Redrafting the Past - Season 63

[Advantage 3,009]

REDRAFTING THE PAST - SEASON 63

 

The draft is where dynasties are built and that’s why I wanted to look back at the draft classes of the past and see where these players would fall in a redraft.  To make it clear, I did not consider team needs at the time or if the player was a GM’s player.  I purely look at this as who were the best players in a draft class.  I will also be looking at the draft classes from Season 62 to present as I personally find it easier to work under the current convenience of the portal, at least to help myself not get burnt out on this idea (see every other series I have ever done). Finally, the number of picks in the draft will be determined by the number of picks in the actual draft, and with this being just the first round, this first article will feature the best eight players in my opinion.  This time we will be looking at Season 63 that saw two Hall of Fame players get drafted and honestly a pretty solid and fairly comparable crop making up the rest of this first round.  As always, please give me any suggestions and I will try to incorporate them into the next article.  I did space everything out a little bit better in this article as compared to the last one, so help that helps the viewing experience.  With all that business taken care of, lets take a look at the Season 63 Draft.

 

 

 

1 – JULIAN BORWINN – LW (RIG) @Jubo
Original Pick - 3rd Overall (HSK)
RS: 576 GP | 325 G | 380 A | 705 P | 1165 HITS | 56 GW
PO: 67 GP | 31 G | 41 A | 72 P | 155 HITS | 7 GW
INT: 68 GP | 34 G | 39 A | 73 P | 156 HITS | 5 GW

 

Awards

Hall of Fame Inductee - S71
1x Continental Cup (League Championship) - S66
1x Victory Cup (Best Regular Season Record) - S66
2x Scotty Campbell Trophy (League MVP) - S66, S70
1x Brett Slobodzian Trophy (Most Outstanding Player) - S66
2x Mike Szatkowski Trophy (VHL Points Leader) - S66, S69
1x Kevin Brooks Trophy (VHL Goals Leader) - S66
1x Scott Boulet Trophy (Top Two-Way Forward) - S68
1x Dustin Funk Trophy (Most Improved Player) - S66
1x Christian Stolzschweiger Trophy (Top Rookie) - S63
3x All-VHL First Team - S66, S69, S70
1x All-VHL Second Team - S68

 

Statistical Accomplishments
1x 50+ Goals Scorer (S66)
5x 40+ Goals Scorer (S63, S66, S68, S69, S70)
1x 100+ Points Scorer (S66)
4x 90+ Points Scorer (S66, S68, S69, S70)
3x 200+ Hits (S68, S69, S70)

 

Julian Borwinn isn’t the only Hall of Famer that is represented in this very top heavy draft class, but he is the best one.  With all due respect to the player that will be ranked second on this list, there just aren’t that many players with the overall resume of Julian Borwinn.  The third overall pick of the Season 63 Draft Class played his entire career with the Helsinki Titans, who put their faith in him that night.  He rewarded them with eight dominant years as one of the league’s best players, leaving him third all-time in goals and points for the Helsinki Titans, a prestigious franchise with fellow Hall of Famers like Ethan Osborne and Franchise Cornerstone, who also spent significant time playing for the team.  He is a two-time Most Valuable Player, led the league in points twice and was even named the league’s best two-way forward in Season 68, as the forward developed a grittier side to his game over the last few seasons of his career.  Frankly, he is a no-brainer pick here at one to Riga, who will take the Canadian winger with the first pick.

 

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2 – JOSEPH MCWOLF – D (NYA) @McWolf
Original Pick - 2nd Overall (NYA)
RS: 576 GP | 114 G | 433 A | 547 P | 1887 HITS | 1130 SB
PO: 37 GP | 5 G | 19 A | 24 P | 131 HITS | 68 SB
INT: 66 GP | 13 G | 40 A | 53 P | 188 HITS | 123 SB

 

Awards

Hall of Fame Inductee - S72
2x Sterling Labatte Trophy (Top Defenseman) - S64, S67
1x Alexander Valiq Trophy (Top Offensive Defenseman) - S67
2x All-VHL First Team - S64, S67
2x All-VHL Second Team - S69, S70

 

