VSN Presents: S94 VHL Trade Analysis!

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(graphic maybe pending)

VSN Presents: S94 VHL Trade Analysis!

 

Hello and welcome to this edition of VSN where today we will be covering some of the biggest trades that have occurred in S94! As we start approaching the midway point of the VHL season, this season has already seen a great number of player and asset movements across the league, as teams aim to address issues early to bolster their rosters, address weaknesses, and give teams better means of impacting their place in the standings and playoff aspirations! Join us tonight as we break down some of the most notable trades so far in S94 and analyze their implications for the teams involved!

 

June 3rd:

 

HC Davos receives: 

Marek Nowaczyk @Chillybro

Stefan Nikolaev @Is_thatok

S95 RIG 1st Round Pick

 

Riga receives:

Sadie St-Louis @sadie

S95 RIG 2nd Round Pick

S96 TOR 2nd Round Pick

 

The 4th overall pick from S86 is going back to Riga in a deal with Davos! Having previously played for Riga from S87 to S90, Sadie St-Louis has had a difficult time finding a permanent home in the VHL since being traded to Calgary in the offseason following S90. Having played 2 seasons with the Wranglers, a season in Seattle and then starting this season on the Dynamo, St-Louis looks to reignite the production and success of their early career in the VHL with a team that knows them well! Being likely slotted in as the top line LW, Sadie has managed to put up 7 points in 13 games! Riga also made out with their own 2nd round pick from this season, as well as Toronto’s 2nd from next season, so an overall very decent haul! Let’s take a look at the other side of the trade, and we’ll grade how well each team pulled away from this trade!

 

HC Davos Dynamo is in the midst of a tough season so far to put it fairly. As of writing this article, they’re 7-16-1, very much on the outside looking in in terms of playoff competitiveness. Being able to offload a player that you won’t be able to carry into the mid to long term future for a first round pick is a great return, but they didn’t stop there! Bringing in Marek Nowaczyk & Stefan Nikolaev, they’re hoping both of these guys become good depth earning players in the future. Marek Nowaczyk is a S93 3rd round pick from Seattle, currently playing their rookie season in the VHLE on Oslo. Stefan Nikolaev is a S90 3rd round pick as well, currently in the VHL during their rookie season as well. In 26 games, they’ve put up 4 points. While not the biggest point production, having a player on the roster to immediately replace the departing player is useful, and they still have a fair amount of room to grow to become an excellent player with. 

 

With all being said, I’d say the immediate winner of this trade is obviously the team that pulled away with the big piece of this trade. Riga walking away with two second round picks as well definitely helps the blow of losing their first round pick. A very strong case can and probably should be made that Davos will win this trade down the line however as they walked away from this trade with three potential roster players to build with in the future!

 

VSN Grades: 

 

HC Davos: 8/10

 

Riga: 9/10

 

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Riga receives:

Annie Oaks @Noodle Enjoyer

The Frenchman @OrbitingDeath

S95 CGY 2nd

 

Vancouver receives:

Martin Kemp @leafsman

Pierre Marc Bouchard @Gaikoku-hito

S96 RIG Conditional 3rd 

 

Riga stayed busy on the 3rd, as they made another big deal, this time with Vancouver! Riga got Annie Oaks, a former 4th overall pick from S93, currently playing their rookie season in the VHL, and producing respectable numbers! The crazy part about this acquisition is that Annie Oaks isn’t even the biggest piece of this trade, as VHL veteran The Frenchman was also traded to Riga in this deal. A 3 time 100+ point player, The Frenchman has solidified himself as a VHL great, and now gets to ride out the rest of his career with the team that originally drafted him 1st overall in S86! A proven player performer, The Frenchman is going to bolster Riga significantly in their quest for a Cup this season!

 

With Vancouver giving up significant pieces, you’d expect them to get big pieces back, and get big pieces back they did! In this trade, Vancouver received Pierre Marc Bouchard, the former 3rd overall pick from S94 & Martin Kemp, the 10th overall pick from S90! Pierre Marc Bouchard is having a remarkable season with Bratislava this season, having put up 40 points in 24 contests so far. With their skill already greatly exceeding that of the average VHLE player, Bouchard is expected to make an immediate and major impact in the VHL in S95! The main roster piece coming back from Riga was Martin Kemp, who so far this season is having a career year, having put up 26 points in 25 games between Vancouver and Riga! They also received a conditional 3rd rounder, which will become a 2nd if Kemp does not re-sign with Vancouver prior to free agency this offseason. 

 

This is a blockbuster of blockbusters as every player moved in this deal has the potential to make this trade a steal for the team who acquired them! It’s very hard to gauge a winner, but again I have to lean on who gets the most right now, and considering Bouchard is still in the E and unable to contribute to Vancouver’s playoff hopes this season, I have to give the slight edge to Riga! Long term though I definitely give this to Vancouver, as pulling away with two former first round picks and a second rounder will definitely help them build a powerhouse of a team in a few seasons!

