Intertwined Destiny: Davos Vs. Toronto

[Doomsday 4,143]

Intertwined Destiny: Davos Vs. Toronto

Rivalries are often born through monumental clashes, but that feeling can be amplified even further by meetings at the highest of stages. Heated games during the regular season can get feisty enough, but what happens when those two teams meet up in the Continental Cup Finals? Imagine, if you will, the same two teams meeting three consecutive seasons at the VHL’s biggest stage? During the 30’s of the VHL, this wasn’t a dream scenario, this became reality. The HC Davos Dynamo, who rose from a rebuild under Victor Alfredsson to become the premiere power of the European Conference in the latter half of the decade, faced off against Tyler Edgar’s Toronto Legion, who embarked on a similar reign of dominance in the North American Conference three straight seasons. Even more than fifty seasons after these games were played, the stories of these classic match-ups of two VHL titans remain for us. As the VHL honors the rivalries that make up the storied history of the league, now is a better time than ever to revisit the rivalry that spanned over three straight match-ups for the biggest prize in the Victory Hockey League.

 The Teams 

 HC Davos Dynamo

After winning their seventh Continental Cup championship in Season 31 under the legendary leadership of David Knight, Davos entered an aggressive re-tool in Season 35 under new GM Victor Alfredsson, who wasted no time getting to work. He immediately made waves by trading a first round pick and two seconds to the New York Americans for RW Thomas Landry, who immediately signed a five season contract extension, complete with a no-trade clause, with Davos to fully commit to the Dynamo. While none of those picks really panned out for the Americans, Landry would become a two-time Grimm Jonsson Trophy winner as the future Davos captain and a key component of their run. Another massive haul was sent to their European Conference rivals, the Riga Reign, with two pivotal members of Davos’ run coming in return: S34 10th overall pick D Shane Baker and RW Jarkko Olsen, the latter of whom proved to be an invaluable depth forward. At the Season 35 VHL Entry Draft, Alfredsson selected goaltender Lennox Moher first overall, who would prove to be all that he was bargained for as a franchise goaltender. Additionally, the HC Dynamo received D Matt Bentley per the VHL GM Rule, further bolstering Davos’ squad. A trade later in the season brought in C Sergey Brovalenko @Kesler, providing a veteran scorer to the roster. Suddenly, this Davos team was ready to compete, and with a record of 39-29-4, Davos returned to the playoffs, although it was not a long stay in the postseason with a 4-1 series defeat to the Cologne Express. However, the off-season leading up to Season 36 turned out to be a monumental one for Alfredsson and the Dynamo, with Christian Stolschweiger Trophy winner Davey Jones coming to Davos through a trade with the Cologne Express and the signing of coveted free agent forward Odin Tordahl suddenly added even more offensive punch to the team. Now, the HC Davos Dynamo weren’t just content to make the playoffs: they were equipped to win the Continental Cup.

 

 

 Toronto Legion 

 

However, for the Toronto Legion, their biggest obstacle was not reassembling a perennial contender, but overcoming a change in team management. The tenure of Sandro Desaulniers lasted from Season 26 to Season 35, with a Continental Cup victory coming in Season 29. Despite missing the playoffs in Season 34, Toronto rebounded with a 45-21-6 record in what would be Desaulniers’ final season as the Legion General Manager in Season 35, comfortably securing the third seed in the North American Conference, and for good reason: Desaulniers had re-tooled the Legion into a strong team. Two players, center Niklas Lindberg and winger Smooth Jive had both scored 100 points, and Teemu Lehtinen was just seven points shy with 93. Toronto’s defense was also strong, but the biggest star of the Legion was their goaltender, Remy LeBeau, who was beginning to blossom into one of, if not, the best goaltenders in the VHL. However, the new General Manager, Tyler Edgar, saw that there was more work to be done going into Season 36. Opting to move for prime, VHL-ready talent, he made a trade for LW Chico Salmon, sending center prospect DaJuan Cook, who did not play in the VHL for his first season of eligibility in Season 36, to Calgary. He would also acquire veteran forward Reggie Dunlop at the trade deadline from the Cologne Express, completing Edgar’s work in putting together a team that he believed was ready to bring the Continental Cup home to Toronto.

