What if I turned down Helsinki?

[Seabass 593]

Well it's theme week again and this season our theme is Alternate Realities. Well I couldn't really think of any alternate reality other than back in Season 74 where I was torn between resigning with my longtime team the Prague Phantoms for 2 years or sign on with the Helsinki Titans for the one year to give my player at the time, Seabass Perrin his first real shot at competing for the Cup.  Of course as we know Seabass ended up signing on with the Titans where they reached the finals only to fall short to the Vancouver Wolves in the S74 Continental Cup Final. Afterwards I chose to close out my career with the Phantoms by making a return to Prague in S75.

 

I always wondered however, what if I hadn't signed on with the Titans? What if I had played that season in Prague? 

 

Roster Changes

 

Well if I had signed in Prague, they probably wouldn't of brought back Jacob Perry in order to fill out the top 4 on the backend. Kudos to Perry though he came back from inactivity that year and had a good season scoring 38 pts and going +11 for the Phantoms. The Phantoms probably would've also had to move someone out to fit Seabass' Cap hit. Who knows, it could of made the Phantoms trade away Dagmar Havlova a season sooner than it actually had happened. No offense to Perry but I feel like the team's blueline would've been in better shape with me instead as I was a career 50-60 point getter and I would've given the team a more veteran presence to better transition rookie Riley Knight Gee to playing in the VHL. However, the team would've had to take a hit in the forward department to make it all happen which I feel wouldn't of made that year's team that much better in the end. I think they were actually better off just letting me go. 

 

Helsinki on the other hand could've tried to go attract some other defender from Free Agency as there were other big names such as Lance Flowers, Jeff Downey, Cinnamon Block and Andrej Petrovic available for hire that offseason. However, in my mind odds are they would've just tried to resign Daldo instead of letting him walk after Season 73. Daldo in reality ended up signing up with the Toronto Legion.

 

Helsinki/Prague Wildcard Round could've went differently.

 

Hell, maybe Helsinki wouldn't even of made the playoffs. The team just barely made the playoffs on the last day of the season back in S74. ending the season with 81 points. The Titans and the Phantoms (80pts) just barely beat out HC Dynamo (80pts) for a wildcard spot in order to officially enter the playoff rounds. The Titans then ended up having to dispose of the Phantoms in that Wildcard round in a 2 game sweep. Maybe if the Phantoms had the power of Seabass on their side that year they could've perhaps had a better chance at overcoming the Titans. After all, Seabass was playing the best hockey of his career as the playoffs of Season 74 is the only time I ever got Seabass playing at a PPG pace. 

 

My Finals run that year could've never happened

 

Helsinki not only could they have lost to the Phantoms in that opening wildcard round but even if they had survived that round they perhaps wouldn't even made it much further past that round. Seabass played an important role in the finals run as he lead all Titans Defenseman in scoring in the playoffs with 19 points in 18 games. Without Seabass coming up with solid showing in the playoffs they could've possibly struggled like they did during the regular season. 

 

If by any chance I would've helped the Phantoms beat out the Titans in the wildcard round I don't think the Phantoms had as good of a roster to be able to survive past teams like the Moscow Menace and the Malmo Nighthawks in the next two rounds to be able to make the finals that year. 

 

Conclusion

 

 I think I made the right call as I wouldn't of had as good of a chance to experience a finals run in Prague. Also, that finals run with the Titans was just magical and I had a lot of fun playing with all those guys for the year I was there for and I don't regret a thing. To this day it remains the closest I've ever been to really winning a Continental Cup. Of course I won the Cup in Season 11 with my first player but I don't really count that one at all since I wasn't active at all for that one. So here I am with what is now my third player, still chasing my first real Continental Cup.

[jRuutu 2,483]

9/10

 

Nicely written, easy to read as the structure is clean. Interesting read overall. I liked how you looked at the topic from all angles. Especially, potentially being a veteran presence for younger players is something I liked. The experienced players never get too much love!

 

 

[Hoopydog 195]

Nice job on this media spot. It's interesting to see how a players career could've changed if that pick a different path or choice. The piece is laid out really well so it's easy to read and it's clear you put a good amount of effort into writing it. Overall, good job!

 

9/10