Statistical Accomplishments
7x Top-10 Defenseman Scoring - 1st (S67), 2nd (S64), 3rd (S70), 5th (S69), 8th (S63), 8th (S65), 8th (S68)
3x 70+ Points - S64, S67, S70
8x 60+ Points - S63, S64, S65, S66, S67, S68, S69, S70
1x 25+ Goals (S67)
4x 15+ Goals (S64, S67, S68, S70)
3x 250+ Hits (S63, S66, S70)
7x 220+ Hits (S63, S65, S66, S67, S68, S69, S70)
2x 180+ SB (S63, S64)

 

Like I said, the second pick is no slouch and like Borwinn, is a bonafide VHL Hall of Famer.  I actually went to bat pretty hard for this player to make the Hall of Fame, and it was mainly due to how impressive he was versus his peers, during a downturn in offensive production, especially from defensemen.  He was an absolute model of consistency throughout his career, never falling below the sixty point plateau and hitting two-hundred-and-twenty hits seven different times.  While to some these days, sixty points seems like nothing special, McWolf actually finished top-four in defensemen scoring four times, and top-eight seven different times.  He did this while being one of the most physical defenders in the league and also one of its best shutdown defenders as a whole.  McWolf was ultimately selected in the exact same pick as I projected him here, and I can’t imagine that the New York Americans would have any problem with that.

 

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3 – RANDOMS – LW (HSK) @hedgehog337
Original Pick - 24th Overall (QUE)
RS: 504 GP | 229 G | 248 A | 477 P | 1855 HITS | 45 GW
PO: 40 GP | 16 G | 18 A | 34 P | 121 HITS | 3 GW
INT: 57 GP | 25 G | 24 A | 49 P | 122 HITS | 2 GW

 

Awards

1x Continental Cup (League Championship) - S70
1x Victory Cup (Best Regular Season Record) - S70
1x Kevin Brooks Trophy (VHL Goals Leader) - S70
2x Scott Boulet Trophy (Top Two-Way Forward) - S69, S70
1x All-VHL First Team - S69

 

Statistical Accomplishments
1x 90+ Points - S70
3x 80+ Points - S67, S69, S70
1x 40+ Goals - S70
4x 30+ Goals - S67, S68, S69, S70
3x 300+ Hits - S65, S69, S70
6x 200+ Hits - S64, S65, S67, S68, S69, S70

 

Randoms was a member of hedgehog’s agency and was part of his two-player crew when the league experimented with the two player system.  His first player of the two, Kallis Kriketers, was a Hall of Fame goaltender.  Randoms on the other hand? Still a heck of a player and definitely the best value pick in the Season 63 Draft.  Originally drafted by Quebec, Randoms would ultimately end up being traded to Davos before eventually finding his way onto Riga and finally settling in Moscow, where he definitely made the biggest name for himself.  Randoms finished his career just short of a point-per-game but was one of the most fearsome power forwards in the entire league.  The Canadian monster finished his career with over 1800 hits and still was a 35+ goal scorer for more than half of his career.  His peak saw him lead the league in goals during his final season and win the Scott Boulet Trophy, awarded to the league’s best two-way forward, in each of his last two seasons in the VHL.  This draft would see him move up massively and get selected by the Helsinki Titans, who originally drafted Hall of Fame player, Julian Borwinn, at this position.  

 

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4 – ALEXANDER PEPPER – G (HSK) @Sonnet
Original Pick - 10th Overall (HSK)
RS: 304-169-40 | .917 SV% | 2.59 GAA | 30 SO
PO: 33-26-7 | .919 SV% | 2.48 GAA | 4 SO
INT: 35-30-5 | .915 SV% | 2.64 GAA | 4 SO

 

Awards

1x Continental Cup (League Championship) - S66
1x Victory Cup (Best Regular Season Record) - S66
1x Daisuke Kanou Trophy (Playoff MVP) - S66
1x Aidan Shaw Trophy (Top Goalie) - S66
3x All-VHL Second Team - S64, S66, S67

 

Statistical Accomplishments
3x 40+ Wins - S65, S66, S68
7x 30+ Wins - S64, S65, S66, S67, S68, S69, S70
3x .920+ SV% - S64, S66, S67

 

