Admin Victor 10,992 Posted April 26, 2015 Admin Share Posted April 26, 2015 Welcome to the Season 42 VHL Hall of Fame Induction ceremony! This was a strange season as there were no notable new retirees which meant the Board of Governors could focus on some veteran ballot members. A long time spent not inducted can often dim the reputation of a retired player and they fall further and further back in the pecking order but it is not to say they are significantly worse; often times recency bias can see a younger player with similar achievements take precedence. There was a very long debate over which two players out of 5-6 very deserving candidates would be afforded this perfect opportunity to enter the VHL's hallowed halls. The result was a slightly more one-sided (or two-sided rather) vote than perhaps expected, as this Hall of Fame induction shall include two defencemen whose inclusion was long overdue. ----------- The first of these is our very own commissioner and newly-appointed VHLM simmer Mitch Higgins. Before he was commissioner of the VHL or VHLM, or even GM of either league, Higgins made a name for himself as a very talented first-gen defenceman. His stats, which can be found below, are superior to several defencemen already in the Hall of Fame and were just reward for his dedication as he became the first new member to reach 1000 TPE (he is 5th among first-gen at the time of writing). The reason for Higgins' long wait is quite simple: the lack of a Sterling Labatte Trophy. As a member of the Seattle Bears in the age of a heated rivalry with the New York Americans, Higgins fell victim to fellow first-gen Daniel Braxton four straight Labattes, despite often putting up stats which would have made him a worthy winner in his own right. Higgins had his fair share of glory, however, as a member of the famed Seattle Six, of which he is now the third Hall of Famer (following Jarvis Baldwin and CAL G), as he, as Bears captain, led the team to a Continental Cup win over New York in Season 28. When thinking of a half-decade almost synonymous with the Seattle-New York rivalry, Higgins, for his performances and his importance to the Bears, is one of the first names to come to mind. D - Mitch Higgins, S24-S30 503 GP, 162 G, 438 A, 600 P, +126, 983 PIM, 1488 HIT, 783 SB, 19 GW S24 Christian Stolzschweiger Trophy (co-winner) S28 Mikita Trophy (joint with 4 others) S28 Messier Trophy One Continental Cup (S28) As Higgins retired, his place as top defenceman bridesmaid was taken by Alexander Valiq. Though he spent his rookie season with Riga, Valiq is without doubt best remembered for the team of which he was a founding member, for whom he played for seven seasons and was an integral part of their maiden Season 35 championship: the Quebec City Meute. With the Meute, Valiq carved out a unique career for a defenceman and is being inducted not only for his consistently remarkable performances but also for being a pioneer. It's fitting, as he pioneered a whole franchise, and pioneered a type of defensive build: a goal-scorer. Valiq was arguably the most prolific powerplay quarterback in VHL history, as a defenceman, he was one goal away from matching Scotty Campbell's career record for powerplay goals and he did set the single-season record, in his sophomore campaign. Valiq is the only defenceman to score 300 career goals, 90 ahead of second-place Sterling Labatte and despite such a focus on carrying some of his team's goals burden, was no pushover in terms of other important stats like hits and shots blocked. D - Alexander Valiq, S30-S37 576 GP, 300 G, 398 A, 698 P, +146, 765 PIM, 965 HIT, 1288 SB, 44 GW One Continental Cup (S35) ----------- The Board of Governors' vote went as follows: Alexander Valiq - 10/13 Mitch Higgins - 8/13 ----------- Max Kroenenburg - 2/13 Felix Peters - 2/13 Wesley Kellinger - 2/13 ----------- Two players whose numbers have been retired by their franchises have been inducted. Alexander Beketov is another whose name was honoured by the Seattle Bears, but he already resides in the Hall of Fame. Today, the man also known as Robert Sharpe, is finally being inducted as Builder. You may have heard calls to see him inducted during Season 42, but in truth, this was unnecessary: this honour has been long overdue and an omission on the part of the Board of Governors. The 1st overall pick in the 1st ever draft, Sharpe/Beketov has had a long and arduous journey through the VHL and despite not always getting the success he wants player-wise, he has persevered and is one of about 4-5 remaining members who have been around for all of the VHL's existence. In spite of a harsh PT ban at the very beginning, Beketov has not stopped contributing to the VHL's graphics and skinning department and has been a core member of many a VHL franchise, from Sharpe to Beketov to Alex Young to Jason White to Evgeni Chekhov and Jackson Miller. We hope there are many more seasons of Beketov left in the VHL and all the more so now that he can spend them as an inducted Hall of Fame Builder. Congratulations to all three! Phil, Higgins and CowboyinAmerica 3 Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Munk 1,298 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 (edited) Congrats guys!!! None mote deserving than me so I'm happy for you all Edited April 26, 2015 by Munk Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209303 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Grumpy Bear 347 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 Satan FISTED ANALLY BY A CIRCUS MONKEY again, straight bullshit. Even Peyton Nydroj should have made this by now. #notpartoftheoldboysclub Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209311 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank 5,244 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 Congrats to Higgins, A. Valiq and Beketov! Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209317 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Molholt 2,185 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 No Jarkko? Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209318 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Victor 10,992 Posted April 26, 2015 Author Admin Share Posted April 26, 2015 Satan Snubbed again, straight bullshit. Even Peyton Nydroj should have made this by now. #notpartoftheoldboysclubI don't know why I'm taking the bait in a HOF induction thread but yes, damn these old boys who joined 20 seasons after you. Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209320 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Grumpy Bear 347 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 These members all joined this site after season 28? Wierd, never knew that. Tell me Satan doesn't deserve HOF though. Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209342 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Victor 10,992 Posted April 26, 2015 Author Admin Share Posted April 26, 2015 These members all joined this site after season 28? Wierd, never knew that. Tell me Satan doesn't deserve HOF though.He actually keeps on catching my eye when I wander into career goalie stats. For good reason too. But... no goalie in HOF without a single individual award. Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209345 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil 5,129 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 (edited) Gratz to the winners WE DID IT BEKETOV!!!!! #BEKE4BUILDER Edited April 26, 2015 by Phil Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209346 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Grumpy Bear 347 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 He actually keeps on catching my eye when I wander into career goalie stats. For good reason too. But... no goalie in HOF without a single individual award. Most inactive awesome goaltender award goes to........... Let's be real though I will never win an individual award in this league no matter what I do. At least not one that gets voted on. Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209351 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Victor 10,992 Posted April 26, 2015 Author Admin Share Posted April 26, 2015 Most inactive awesome goaltender award goes to........... Let's be real though I will never win an individual award in this league no matter what I do. At least not one that gets voted on. Why don't you have a season when you are deserving of an award and then we'll see. Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209353 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Higgins 3,618 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 I would like to thank Noah and the rest of the #Higgy4HOF supporters over the past 15 seasons. It was a long wait but worth it. I can now leave the league fully satisfied. Congrats to Koradek and Beketov Phil 1 Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209354 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Grumpy Bear 347 Posted April 26, 2015 Share Posted April 26, 2015 Why don't you have a season when you are deserving of an award and then we'll see. I have had seasons deserving of an award and not been nominated for it. FACT Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209356 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Victor 10,992 Posted April 26, 2015 Author Admin Share Posted April 26, 2015 we only operate in facts supported by evidence here. for example, http://www.vhlforum.com/index.php?/topic/806-aidan-shaw-trophy/ Season 17 Winner Tayson Barabash (TOR) - 50-10-8 2.18GAA .916SV% 9SO http://www.vhlforum.com/index.php?/topic/800-mikka-virkkunen-trophy/ Season 22 Winner Peyton Nydroj (TOR) Anyway, I'm done derailing a thread for unarguable inductees. Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209358 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commissioner Beketov 9,090 Posted April 27, 2015 Commissioner Share Posted April 27, 2015 Gratz to the winners WE DID IT BEKETOV!!!!! #BEKE4BUILDER Couldn't have done it without you Phil! Honestly, never thought I'd see the day where I'd see my name in the hall again, it's a great honour. Also appreciate you avoiding mentioning Kristensen amongst my players haha. Anyway, congrats to all the inductees! STZ, diamond_ace and Phil 3 Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209380 Share on other sites More sharing options...
STZ 5,378 Posted April 27, 2015 Share Posted April 27, 2015 Congrats to all three! Frank 1 Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209394 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kesler 1,514 Posted April 27, 2015 Share Posted April 27, 2015 Congrats guys, also first player from Quebec franchise to make the HOF Frank 1 Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209400 Share on other sites More sharing options...
gregreg 930 Posted April 27, 2015 Share Posted April 27, 2015 Another member of the Seattle Six in the HOF!!!! now if only Peters could get in.. lol Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209548 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fire Tortorella 2,653 Posted April 27, 2015 Share Posted April 27, 2015 Congrats to everyone! Well deserved. Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209611 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kendrick 4,741 Posted April 27, 2015 Share Posted April 27, 2015 Congrats guys! Link to comment https://vhlforum.com/topic/19463-s42-hall-of-fame-induction/#findComment-209680 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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