 

VSN Grades:

 

Riga: 9/10

 

Vancouver: 9/10

 

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May 16th:

 

Toronto receives:

Nils Andersson @Viper

S94 HSK 2nd

S94 RIG 3rd

 

Moscow receives:

Steve Lattimer @pugsood

S94 TOR 2nd

 

Toronto made a big splash prior to season start as they acquired Nils Andersson and two picks from Moscow for Steve Lattimer and a pick! Nils Andersson, a S88 1st round pick has been a defensive juggernaut with Moscow over the last 5 seasons, with some of his best numbers coming from S90 & 91 where he put up well over 100 hits in both seasons, and was even a power play point producer with 14 PPG’s in those two seasons as well! With being traded to Toronto in the offseason, Nils is on pace to exceed previous career highs, and is reaching new heights in both defensive and offensive metrics! With two more seasons after this one on contract for Andersson, Toronto has an excellent top 4 defenseman they can lean on for future pushes that doesn’t require much cap space to utilize!

 

Moscow acquired a very strong winger in Steve Lattimer with this trade as well! Having come off a career high 92 point season in S93, Lattimer is maintaining a strong offensive presence with Moscow. Already having a whopping 202 shots on goal this season, he is a player you can definitely lean on to create offensive chances, and create chances he has! In the 25 contests he’s played, Lattimer has managed to be a point per game player, and while he isn’t on pace to be a 92 point man again, a strong 60-70 point season would be an excellent addition to Moscow’s offense!

 

All said, it’s hard to gauge who won this trade as both players are excellent at what they do for their teams! If I had to give a team the edge, it’d have to be Toronto, solely for being able to retain Nils longer and acquiring two picks on top of that! That is most certainly not discounting the pieces made by Moscow however, as the season is still young, and Steve Lattimer has the pieces needed to seriously take off in offensive production! Time will tell who truly won this trade though!

 

VSN Grades:

 

Toronto: 9/10

 

Moscow: 8/10

 

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May 15th:

 

HC Davos receives:

Reginald the Dodo @Esso2264

S95 RIG 2nd

S96 RIG 1st

 

Riga receives:

Skor McFleury @Alex

 

Leaning heavily into the rebuild this season, Davos made a trade prior to season start to offload Skor McFleury for picks and a depth defenseman. With the previously mentioned season they are having, acquiring picks for a player they won’t be able to properly utilize for the remaining seasons of his career was the best play they could make, though the loss of McFleury has definitely been felt as he’s having a remarkably strong season in Riga this season. Taking into consideration Riga’s place in the standings this season, they’re likely looking at a mid round 1st round pick in S96, and similarly for the 2nd rounder they acquired from this season. Reginald the Dodo is a very serviceable player, but was flipped prior to season start, and is having a strong season thus far, having put up 17 points in 24 games with New York. 

 

Riga walked away with a single asset this trade, that being the elite offensive defenseman in Skor McFleury. He’s having a remarkably strong season this go around, as in 25 games he’s put up 29 points, 20 of those being assists. Having a physical and defensive presence as well, with 62 hits and 53 shots blocked, McFleury is utilizing his experience to help Riga pursue his second Continental Cup win in his career. Giving up the pieces they did, they’re definitely going all in this season, and are making out pretty decently in these trades. Though they are setting themselves up for a BIG rebuild in a few seasons, so we’ll see if Riga pulls through and wins it all by season's end!

 

All in all, these major asset trades provide very clear short and long term winners and losers. Obviously it hurts Davos to give up Skor, but building for the future will help them more than going for a deep run at this point in the season. Riga bolstering their roster shows they are very much all in, and are definitely the short term winners of this trade. Davos wins in the longer term though, especially if Riga isn’t able to retain some of their players and forces themselves into a rebuild, then Davos will definitely be the clear winner!

 

VSN Grades:

 

Davos: 8/10

 

Riga 8/10

 

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May 13th:

 

Moscow receives:

S96 WAR 1st

 

Warsaw receives:

Kronchy Kardashian @Garsh

S94 LDN 2nd

 

Moscow received a first round pick from Warsaw, who are notorious for trading first rounders away for players to help now! Little can be said about the pick acquired as it is two seasons out from being utilized, but Warsaw will have multiple aging players by then, so this is definitely a calculated risk to be selling picks that far into the future. With Warsaw currently in 5th place in league standings, if they can maintain that pace until the S96 draft, and they can win a Cup in that time, this trade will look very good for Warsaw!

 

Warsaw on the other hand acquired a very strong veteran offensive defenseman in Kronchky Kardashian, who is putting up a very strong season so far for the Predators! In 24 games, Kronchky has managed to put up 28 points, while also being nearly an assist per game pace type of player. Kronchy Kardashian is on pace at the moment to break career highs, and should Warsaw keep winning with the strong roster they have now, it is very possible that Kardashian will win their first Continental Cup with the Predators! Time will tell however if this dream becomes a reality for them and the Predators as a whole!

 

VSN Grades: 

 

Moscow: 7/10

 

Warsaw: 9/10

 

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That will do it for this edition of VSN’s trade reviews! With how young the season still is, and the TDL fast approaching, I expect that the best is yet to come, but it’s always nice to see big deals happen this early on in the season! For VSN, I’m Marcus Svedberg, signing off!

[McLovin 459]

Also claiming 2/2 because I accidentally wrote over 2k words