The battle of the teams living in the present

[Victor 10,580]

So, the two S42 finalists are expansion teams which is a first. They have two goaltenders playing lights out which isn't a first but pretty rare quite at this level. So, what else do the Express and Meute have in common?

Well, an almost complete lack of picks and prospects. After a completing a mega deal which saw second overall (Mason Richardson) got from Quebec to Cologne at the S40 draft, both teams have started building up cup contenders. As a biased New York American I saw their situation as quite dire at time, with Quebec having to get through NY and Cologne struggling this past regular season. Yet here we are.

Cologne currently has no prospects in the system, having had no picks of note in S41 or S42 and not signing the two players they did draft in the later rounds. They won't be able to stock up much in the next two drafts, their highest pick being a S43 second-rounder (it is Davos' though so #13!). Quebec's prospect list is rather dire, featuring Jack Harkness and Joakim Videl, though they do currently have their full three rounds of draft picks in S44. A draft with seven prospects so far but that's beside the point.

How did the two teams arrive at this stage? The Express went all out in S41 and S42 to secure the Richardson pick and then with O'Malley and Richardson in their last rookie contract seasons, went all out in S43 and S44 to acquire Martin Brookside and Robin Gow. The Meute traded their S43 first as part of the deal for Travis Boychuk, with their other dealings detailed here: http://www.vhlforum.com/index.php?/topic/18802-how-quebec-bought-sold-bought-again-and-got-better-in-the-end/

In the end, this may be the best chance for either team to win a championship with this core. The salary cap will be a massive bitch next season at which point Cologne's goalie will retire, while Quebec may need better depth to keep going. One of this team's moves will prove worthwhile and another's won't. The stakes have never been higher.

[Frank 4,819]

Nope.

[Kesler 1,514]

I predicted QC to be competing from S43-S45 so....

[diamond_ace 3,106]

So, the two S42 finalists are expansion teams which is a first. They have two goaltenders playing lights out which isn't a first but pretty rare quite at this level. So, what else do the Express and Meute have in common?

Well, an almost complete lack of picks and prospects. After a completing a mega deal which saw second overall (Mason Richardson) got from Quebec to Cologne at the S40 draft, both teams have started building up cup contenders. As a biased New York American I saw their situation as quite dire at time, with Quebec having to get through NY and Cologne struggling this past regular season. Yet here we are.

Cologne currently has no prospects in the system, having had no picks of note in S41 or S42 and not signing the two players they did draft in the later rounds. They won't be able to stock up much in the next two drafts, their highest pick being a S43 second-rounder (it is Davos' though so #13!). Quebec's prospect list is rather dire, featuring Jack Harkness and Joakim Videl, though they do currently have their full three rounds of draft picks in S44. A draft with seven prospects so far but that's beside the point.

How did the two teams arrive at this stage? The Express went all out in S41 and S42 to secure the Richardson pick and then with O'Malley and Richardson in their last rookie contract seasons, went all out in S43 and S44 to acquire Martin Brookside and Robin Gow. The Meute traded their S43 first as part of the deal for Travis Boychuk, with their other dealings detailed here: http://www.vhlforum.com/index.php?/topic/18802-how-quebec-bought-sold-bought-again-and-got-better-in-the-end/

In the end, this may be the best chance for either team to win a championship with this core. The salary cap will be a massive bitch next season at which point Cologne's goalie will retire, while Quebec may need better depth to keep going. One of this team's moves will prove worthwhile and another's won't. The stakes have never been higher.

I'm retiring preseason, so I'll still be there in shell form next season.

[Victor 10,580]

Yeah poor wording I meant at the end of next season. As in next season almost certainly seems like last chance and Cologne will probably be forced to have a weaker team.

Quebec will survive longer by the looks of it, but will they have a better team than this season?

[boubabi 4,725]

I predicted QC to be competing from S43-S45 so....