scoop

no.

As someone who fully intends to create a goalie for the Season 99 draft, I am paying close attention to the goalie count in the VHL. We recently saw the addition of Vladimir Trunov to the Season 96 draft, which brings the total of legitimate goalie prospects in the draft to five. After we saw the retirement of seven starting goalies over the past two off-seasons, the prospect pool is filling right back up. I don't think there will be a shortage of goalies by the time I am being drafted. In fact, we could potentially have a surplus at the time, which could hurt my draft stock and greatly reduce the number of teams that could be interested in drafting me. This is way too early to be trying to predict who will draft me in Season 99, but I'm going to do it anyway. As mentioned, my next player Evangeline Glover will be part of the Season 99 draft. My intention this time around will be to play a season in the VHLE, so teams that should be looking to draft me have a starter spot open in Season 100. I suppose me being backup for a season could also be in the cards, so I'll expand that a bit to say a team that would have a starter spot open up for me by Season 101 at the latest. So who are those teams that may need a goalie at that time? Obviously, goalies don't always play their full careers with one single team. That's the biggest reason why this is way too early to be trying to predict this. Yes, Los Angeles has Roger Eagles now, and his career could go as late as Season 103. But Los Angeles may not have the supporting cast to be good in Season 100, so maybe Eagles will not be on the team at that time. For a VHL.com article, I'm not going to try to predict the entire scope of the VHL, so for the most part, I'm just going to be assuming goalies stay where they are. Again, if a team won't have me starting by S101, they're almost certainly out of consideration. An S93 player who plays a full career would play their final season in S101, so in theory, the perfect timeline for a team would be to have an S91 goalie who retires after S99, and then I take over. I think teams with an S90 or S92 goalie also make sense, as one could simply have a gap year or, again, I could end up being backup my first season. So to make things simple, I'm going to narrow things down and say the team that will most likely draft me will be one that has a starter from S90 to S92. Los Angeles, Calgary, Vancouver, Helsinki, Warsaw, D.C., Malmo, and Davos all have goalies that are more recent than S94. London and Prague will both likely draft a goalie in S96. That narrows things down to the following six teams: Seattle, Toronto, Moscow, Riga, New York, Chicago From these six, I'm going to cut Seattle, Toronto, and New York from being the most likely. Seattle is the only team among these has has an S92 goalie, which would mean if they finished their career there, then I would have to backup in my rookie season. That's not why I'm cutting them, however. I actually think there's a chance that Seattle at some point trades Costanzov away to replace him with a younger model when he gets to be too expensive. As for Toronto, while they do have an S91 goalie in Toddly Bobbly, but they are not exactly the most reliable. Toronto will probably look to add a goalie prospect before I'm drafted. Alternatively, Toronto may trade for New York's WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW, in which case the timeline for the Legion and me could line up. If that happens, then New York is the team that will likely need to find a goalie before my draft. Because I could see things going either way and I need to cross teams off my list, they are gone. That leaves Moscow, Riga, and Chicago With Chicago have an S90 goalie while Moscow and Riga each have an S91 goalie, it will make more sense for them to try to potentially draft someone like Vladimir Trunov in the S96 draft, though it may be a little early. If Trunov takes until S98 to reach the VHL, they could backup Artyomov in their first season and then take over as starter in S99. I could see Moscow or Riga drafting RicerFourteen as someone who would likely take several seasons in the minors before reaching the VHL. Looking at the draft picks that each of those two teams has, I think Riga is more likely to be in position to draft them. At this point in time, I will predict that Evangeline Glover goes to the Moscow Menace New York Americans. That's just what feels right, ignore everything else.

