My VHL Award Ballot For Season 89

[Advantage 2,896]

My VHL Award Ballot For Season 89
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For those that have gotten to know me over the years, you might know that I have never minded explaining my reasoning when it comes to who I voted for.  I have always believed there should be a fairly high amount of transparency in the league when it comes to what the Blues/BOD discuss and what the rest of the league sees.  And I have always felt that this should stretch to awards as well.  The Hall of Fame and the Awards show are two of the most important things I get to have an influence on, and that has always been one of my favourite things about being a member of the Board of Governors.  

 

‘So I decided to put together an article on who I voted for in the Season 89 Awards and explain a little bit about my reasoning.  I’m not necessarily going to go too in-depth with each of these awards, as some of them are pretty self-explanatory, but I will make sure to at least justify my pick with each one.  So without further ado, going in opposite order of status, lets get to my picks.

 

DAVID KNIGHT TROPHY (TOP GM) - Euron Leonidas (MOS - Spartan)

I have to be honest when I say that I have always hated voting for this award.  It’s always been fairly arbitrary to me and is always the one that seems to have the most variance in options being discussed.  Thus I have always believed a one-to-one comparison with the previous year's team, the moves you made during that season and the previous off-season and overall team success are the three contributing factors to decide on who takes home the David Knight Trophy.  This is an award I have been fortunate to take home six times when I was a General Manager, but since then it has been Bana that has taken over as the league’s most successful and decorated in its long history.  And once again, he was a candidate in this one.

 

The two candidates I was really looking at were Blake Campbell (SEA) and Euron Leonidas (MOS).  There were a few other names discussed that really put together excellent campaigns like Frank Chadwick (VAN), Zack Gagnon (LA) and Benjamin Zeptenbergs (RIG).  Ultimately though, I leaned to Euron Leonidas on this one. In what is a narrow vote for me I felt that Moscow saw a bit more of an upheaval in the depth department after they signed seven unsigned free agents and also made a major move that helped propel them to the best record in the league.  This is always a tough one but that’s ultimately the choice I went with.

 

DUSTIN FUNK TROPHY (MOST IMPROVED) - Brian Kowalski (RIG - Wheaties)

This one is honestly one that I originally thought seemed like a bit of a runaway but was swayed by a few other members in the league towards potentially looking at another player instead.  Brian Kowalski was the player I saw immediately as he was a frequent name in these awards and improved by 56 points, going from a decent offensive player to an absolutely dominant player that was arguably the league’s best player this season.  However, my eyes turned to Nikolas Kauppi who broke out and went from a 39 point player to an 87 point talent.  He originally had a bit of a down second year after a solid rookie year but exploded for 25 more goals with a career high of 40 and then added 47 assists to go along with a bit more physicality.  He was a member of Prague for both season’s but did see an increase in minutes and responsibility which definitely could have had an impact on why the difference was so vast.  Nevertheless, his season was tremendously impressive.  

Ultimately, I went with Brian Kowalski though.  His career high in points was 54 and he had been coming off a very similar campaign where he recorded 52 points and a career high in hits of 226.  Kowalski was switching teams from Davos to Riga, which is the most brought up criticism of his season in the Board of Governors.  Nevertheless he would jump 56 points and had by far his best blocked shot season with 233, which was an increase of 105 over the previous one.  Also, while he did switch teams, they were similarly successful with Davos finishing with 93 points in Season 88 and Riga ending up with 92 points in Season 89.  Get ready to read his name a lot by the way.  

 

CHRISTIAN STOLZSCHWEIGER TROPHY (TOP ROOKIE) - Jasper Davis (NYA - Josh)

This is the award that I first ever won when my first active player, Michael Angelo, took it home in Season 20.  It’s been one that can come and go when it comes to having much competition, and has often been dominated by goaltenders of late.  While the Board of Governors did discuss the solid season Merome Dilson had in Calgary, it ultimately ended up being someone else that I felt had the best overall season.