 

The Meetings

 

Season 36

With the added firepower both teams added leading up to Season 36, it was ultimately no surprise that both Davos and Toronto finished on top of their respective conferences. The HC Dynamo handily secured the top spot with a 54-16-2, good for 110 points and comfortably ahead of the second place Helsinki Titans’ 92 points. Toronto, however, faced a much tougher challenge from the Season 35 Continental Cup champions, the Quebec City Meute, who were primed for the repeat. The Legion and the Meute were neck-and-neck for the top seed, but Toronto was able to ride an 11 game winning streak to close out the season just one point ahead of Quebec City, additionally claiming the Victory Cup with the VHL’s top record of 55-14-3 and 113 points. 

In the European Conference, the Helsinki Titans handily dispatched the Cologne Express with a sweep in the first round to reach Davos for the European Conference Finals. However, Davos quickly halted their momentum, with the HC Dynamo quickly jumping out to a two-game lead with two wins at home on the back of outstanding goaltending from Lennox Moher. After splitting the next two games in Helsinki, the Titans were able to stave elimination with a Game Five win in Davos on Anatoli Zhumbayev’s goal in double overtime. However, Davos moved on with a 4-2 win in Game Six after free agent acquisition Odin Tordahl broke a 2-2 tie in the second period, with Matteo Gallo scoring into an empty net in the final minute to preserve the victory and a spot in the Continental Cup Finals.

 

In the North American Conference, however, the Quebec City Meute found that the Seattle Bears were a much tougher opponent, facing elimination in Game Six after three straight losses. Seattle, however, couldn’t seize the opportunity, only scoring one goal in both of the following elimination games, and the Meute escaped to the North American Conference Finals against the Toronto Legion. Quebec City’s momentum continued, as they proceeded to win Game One handily, 5-2 in Toronto. However, the Legion responded with an offensive explosion, scoring ten goals over the next three games, all of which were wins for Toronto. Quickly finding themselves in desperate trouble yet again, goaltender Skylar Rift willed the Meute to a 3-0 shutout victory in Game Five, but their luck ran out in Game Six, as a dominant performance from Remy LeBeau and Jack Sound sunk the Meute 4-1, setting the stage for a Continental Cup showdown with the HC Davos Dynamo.

The Finals began with two massive pendulum swings, as the Legion handily won Game One 4-1, with the HC Dynamo responding in kind with a 6-3 win in Game Two. However, disaster struck in Davos for the HC Dynamo, as they struggled to generate offense on their home ice. The Toronto Legion took full advantage, easily winning Game Three and Four in Davos, putting them just one game away from winning the Cup. However, with the Continental Cup in the building and their backs against the wall, Davos responded, with their captain at the forefront. Thomas Landry’s three points, including the game-clinching empty net goal in the final seconds of the game to finish a three goal third period, brought the HC Dynamo back to Davos for Game Six. A dominant first period, with goals from Sergey Brovalenko, Shane Baker, and yet again their captain, Thomas Landry, put Davos out to a 3-0 first period lead, and the pressure proved insurmountable for Toronto, who lost 4-1 and set up a Game Seven in Toronto. With everything on the line, it was Davos’ power play who rose to the occasion, with Landry’s eighth goal of the playoffs giving the HC Dynamo a 1-0 lead in the first period. Early in the second period, with Nikita Lebedev in the box for hooking, Davey Jones delivered the HC Dynamo’s second power play goal to give them a 2-0 lead. Although Lebedev redeemed himself later in the period by cutting the lead to 2-1, Lennox Moher was relentless and would not be solved the remainder of the game. Jones’ goal turned out to be the game-winning, series-clinching, Continental Cup-winning goal, as the HC Davos Dynamo celebrated their eighth Continental Cup in franchise history on Toronto’s home ice, with Davey Jones winning the Daisuke Kanou Trophy as the playoff MVP with six goals and 14 assists for 20 points.

 

Season 37

If the HC Davos Dynamo were to repeat as Continental Cup champions, they were going to have to do so with some new faces. Reigning Scott Boulet Trophy winner Odin Tordahl was traded to the New York Americans, and Matteo Gallo was traded to the Riga Reign. However, with Sergey Brovalenko in his final season, center Naomi Young was acquired from the Helsinki Titans, and a familiar face from Toronto came to Davos in a trade: Nikita Lebedev. After his strong postseason in Season 36, Thomas Landry would now be depended on as a top line winger, with Davey Jones sliding over to wing to make room for Naomi Young at center on the second line. Additionally, winger Felix Zamora joined the team through free agency. The Toronto Legion ultimately decided to go for more offensive firepower to replace Teemu Lehtinen, moving two first round picks to the Helsinki Titans for winger Anatoli Zhumbayev, who had scored the Cup-winning goal for Helsinki in Season 34. With their re-tools done, both teams entered Season 37 looking to once again return to the Continental Cup Finals.