Analfist was the problem all along

With a third of the regular season still to go, there is plenty of time left before the playoffs begin. I am going to look ahead to the post-season for my theme week article anyway, as I take a look at the first year players featured on playoff rosters. Obviously the playoff teams are not set, but realistically the only thing that could change is New York taking a spot, but that does not matter because neither of their rookies would make this list anyway. That being said, let's get to what this list is about. I'm going to highlight who I believe can be the most impactful rookies in the playoffs. This is not strictly a ranking of the best rookies; I will also be taking into consideration how important these rookies are to their respective teams. 5. G Jørgen Løvstrøm, Malmo Nighthawks @Pifferfish Taking the fifth spot is Jørgen Løvstrøm of the Nighthawks, who is part of a goalie tandem along side Karl Herzlich. Given the situation, it's hard to put Løvstrøm higher on the list. It is not even guaranteed that he gets any starts in the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how Malmo manages the goaltender question during the playoffs, but if we look at the recent play, Løvstrøm could very well be on his way to earning the starting job for the post-season. Herzlich started the season stronger, but has seen his numbers drop. Løvstrøm meanwhile has improved since his early struggles to the point where the two have very similar stats. 4. LW Maverick Goncalves, Moscow Menace @leandrofg The Season 94 first overall pick Maverick Goncalves is next on the list, and as probably the best rookie in the league, you may think this is too low. Had Moscow not just acquired Snu.bbed Analfist, Goncalves may have been higher on the list. It's not that I think his output will decrease, but I think the team will not rely on him as much. Undoubtedly he is still important to the team. He leads the team in hits and is third in goals, but with Analfist now around, I think Moscow could survive even if Goncalves struggles. He is good, but there are four other forwards on the roster who are noticeably more skilled players at the moment. 3. D Jillian Woods, Moscow Menace @jacobcarson877 Even if Goncalves is a better player than Jillian Woods (which is a debate in itself), I do believe that Woods is more important for Moscow right now. Goncalves will have his time to shine in the future, but there will be a spotlight on Woods in the playoffs. However, this placing is less about the contributions that Woods could make, but rather the negative impact that a poor performance from her could have. She is Moscow's second-best defender, so they will need her to play well when Obuz Schneider Canet du Bocage is resting. As a true defender, her contributions are not as evident, but that does not mean they are not important. 2. D Felicia Hardy, HC Davos Dynamo @JCarson It can be easy to forget, but the European playoffs are not just Riga, Malmo, and Moscow. The Dynamo will be there, and they will have just as much of an opportunity to win as any of the three teams above them. For that to happen, though, they will need some players to step up. Felicia Hardy will have every opportunity to be on of those players to lead the team. She is similar to Woods in that she is not going to carry the team offensively, but with her defense and physical play, she could potentially shut down opposing offenses. 1. G Aleksanteri Kaskiniemi-Kekkonen, HC Davos Dynamo @Snussu Aleksanteri Kaskiniemi-Kekkonen is one of several rookie goalies this season, but most of them will not be playing in the playoffs. Unlike Malmo with Løvstrøm and Herzlich, Davos does not have a second goalie on the roster to limit Kaskiniemi-Kekkonen's importance to the team. He is their starter, no question, and the team will rely on him in the playoffs. His stats in his first year can give fans hope for the playoffs, but the playoffs will be a different beast. The Dynamo have been one of the best defensive teams because of, not in spite of AKK. For them to succeed in the playoffs, they will need him to rise to the occasion against the powerhouse offenses of the European Conference.

1. This is really tough, but it does seem like to win it you have to really stand out on your team. I know they aren't a playoff team right now, but honestly W. W. from New York could be the top candidate if they can improve their save percentage a bit and the Americans climb up the standings. New York's offense is atrocious, and while the play of their defense is also a big part of the reason that they allow the fewest goals, W. W. has been far and away the best player on this team. So while I think W. W. will not get much attention for Most Outstanding, I think they could be a top MVP candidate. 2. W. W. for sure. I predicted Merome Dilson at the beginning of the season, but I seem to have gotten that wrong. Olober Syko has underperformed but I think they should become a perennial candidate for Top Goalie. 3. Family. 4. Indoor plumbing 5. Look, I had to Google "top NHL defensemen" and I recognized like four of the names, if that tells you anything about my NHL knowledge. So to say who my VHL player emulates would be impossible. But the article I found had Cale Makar as number one on the list so obviously I'm going to say Cale Makar. 6. Summer is too hot. Winter is too cold. Spring is too wet. Fall is perfect. Obviously to say it's perfect is an exaggeration, but it's the best time of the year, and it's not particularly close in my mind.

