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The Stockholm Five

A review of the Vikings' fuzzy goalie history

part 2 of 3

 

Having passed on the opportunity to nab Callum Sinclair, and seeing Coca Cola's activity diminish, two of potential Viking franchise goalies were crossed off of the list. With two active goalies in the system at the end of Season 42 and a lottery win giving them the first overall pick in a draft which featured a goalie as its top prospect, Stockholm was still not short on options. Last week, I wrote about Sinclair and Cola, discussing where they are now and what they meant to Stockholm. With them both out of the picture, this article will detail what happened regarding the other two goalies that could have, but did not, become "the one" for the Vikings.

 

Jax Barnstormer

Three picks after selecting Blake Campbell in the Season 42 Entry Draft, Stockholm added another goalie in Jax Barnstormer. Barnstormer was one of the more developed players at that point, and his potential was higher than several players selected before him. Part of the reason he fell into the second round was that Helsinki, the only team besides Stockholm with a pick between fourth and eleventh overall, was not interested. While nothing is certain, circumstances made it unlikely that Barnstormer would make a career with either Helsinki or Stockholm, but the Vikings had no qualms with taking the best player available when it came to their sixth pick of the draft. Knowing of New York's interest in Barnstormer, the Vikings played him as their backup during Season 42 while working with the Americans to get a deal done in the following off-season.

 

By the time the off-season came, the Vikings and New York had a deal prepared that would send Barnstormer over to the North American Conference to become the future of the Americans in net. While this situation appears to be one where Stockholm had little in the decision in whether or not Barnstormer would be their long-term goalie, there was simply no effort from the Vikings to sway Barnstormer into committing to the team. It is possible that he could have been convinced, had the Vikings been out of options. But they were not, and so they cooperated with the wishes of Barnstormer and the Americans. Playing in his first full season, Barnstormer is struggling with a 0.903 save percentage, which is the second worst among starters.

 

 

Hans Wingate

When they chose not to put their future in the hands of Callum Sinclair, the Vikings acquired a Season 43 first round pick in a deal with Davos. That pick ended up winning the draft lottery, giving the Vikings the option to select any player. This means they could have selected Hans Wingate, who is younger and better than any of the previously mentioned goalies. Word within the organization, however, was that the team was fully committed to Blake Campbell by this point, and although Wingate was a tempting selection, the Vikings were actually preparing to trade the first overall pick. It was in the same deal that sent Barnstormer to New York that the Vikings ditched first overall and the possibility of adding Wingate.

 

Widely considered to be the best and most promising player of his class, Wingate ended up going third overall to the Calgary Wranglers. Although the team is in a bad spot right now, with Wingate in at goalie, one can't help but think they have a bright future ahead of them. With a 0.914 save percentage through 56 games, Wingate could get some attention in the rookie of the year race. His biggest competition seems to be E'Twaun Delcious, the first overall pick of the Season 43 draft, and Blake Campbell of the Stockholm Vikings, who has eight shutouts and a 0.930 save percentage but has only started 21 games this season. No matter what happens for Wingate this season, though, eyes will be on him for years to come.

 

 

Next Week

With the four rejects out of the way, Blake Campbell no longer has anyone to stop him from being Stockholm's goalie of the future. Wrapping up the series next week, I will be taking a look at how Stockholm settled on Campbell and what it will mean for them in the coming seasons.

[eaglesfan036 4,596]

wingate 2 gud

[DollarAndADream 3,356]

Content: 3/3 - Great follow-up to your previous article. I enjoy these reads, and it's interesting to see what kind of goaltending was thrown around lately.

Grammar: 2/2 - Nothing at all to see here.

Appearance: 1/1 - Good!

Overall: 6/6

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