Claimed:Karlsson on Offseason Moves [Final: 6/6]

[Lunaro 208]

It's been an eventful offseason for Nicklas Karlsson as he finished his first VHLM season playing with the Bern Royals. He had a very successful season as he put up 70 points (14G 56A) in 72 games. He took over the captaincy at the trade deadline as the star veterans Jody 3 Moons and Jaime Hill were traded away, and led by example on the ice as well as in the locker room. He was second on the team in hits with 134 while leading the team in block shots with 161 as the team's defensive anchor. 9 of Karlsson's 14 goals came from the power play so his offensive game seems to be a bit one-dimensional at the moment but his defensive game has proven quite proficient as he finished the season with a +6 rating.

 

 

Bern was routed in the first round quite handily by the eventual champions, Bratislava Watchmen in 5 games. Karlsson was the point leader through the 5 games that the Royals lasted and he finished with 5 points (1G 4A) to go with team leading amount of hits (12) and blocked shots (14). It was a disappointing way to end his first season but Karlsson had proven to the league and his fans that he was the real deal carrying the Royals to the playoffs and winning a game against the stacked Watchmen team, in the absence of Hill and 3 Moons.

 

 

His play and work ethic seemed to have caught many scouts notice as he headed to the VHL Draft. Projected to go in the second round in a draft full of quality defensemen, Karlsson was drafted to the Seattle Bears right around the position most mock drafts had him. (2nd round, 15th overall) Seattle had an abundance of high draft picks in this season's draft and came out with a big haul of high quality prospects. Top goalie prospect, Niklaus Mikaelson was selected first overall as Seattle look to be building their team from the net out and will be relying on Mikaelson as the franchise player. Jakub Rhineheart who played in the VHLM as a defenseman was the other Seattle first round pick and he looks to be transitioning to be playing on the wing in the VHL in the mold of a Brent Burns and he looks to be a promising young offensive talent. Borje Samuelsson was picked at the top of the second round and he will look to be along with Karlsson, the top defensive pairing in Seattle. Maris Ziedins drafted in the spot right behind Karlsson is another promising winger who will look to fill in on the top 6 with Stropko, Pajodcast and Rhineheart. Arthur Grosberg was the late pick in the draft for the Bears as they hope to see him continue develop his game some more to be able to provide some depth in the future for the Bears.

 

Karlsson in conjunction with the Bear's management decided to spend another season in the VHLM to continue honing his game but he wasn't going to be going back to Bern. Before the start of the new season, Karlsson was traded in a package deal to Saskatoon for draft picks as Bern looked to continue acquiring assets for a big run in the future. Karlsson joins his Seattle teammate and future partner, Borje Samuelsson on the Wild as well as another Bear in Niklas Kurri. Joseph Roy III was a second rounder in this year's VHLM Dispersal draft and looks to play on the top line as he was dealt in the package deal with Karlsson. Another familiar face in Earl Parker who played in Bern with Karlsson just made Saskatoon feel like home rather quickly for Nicklas Karlsson. He told the media that he was excited to compete for the cup this year and that he is pretty confidant this squad is capable of it. He also expressed his thanks to Bern GM, Sachimo Zoidberg for everything he had done to help in his first season as well as trading him to a contender and wishes Bern luck rebuilding in the future.

 

[pxzero 65]

Content: 3/3  
A little dry but still a solid collection of team overviews none the less. 

 

Grammar: 2/2  I found a bunch of small things. Careful on the proofread! 

• team in block shots with - should be blocked shots, or "shot blocks".
• champions, Bratislava Watchmen, in - missing comma 
• that he was the real deal, carrying - comma 
• caught many scouts' notice - 'notice' is belonging to many scouts
•  mock drafts had him (2nd round, 15th overall). - moved the period to the end of the sentence
•  Jakub Rhineheart, who played in the VHLM as a defenseman, was the other - commas
•  Jakub Rhineheart...was the other Seattle first round pick and he looks to be transitioning...and he looks to be a promising young offensive talent. - run on sentence
• Maris Ziedins, drafted in the spot right behind Karlsson, is another - commas
•  future partner, Borje Samuelsson, on the Wild 
•  Another familiar face is Earl Parker, who played in Bern with Karlsson, just - in the context of the sentence, it needs to be ìs, not in and missed commas 

 

Appearance: 1/1

Formatted nicely

Edited December 14, 2014 by pxzero

[Frank 5,195]

Claimed