Life after the VHL - Three Deaths

[DMaximus 1,046]

It’s likely recent personal events influenced my interpretation of the theme week “Life After the VHL.” I immediately thought about death. There’s a concept written about by David Eagleman that really resonates with me. His notion is that there are actually three deaths that occur. Eagleman writes “There are three deaths: the first is when the body ceases to function. The second is when the body is consigned to the grave. The third is that moment, sometime in the future, when your name is spoken for the last time.” I think it resonates with me because it’s this hauntingly beautiful abstraction of a moment we once thought of as the ultimate finality. But really that ultimate finality for a single person, death, is just the beginning of a process that is their death. That process does not end until the crushingly sad concept of no one ever talking about you or even thinking about you ever again.

 

I think the three deaths concept translates to the VHL. When a player retires, they’re removed off their team. They’ll never contribute to a sim again. That is their first death, they cease to function. The second death in the VHL is when you’re removed from the team’s locker room because you’re no longer on the team (and I know most teams leave you in the room as an alumnus, but that doesn’t fit with what I’m trying to go with so I’m ignoring it.) After being removed, you will no longer contribute to the conversation of the team. You will no longer come up with clever answers in the team’s press conferences. Effectively you are “consigned to the grave” (which is probably a phrase I should have used during my time as the Reapers GM, big miss there.) The third death is essentially the same in both the real world and the VHL space, the last ever moment someone mentions your (player’s) name.

 

The third death will come at different times for everyone. For some their name will probably outlive the VHL itself. One of you will tell your grandkids about Scotty Campbell “Gather ‘round kiddies, I want to tell you the story of Scotty Campbell, the greatest virtual hockey player ever created…” For many other players their third death has already occurred. Some are hidden away in a spreadsheet, maybe waiting to be read one last time. Or they’ll be the wrong answer to a trivia question a couple seasons from now.

One of the things I like about the VHL is its nod to its history. In the names of trophies, the hall of fame, the meticulous spreadsheets, etc. I like trivia because it can make people interested in the history of the VHL. I think everyone who shares trivia answers does a disservice to the VHL and to the players who now inch ever closer to their third death. I think it’s fantastic we have an award named after an actual person who brought such positive energy to the league. So positive that it made the BoG actually do something right for once (I kid, I kid) and make the Fredrik Elmebeck Memorial Trophy. That award means Elmebeck’s third death will not come for a while. Every season we’ll remember him and his brightness and he will live on along with us and our brightness. That is beautiful.

Edited October 18, 2021 by DMaximus

[diacope 2 764]

Interesting concept. I think most of the theme week articles I've seen so far have mostly been based on retirement so this is also a pretty unique piece. Sadly a lot of VHL players have most likely been forgotten, and more frequently so the players that never played much in the VHL. I hope my player doesn't die a 3rd death for quite some time due to the fact I named it after myself haha. We'll go together in a sense. 10/10