First year in the VHL

[Anthique 199]

After his season in the VHLE with Bratislava, Alfred Champagne was a prospect and he was not sure if he will play in the VHL or stay in the VHLE.

 

During the after-season, his agent calls him each day telling him that teams were trying to acquire him from Prague. That's where he got drafted in S85 at the 11th rank.

The day has finally come when his agent tells him that he will have to move to the other side of the globe to continue his career. The Calgary Wranglers made him the newest member of their team. They had to let go some of their older players to fit the cap so why not acquire a top prospect in exchange! Prague also gives a lot of picks, but it's a good trade for both teams. 

A week later, his agent calls him again about a trade : «Wtf not again? I haven't even had the chance to meet my teammates and the management before getting traded! I was hoping to visit Canada, go skiing and become a cowboy! »

No man not gonna happen! You're staying in Europe with the HC Davos! Only a 8 hours drive from each other and it's closer to your home! You will have more time to visit your family so it can be good for you. You got traded for some picks this time. Good luck my man!

That doesn't stop him in his training and he didn't play a single game for them so the only thing in is mind is he's happy that teams want him and he has nothing against is old GMs.

 

So Champagne got traded two times in the same off season. It was not clear at this moment if he will begin the season in which league, but his training will not be affected by that. With a talk with the Davos Management, they decided that he will enter the VHL right away with an offensive role.

The season didn't go as planned offensively for Champagne. Only 17 pts in 72 games while playing sometime on the first line and having some powerplay time. Rookies are not supposed to lead the team in scoring, but he thought he would help more than that. After getting 47 points in the VHLE, having less than half of that amount is disappointing. He is not supposed to be the most skilled player on the team, but he needs to bring some secondary scoring when the top guys are having a night off. 

The good news is that he always more efficient when he is in the playoffs. In the VHLM, 4 points in 5 games and in the VHLE, 5 points in 7 games. Those stats are way better than the regular season like we show earlier in the VHLE, but in the VHLM he got a magnificent 82 pts in 72 games. After two rounds of playoff, Champagne is having a good run with 5 points in 9 games. Less hits, but more concern on his offensive game and that lead Davos to eliminate the best team in Europe this week.