Tommy Shelby - Hello Europe

[Will 4,660]

After spending his debut VHLM season with the Halifax 21st, centreman Tommy Shelby was drafted 12th Overall to the Bratislava Watchmen in the VHLE draft. Pleased to at least be back on his home continent, there wasn't much of an adjustment with the physical move. On the ice, the adjustment to a league with a lot more experience has been more pronounced as Shelby has, at times, struggled to make an impact. But over the course of the season he has seemed to have gained some skills and confidence that have helped him become a reliable 2nd line center for the Watchmen. 

 

Shortly after the VHLE draft, Shelby was asked about his goals for the upcoming season and what he was going to focus on to both make a name for himself and prove the wisdom of New York Americans GM Vince Wong @STZ, who surprised observers when he selected Shelby in the 1st round at the VHL Entry Draft. Shelby answered that he mainly wanted to work on his shooting and defensive skills, and that he wanted to have more a presence on the ice. 

 

So how has it worked out? Well, Shelby has certainly developed through his time in Europe thus far, but there is lots of room for improvement as he makes his way to the VHL. On shooting in particular, one of the things Shelby wanted to focus on, things have not been going great. With only 8 goals in the regular season, Shelby finishes the season with one of the worst shooting percentages in the league - an abysmal 3.72%. And on defense, Shelby only recorded 13 shots blocked and 115 hits. Not much to write home about. 

 

But there are some silver linings. Shelby did continue to hone the playmaking and passing skills that he first demonstrated in the VHLM, and he carved out a place as a key member of the Watchmen powerplay where he earned over 40% of his overall points. And now as playoffs are set to begin, we have been seeing the best Shelby that we've seen to date as he seems to be finding his stride and some of his training efforts have begun to bear fruit. In a brief interview after the Watchmen's last regular season game, Shelby said he was planning some aggressive training ahead of playoffs. We'll see if it pays off for the Watchmen as they compete for the Renaissance Cup. 

 

Moving forward, as long as Shelby continues putting in the work,  we see him heading back to the States next year and making his big league debut at Madison Square Garden.