Records being set and other fun facts

[Victor 10,951]

I've been updating the various stats and other spreadsheets around the league and surely there is enough content to get me to 500 words in all the fun little tidbits that I've picked up along the way.

 

On the retiring S70 draftees

There's been a few fine careers ending in S77 with a shout-out to Jaxx Hextall and his erstwhile teammate Chad Magnum (my old stats buddy Corco) especially, but there are two players I want to focus on – a future Hall of Famer and a guy who's just won his third Continental Cup.

 

Mikko Lahtinen @Beketov

The man who is the topic of this week's trivia question – the answer to which I will not reveal – but Lahtinen might well be the best player to never win a cup. Here's a few highlights:

 

• 99 playoff games – the fourth most of all-time
• 52 playoff goals – also the fourth most of all-time, although in 20 or so more games than the top 3 – Locke, Campbell, and Chershenko
• 94 playoff points – slotting in just behind Matt Thompson who's seventh, although in 34 fewer games
• 371 playoff hits – the most of all-time! Lahtinen edges out Theo Axelsson @solas, a dominant Boulet winner and Franchise Cornerstone's partner in crime in Helsinki during the 50s. However...
• 237 PIM in the playoffs – the most of all-time as well, two ahead of my own Matt Bentley who held the dubious record since S42. That might go some way to explaining Lahtinen's lack of team success, along with some intense anti-Russian bias from some of the referees... Axelsson by contrast only had 152 PIM so was clearly a cleaner hitter. Although Bentley won three cups of his own so nothing really makes any sense anyway.

 

Although Lahtinen only has two trips to the finals to show for his playoff exploits, back on his entry-level deal in Calgary, he retires without a cup not for lack of trying, being on track to be crowned playoff MVP once and maybe even twice with Moscow, had we made the finals in his time there. Although it will make him the 19th out of 135 Hall of Famers without a championship ring, I don't think this will impact a likely first ballot induction this time next season.

 

Odin Omdahl @zepheter

By contrast Omdahl gave up Hall of Fame aspirations a while ago, but retires on a high and with arguably the more satisfying career of the two. Plus, there are a few individual highlights for him as well.

 

• Omdahl accounts for 75% of the S70 draft class' Continental Cups, having won three in his life as a Bear – S71, S73, and now S77. The only other cup won by a S70 draftee was by Aleelee Kiak @Grant, also with Seattle in S73. That is a potentially damning indictment of the class of S70.
• With 199 blocked shots in the playoffs, Omdahl set an all-time record of his own! All the more remarkably, the man he beat – Kerkko Hyvarinen @diamond_ace – is tied for the most playoff games at 102, meaning Omdahl got five more blocks in 17 fewer games. Omdahl also beats out his former teammates in Hogan and Sundqvist and a variety of Hall of Famers – Labatte, Incognito, Tate to name a few – earning his place in Seattle lore.

 

That's all I wanted to say actually. Oh and Seattle vs Helsinki was actually a direct fight for the most Continental Cups in VHL history – both franchises came into the series tied for the lead with 11 cups apiece. The Bears have taken the outright lead, quite a comeback from the seven cups they had only 10 seasons ago. For the Titans, the hunt for a Continental Cup in the 70s continues to keep up their streak of at least one cup every decade – with three finals losses in the last five seasons, the clock is ticking.

[McWolf 3,115]

2 hours ago, Victor said:

Omdahl accounts for 75% of the S70 draft class' Continental Cups, having won three in his life as a Bear – S71, S73, and now S77. The only other cup won by a S70 draftee was by Aleelee Kiak @Grant, also with Seattle in S73. That is a potentially damning indictment of the class of S70.

that's actually insane to think about

[Beketov 9,033]

12 hours ago, Victor said:

371 playoff hits – the most of all-time!

Oh, that’s cool, never really paid much attention to it.

 

12 hours ago, Victor said:

237 PIM in the playoffs – the most of all-time

That checks out, Lahtty loved to goon come playoff time but let’s be honest, the refs just hated me.

 

12 hours ago, Victor said:

he retires without a cup not for lack of trying, being on track to be crowned playoff MVP once and maybe even twice with Moscow

Don’t remind me. Yet another player failing to end my Kanou curse despite being super dominant in the post season. At least twice now I’ve had players lead the playoffs in points without making the finals.

[animal74 1,822]

Once again, head historian @Victor dabbles in facts, stats, and record books and brings our attention to more VHL records that have fallen to newer blood. These are great little snippets that keep the league alive and give future stars aspirations of new records to break. Clean, concise, and cordial. Always the professional, Victor once again delivers.

 

Review: 10/10

 

Love this stuff!! Great job! Thanks for keeping the historical archives of the VHL straightened out! Congrats @Beketov and @zepheter

Edited May 9, 2021 by animal74