Aces Rookie's And Their Impact In The VHLM

[McLovin 467]

Aces Rookie's And Their Impact In The VHLM

 

Rookies, and specifically rookie users to the VHL community as a whole, have had a great impact on both the VHLM, and myself as the GM of the Aces. As much as I enjoy having recreates joining the team, to me there's just something unique about having someone join the VHL and choose the Aces as their first team and experience in the community. I've had a few fantastic first time players on the Aces over the year or so that I've been GM now, and I wanna use this article and theme week opportunity to highlight a few of my favorite players to don the Aces jersey as a first time player!

 

1. Caesar Monterrey @CaptainGatsby

 

Starting off my list is the former Captain of the Aces from S92 to 93, center Caesar Monterrey! Caesar wasn't the biggest point getter in the grand scheme of Aces history, but had a profound impact on the locker room and was voted captain by players and management alike almost unanimously. During the contender run the Aces had from S90 to S93, Caesar put up 17 points in 25 playoff games, with a little over 50 hits to compliment. He did manage to get 81 points in his final season in the VHLM however, which so happened to be the same season the Aces made the finals and subsequently got swept by the Reapers in embarrassing fashion! Despite this, Caesar Monterrey had a fantastic career with the Aces, and was the crucial piece the team needed both on the ice and in the locker room!

 

2. Jean-Marc Lemieux @Gorth

 

Next up on my list is my brother, and best defenseman I've ever had on the Aces, the great Jean-Marc Lemieux! I may be a little biased putting him on the list here, but his achievements on the Aces can't be overstated. Granted, in his first season he struggled IMMENSELY, but that was mostly attributed to the team as a whole being in a deep rebuild state at the time of his joining. The next season however he really picked it up, racking up 122 hits and over 100 shots block in his first proper season! While that's impressive enough for a defensive defenseman in it's own right, his next season is what really set him apart from the competition. In his last season as an Ace, serving as a captain of the team, he put up over an assist per game to match his 150+ hits and another 100+ shots blocked. These numbers are fantastic for a player who only ever put 10 tpe total into offensive attributes and focused his game solely on keeping pucks out of the net. Incredibly enough, he didn't win defenseman of the year for his effort which I am still salty about to this day!

 

3. THE MIGHTY ICE WIZARD @Royski

 

Last on our list, (and possibly least :P) we have THE MIGHTY ICE WIZARD who had a brief stint as the starting goalie for the Aces towards the end of S93! While his performance with the Aces leaves a bit to be desired, his off ice and specifically forum contributions are what he appears on this list for! Between working with VSN on his Unplugged podcast, as well as co-hosting the last VHLM draft with me a month or so ago, and plenty of forum and discord activity, he's been the perfect example of how someone can be introduced to the website and having a meaningful connection with the people of the VHL out the gate, and give 112% on everything he contributes to the VHL. Of all my referrals, Royski has definitely been the most involved and dedicated member of the VHL by far, and has earned him a solid spot on this list! As he is currently a rookie in the VHL, he's even putting up respectable numbers playing for Helsinki at the moment!

 

 

All in all, rookies to the website and to the teams they play for affect their teammates, management, and everything in between in fantastic and unique ways, and with these three rookies having played for the Aces at one point in their careers, it was nice to highlight their achievements in their short VHL careers thus far, and I look forward to seeing what they and everyone else that have joined recently do in their hopefully long and prosperous careers! Thank you for reading if you've managed to get to this point! 

 

[Royski 79]

9 hours ago, McLovin said:

Last on our list, (and possibly least :P)

 

PUT THE JERSEY IN THE RAFTERS