 

The North American Conference wound up finishing similarly to Season 36, with the Toronto Legion taking home the top seed once again with a 49-20-3 record and 101 points, this time six points ahead of the Quebec City Meute. The Seattle Bears, however, barely hung on to their playoff spot, finishing just one point ahead of the resurgent New York Americans. Zhumbayev lived up to the price it took to acquire him from Helsinki, scoring a team-high 47 goals and finishing with 105 points, second only to Niklas Lindberg’s 114. Reigning Aidan Shaw Trophy winner Remy LeBeau turned in another strong season in net as well, and the Legion were the clear favorites once again in the North American Conference. The European Conference proved to be much more defined, with both Cologne and Helsinki rebuilding, but the three competitive teams proved to be tough. Both the Vasteras Iron Eagles and the Riga Reign jumped into playoff spots and tied with 96 points, with Riga getting the tiebreaker and the second seed due to more regulation wins. Davos finished with a 53-13-4 record, good for 110 points and the Victory Cup. Sergey Brovalenko dazzled in his final season, scoring 42 goals and 104 points to lead the team in both categories, while Thomas Landry proved to be a capable first line player, scoring a career-high 41 goals and 88 points. Davey Jones, however, struggled to match his production as a winger, with his point total dropping to just 70 points after two massive seasons to begin his career.

The Reign and the Iron Eagles were evenly matched throughout the regular season, and their playoff matchup was no different. The series continued to go back-and-forth, with the teams trading victories and momentum with each other. A dramatic double overtime goal by Vasteras’ Keiji Toriyama kept the Iron Eagles even with the Reign in Game Two, and they tied the series again at 2 following another overtime goal by Cody Inko in Game Four. From there, however, Riga took the reins, winning Games Five and Six, including a dagger of an overtime goal by former HC Dynamo Matteo Gallo in Vasteras. Riga’s momentum continued against the HC Dynamo, shocking the heavy favorites by winning the first two games of the series in Davos. However, this was a series dominated by the road team, as Davos evened the series with two wins of their own in Riga. A wild Game Five in Davos ensued, featuring two line brawls. With Davos down 2-0, Sergey Brovalenko attempted to instill energy into his teammates by instigating a fight with Phil Villeneuve, with Thomas Landry also dropping the gloves with Mikey Blade. Brovalenko would be ejected from the game, however, but the game entered overtime tied 2-2 after Matt Bentley tied the game in the third period. Another brawl erupted as tensions boiled over between longtime rivals Thomas Landry and Kameron Taylor, who dropped the gloves along with Mikey Blade and Nikita Lebedev, the former getting the best of his opponent. Finally, late in the period, Robin Gow delivered the overtime winner, putting Riga in front 3-2. However, Davos would even the series in Riga, and the HC Dynamo won the series by becoming the first team to win at home, with a power play goal by Landry sending their bitter rivals home in defeat.

 

Despite barely making the playoffs, the Seattle Bears were fully aware they were playing with house money, and proceeded to give the Quebec City Meute everything they could handle. Despite falling behind 3-2 after a 2-0 shutout in Game Five, the Bears roared back at home with a 4-2 win to force Game Seven, which wound up becoming a masterful display of goaltending. Karsten Olsen scored just 20 seconds into the game, as the Bears barraged Tuomas Tukio with shots, which he handled otherwise masterfully. However, unfortunately for him, his teammates were kept bottled up and unable to return the pressure, being doubled up in shots and unable to solve Steven Smyl on their limited opportunities, leading to a stunning and frustrating 1-0 defeat for the Meute, as Seattle advanced to take on the Toronto Legion. The Legion, however, were unfazed by the upset, slapping down Seattle by a combined score of 7-1 in the first two games. However, the Bears weren’t finished quite yet, and stormed back with two wins of their own at home by a combined score of 10-4. Seattle, however, was spent, and Toronto finished them off with a 2-0 shutout in Toronto in Game Five and roughhoused the Bears 4-1 on their home ice in Seattle with a huge performance by Remy LeBeau, who stopped 30 of 31 shots. The rematch in the Continental Cup Finals had been set.