I have always found goaltenders very difficult to judge as so much of it really does depend on the era they played in. One of the easiest ways to compare is usually to their peers, as the top goalie of each generation is typically recognized and inducted in the Hall of Fame.  Unfortunately for Alexander Pepper, that was the aforementioned Kriketers, but that didn’t stop the American netminder from having a tremendous career that did get consideration for being added onto the Hall of Fame ballot.  While his overall numbers perhaps don’t stand out, besides his 300+ wins of course; it is the way he stepped up during Helsinki’s Season 66 Continental Cup run, where Pepper had a 8-1-0 record and a .931 SV%.  It’s the fact that Pepper was named to the All-VHL Second Team three different times, effectively making him a top-2 goaltender in the VHL for almost half of his career.  I honestly contemplated putting him one spot higher, but I do think the inconsistencies over the last few seasons and the successes of the previously mentioned Randoms, drops Pepper to this spot.  As for where he ended up, still jumping up six spots and still back in Helsinki, as it should be.

 

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5 – TZUYU – D (TOR) @Baozi
Original Pick - 5th Overall (TOR)
RS: 576 GP | 143 G | 401 A | 544 P | 478 HITS | 1088 SB
PO: 49 GP | 9 G | 33 A | 42 P | 43 HITS | 113 SB
INT: 72 GP | 15 G | 44 A | 59 P | 77 HITS | 142 SB

 

Awards

2x Continental Cup (League Championship) - S64, S67
1x Victory Cup (Best Regular Season Record) - S67
1x Alexander Valiq Trophy (Top Offensive Defenseman) - S65
1x All-VHL First Team - S67
2x All-VHL Second Team - S65, S68

 

Statistical Accomplishments
6x Top-10 Defenseman Scoring - 2nd (S65), 2nd (S67), 3rd (S68), 4th (S64), 8th (S66), 8th (S69)
2x 20+ Goals - S64, S65
6x 15+ Goals - S64, S65, S66, S68, S69, S70
1x 80+ Points - S65
5x 70+ Points - S64, S65, S66, S67, S68
2x 150+ SB - S66, S68

 

So I actually had Tzuyu originally a couple spots lower before writing this.  Ultimately, while putting together each player’s resume, I felt Tzuyu’s actually stood out as being a little undervalued by myself.  He was a top four defenseman in the league three different times and was the best offensive defenseman in the league in Season 65.  He also was a top-four point producer as a defenseman for half his career, and still had a couple of other seasons in the top-ten.  Tzuyu was an effective shot blocker over the course of his career tallying almost 1100 of them and he was especially known for being just a consistent offensive threat.  The petite defender, who was born in Taiwan, finished as a point-per-game defenseman in five of his eight seasons in the VHL.  Tzuyu sees himself staying exactly where he was taken, being drafted by the Legion who wisely put their faith in him for seven seasons before being traded to Vancouver prior to Season 70 for his final year.

 

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6 – DAN WILINSKY– RW (NYA) @oilmandan
Original Pick - 7th Overall (NYA)
RS: 575 GP | 257 G | 301 A | 558 P | 1370 HITS | 40 GW
PO: 46 GP | 14 G | 21 A | 35 P | 171 HITS | 3 GW
INT: 64 GP | 25 G | 45 A | 70 P | 151 HITS | 6 GW

 

Awards

1x Continental Cup (League Championship) - S69
1x Scott Boulet Trophy (Top Two-Way Forward) - S67
2x All-VHL Second Team - S67, S69

 

Statistical Accomplishments
7x 30+ Goals (S63, S64, S65, S66, S67, S68, S69)
3x 80+ Points (S67, S68, S69)
3x 200+ Hits (S67, S68, S69)
5x 150+ Hits (S64, S65, S67, S68, S69)

 

Wilinsky was another player that I shuffled around a few times as there honestly wasn’t a lot that separated the majority of these players.  What I really appreciated about Wilinsky was the consistent offensive and physical presence he brought to the VHL over his entire career.  He finished just shy of a point-per-game and landed more than 1300 hits, while having a huge impact internationally as well, representing Canada.  He was voted the league’s best two-way forward in Season 67 and was twice considered a top-six forward in the entire VHL.  Wilinsky scored 30+ goals in the VHL and incredible seven times and his 257 goals put him second in this draft class, only behind Julian Borwinn.  Like McWolf, Pepper and Tzuyu, Wilinsky also ends up on the same team that drafted him in the first place, but one pick higher as the Americans take him sixth overall.  

