VSN Presents: The S79 Continental Cup Preview - Seattle Bears VS. Malmo Nighthawks

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VSN Presents

The Stage Is Set: The S79 Continental Cup Preview

 Seattle Bears VS. Malmo Nighthawks 

 

After a glorious pair of Conference Finals that both went the distance, the Seattle Bears and the Malmo Nighthawks emerged victorious in their respective Game 7s to earn the right to compete for the fabled Continental Cup! The S79 edition of the Cup Final features a rematch of the S68 Cup Final (which will be discussed in further detail below) and winners of two of the last four Cups. This is the first time since S73 that the top regular season team in both conferences has made it to the Final.

 

As always, VSN breaks it down for all you VHL junkies who are eagerly awaiting the curtains on the league’s grandest stage to open.

 

Before we continue, VSN would like to congratulate the Warsaw Predators and the Los Angeles Stars on fighting down to the last buzzer and providing such entertaining hockey! The Stars seesawed with the Bears all series, alternating wins until Seattle prevailed 4-2 in the seventh game. Malmo jumped out to a 3-1 series lead before Warsaw’s stars took back control with two huge wins to tie up the series before the Nighthawks tightened up in Game 7 to win 3-1.

 

And now, we set the stage…

 

 

The Teams

 

Seattle

For a little over a decade, the Seattle Bears have been the VHL’s model franchise for playoff consistency. GM Blake Campbell @Banackock has nurtured a seemingly unstoppable groove of drafting and developing stars and filling holes left by departing stars with more stars thus creating a desirable culture and an impeccable record in the post-season. The S79 Cup Final will be the Bears third in a row and 7^th Final in 12 seasons. Their five Continental Cup wins alone are more than any other team has even made the Final in that span (Helsinki, Malmo – 3). A busy off-season that saw the acquisition of two-time league MVP and leading scorer, Andrew Su @Da_Berr, and the signing of this season’s playoff goal leader, Jungkok @tfong, built the foundation for Seattle’s success thus far. The Bears roared into the postseason with a league-best nine-game winning streak.

 

Malmo

Conversely, the Nighthawks haven’t been able to build momentum from their two Cup Final appearances, a sweeping loss in S68 at the hands of Seattle and their first Cup Championship in S75. Mediocracy followed and even with HOFer defenseman Condor Adrienne @OrbitingDeath  leading the way, sustained success has been hard to come by. But this looks different somehow. In adding savvy veterans to a smartly-drafted young core over the last couple of seasons including winning the Gunnar Odinsson @BOOM sweepstakes in free agency in the off-season and acquiring blueliner Scotty Kaberle @fromtheinside early on, GM Christopher James @hylands has built a dynamic and explosive team that easily won the Victory Cup with the league’s best record and is just entering their prime. While Malmo’s focus is on being one of the top offenses in VHL history, there is also a commitment to defense and a rock-solid man between the pipes who isn’t afraid of a little rubber.  

 

The Rivalry

 

While the Bears’ and Nighthawks’ rivalry is a young one it is rich with intrigue. Their only other playoff battle was in the S68 Continental Cup Final where a soon-to-retire Matt Thompson, one of the greatest players in Seattle’s history, signed with and led the upstart Nighthawks to their first Final in only their third season. Despite Thompson’s effort (leading the playoffs in goals and points), Seattle stymied Malmo in a four-game sweep, denying Thompson the chance to leave the VHL a champion.

 

A reverse situation is playing out in S79 as Jungkok, Seattle’s free agent prize, who played 205 games with Malmo and helped them win their only Championship in S75, is in his final season and currently leads the playoffs in goals and points.

 

How this scenario plays out remains to be seen.  Seattle is the more experienced team but Malmo won all four regular season tilts with the Bears by a combined score of 13-5.

 

The Leaders

 

Seattle                 Malmo

Goals:  

Jungkok, 14        Odinsson, 8

 

Assists: 

Su, 12                   Odinsson, 13

Campbell, 12

 

Points:

Jungkok, 24        Odinsson, 21

 

Points by Defense:

Elsby, 14              Kamenov, 8

                             Kaberle, 8

                             Sova, 8

 

Shots Blocked:

Leveque, 24        Kamenov, 27

 

Penalty Minutes:

Campbell, 25      Deathwalker, 33

 

Hits:

Campbell, 52      Deathwalker, 55

 

Game Winning Goals:

Brown, 4             Telker, 4

 

Wins:

Rasputin, 8         Tretiak, 8

 

 

The Offense

 

Malmo gets the edge here as they produced 314 goals during the regular season, the 5^th-best total in VHL history since S20. Gunnar Odinsson had one of the best performances in recent memory with 57 goals and 133 points. Brendan Telker @Telkster actually led the team with 58 goals with three other forwards scoring 27 or more goals. They scored the most power play goals in the league with 99 and were 2^nd in PP% with 26.54%. Malmo’s depth has propelled them to the Final with ten players contributing seven or more points with Odinsson’s 21 leading the team. Of concern to the Nighthawks, is their goals for in the playoffs, understandingly yet disturbingly, have dropped from 4.36 to 3.31 over a full goal-per-game and their power play has only managed nine goals for a 17.31% clip.

