Claimed:Consolidation of the VHLM - A Desperate Plan, or a Necessary Amendment? [Final 6/6]

[Renomitsu 934]

Consolidation of the VHLM – A Desperate Plan, or a Necessary Amendment?

 

With a changing of the guard for the General Manager positions in the minor leagues, the VHLM faced what first seemed like a minor hiccup that has evolved into a full-fledged discussion regarding the viability of the league’s structure. In the past couple of weeks, flyersfan1493 (Riga), tfong (Brampton), Sixersfan549 (Moscow), and Ramicus (Yukon) have openly stepped down between minors and majors, with replacements ready for only two of the four. Players, coaches, GMs, and commissioners have all voiced their opinions on the state of the VHLM, citing disparities in active players, seasons-long efforts (with significant sacrifices) to produce a sure-fire championship team, and competitive integrity as reasons to retain or uproot the league’s configuration. With VHL’s population intensely and fundamentally split on decisions regarding the future of the minor leagues, it becomes increasingly important to lay out the long-term effects of a contraction or retention.

 

So, what’s important?

 

Point 1: The VHLM is a developmental league.

Let’s make one thing clear – the VHLM is a league distinct from, but associated with, the majors. Its purpose, in theory, is to house and cultivate talent for use in the VHL – this is precisely why brand-new players are not permitted to draft directly into the pro league as soon as they announce their candidacy. Spending a season in the minors allows individuals to hone their skills to a level that is competitive with long-time professionals, even if it seems as though top VHLM prospects could go toe-to-toe with mid- and lower-tier players being drafted into the big leagues.

 

In fact, certain upper-league players are even sent down to the VHLM to continue development in the minors, as franchises are allowed to send players up or down based on their performance. If nothing else, the league gives immature players a chance to spend time at the practice facility and observe their peers in action without season-affecting implications. At times, it gives players a chance to renew their passion for the league without inadvertently hamstringing the organization they’re contracted to – whether it’s caused by issues off the ice, or a loss of confidence on it.

 

If the VHLM plays such a vital role in the future of the VHL, then players ought to be given a meaningful and motivating experience that propels them to future success.

 

Point 2: League competitiveness is largely dictated by GM vigilance.

 

Above: Number of active players plotted against the number of regular season wins.

It doesn’t take a robust statistical analysis to determine that VHLM team success is dependent on the number of players a GM is able to recruit; the trend is so clear and obvious in the above figure that no regression is necessary to say (with certainty) that there is a correlation between non-computer players and wins. There are a variety of ways to acquire players – in particular, drafting, trading (players and picks), waivers, and GM players. While a strict players vs. wins relation is certainly pertinent to the conversation, perhaps a chronological review is in order; I’ve used the North American league as an example.

 

 

Upon closer inspection, it’s difficult to see anything resembling consistency from season to season: the Brampton Blades win totals varied from 32 to 62 over the five seasons analyzed, and Saskatoon went from 61 wins in S41 to a paltry 6 wins the following season. A mass exodus of players – from a top-half 14 non-defaults to the league-worst 4 players – is likely to blame for Saskatoon’s abrupt fall from grace.

 

One particular counterpoint to this argument is the quality of prospects from season to season – certainly, a first overall pick like Biggyu Kyanon (184 TPE in his first scouting combine report) or Phil Hamilton (178 TPE) would provide an impact that mid-tier prospects couldn’t – but even this doesn’t provide extreme outliers from the numbers-game being played in the first figure because of the way the draft is ordered. Kyanon’s (Saskatoon) and Hamilton’s (Yukon) teams faced off in the North American semi-finals, but not without a first-round scare heavy underdogs Brampton Blades. This seems to indicate that having a solid number of non-default players is conducive to a competitive season (take into consideration the Blades’ late-season player surge). If there are so many players available for waivers that are free- and normal-claimed, the next logical question becomes: why are there still VHLM teams with human players numbering in the single-digits?

 

This point can be interpreted one of two ways – either the VHLM needs GMs willing to take on a more even distribution to produce a competitive league from the top down, or the handful of players competing on a less-active team need to have a reason to stay active.

 

Point 3: Sim league non-veterans need a reason to stay dedicated and active.

Many of the long-time VHL members, whether they’ve participated in one sim league or a dozen, probably remember their first in some capacity – whether it was active, friendly, competitive, or well-organized, for example – and why they stuck with it or went inactive. As it stands, a player that’s brand-new to sim leagues wants a locker room and general manager that give them a reason to continue writing media spots, toiling in GIMP or Photoshop, or recording podcasts from week to week.

