VHLSC: S42 Rankings #2 - TPE Battle

[Kendrick 4,724]

 

Welcome back everyone to the Season 42 draft rankings and scouting report. The Season 42 Victory Hockey League draft is shaping up to be one with great promise and a lot of unpolished gems. Last week we gave a bit of an introduction to the Season 42 class and what exactly we can expect from this group of prospects. It's a very intriguing group because of a very dangerous word, potential. Potential is a General Managers best friend but also his arch nemesis. When a prospect carries a lot of potential, it is most likely built up hype or flashes of brilliance in minor durations. When a prospect has a great deal of potential a General Manager can see what the future holds for the player and what the end result can be in his mind. However, that potential can also create a lot of uncertainty when it comes to fulfilling it completely. Often times we have seen draft picks in the past being hyped up only to do exactly what their General Manager doesn't want, busting. In the Season 31 draft we saw a player named Josef Heiss Jr. bust so much that their General Manager still hasn't let it down. Heiss Jr. was drafted 1st overall and is one of the leagues prime examples of why hype is sometimes the worst medicine.

 

The reason all this is explained in such detail is because this draft class holds tons of players with potential but maybe not the same hype as Heiss Jr. and others in the past. General Managers have a tough choice of drafting a player with high potential or a player who may just be a quiet slow learner. In this edition of the draft scouting report you will get the whole story behind TPE earning of this entire draft class. Below is a graph showing you the percentage of TPE each position takes up in comparison with the other positions.

 

 

Centers

 

This is the heart of this draft class and it's actually a good thing. The centre position has been heralded as the most important position outside of a goaltender. Thus if this draft is built around the middle of the ice, you can bet General Managers are licking their chops. The cream of the crop is Bismarck Koenig who we suspect will go with the first overall selection. A.C. Savage is the other big name on the list and these two combined have more TPE than three of the other positions and almost more than the fourth (Goaltenders). Anytime a draftee gets over the 200 TPE mark within their draft season they are looked at as a future 1st line player at least. These two are the only two that actually have surpassed the double century mark, but they won't be alone at seasons end. With his current pace Joseph Roy III will join them in that level very soon. It could very well be that the first three selections in this draft all come from the centre positions.

 

Movers:

George Patton moved up the board from the 9th position (last week at 8th). Patton had a very consistent week and his progression was actually one of the few positives this week.

 

Severin Von Karma (misspelled in chart) moved up from the 18th position to the 17th spot this week. Von Karma is one of the few depth players making some noise.

 

Left Wingers

 

The left wing position has been one that doesn't always get the attention it deserves, but you could say that about either wing at times. This years class of left wingers is very front loaded. Wolfgang Strauss actually almost out earned all the left-wingers combined when it comes to TPE. Strauss' 128 TPE so far is good enough for the 7th position on this list but that's the only bright spot in this batch. The next prospect from the left wing position that has actually done anything is Marco Greusinho who will most likely be a VHLM regular his career. We really wish this crop of left wingers would step their game up and give Strauss a run for his money.

 

Right Wingers

 

Where the left wingers lack, the right wingers partial make up in production. Right wingers in this draft class have groomed into quite the quality bunch; but not top tier talent. Travis Willcox and Prince Gigga-Bijou are the top two prospects listed and both are above average talent. Travis Willcox has drastically slowed down and Prince Gigga-Bijou is nowhere to be found recently. Max MacInnis and Paul Ready are both missing in action. This group seems to be relying on their initial burst of TPE production and have packed it in for the year. The collective group has the third highest TPE total of all positions and this past week didn't earn 1 single TPE.

 

Movers:

Travis Willcox moved down one spot from 8th to 9th. Willcox hasn't shown up produce anything in the past few weeks. Somewhat of a disappointment since he highly touted from the start.

 

Prince Gigga-Bijou has moved down one spot and it's because of his lack of effort. Sadly Prince is looking more like the jester at this stage in his progression.

 

Vogon Jeltz was the biggest mover this week as he moved down two spots and completely fell off the radar. At one point Jeltz looked like a promising prospect with high potential. Potential was his worst enemy it seemed.

 

Defensemen

 

If you can find a good defensemen you set your franchise up very nicely. The goaltenders best friend is the post but the defensemen might just be in his wedding party. This crop of defensemen are progressing, but not at the fastest pace. Patrick Demko has been fairly consistent each week in his quest for being the first blue liner named at the draft. Ken Anderson is progressing steadily and may be one of the highest movers at seasons end. Cap'n Crunch and the rest of his fellow leftover defensemen haven't shown up to practice in weeks!

 

Movers:

Patrick Demko moved up the table from 12th into a possible first round selection at the 10 spot. Based on team needs he may actually climb even higher at the draft itself.

 

Ken Anderson is a bright spot when it comes the back half of the draft. Anderson is moving up to 16th spot after last weeks 17th position. Slowly making a name for himself in the middle of the chart.

 

Goaltenders

 

Probably the most influential position in regards to team needs as well as what they do for a franchise. If you can't get that netminder that flat out has all the tools, you best draft another position. This year we have the honour of having two capable starters in the draft class. Jax Barnstormer has been raiding farms for years and is honing his skills up to the 169 TPE level. Callum Sinclair is hot on his trail and with some more effort could pass him in time. These two do have some goaltenders behind them that are catching fire as well. Ivars Kajums and Blake Campbell are two prospects worth looking at as possible sleepers. With work both these gentlemen can become starters down the road. Surprisingly the goaltender position has the second highest total of TPE combined. That in itself is a rare considering most years there seems to be one legit goaltending prospect and then a huge drop-off.

 

Movers:

Ivars Kajums went down a spot as we haven't seen much from him in a while. Here's to hoping his VHLM scouts and managers can re-spark his interest in production.

Edited January 20, 2015 by Kendrick

[BOOM 8,422]

This was a fucking good read. I was impressed by the pie chart TPE breakdown and positional analysis.

 

Great work.

[CoachReilly 688]

nice work.  I like that you're making them work for their positions as non backups!

[sterling 1,990]

Good you're not fired or banned yet

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

This is really in depth. Great idea here.

[lere2001 90]

Beautifully done.