 

This time, however, the Continental Cup Finals proved to be rather lackluster. The Legion completely and utterly shut down Davos’ offense, outscoring them 6-2 in front of the HC Dynamo’s home crowd to open the series. It didn’t get any better for Davos in Toronto, as Remy LeBeau continued to stymie the HC Dynamo on virtually every opportunity they got, and suddenly the Legion were on the brink of a Continental Cup championship after a 3-1 victory in Game Three. With the Cup in the building for a potentially decisive Game Four, Davos was determined not to lose their status as champions without a fight. Just four seconds into Game Four, Davos captain Thomas Landry beat Remy LeBeau to give the HC Dynamo their first lead of the series, and suddenly the memories of the collapse a season before began pouring back into the Ricoh Arena. These feelings were amplified with a late goal by Felix Zamora, putting Toronto down 2-0 after being outshot 19-5. However, Remy LeBeau dug in and kept his team in the game, with Jack Sound chipping the deficit down to 2-1 in the second period as Toronto fought back. Despite another flurry of shots from Davos in the third period, it was the Legion who lit the lamp on a game-tying goal from Anatoli Zhumbayev, sending the game to overtime. Play got much tighter, but a slashing penalty from LeBeau and an interference call on Niklas Lindberg gave Davos opportunities to win the game on the man advantage, which they were unable to do. However, in the second overtime period, Matt Bentley was sent to the box for high-sticking, and Toronto’s power play needed less than 30 seconds to end the series. Reggie Dunlop lived out the dream of every hockey player, burying the Cup-winning goal on home ice on a feed from team captain Jakub Kjellberg, and the celebration was on! Remy LeBeau’s insane performances in net earned him the Daisuke Kanou Trophy as the MVP of the Season 37 playoffs, and the Toronto Legion had finally completed their climb to the top of the VHL at long last.

Season 38

 

In an interesting contrast to previous seasons, Victor Alfredsson decided to run it back with the team he already had, minus Sergey Brovalenko, who had retired following Season 37. The biggest change, however, was that Davey Jones returned to his natural position of center with the retirement of Brovalenko, reuniting him with Landry on the first line, resulting in monster seasons for both of them. Development was what powered the growth of this team going into Season 38, with many of their players primed and ready to take the step into their prime seasons of production. It was a decision that was shared by Tyler Edgar, outside of the loss of playoff hero Reggie Dunlop, who had signed with the Helsinki Titans in the off-season. The big names, as they did in Davos, remained largely the same in Toronto. There would be no flashy moves for the two juggernauts, just the expectation that who they had was all they needed to continue their time at the top of the VHL.

 

In the North American Conference, however, a new power was emerging: the New York Americans. Barely missing the playoffs in Season 37, there would be no doubt that they would make it to the postseason, as they went 56-12-4, overtaking the defending champions as not only the top seed in the conference, but in the VHL, as they secured the Victory Cup with 15 points more than Davos. Toronto secured the second seed with a 45-22-5 record, with the Seattle Bears rounding the field as the third seed once again. The European Conference proved to be much tighter, as just five points separated the first and third seeds. Ultimately, it was Davos once again on top of the conference, finishing with a 48-19-5 record, their 101 points just ahead of second place Riga’s 98, who finished a game ahead of the Vasteras Iron Eagles, setting up another playoff match-up between the two.

This time, however, Vasteras wasn’t able to muster as much of a fight. They proceeded to lose by two in both Games One and Two in Riga, winning 3-2 in Game Three on the back of a two goal second period. However, that was about it for the Iron Eagles, who were outscored 9-4 the rest of the way and eliminated once again in the opening round. Yet again, Riga found the HC Davos Dynamo in their path to the Continental Cup, and seemed to be in good shape in Game One, heavily outshooting their rivals. However, sparked by a brawl in the second overtime which saw Naomi Young pummeled by Malcom Spud, Felix Zamora ended it with his second goal of the game to take Game One, and the Reign never really recovered from this punch to the gut. Zamora scored the game-winning goal again in Game Two, sending them reeling back to Riga. While Riga did prevail in Game Three in front of the home crowd, they were throttled in Games Four and Five, including a 6-1 demolition in hostile territory that eliminated them at the hands of their rivals yet again. For the third straight season, the HC Davos Dynamo would be playing for the Continental Cup.