 

Locker room discussion, introducing the nuances of league function, and team success are integral to maintaining interest in a team. As some individuals have indicated, your first season in the league could be with a 15-man team or a 6-man team – and, as shown in my second point, the numbers alone can have a tremendous impact on a team’s success. Even with an exceptionally active GM, it could be difficult for newer players to acclimate to a locker room that has the same couple of names posting over and over again. As stated in Point 1, players – new or old – need a meaningful first season to extend their careers; as such, it’s critical that the VHLM creates a proper environment that allows for a stronger crop of draft prospects the coming season.

 

If all of these points thus far seem like an indictment of VHLM GMs, fear not – there’s plenty to support their case.

 

Point 4: VHLM GMs try to make their franchise as successful as possible.

Success is oft measured in titles. VHLM GMs are hired with the intent of propagating and developing the prestige of their city’s team – and sometimes, that means forsaking a season or two to forge a legendary season that produces a team of stars. In some respect, this is the goal of the VHLM – to produce a powerful corps of VHL draftees that can, to some degree, guarantee success. Whether these teams go to a local VHL team is irrelevant – it’s effectively impossible to guarantee a smooth geographic transition from team to team.

 

Above: VHLM Playoff appearances by team and season. From the VHLM Playoff index.

 

It is important to recognize that VHL GMs have been massively successful in this respect. In the past twenty seasons, the longest playoff drought has been a mere four seasons (held by Brampton, S34-37), showing that teams are hardly down-and-out if they miss the playoffs one season. Yes, it is frustrating to have one’s pre-rookie season be a non-competitive one, but that could be the case for a variety of reasons – it’s not necessarily logical to place the blame squarely on the team’s GM. When a high-level staff member like a general manager is evaluated, it’s often done with the following phrase: “What have you done for me lately?”

 

Even further yet, there’s something to be said about the storylines that develop from a set of excellent VHLM teammates. High-level prospects who have been seen playing together suddenly become members of opposing teams because they’re drafted separately as professionals; sometimes the development of a narrative is nearly as important as the end result. Maybe it sounds a little romantic – but isn’t that the way we’d prefer things to be?

 

Final Point: What is the VHLM meant to do?

Changes on a league-wide scale are never decided by a singular article or individual member of the VHL – the consensus of the league should be the ultimate decider. There are two directions for the VHLM to go, if change is being seriously considered: are GMs “supposed” to provide a strong developmental environment for all players, season-in and season-out, or is it acceptable to let a season go in the name of ultimate success? What is the true goal of assigning GMs in a developmental league, if not for their team’s prosperity? At the same time, how can one continue to justify bringing in new talent if they aren’t given the best chance to experience enthralling, motivating success before he’s swept off his feet into the professional league?

Edited August 23, 2015 by Renomitsu

[Victor 10,943]

Ah I see Riga has been relegated. About time I say!

I mean, damn, this is great stuff. Very well researched and probably helped arguments on both capping draft picks and roster sizes. And maybe even introducing a salary cap.

[Renomitsu 934]

Thanks! Felt like this topic was getting a lot of attention, and as a (currently) un-involved party, I thought it would be a good idea to bring together points from both sides.

[TheLastOlympian07 2,388]

lets shake up the entire VHL and have teams get relegated and promoted like soccer? all jokes aside this was a very good read 

[Zero 114]

Nicely done, Reno. I always loved your articles back when you had Hiro, and looks like they're just as well-written and researched as always!

[Baozi 1,658]

Whoa....that is a really solid article.

[Munk 1,298]

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[Renomitsu 934]

Whoa....that is a really solid article.

Thanks! I felt like someone needed to flesh it out - so why not take it into my own hands?

 

 

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[Tylar 219]

Content: 3/3 - Fantastic article, probably going to be used as a discussion point in the debate. I enjoyed reading it. As a VHLM GM, I think the league definitely needs some tweaking that's for sure. I think one of the major problems with the number of actives was that one GM was basically inactive all season (Yukon) and the other one did much of nothing really (Moscow). I don't think Ottawa claimed much either. I would've liked to see them claim more players especially Moscow since his team was bad anyway's but whatever. Rami doing much of nothing all season certainly did not help either for Yukon. 

Grammar: 2/2 - Didn't see anything

Appearance: 1/1 - Graphs, I love graphs. 

Overall: 6/6

[CowboyinAmerica 2,890]

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