1. Thinking back to that run, that was probably my high point in the season. Herzlich was also playing out of his mind at the time as well, so I'd say the two of us. Looking at our recent games now, Randy Bobandy and Philip Rave have been doing really well. Martin Kemp scored a hat trick in a big win against a scorching hot Moscow as well. We have so many guys who can step up on any night, and I think that's how we've been able to play so well as of late and have the best goal differential in the league. 2. It's been my best yet, for sure, and I'd say it's giving me hope that maybe I could have a chance at the Hall of Fame. I think I'll have to get back to where I was before my recent slump, of sorts, and finish the season strong enough to win some hardware. My Hall of Fame aspirations will definitely rely on me having another season like this in my final year as well. 3. As much as much teammates want to win a Continental Cup, I'm going to say I want to win Playoff MVP. Of course, I want it to come with a Continental Cup, but being the driving force behind a championship for the team that I have spent my entire career with would mean so much to me. 4. Our recent wins over Moscw and Riga have given me the confidence that we can finish in first. We have the most games remaining against the bottom five teams in the league, which will help for sure. Moscow had been looking like the best team in the league for a bit, and they still could be, but losses to us and Riga have tightened the race. I still think they will finish second, and that leaves Riga in third. 5. To be honest, I'm not as invested in the VHL as I have been in the past to actually care as much. That being said, and maybe this is just me not being as involved, but I'm not really sure what the BOG does nowadays other than league voting. I have no clue who is on the BOG, though I'd hope there is a list of the members somewhere out there if I were curious. Actually, I did find a list, but it appears to be outdated, considering it includes people who haven't been online since 2022. Actually, I do think I've come across some rules that seem to be outdated as well, so maybe if it is within the purview of the BOG, just keeping things a little more up-to-date would be nice. 6. It pales in comparison, but seeing Motion City Soundtrack, my favorite band, in concert back in early 2020 was one of my fondest memories in a long while. I'm not an avid concert-goer, so back in 2016 when they were having a farewell tour which could have been their last (though it turned out to just be a hiatus), I did not go and see them. I thought about it, but I don't really treat myself often enough. Not seeing them was a big regret of mine, so when they announced a reunion tour, I decided I would definitely go, and it was amazing.

As much as you can make of Malmo's post-season failures over the past few seasons, the current generation of Nighthawks have undoubtedly been a great regular season team. In fact, to say they have been one of the best of recent history would be a bit of an understatement. Their greatness has a chance to reach a level not seen in nearly 40 seasons. Of course, if you ask them, they would likely trade it for some playoff success, but that's not how the world works. They will have to live with what they have, and their regular season success can serve as a bit of a consolation even if its significance will be lost to time. If anything, what will be remembered about the Nighthawks of the 90's is the contrast between their performance in the regular season and the post-season. Still, that doesn't mean we can't take the time to acknowledge how good this team has been. The construction of the current generation of Nighthawks began in Season 88 with the acquisition of Jacob Stone. Over the next several season, the pieces started coming into place. While they were never as bad as the bad teams of today, it was not until Season 91 that the Stone-era Nighthawks had a winning record. They finished that season with 95 points, a mark which has been topped each season since. In the following two seasons, they won back-to-back Victory Cups with 110 and 106 points. Add in their 99-point Season 94 and you've got a team that put up 410 points over four seasons. Not many teams have averaged 100 points-per-season over four seasons in the current 16-team layout of the VHL. Only one (the 80's Menace), has averaged that over five seasons. This season, the Nighthawks have a 25-8-4 record for 54 points. This puts them on pace for 105 points, which is certainly enough to put their five-season average in the triple digits. It would also give them a better five-season total than Moscow's best. The Menace had a 242-93-25 regular season record from Season 80 to Season 84. (Like the present-day Nighthawks, they too failed to win any Continental Cups, but they at least made it to the finals in four of those five seasons before losing.) If the Nighthawks this season can finish with at least 100 points, they would top that record from Moscow, which would give them the best five-season record (excluding playoffs) since Helsinki had 519 points from Season 53 to Season 57.

Malmo good

The longest was 9, and it was just previously from 84 to 91. Chicago ruined it by winning in 92, but it didn't set things back too far.