 

Jasper Davis made his debut in New York after a tremendous season in the VHLE for Geneva, and despite the addition of multiple veterans that were going to eat their piece of the pie, he still excelled.  Davis finished with 30 goals and 62 points while also being an occasional physical presence up front on their second line.  That kind of impact despite the team improving and keeping him down on that second line, earns himself the win for me when it comes to the Stolzy.

 

SCOTT BOULET TROPHY (TOP TWO-WAY FORWARD) - John Jameson (PRG - Frank)

This award celebrates the best well-rounded forward in the league looking at their defensive accomplishments, their physicality and of course their offensive accolades.  Ronan Lavelle, Sirdsvaldis Miglaskems and John Jameson were the names that got the most conversation.  All three scored 50 goals and all three had at least 200 hits with Lavelle having the most points but least amount of hits, Miglaskems having the least amount of points but most number of hits and Jameson finishing second in both categories.  

 

I sided with Jameson in the end who had only one less point than Lavelle but had an impressive 243 hits and a solid 39 blocked shots to go along with it.  He had the best plus/minus of the three and was easily one of the most valuable players in the league this season with 25 more points than anyone else on his roster.  

 

JAKE WYLDE TROPHY (TOP DEFENSIVE DEFENSEMAN) - Brian Kowalski (RIG - Wheaties)

We already covered that Brian Kowalski had quite an impressive season that included a monstrous 108 points from the backend.  When it comes to the Jake Wylde Trophy though, the focus is on some of the other attributes in a player.  Hammar Voss and Brian Payne definitely played at an impressive level defensively and physically, but the focus actually came around to a familiar name.

 

To me this kinda has to go to Brian Kowalski.  Not only did he have that tremendous offensive season but he showed incredible feistiness and physicality with 218 hits and was another goalie for the Reign with a ridiculous 233 blocked shots.  He just filled the stat sheet in pretty much every way this year and unfortunately for some of these other great defenders, Kowalski continues to get a lot of shine.

 

ALEXANDER VALIQ TROPHY (TOP OFFENSIVE DEFENSEMAN) - Brian Kowalski (RIG - Wheaties)

This really was a debate between two players in Brian Kowalski and Hammar Voss who both had incredible offensive seasons that saw the two players finish just two points apart.  The argument for Kowalski is that he led in points and had by far the most goals with 23.  Meanwhile, Voss has the argument of utilisation as he was not double-shifted on the PP like Kowalski was and played less minutes overall.

 

I ultimately went with Brian Kowalski again as while the offensive performance was narrow, I felt his goal total could not be ignored.  With eight more goals than Voss and being the leading scorer of their team (while Lavelle led for Moscow over Voss) I felt Brian Kowalski once again had the best case.  Hate to be a broken record though and do wish I had a little more variation, but he just simply earned it. 

 

STERLING LABATTE TROPHY (TOP DEFENSEMAN) - Brian Kowalski (RIG - Wheaties)

The illustrious trophy that has seen many famous names from Sterling Labatte himself to Daniel Braxton to Conner Low to Hammar Voss last year, win it and etch their name in league history as the best defenseman in a single season.  Sometimes it can definitely be an interesting debate but in other cases, like this one, there is really only one name that is getting considered.

 

I don’t think it should be surprising at all to see Brian Kowalski get my vote here as he was my choice for both the Wylde and Valiq Trophies that decide the top defensive and offensive defenders in the league.  So obviously he is my clear choice for Top Defenseman overall after putting up more points and blocked shots than Hammar Voss, Brian Payne and Jake Thunder while also continuing to be a tremendously physical presence with over 200 hits too.  Brian Kowalski with the clear sweep for me defensively and with my Most Improved win on top of that.

 

AIDAN SHAW TROPHY (TOP GOALIE) - Clueless Wallob (MOS - DMaximus)

Likewise to the Labatte Trophy, the Aidan Shaw Trophy crowns the best player at a single position as we look at those who tend the nets in what is usually a one-sided vote that usually goes towards the leader in save percentage in the past.  That being said, while I didn’t find this one to be a hard one to vote on, my choice had a definitively better Save Percentage, GAA and even more wins than both Ash Sparks and Jesse Teno, who are two others that got some consideration.