 

Seattle’s offense was potent and diverse throughout the regular season. They produced the third-best offense with 283 goals and had five different players score 33 or more but with no one scoring more than 41 (Andrew Su). Battle-tested Valtteri Vaakanainen @Jubo led the team with 97 points. They tied two other teams for the 2^nd-most power play goals with 88 but were sixth in efficiency at 23.16%. Like Malmo, their depth is their strength with nine player having scored eight or more points and seven have double digits compared to Malmo’s three. But their goals-per-game has gone up slightly in the playoffs and are the top team in that regard at just over a four-goal-a-game clip. They’ve scored 15 goals with the man advantage behind only Warsaw and are operating at 22.06%.

 

The Defense

 

The two Final’s combatants are even more closely matched defensively. During the regular season, Seattle allowed the second-least amount of goals (219) and had the second-best penalty kill (80.98%). Malmo was third and only slightly behind in both those categories (225 GA, 80.31% PK). On route to the Final, Seattle has been the stingier team allowing 2.92 goals against to Malmo’s 3.15 and the Bears’ penalty kill has been 83.33% efficient while the Nighthawks have only killed off 78.57% of the opposition’s power plays. Malmo also needs to stop giving up so many shots to the tune of 42.5 a game. Seattle is only allowing 35.25 per game. The Bears’ defense corps is a more veteran and experienced group with a higher offensive ceiling, while the Nighthawks employ a high-energy and effective system that utilizes their underrated blueliners’ speed and youth.

 

The Goaltending

 

These two Russian S75 draftees (Rara Rasputin @Victor, 16^th OV, Artem Tretiak @Molholt, 39^th OV) are set to match each other save for save where the smallest misstep can cost their team a win. They have different styles but produce similar results. Rasputin relies on his size to swallow up rebounds thus resulting in fewer chances for the opposition. Tretiak plays a more athletic, reactionary style that produces more shooting chances but more often than not he stops the next shot as well. Both goalies have had brilliant seasons with Rasputin showing a slightly higher GAA in both the regular and postseason while Tretiak has posted the higher save percentages largely due to Malmo’s high-octane offense allowing more shots (he had 50+ saves in three out of seven games against Warsaw). Rasputin already has a Cup and has played in over twice as many playoff contests as his counterpart but Tretiak has come up clutch when the Nighthawks have needed him most.

 

The Talking Points

 

Jungkok/Seattle vs. Malmo: Who will gain more momentum from playing each other? Jungkok facing his old team with which he won a Cup in S75? Or will revenge be a dish served cold as Malmo avenges their S68 sweep?

 

Odinsson vs Jungkok: Jungkok is on pace to have one of the most electrifying postseason goal totals in VHL history already with 14 while Odinsson should have another gear. Who will provide the most offense?

 

Secondary Scoring: Both teams have players who need to step up to their regular season production. Malmo’s Muffbeav @.sniffuM and Seattle’s Vaakanainen haven’t been bad but they should be contributing more.

 

Rock’em Sock’em: Seattle’s Isabella Campbell @Banackock and Malmo’s captain, Druss Deathwalker @animal74 love to mix it up. Both lead their teams in playoff hits and penalty minutes but are also contributing on the score sheet. Who will have the larger impact or will they neutralize each other?

 

Rookies Rule: Malmo has four rookies who have been utilized and chipped in while Seattle has two. This is the biggest test of their lives. Who will step up? Who will disappear?

 

The Nighthawks and the Bears are fairly evenly matched so winning the Cup will come down to special teams, mental mistakes, drive and heart. Seattle is looking to cement their franchise legacy with another mini-dynasty employing a veteran-laded roster. Malmo wants to prove the regular season was no fluke and start a dynasty of their own. The VHL’s grandest stage is set. The players are in the wings ready to play their parts. Stay tuned, folks! The show is about to begin!

 

Spoiler

Bears: @Rayzor_7 @Kyle @a_Ferk @Spence King @jRuutu @Grant @16z @InstantRockstar @aksuko @SlapshotDragon

 

Nighthawks: @STZ @tylerwest @Infernal @TMGSosa @scoop @jared @kevinscix @Snussu @v.2 @BigTittySmitty @ColeMrtz @jacobcarson877

 

Edited September 10, 2021 by animal74

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