 

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7 – RYAN KASTELIC – D/C (NYA) @Enorama
Original Pick - 1st Overall (RIG)
RS: 576 GP | 172 G | 446 A | 618 P | 1169 HITS | 702 SB
PO: 79 GP | 29 G | 47 A | 76 P | 209 HITS | 85 SB
INT: 72 GP | 13 G | 49 A | 62 P | 152 HITS | 108 SB

 

Awards

1x Continental Cup (League Championship) - S63
1x Victory Cup (Best Regular Season Record) - S63
1x All-VHL Second Team - S66

 

Statistical Accomplishments
4x Top-10 Defenseman Scoring - 3rd (S64), 4th (S66), 5th (S65), 6th (S63)
3x 80+ Points - S66, S67, S68
7x 70+ Points - S63, S64, S65, S66, S67, S68, S70
1x 250+ Hits - S70
1x 150+ SB - S66

 

I honestly feel really bad for Ryan Kastelic because while this six spot drop may imply that he was a bust or a huge disappointment, he was actually a really good player.  I had him as high as five at one point when creating this list (ha, notice the trend?) and I do wonder if he’d be higher on this list if he never switched positions.  For the first five seasons of his VHL career, Ryan Kastelic played on the backend for the Riga Reign, which saw him finish top-6 in defenseman scoring in four of those seasons, and he had steadily improved in points with him raising his point total each and every season of his career from Season 63 to 67 (starting with 72 and ending up at 86).  While he would score thirty goals over the first two seasons as a center, his production definitely dipped over the last couple seasons, and he really ramped up the physicality to likely try and compensate as Kastelic was getting closer to retirement.  One has to wonder with another couple seasons like his first five, and maybe he sees another VHL Second Team or even better, but perhaps I am just an optimist.  Nevertheless, Ryan Kastelic is just one of just two players in the draft class to finish above a point-per-game, and while he does find himself behind a couple of others who saw a little bit more in the individual accolades and awards, Kastelic was still an absolute force for eight seasons for the Riga Reign.  In this draft, he joins McWolf and Wilinsky in New York, and my goodness that would have been an incredible trio for the Americans to grab (even though they already had two of them!).  

 

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8 – SIDNEY CROSBY – D (QUE)
Original Pick - 4th Overall (HSK)
RS: 576 GP | 93 G | 350 A | 443 P | 1445 HITS | 1153 SB
PO: 67 GP | 10 G | 34 A | 44 P | 148 HITS | 113 SB
INT: 65 GP | 8 G | 34 A | 42 P | 123 HITS | 118 SB
NHL: 1192 | 550 G | 913 A | 1463 P | 1059 HITS | 575 SB 

 

Awards

1x Continental Cup (League Championship) - S66
1x Victory Cup (Best Regular Season Record) - S66
1x All-VHL Second Team - S67

 

Statistical Accomplishments
2x Top-10 Defenseman Scoring - 3rd (S67), 6th (S66)
7x 10+ Goals (S63, S65, S66, S67, S68, S69, S70)
3x 50+ Assists (S65, S66, S67)
2x 70+ Points (S66, S67)
2x 200+ Hits (S63, S66)
1x 250+ SB (S63)

 

The final player I have going in the first round is a familiar name to all of us in Sidney Crosby.  The Canadian center-turned-defender (okay not really lol) had a really solid career in the VHL, becoming more known for his physicality and stalwart defensive play over the course of his career.  He did finish top-6th in defenseman scoring twice and was named to the All-VHL Second Team in Season 67, but it was his 1445 hits and 1153 blocked shots that really shaped his career.  He was also a huge part of the Titans Continental Cup run in Season 66, finishing that playoff campaign with 14 points, 28 hits and 11 blocked shots in 9 games.  While I do have Crosby dropping four picks in this draft, he went on to have an awesome career and was a leader for the Helsinki Titans for a lot of his career, even seeing his number retired by the team.  He sits fifth all-time for defenseman in points for the Titans, while sitting fourth in hits and second in blocked shots.  While it seems sacrilege to have him play for anyone else, I think Quebec would have been thrilled to get someone so reliable and loyal as the last pick in the first round.

 

2200+ Words (Week 1/4 Claim)
 

Edited yesterday at 06:47 AM by Advantage

[AJW 2,432]

Such a fun read, I came in S78 so to see this is master class brother 

[Baozi 1,670]

Woooo