 

This has to go to Clueless Wallob for me though.  A league-best .937 save percentage and a tremendous 2.31 GAA and 45 wins to pair with it, made him my easy choice after a dominant season for what was the best team in the entire league during the regular season. If Ronan Lavelle didn’t have such an amazing season, I think he would have had more consideration for the Scotty Campbell Trophy as League MVP, but nevertheless Wallob was the MVP of the goalies in my book.

 

DAISUKE KANOU TROPHY (PLAYOFF MVP) - Lachlan Summers (DAV - kirbithan)

I recently wrote an article on this debate and I will link my thoughts HERE so that you can read through some of my considerations.  I do think this is clearly between Lachlan Summers and Jake Thunder, and regardless of who wins what will be, in my opinion, a very close vote, this will be a tremendous feather in the cap to both of these players.

 

However, while Thunder was the driving force earlier on in the playoffs, Summers had a remarkable four final games of the series that saw every win that Davos had on route to their Continental Cup victory.  Over the course of those four wins, Summers faced just shy of 44 shots per game, and finished with a 1.75 GAA and an astounding .960 save percentage over that stretch.  He stonewalled Vancouver in those four games and played like the deserving Playoff MVP in my book.

 

SCOTTY CAMPBELL TROPHY (MVP) - John Jameson (PRG - Frank)

The award that everyone dreams of winning, at least when it comes to individual accomplishments, as this award deems the Most Valuable Player in the league, named after the “Wayne Gretzky of the VHL” in Scotty Campbell.  This one is always difficult to vote on and is almost always a close vote as several candidates are usually considered.  This one was a little different though as the Board of Governors narrowed it down to two players.  Wallob and Lavelle, both of the Moscow Menace, were seemingly eliminated from the vote given that they played on both teams.  Kowalski did get some talk but had some other players that had excellent seasons on that Riga Reign squad with The Frenchman not being too far back at least.

 

Jesse Teno, meanwhile, had an anemic offense with only one player recording 70 points on the team and despite that, the London United finished with a solid above-average record that saw them make the playoffs, and it was Teno they owed that to.  He recorded a .933 save percentage and fantastic 2.38 GAA to go along with 33 strong wins.  However, he was not my choice.

 

John Jameson.was my definitive choice for the Most Valuable Player as he finished 25 points ahead of anyone else on his team. A team that finished with a strong 38-26-8 record was led by the Irish forward who finished with the second most points (just one back of Lavelle), the second most goals (tied with Miglaskems) and the sixth most assists just to add a cherry on top.  You could go a couple ways here and maybe there are others that I missed, but I have John Jameson as my Scotty Campbell Trophy and League MVP.

 

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And with that, I hope you all enjoyed reading about who I voted for to win each league award.  Who did you agree with? Who do you think I got wrong? I would love to hear everyone’s opinions so feel free to share and give me your picks on who should take home the individual hardware this season.

 

Members Mentioned: @Spartan  @Banackock @Frank @InstantRockstar @hedgehog337 @Wheaties @Tetricide @Josh @MexicanCow123 @Arce @FrostBeard @BOOM @Scurvy @Jericho @Smarch @sterling @DMaximus  @DarkSpyro @aimkin @Thunder @kirbithan @OrbitingDeath

 

***Also, I am sorry if I get any of these wrong for who I actually voted for.  I voted a few days back and am in no condition to completely remember right now! Pretty sure I got it right though.***
 

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Edited August 9, 2023 by Advantage

[Banackock 8,081]

Definitely is arbitrary. 

Trades made last off-season:

Seattle - 9

Moscow - 2

 

Players added in FA:

Seattle - 1

Moscow - ?

