diamond_ace 3,106 Posted December 9, 2013 Share Posted December 9, 2013 The King Is Dead; Long Live The King An introspective look into the famed King of All S23, and whether his chances look good to ever repeat the task. In season 23, VHL player-agent diamond_ace declared himself “King of All S23” with his most successful season to date. A Founder’s Cup with the then-Ottawa Ice Dogs, a team he was at the time the GM of, as well as a Continental Cup with the Calgary Wranglers, which was the team with his player, Lars Intranquilo- and to wrap it all up, diamond_ace won the “Fyodorov Challenge” which was a prediction series about how the results of the playoffs would break down over several questions, each of diminishing importance. While this title was self-imposed, it seemed quite accurate, as nothing could go wrong for him. It was as if everything he touched got picked up and followed him, whether it was the success of other players on the year, cups, random competitions, or just his own success in general. Season 23 was the type of season that every member hopes to have at least once in his or her career. Some have accomplished similar feats, although in diamond_ace’s case, it really turned into the icing on a cake that failed to rise and lay deflated for his first player. Not to be confused with the creepy, hallucinogenic, and rather effeminate King of All Cosmos Clark Marcellin brought more individual success than Intranquilo, which admittedly wasn’t hard to do, and also won a cup, but until just days ago, Marcellin paired up with his agent’s newest client, Martin Brookside, to make a run at reclaiming the title. King of All S35 was in diamond_ace’s grasp once more. With Brookside in Oslo, playing in the VHLM Finals, and Marcellin (along with diamond_ace as GM) taking the Wranglers to game 7 of the North American Conference Finals, it looked as though he had a fair shot at the title of King of All S35. Sure, there is no more Fyodorov Challenge, but including both players and the GM, there was the opportunity for three cups, which is one more even than the fabled S23. Unfortunately, not only has the title of King of All S35 been relinquished (Calgary lost in the semis to Quebec, who are now in the finals and up by one game on Helsinki) but it looks as though diamond_ace won’t even be a prince and will have to settle for Court Jester of All S35. This title will be awarded to the member who has the most chances to win cups (in this case, three) and ultimately walks away with none. The elimination of Calgary has ended two of the three chances (Marcellin as a player as well as diamond_ace as a GM) and the remaining chance lies with Oslo, an untested goalie in Martin Brookside who hasn’t even tested the bigs yet, and a 3-0 series deficit to the Ottawa Lynx, coincidentally the descendant team from his own Ottawa Ice Dogs from back in S23 (S20-25, to be exact). Adding insult to injury would be if Brookside ends up on a Super Cup team and that team takes second place, losing in the finals. Actually, scratch the if. That is what will happen, considering how these last few days have treated the self-proclaimed royalty. Some might say S23 was his crowning achievement As long as diamond_ace remains at the helm of Calgary, then for one season in every player cycle, there will always be a chance to repeat the feat. His leadership of the franchise has proven to be one of the more successful tenures in recent memory; six consecutive playoff appearances as well as seven out of the last eight might seem minimal compared to New York's run of ten, but compared to the average run of three, it's simply phenomenal. If Streetlight/Devise's run with New York is the Gretzky of streaks, diamond_ace's lies somewhere around Ron Francis. Logically, there's a fair chance (greater than an even 1 in 5 considering there are five teams in the conference) that Calgary will be in the finals that year, and it's frequently the better teams that claim waiver players with practice time exemptions prior to joining (the fabled "carryover") as they'll be the ones that can give these players playoff experience. Therefore, whether the king can reclaim the throne will depend primarily on whether the GM retains the seat and the interest. It's all too up in the air to look that far into the future, but it's a good sign that such a challenge was in the offing a mere twelve seasons after the first claim, even if the challenge ultimately came up short. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JardyB10 4,837 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Court Jester of S35, hahaha. Good read ser. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diamond_ace 3,106 Posted December 10, 2013 Author Share Posted December 10, 2013 Court Jester of S35, hahaha. Good read ser. finally a post! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLastOlympian07 2,388 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Banzai: Yeah, be prepared! We'll be prepared... for what? Scar: For the death of the king! Banzai: Why? Is he sick? Scar: No, fool, we're going to kill him. And Simba, too. Shenzi: Hey, great idea! Who needs a king? Banzai, Shenzi: [singing and dancing around Ed] No king, no king, la la la la la la... Scar: Idiots! There will *be* a king! Banzai: Hey, but you said that... Scar: *I* will be king. Stick with me, and you'll never go hungry again! Banzai, Shenzi: Yeah, all right! Long live the king! [other hyenas join in] Banzai, Shenzi: Long live the king! Long live the king! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyle 667 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I wish I could win ONE thing EVER. Not everything in one year, u so selfish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Higgins 3,618 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I'll drink to season 23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOOM 8,473 Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I read this as requested...what a waste of 15 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ball 453 Posted December 16, 2013 Share Posted December 16, 2013 Content: 3/3- 785 words. This was an intersting piece on your attempt to out do your success of S23, a storybook feat in itself. You have made Calgary a dangerous franchise over the last few seasons and i applaud you for that, though it sucks to see that you couldn't grab a championship with one of your three chances this season. I wish you the best of luck with the Wranglers in the future and your lucky you get to sit back and watch the Bears win a couple cups in the time being! Great job on this media spot. Grammar: 2/2- I couldn't find an error for the life of me. Appearance: 1/1- I feel like a broken record already but a little color wouldn't hurt here. But you got pictures and it looks pretty professional so full marks here. Overall: 6/6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eaglesfan036 4,585 Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 Content: 3/3 - Wow, that's really good winning with both a VHLM team and a VHL team in the same year. While it would no longer be possible to accomplish such a task now, I guess you can make up for it by winning back to back to back cups or something. Grammar: 2/2 - Nice job, couldn't find anything. Appearance: 1/1 - Looks good. Overall: 6/6 Final: 6/6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 29, 2013 Share Posted December 29, 2013 Claimed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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