Halifax 21st SuperSailor #20 (S95 Week 5): Vladimir Trunov

[LucyXpher 1,572]

After an up and down season that saw the Halifax 21st finish one game below .500, the team finished the season strong going 6-3 in the last 9 games.  In that stretch, the team picked up two huge wins against the VHLM's top two teams-- the Las Vegas Aces and the Philadelphia Reapers.  The 21st took down the Aces in a tightly contested 3-2 affair, despite being outshot 27-22.  Team captain Steven Nichols @SlyDigi scored the game winner in the 3rd and the team's defense helped lock it down the rest of the way.  Against the Reapers, Halifax managed to eke out a 2-1 victory, though they were outshot 28-13!  Once again, Steven Nichols came in clutch with the game winner, but across both games the other major consistency was the play of goaltender Vladimir Trunov @qripll.  With a .926 SV% against the Aces and an even more impressive .964 against the Reapers, Trunov willed the 21st to victory against the league's top squads when the games mattered most down the stretch.  It's a well known trope in hockey that games are often won and lost on the back of the goaltender.  If you want to go far, it will be hard to do so without an elite backstop between the pipes. Trunov is that goaltender.  That said, however, a goaltender is enabled by the players in front of them, and as the team has improved with recent waiver signings, so have Trunov's performances.  

Joining the team as a waiver pickup just before the trade deadline, Trunov had a difficult start to his tenure in the Halifax goal as the trade-depleted squad struggled to defend in front of him.  The loss of elite defender Mathias Gunnarsson @ThatCanadian was especially felt as the team only had one regular defender left to support their goaltender.  With the waiver signings of Hugh Neutron @Corco, Bubbles LaFleur @AJW, and most recently Gottfried Schloss @acp, the team now has a D corps that is deeper than it was prior to the the TDL.  Through the tough games, Trunov remained a positive contributor to the team in the sims and in the locker room.  His 6-10-0 record doesn't adequately reflect his performance on the ice as he's recorded 2 shutouts in those 16 games and the league's 3rd best save percentage at .917. As the team has improved, so has Trunov's record, leading the rejuvenated 21st to a playoff berth and a first round matchup against the Reapers.  

Though the 21st were arguably outplayed against Philadelpia in that recent victory, the team will be happy to know they can lean on their goaltender and find a way to win.  In the season series, the 21st hold a 6-7 record against the Reapers-- once again, a cause to hope for a 1st round series victory.  The 21st can hang with the best of them, even if they have to scratch and claw to stay in those games.  Make no mistake, Halifax is an underdog in that series as Philadelphia boasts a very well-built team this season with strength at every position, but if players like Trunov can continue to put in exceptional performances, there's no reason Halifax can't find a way through to the 2nd round.  For his exceptional play in the last quarter of the season as well as his consistent positivity around the team, congratulations to Vladimir Trunov on being named the team's SuperSailor for the last week of S95.  

 

Notes: An honorable mention once again to Steven Nichols who scored the game winners in both of those important games and who finished his VHLM rookie season with an impressive 69 points in 72 games!  I also need to shout out the team's other goaltender Ricky LaFleur @DarkSpyro who has been absolutely incredible for the team over the past week, especially in the locker room with the amount of fun and positivity he has brought.  It's been a breath of fresh air to have players around who bring those vibes to the locker room and I have no doubt he'll go on to have another incredible career as a goalie in the VHLM and VHL.  With the end of the VHLE immanent for S96, I'm also super excited to be able to keep drafted players around for those extra 1-2 seasons and help prepare them for the jump to the VHL.  I think this change will be great for VHLM rosters and for building community around the league as it was always difficult watching players graduate up after 1-2 seasons at most. 

 

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[qripll 518]

Probably one of my best ever decision about joining specific team. Helifax is worth every second to spend over there