 

Players added

6 SEA VS 3? MOS

 

players off roster:

8 (5 trade, 1 FA, 2 retire) Vs 2?? (2 trade) Moscow 

 

 

Seattle added players like Pearce (trade), Bryzgalov (trade), Gregor (trade), Maloish (trade), Justice (trade), Weaver (FA), 

Moscow added:

Wallob (trade), Nesbitt (trade) and Jason (trade), @Spartan who did ya add in FA? Lose in retirement and all of that? 

 

Other than Moscow improving their win total from season 88 to season 89, I don’t see what else puts them at an advantage over Seattle for that award? They made less moves, lost less players, faced less obstacles, added less player..  I definitely think it’s a lot more challenging to struggle jugglibg the roster and cap while making nine trades with all the players that Seattle had coming in and out as opposed to what Moscow did, and what they had going in and out. Seattle had something like 14 players moving on the roster compared to Moscow’s 5. Seattle lost 8, added 6.. lost Lamb (top winger) to free agency, nano (top dman) to retirement, and Xavier Booberry to retirement.. Who also happened to be the highest TPE earning player of all time in the history of the VHL.

 

Im almost certain I’m missing someone that retired or left Moscow. Who were the 7 FA’s they signed? Seattle got Daniel Weaver in FA. 
 

Devils advocate a bit but damn, imagine making all those roster moves, tackling those retirements etc just to lose to a team that made 2 trades : but for the exact same result as you in both reg and playoffs  

 

 

 Awesome, write up! Love this stuff.

 

 

 

Edited August 9, 2023 by Banackock

[Banackock 8,081]

FISTED ANALLY BY A CIRCUS MONKEY

[Advantage 2,896]

6 hours ago, Banackock said:

Definitely is arbitrary. 

Trades made last off-season:

Seattle - 9

Moscow - 2

 

Players added in FA:

Seattle - 1

Moscow - ?

 

Players added

6 SEA VS 3? MOS

 

players off roster:

8 (5 trade, 1 FA, 2 retire) Vs 2?? (2 trade) Moscow 

 

 

Seattle added players like Pearce (trade), Bryzgalov (trade), Gregor (trade), Maloish (trade), Justice (trade), Weaver (FA), 

Moscow added:

Wallob (trade), Nesbitt (trade) and Jason (trade), @Spartan who did ya add in FA? Lose in retirement and all of that? 

 

Other than Moscow improving their win total from season 88 to season 89, I don’t see what else puts them at an advantage over Seattle for that award? They made less moves, lost less players, faced less obstacles, added less player..  I definitely think it’s a lot more challenging to struggle jugglibg the roster and cap while making nine trades with all the players that Seattle had coming in and out as opposed to what Moscow did, and what they had going in and out. Seattle had something like 14 players moving on the roster compared to Moscow’s 5. Seattle lost 8, added 6.. lost Lamb (top winger) to free agency, nano (top dman) to retirement, and Xavier Booberry to retirement.. Who also happened to be the highest TPE earning player of all time in the history of the VHL.

 

Im almost certain I’m missing someone that retired or left Moscow. Who were the 7 FA’s they signed? Seattle got Daniel Weaver in FA. 
 

Devils advocate a bit but damn, imagine making all those roster moves, tackling those retirements etc just to lose to a team that made 2 trades : but for the exact same result as you in both reg and playoffs  

 

 

 Awesome, write up! Love this stuff.

 

 

 

I know someone mentioned cycling a lot of the same assets around, although this is a totally fair devils advocate play. I do think this one could go to you for sure and really nice response Bana.  I was pretty split overall though honestly on this one and like I said..I hate voting on it for so many reasons. 

[Advantage 2,896]

I will say @Banackockone thing that may help BOG (and I may bring this up in there) is to lay out the moves of each GM up for it for the awards show.  I know I took some opinions of what was done at face value, and I do think that can confuse voters at times as opposed to having everything all laid out. 

[rory 1,931]

Thanks for posting this ADV! Great article

[DarkSpyro 956]

How many shutouts did Wallob have on literally the best team? Sparks handily led the league in that stat, on a Malmo that didn’t make the playoffs in comparison..  which you know cuz your on my team!

fffff

 

Still a great read tho @Advantage!!

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