Claimed:Koponen Resigns in Calgary

[Will 4,662]

The upcoming lot of free agents just got reduced by two with forwards Aleksi Koponen and Tyson Kohler electing to re-sign with the Calgary Wranglers. These were two high-profile free agents and there was much speculation about what fate awaited the Wranglers organization after their stunning defeat at the hands of the Legion. With this move, it's clear the Wranglers will again be a force to be reckoned with in the North American conference.

 

Calgary GM Austin Gow during the final game of the Toronto v. Calgary series

 

Aleksi Koponen is entering the final season of his career before he his forced out of the league by the hard 8 season limit so it's fair to say this couldn't have been an easy decision for him when he had the opportunity to go wherever he wanted. In a press conference following the signing of the new contracts, Koponen told reporters that he enjoyed his time with the franchise this past season despite losing and was looking forward to playing along with at least most of those players again. At this time it's unclear what the other Calgary UFA's will do, Velvet and Unassisted both have expiring contracts and ultimately Calgary will not have cap space to resign everyone if they don't move other players.

 

While Calgary is set to be strong again, they won't be without competition in league or even their conference. With the announcement today that the Seattle Bears would be signing Biggu Kyanon coupled with their ever growing core means they will be a strong team to contend with. While Toronto has lost a few players to retirement they still retain key players like Molholt, Parechkin and B. Free. Greg Clegane is currently set to become a UFA but if Toronto retains him then they could remain a threat for yet another season. 

 

 

We should get a much clearer picture of what the upcoming season will look like following tomorrow's draft and then the opening of free agency a couple of days later. That will give us a much better idea of how teams like New York will look next season, who just picked up a few solid players from Cologne in Lincoln and the lesser Hamilton. If they manage to get some wins in free agency we could have a very competitive North America. Of course, there is also a host of European teams that will be vying for free agency and I have neglected to talk about them. 

 

Thus far it seems as though there is a fair amount of excitement around the league after the thrilling playoff series between Riga and Toronto and now a big off-season with the first draft involving second players. I'm hoping it carries through to Season 52 as its looking like it could be a competitive one. 

[Jericho 917]

What swell guys! 

[Jericho 917]

Claimed