The Mysteries of My Lack of Playoff Success

[Rhynex Entertainment 484]

The Mysteries of My Lack of Playoff Success

 

Playoffs is where champions are born. Players bring out the best of themselves and the games' intensity rises to the highest levels. Teams that perform well tend to see the results from their players whom are on hot streaks and doing well, but for some reason unbeknownst to me, I have not found my share of VHL playoffs success, regardless of how well or poorly my player plays and how well the team had performed in the regular season and punching the tickets to the after party (post season) dance.

 

My first experience of the VHL playoffs comes in the form of Rhynex Entertainment in Season 78. This would be Rhynex entertainment's first and only appearance the in VHL playoffs as part of a, at that time, up and coming young and brilliant looking New York Americans team. The New York Americans finished Season 78 with the 1st wild card seat and end up facing the D.C Dragons in a best of 5 series for the final playoffs spot in the North American conference. Rhynex Entertainment had an incredible and fantastic playoffs that season, notching an unbelievable 3 goals, 5 assists (8 points) in 4 games before the New York Americans fell to the D.C. Dragons in game 4. In what looked like a promising initiation to a long career of post season play, I unfortunately don't see the lights of the post season again with my first gen player, Rhynex Entertainment.

 

Skip a few seasons and the retirement of Rhynex Entertainment, I found myself a second chance with the creation of AirRig GoodBrandSun and being drafted into a @Ricer13 built Calgary Wranglers franchise. @Ricer13 is someone whom I personally feel is an excellent GM. Someone who is brilliant when it comes to building winning teams, and with a young team, @Ricer13 builds a team that makes the Season 83 playoffs without any defensive core. AirRig GoodBrandSun was a huge part of that empty d core. The Calgary Wranglers surprised that season in Season 83, taking 3rd seat in the North American conference and skipping the wild card games. AirRig GoodBrandSun was horrid in the Season 83 VHL playoffs. Not a good taste of the post season. I go 0 -2 in my VHL post season experience. 1 good post season performance and 1 terrible playoffs performance, but both with the same results. Failure. But my hopes are sky high as I know the Calgary Wranglers are only going to get better as the young and promising prospects will grow and form an exciting and tremendous team situated in the cold Albertan city.

 

AirRig GoodBrandSun and the Calgary Wranglers continue to find plenty of regular season success and growth as the team and their young players grow over the next three seasons. GM @Ricer13 was able to draft and monopolize 3 studs from the S83 VHL draft (Landon Wolanin @jacobcarson877 , Leandro Goncalves @leandrofg , and of course AirRig GoodBrandSun) and develop a team centered around these 1000 TPA players and alongside other superstar players in the likes of Saku Kotkakoivu @DollarAndADream , Erlantz Jokinen @jRuutu , and Daniel Janser @Daniel Janser. However when the playoffs arrive after each superb regular season entries that included top seat finishes in Season 85 and 86, the same old stories came about. A devastating short post season.

 

Season 86, a first round exit to the eventual Champions in the Vancouver Wolves, 1 - 4 series, AirRig GoodBrandSun was not good during that series, ending with only 1 goal and 1 assist, but a +5. Season 85 was also a first round exit. 2 - 4 series loss to the Chicago Phoenix. AirRig GoodBrandSun had 3 goals and 3 assists, point per game in that series. And, ironically Season 84, where Calgary Wranglers finished the regular season with their worst position in the 4 seasons, AirRig GoodBrandSun and the Calgary Wranglers played the most games in the post season. 7 games total, but a lost in the first round from a 0 - 4 sweep by the D.C. Dragons. Devastation after an excellent 3 - 0 sweep victory to get to the playoffs with the Wild Card series victory against the Toronto Legion. AirRig GoodBrandSun had 3 goals, 2 assists in those 7 games.

 

I have experienced 5 different post season - playoff seasons so far in the VHL. Each with different circumstances, but each ending with the same results, either not making the playoffs, or falling short and losing in the first round. Season 78 was quite unfortunate, especially given how well Rhynex Entertainment performed. Season 83 was a surprise and an expected weak post season showing, 0 - 4 playoffs first round sweep. But then the surprising poor showings for the following three seasons, especially the later seasons in S85 and S86, where the Calgary Wranglers were better, top ranked teams, but ending worse off than their weaker counterpart of S84. A weird post season deprovement for Calgary, from one season to the next. So what is the reason for my lack of playoffs success? Some say it is because I stayed too long and loyal to the cursed team in the New York Americans with Rhynex Entertainment (who had an entire career with the New York Americans). But what about the Calgary Wranglers? AirRig GoodBrandSun is by far a better player than Rhynex Entertainment had ever been. Yet, post season and playoffs performance-wise, a much weaker showing abide playing a different position and era. Some suggest it is also due to playing for a cursed team, and that the Calgary Wranglers should change their name to the Calgary Maple Leafs. Or perhaps, it is simply me. Maybe I am the curse? It is hard to tell. I have had plenty of VHLM success with both of my players, abide never winning any championships and tournament trophies, but a couple of runner ups. Moreover, I have won (a trophy-less) tournament with Team Canada at the Season 82 World Juniors. So, maybe I am not the curse. Kris Rice @Ricer13 once suggested that the real cause of Calgary Wrangler's lack of post season success could simply be the lack of luck and the unfortunate tightness and evenness of all the teams in the North American Conference. I will wait it out and see how things end up in a few more seasons, as it seems only time will tell me whether I would ever find post season success in the VHL. In the meantime, this is my rant on the mysteries of my lack of playoffs success.

 

[Word Count 1102]

[Claim for weeks ending 2023-01-08 and 2023-01-15]

 

 

 

Edited January 9, 2023 by Rhynex Entertainment
edited dates, still living in the past LOL

[Rhynex Entertainment 484]

claim for week ending 2023-01-15

[DollarAndADream 3,356]

We should have had better success.

[Scurvy 1,495]

I thought your guys had the NA locked up.  Amazing team and season.  Shitty puck luck in the playoffs but it will turn around.