Claimed:North America just got a little more interesting [Reviewed]

[scoop 3,309]

(this will be for the week of June 20-26 so I can do an All-Star point task this week)

 

Americans have eyes on the top, trade for Lord Karnage

New York was never out of the race in North America, but after Toronto's early dominance and Quebec's 27-game winning streak, the Americans were looking like the third wheel. Both the Legion and Meute made big acquisitions throughout the season, and while New York did upgrade at goalie from Atticus von Braxton IV to Ariel Weinstein, they have still been trailing the others. Their recent acquisition of Lord Karnage, adding the most skilled forward to an already potent offense, could make the difference if he can regain his old form now that he'll be playing for a contender.

New York currently boasts the top two goal scorers in the league with Jorma Ruutu (49) and Freedom McJustice (43). They still have Edwin Reencarnacion, the reigning MVP and two-time Kevin Brooks Trophy winner. He's having a down year with just 33 goals so far, but he'll remain a threat. Karnage has been struggling even more and in all regards. Through 49 games he has just 43 points and only 192 hits. These numbers are well below what we've come to expect from him, and in his final season, it's unthinkable to believe that he may not even be an All-Star. Regardless of the numbers he's put up now, like Reencarnacion, he is an imposing threat for defenses and could make a significant impact during the remainder of the regular season and playoffs.

 

Lord Karnage has struggled this season, but his trade to New York could revitalize his swan song.

 

The Americans can still have Victory Cup aspirations, and with the three top dogs all being in one conference, that top seed is very valuable. The Legion have spent the majority of the season on the top where they currently are with 88 points. Quebec used an incredible winning streak to pull within two points. New York is a little bit further away at 75 points. Each team has 23 games left to play, so with time running out in the regular season, New York will need a bit of help from other teams to catch up. At the same time, however, they do have several games left against both Toronto (5) and Quebec (3), so that much is in their own hands. Meanwhile, Quebec and Toronto have four games left against each other. The remaining schedule certainly offers the opportunity for New York to catch up, but it will still be very difficult considering how good the teams ahead of them are.

 

The current New York roster can be somewhat compared to their Cup-winning S47 roster. The highlight of the roster then was their top forwards: Thomas O'Malley, Edwin Reencarnacion, Lloyd Light, and Jorma Ruutu. O'Malley and Light are out, with Karnage and McJustice in their places. Thaddeus Humbert and E'Twaun Delicious are solid depth forwards, just as Delicious and Evgeny Nezhmetdinov were two seasons ago. Their defense is more of a weak spot this season, having lost Biggu Kyanon to free agency and having moved Humbert to forward. In net, they have the good but not great Ariel Weinstein, a player comparable to Blake Campbell. They both even spent time with Stockholm before playing for New York, a commonality that is also shared between Light and Karnage. If the formula stands true, New York could be looking at their second Continental Cup in three seasons.

Edited June 16, 2016 by Streetlight

[CowboyinAmerica 2,759]

Claimed

[FacePuncher 1,343]

Review:

nice article. Hopefully Karnage can turn it around in his last season. This definitely makes the North American conference more interesting! should be very competitive for the right to go to the continental cup, though im expecting whoever gets there has an easy time winning it.

 

585 words