Claimed: End of Season (Toronto Focused)

[DollarAndADream 3,357]

Toronto's Season

 

Season 56 is over and done with, and there is a team who surprised many that did not have much consideration at the beginning of the season. The Toronto Legion finished the season with 95 points and a 44-21-7 record. They would have hit 100 points if not for a 3 game losing streak to end the season, even losing to CGY G1 with Torstein Ironside in net. Most analysts expected the Calgary Wranglers to be the 2nd place North American team and not Toronto, but Calgary sits 20 points behind the Legion in 3rd place. It was a little bit of a battle between Calgary and Seattle, but Seattle ultimately only hit 67 points, missing out on the playoffs by 8. The Toronto Legion were actually in quite a battle for 2nd in the VHL for awhile there, however the Davos Dynamo's 10 game winning streak combined with the Quebec City Meute's consistent success made sure Toronto stayed down in 4th overall.

 

Player-wise, the Toronto Legion did not exactly 'wow' anybody, but there was a player who notably performed better than anyone would have guessed. Xander Finn finished 8th in the VHL in points with 109, including 41 goals. He finished above players like John Locke (105), and just behind superstar Theo Axelsson (110). Xander Finn might be slotted in on the 2nd line C spot, but he played similar minutes to 1st line C Bo Boeser, with 28 more points than him. Finn played beside AK47 and Daring Do for most of the season, while seeing playing time with Verner Reinholdt and Ted Doughty as well.

 

For the rookies, Daring Do finished the season with 20 goals and 47 points. A respectable rookie season for a 2nd line RW, which won't be winning any trophies behind 80 point All-Star rookies Gabriel McAllister and Slava Aleksei. But, Do had considerably less training hours the other rookies, so it's not totally surprising to see her land 8th in rookie scoring. Although, it obviously would have been nice to see her do better, considering she was getting similar playing time compared to the rest of the Legion roster. One would think that playing beside Xander Finn and his 109 points would have resulted in more than 47 for Daring Do, but alas, it did not. Dexter Lane and Aackckqz Ky were the rookie defenders for Toronto, both more defensively sound, but still showing up a lot on the scoresheet with 36 and 35 points. Ky notched more goals than Lane with 10 to Lane's 6.

 

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The young core players on the Legion performed well, but nothing spectacular. While some fans were hoping that Bo Boeser and Verner Reinholdt would become Molholt and Parechkin-esque, it has not happened, although it's still possible. Boeser finished with 41 goals and 81 points, while Reinholdt finished with 26 goals and 66 points. Verner Reinholdt went through some stretches of inconsistency, while Boeser was more common to see on the scoresheet. Then you have veteran QB defenseman Roman Sokolov, who finished the season 2nd on the Legion with 94 points. 17 goals and 77 assists were good for 5th in the VHL. While those are obviously great numbers, they will likely not be in consideration for the Beketov Trophy, ironically enough. One would have to think that Bobby Digital would get some high consideration for his high hits and shot block totals, combined with his point effort. Despite Roman's great season, you know that as a player he would have wished for more. Maybe in the playoffs or some time soon.

 

For the retiring vets, they both put up some good numbers. Ted Doughty recently had a good surge in training this season with some extra motivations, and that brought him to 20 goals and 52 points. AK47 has always been known as a threat, and with a $7M signing brought 36 goals and 71 points to Toronto. Both of these signings played great for the depth they provided in the top six.

 

Goaltending-wise, Toronto never seems to get amazing numbers from Torstein Ironside, but they are respectable ones. Ironside finished with a 92% save percentage, good for a tie in 4th in the VHL, alongside Calgary's Jacob. They will be battling each other in the 1st round in the playoffs, so that will be interesting to watch. As for goals against average, Ironside finished 6th at 2.14 (Jacob hit 2.10). Then you have shutouts where Torstein had 11, which was a tie for 4th as well. Not the best numbers for a 3rd overall goaltender a few seasons ago, especially considering the performance of Marcus King, who was in the same draft. That could have more to do with the teams they are on though.

 

Nonetheless, this season had a result which surprised many, and it's a success in the GM's eyes. Not a true success until a cup is acquired though, and at least for this season, that will be hard to come by.

 

 

[Beketov 9,103]

WOuld be especially hard for me to be in consideration for the Beketov since that's for most assists and already decided

[DollarAndADream 3,357]

1 hour ago, Beketov said:

WOuld be especially hard for me to be in consideration for the Beketov since that's for most assists and already decided

Fuck! Labatte I guess I meant. But you know that.