H_st_n Bulls need some O

[Hybrid1486 577]

Through 18 games, the Houston Bulls have rolled out one of the better defenses in the VHLM. The team has allowed 3.22 goals per game, the fourth-best total in the league so far. Their goaltender, Xavier Booberry, is one of the better netminders in the minors at this point and a top prospect for the S80 VHL Draft.

 

Why, then, is the team dead last in the standings with only four wins and eight points? Simply put, the offense is atrocious. The big reason for that is a supreme lack of depth scoring; while most teams can roll 4 lines of solid minor-league players, the Bulls are giving heavy second-line minutes to Beta players who really don’t belong in the league. On the defensive side, they can roll out a passable top pair but, again, rely heavily on low-talent players for heavy minutes.

 

If even a few players above this replacement level could join the team, the Bulls might be competitive for the rest of the season, possibly even squeezing into a playoff spot if the turnaround happens relatively quickly. Until then, however, the lack of scoring is destined to keep them at the bottom of the barrel for the foreseeable future.