic of your mascot at one of your games. One of the restaurants within your arena wants to create a signature dish that is named after your player. You have been asked to be involved in the creation and naming process. Write a media spot in the form of a radio commercial introducing the new featured dish, provide the name and describe the dish. Or create a magazine advertisement (including graphic) of the new featured menu item and include the tag line or slogan for the dish. Your player was out at the bar with some other teammates on an off day. Unfortunately, another patron recognized your player and started a fight. Even though the police investigation revealed that you were only defending yourself, team management thinks it would be wise if a press release were released showing your remorse for the situation. Write a media spot outlining your team's official position and your official apology. I hope some others will have fun and add ideas to this article.