diamond_ace 3,106 Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 The Season 37 Draft: New Over Old The season 37 draft, so far, seems to be the first draft in quite some time where the new players could make a greater total impact than the recreates. Obviously the two top recreates, Tom Slaughter and Slaeter Fjorsstrom, will be great players in their own right and certainly hold up their end of the bargain. The biggest question for the recreates’ side is where the rest of them will fall. There are some players who straddle the line between recreate and first-gen: Kimmo Salo, Penis Anthony Doubligne, Lars Strummer, and Marcus Bjorkstrand. Of these, the only one going the traditional recreate route is Lars Strummer, using carryover. Kimmo Salo, Penis Anthony Doubligne, and Marcus Bjorkstrand can be considered first-gens for the sake of argument, as all are going with the doubled point tasks. However, there are plenty of true first-gens in this class that can hold their own. LW Kai Randal: Kai Randal is a first-gen left wing, with a previously unknown agent (Runny Nose) who is making a thus-far impressive foray into the VHL. A passing-first left wing, Randal has a decent skating ability and can handle the puck fairly well. He’s early on in development, but has the potential to become one of the stars of the draft class. Much ado has been made about Randal's baldness, but it shouldn't affect his play. He is already learning under some of the best, as high-profile prospect Tom Slaughter leads a stacked offensive team in Bratislava, giving Randal plenty of guys to learn from. C Konstantin Jaroslav Azhishchenkov: Azhishchenkov is a bit of an unusual player, as a scoring-first center. While not as common, this isn’t unheard of, taking for example the NHL’s Evgeni Malkin. While scoring is Azhishchenkov’s most developed attribute, he’s slightly developed his passing, skating, strength, and faceoffs. Playing for the Ottawa Lynx, Azhishchenkov doesn’t have many good teammates to learn from, but he is learning one valuable skill nonetheless, and that is the ability to lead a team. He’s the highest profile guy on Ottawa, and if he is drafted early, his VHL team might not be much different. G Blaine Olynick: Starting goaltender for the successful Bern Royals, Olynick’s on ice play is arguably one of the best in the class. While it’s possible that his on ice play is better than his current skill would suggest he should be, Olynick nonetheless steps into the league at an ideal time. With Skylar Rift, Tuomas Tukio, and Remy LeBeau nearing retirement, Olynick (and the aforementioned Kimmo Salo) will join a team that doesn’t immediately need him, giving him a season or two to learn under one of the league’s best before stepping in and taking his own shot at future stardom. Bern is one of the best teams in the VHLM right now, so Olynick should get a chance to prove playoff-worthy in addition to his regular play. D Ron World Peace: One of Olynick’s teammates on Bern, Peace is a defensive defenseman with strong checking and skating to supplement his defensive prowess. While it’s likely he will develop an offensive side to his game as well, Peace’s defensive skill is going to be very valuable at the VHL level, where he looks to be in the mold of a James Lefevre, or potentially a Lars Intranquilo (for his sake, we hope not the latter). Defensemen are rarer than forwards and are always highly valued in the VHL, and active ones like Peace are even more highly prized. Stay tuned for part two of the preview of some of this draft’s promising first-gens! (NOTE: This is Doubles, due to my donation. I still have one additional Doubles.) STZ and d3vilsfire 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squinty 116 Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 RIP PAVOL DEMITRA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STZ 5,280 Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 The fact that we can do a two part series on first-gens is impressive in itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diamond_ace 3,106 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 RIP PAVOL DEMITRA I just typed in bald hockey players and took one of the ones that came up, didn't even realize it was him, now I feel bad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seth 92 Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 Definitely going to be an exciting draft to witness unfold and you are absolutely correct, Olynick and I will both find great situations for our development. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevo 760 Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 Thanks for the mention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotAVHLM-GM 1,858 Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 The fact that we can do a two part series on first-gens is impressive in itself. This is awesome indeed:) Good read and curious to see how these players will end up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d3vilsfire 132 Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 Great read! Especially enjoyed the part about KJA.. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwfulHomesick 148 Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Content: 3/3 - Like STZ said, the fact that there could be two media spots worth of new first-gen draftees and also the fact that they're active, says great things about the recent recruitment drive the league has had in the past few weeks. The tidbits for each player gives GMs a good overview on what they should be expecting if they were to draft them. Grammar: 2/2 - Haven't found anything, good work! Appearance: 1/1 - Yup! Overall: 6/6 Final: 6/6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kesler 1,514 Posted March 9, 2014 Share Posted March 9, 2014 Claimed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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