Claimed:hu [Final: 6/6]

[stevo 778]

A little bit of peace

It has been a long time since the VHL world has heard of Cologne Express defenseman Ron World Peace, but he is still slowly adjusting to the higher competition on the pro level. World Peace rose to the attention of the league scouts when he improved himself in a strong fashion during his time in the minors with the Bern Royals. After being selected in the second round though, he remarkably slowed down in his progress. Nevertheless he slowly keeps developing his game and recently cracked the mark of three hundred training hours in the gym.

When in Bern, he was known as an offensive defenseman but that has changed since as World Peace looked to round out his game in an effort to keep up with the challenges of the everyday VHL life. For a feature in a German newspaper he recently opened up and even explained why he has become so quiet after being outgoing, troublesome, and mostly drunk during his junior league stay: "I guess I have been a wild fella in Swiss - I reminiscence my good buddy Blaine trying to restrain me all the time -, but when you settle into the life of a professional athlete, that hurts you," he said. "Actually I changed the way I eat and what I drink, and that helped me a lot."

 

Now playing in his third season with the German franchise, he has already seen his fair share of playing time: Thanks to the generous Express general manager Alexander Schneider, World Peace was placed on the first line in both his rookie and sophomore campaign and amounted below-average statistics of 28 goals, 81 assists, 356 hits, and 381 shots blocked in both. Throughout 52 games so far in this season, there is a slight trend up on offense with 15 goals and 31 assists but a clear trend downwards on defense with just 150 hits, and 122 shots blocked. Albeit the fact that he needs to catch up in doing what a defenseman is supposed to do, the Express has noticeably gained steam with the addition of Wesley Kellinger and rookies Mason Richardson, and Thomas O'Malley in key roles. Despite a rather slow start, they have now claimed the third spot in the European Conference over the Vasteras Iron Eagles.

For the future, it is very likely that we see World Peace come in as an energy plug from Cologne's bench behind Mason Richardson and Nicolas Caprivi. Both of these players are definitely destined for higher honors, but he is completely fine with playing off the bench. "In the end, you want to win it all. Nothing is better than winning," he laughed. "The core of young players that the management has been able to assemble is and will be fantastic, and I think my strengths could be used best in the second unit then." No matter how World Peace himself fares out, the future is bright for Cologne.

Edited November 3, 2014 by stevo

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

Content: 3/3 It's good to see that World Peace is getting back into the game. Hopefully we see more out of you and your success story. Keep up the hard work as you are a vital piece to their success.

Grammar: 2/2 One thing below

Appearance: 1/1

 

Final: 6/6

 

When in Bern, > While playing for Bern

Edited November 4, 2014 by Da Trifecta

[Frank 5,057]

Claimed