I am a fan of parity. I think many others are as well. Who wants to see the same time win over and over? (The obvious exception, of course, is if it is their own team.) The recent VHL champions do demonstrate that we have had a healthy dose of parity as of late. Twelve seasons have passed since Vancouver won three straight Continental Cups from Season 80 through Season 82, and in those twelve seasons, only two teams have won multiple championships. With the league having been at 16 teams for over 20 seasons now, it is harder for teams to dominate the way that Seattle did when they won it all in four of six (or, stretching it out, five of ten) seasons. While the additional competition does make it harder for teams to win several championships in a short span, it also makes it harder for teams to win even once. Four teams (New York, Helsinki, Riga, and Los Angeles) have not won a single Cup in the 16-team era. This doesn't mean that we can't dream for a 16-season stretch in which every team wins exactly one championship. Okay, so that kind of stretch may seem a bit farfetched, considering things have to line up very perfectly, and with the unpredictability of the playoffs, it would be very unlikely (though the unpredictability may actually help in this cause just as much as it could hinder it). Currently, we have nine unique champions, beginning with Vancouver in Season 86. This is tied for the longest string of unique champions in VHL history, overlapping with the S84 through S91 run which was the first to reach nine. To extend the streak, we just need to see one of seven specific teams win this season. Those seven teams are Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Helsinki, Malmo, Riga, and Warsaw. Of those European teams, three are almost certainly going to make the playoffs (Malmo, Riga, and Warsaw). The North American Conference is looking more like a six-team race, meaning we might see only one of Chicago and New York in the post-season (Los Angeles will not make it. With the playoff field looking to have four or five teams for whom a Continental Cup would mean ten champions in ten seasons, it would seem to be close to a 50/50 chance.

1. I don't have the stats to back this up, but it feels like in several of our losses, we've blown leads that we had in the third period. And our record in overtime games is not good. We need to be better in these clutch situations. 2. I believe that everyone on the team could do well, but above all else I believe in myself. I think that I could lead the VHL in points. 3. The obvious answer is to bring back the Yukon Rush, though I would say put them in the VHL rather than let the VHLM have them again. Beyond the low-hanging fruit, I'd make the Anchorage Owls in the VHLM. When I originally made the Yukon Rush, this was actually my other top option. 4. Well, I suppose playing field hockey makes enough sense. 5. I feel like it's really most of the team. After a few people above me said Tzesar, I probably need to go with someone else, and after last season he has definitely gotten people to take notice. I'm going to say RJ. He's been a consistent contributor the last few seasons. He's actually third on the team in points, since his rookie season. 6. My cat, my car, and my phone.

Something that did with my current player, and plan to do with my future players, is make a "Draft Collection" where I make a graphic for my player for every VHL team leading up to being drafted.

Our shots against have actually decreased. S92: 32.14 S93: 32.56 S94: 32.33 S95: 31.63 To be fair, though, that's only because we've played Helsinki in 3 of our 8 games thus far. They are the only team we've held below that average. We are also ranked 6th in shots against compared to 2nd in each of the past three seasons, so relatively speaking, we are doing worse in that regard.

Eight games into the season, the Malmo Nighthawks have been struggling to score. Their 2.5 goals per game has them ranked 13th in the league, which is not a great look for a championship hopeful. It has actually been worse than it looks, as seven of their 20 goals came in just one game against the Helsinki Titans, and outside of that lone outburst they have averaged fewer than two goals per game. Despite this, they have a 4-3-1 record at this point, largely due to the fact that they have allowed the second fewest goals. The scoring leader for the team thus far has been newcomer Martin Kemp, with five goals. On the flip side, last season's team leader Savaisk Tzesar has been particularly quiet. After scoring 44 goals in Season 94, he has just one through the first eight contests. All hope is not lost for the season, however. Not only is eight games a small sample size, but also the Nighthawks have the third most shots on goal with 46 per game. As a team, they have a shot percentage of 5.43%, which is easily the worst in the league. Tzesar has been a standout in this category, as his single goal comes despite having 53 shots on net. I could simply say that I expect the shot percentage to rise closer to the league average of 8.07%, I do recognize as well that the eight-game sample size also pertains to the shot attempts that teams have taken. Maybe Malmo will not remain third in that regard, but the roster is definitely good enough to do so.