 

This time, however, the Toronto Legion had a longer road to the Cup due to New York finishing with the top seed. They faced off against Seattle in the opening round, who shocked the Legion with a 5-2 victory in Game One. However, Toronto bore down and got to business, taking care of Seattle in Game Two, then eviscerating the Bears in Games Three and Four in front of their home crowd. Up 3-1, Toronto was unable to end the series on home ice in Game Five, but three-point games from both Jakub Kjellberg and Jack Sound, paired with a 20 save shutout by Remy LeBeau emphatically ejected the Bears from the playoffs in front of their home crowd in Seattle. Rolling into New York, the Americans quickly found that the Legion were unfazed by New York’s regular season dominance and were giving them everything they could handle. They escaped Game One courtesy of Jakob Linholm, but Evgeny Namestnikov and Toronto answered back with a 2-1 overtime win of their own in Game Two. Remy LeBeau followed it up with a shutout in Game Three, with Anatoli Zhumbayev providing the lone goal of the game on the power play in the first period. Game Four went into overtime yet again, with the Americans finally tying the series off of a Wesley Kellinger goal in double overtime. However, Remy LeBeau locked down the Americans in Games Five and Six, and with two more 2-1 victories in hand for the Legion, they had eliminated the heavy favorite for the Continental Cup in the New York Americans. However, one last time, the HC Davos Dynamo stood in their way.

The rubber match began much the same as the previous two finals meetings, with Toronto taking the win in Game One on a goal in triple overtime by Chico Salmon. Both Remy LeBeau and Lennox Moher were outstanding, and it continued into Game Two. However, Davos had figured something out, and the Legion’s offense was held in check. Thomas Landry’s second period goal provided the winning margin in a 2-1 win to even the series, and the strong defensive play and goaltending continued in Game Three… for the HC Dynamo. LeBeau was hung out to dry by his penalty kill lines, and Davos took full advantage, scoring three power play goals and seven unanswered goals after Toronto took an early lead to take a 7-1 win. The Legion struck back with a win in Game Four thanks to a late goal by Niklas Lindberg, but once again Davos clamped down defensively. An early second period goal by Jack Sound gave Toronto a one goal lead that carried into the third period, but a backbreaking shorthanded goal by Felix Zamora opened the floodgates to a three goal third period for Davos, including the second game-winning goal of the series by their captain, Thomas Landry, just minutes later. A potentially decisive Game Six once again had the Continental Cup in the Ricoh Arena, and followed was nothing short of a titanic defensive struggle, with both goaltenders standing on their heads. Despite Toronto being heavily outshot, Remy LeBeau did everything in his power to keep the Legion in the game. However, neither LeBeau or Lennox Moher were solved in regulation, and it would take overtime to decide Game Six. However, a critical penalty by Evgeny Namestnikov brought in the Davos power play, and thirty seconds later, Shane Baker scored his first goal of the playoffs on the power play to win the Continental Cup for the HC Davos Dynamo! Lennox Moher took home playoff MVP honors with the Daisuke Kanou Trophy following an 8-2-1 record, with a 1.78 GAA and a .941 save percentage.

 

Epilogue

While the HC Davos Dynamo still had one more season of contention, the Season 38 Continental Cup was the end of the road for the core of the Toronto Legion, and the rebuild began in the off-season. Davos continued their run in Season 39, once again reaching the Continental Cup Finals, but were overpowered by the New York Americans, who completed their own rise to the top in emphatic fashion. This put the rebuild of the HC Davos Dynamo, now with Mike Molholt (who would rise to bigger fame as the General Manager of the dominant Toronto Legion teams in the late 40s) now at the helm. Although some of the players remained, both teams were now broken up and entering the next phases of their respective histories, bringing this story to an end.

To me, outside of the community itself, the history of the Victory Hockey League is what makes this place so special to me. There are so many incredible stories and feats to be found over the years, and this particular era has always stood out to me. Naturally, having been a part of this story is a big part of that, but the storyline of these two teams constantly coming together on the biggest stage just seems like something out of a movie. But it’s something made possible by all of the members here, past, present, and future, who continue to write these stories through all of their hard work. Stories like these are how we measure greatness throughout the league, both then, now, and in the future as well. Keep making those stories happen, and we’ll be around to keep telling them.
 

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