1. I certainly don't think they'll hold us back. While I'm not going to predict either is going to be the best goalie in the league, the overall quality of goalies went down significantly from last season. There really are not many elite goalies out there at the moment. 2. Let's see, in the last four years, we've been knocked out of the playoffs by Helsinki, London, Moscow, and Riga. Prague won't be making the playoffs, so I guess this season it'll be Davos or Warsaw. 3. It's probably going to be more important that we stay out of the penalty box, particularly for the defenders. When 1 of 5 skaters out there is a CPU, it shouldn't be too bad. When it's 1 of 4 and down a skater, it'll be more difficult. 4. The first thing I look for anywhere I go is if they have any sour beer. If they do, that's my go-to. 5. I don't know, man, I guess like let's say he does a crossword puzzle before every game. 6. Yu Yu Hakusho

Transaction ID: 25L069938B9821359 $1M Player Store Cash 5 TPE Uncapped Doubles Week

1. I wouldn't say that it's necessarily something I want, but I certainly did not mind coming back to Malmo with my current player after having been drafted by them previously. Over 75% of my 4656 career VHL games have been with just four teams. There was definitely a time where I would have liked to go to New York with every player of mine. I don't really feel the same connection to New York that I used to, but I also do not have the same connection to Malmo that I previously had with New York, even after playing 1.5 careers with the Nighthawks. So these days, I would say no, I don't want to consistently be drafted to the same teams, but I'm not opposed to it. Actually, to be honest, going back to New York does really appeal to me. I want to see them winning again. 2. Not biased at all, I'm going to have to go with the Nighthawks. 3. With most meals, milk. Sometimes orange juice. Throughout the day, water. 1. What has been your favorite team that you have played for? 2. Who is a player not on your team that you would like to play with? 3. Do you have any vacations planned for the near future?

The team record for most losses in a single season was set by the Toronto Legion back in Season 11. They lost 69 of 72 games, a mark that has not been matched since then. This record is not untouchable, as the last couple of season have shown us. In Season 93, the Los Angeles stars lost 67 games. Last season, the Prague Phantoms were the first team to lose 68 games since the Seattle Bears in Season 46. Prague won four games last season, and none of them came by more than a goal. While only one of them went to overtime, it wouldn't be a stretch to say that the Phantoms were close to a winless season. You would think with 16 teams in the league, there would be at least one or two other bad teams for even the worst team to get some wins off of, but for the Phantoms, three of their wins actually came against playoff teams, which is quite remarkable. Let's take a look back at each of Prague's wins from what was nearly a record-setting season. Game 68: 2-1 vs Helsinki Their first win came relatively early in the season, as they had only lost eight games at this point. Goaltender Amir Redzic was the star of the show, as the Phantoms won 2-1 despite being outshot 18-48. Helsinki was not a great team either, but they were considerably better. If Redzic doesn't stand on his head in this one, Prague could have easily lost it. Game 72: 3-2 vs Warsaw Riding the high of their first win, Prague's second win actually came in the very next game. The Predators did start their backup goalie Pipo Popa in this game, but for them to only score two was the bigger issue. Popa actually had the majority of the starts for Warsaw against Prague, and this was the only game in which they allowed more than one goal. Redzic had to play well again, saving 36 of 38 shots, and LeBen Aky scored twice for the Phantoms to earn them their second win. Game 155: 3-2 vs Riga The trend continues in that it took an incredible performance from the Prague goalie for them to win, as the Reign put 42 shots on net compared to the Phantoms' 17. Red Panda had a poor game, allowing three goals, while it was actually B-PRG G2 who made all 40 saves that were needed to get the win. Braeden Panarella, who had eight goals in 40 games for the Phantoms, scored twice in the game. They were 3-15-2 after this win, which is not actually all that bad considering where they ended up. Game 299: 4-3 (SO) vs Malmo Prague lost 17 straight after the Riga win before claiming their fourth victory. Redzic had another good game, saving 44 of 47 shots, but it was Aky who earned the first star of the game. Aky, who had been the second star in all three of Prague's previous wins, scored all three of Prague's goals against Malmo.

hmmm I do not like this

USA

I would say Lullaby is my favorite book, honestly. I don't read much, but I do like several of Chuck Palahniuk's books. I am trying to start reading more, though, particularly as something to do rather than looking at screens before sleeping. Right now, I'm reading Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. I've read it before and I liked it a lot, so I figured I'd start with something I know that I will enjoy. Also on my list of books to read are Rant by Chuck Palahniuk (another re-read), The Road by Cormac McCarthy, and A Thousand Splendid Suns but Khaled Hosseini.