Claimed: CIA's S58 Dispersal Mock Draft [1/2]

[CowboyinAmerica 2,880]

 

Handicapping the VHL Dispersal Draft

 

This offseason, the VHL is contracting down to eight teams, losing the Cologne Express and Stockholm Vikings. If I can editorialize for a quick second, I think it’s a spectacular idea. Anything that brings more active players onto each individual team, promotes more competition throughout the league, and maintains the history of the VHL is a good move by me. And in conjunction with eliminating the second player rule, which was something I have heavily been in favor of, I believe this will see the resurgence of rivalries and individual team interest in the league.

 

But that’s not what the purpose of this article is. Instead, it’s to answer the question that will be on everyone’s mind this offseason: What happens to the old players on Cologne and Calgary (since Stockholm’s assets are being transferred to that team)?

 

The way that the dispersal draft works is that all current players, prospects, and RFA's – notably, not unrestricted free agents – will be entered into a pool for the remaining eight teams. From there, the draft order will be completely randomized (which I find interesting, rather than VHL Draft order, but I’m in favor). The draft will take place behind closed doors in the GM Forum, and the draft order has likely already begun.

 

That doesn’t mean that I can’t speculate though! I decided to have my own mini dispersal draft, just to see what types of players are available and the strategies that could develop. Taking a look at the draft as a whole, it seems that there could be two distinct strategies off the top: teams that are rebuilding would be focused more on Cologne’s younger players and prospects, while teams that they think have a chance at the title would be looking at the forwards that got Calgary to the playoffs last season. Of course, not everyone will actually be available from those teams – notably, players like Jacob, Savard and Volkov are set to hit free agency, severely depressing the market for teams looking for defensive help. But there is enough talent present where at least the teams in the front half of the first round will be able to get some actual help right away.

 

Ready for some action? Here are my results, with the draft order randomized via Random.org. This isn't the final list of players available in the draft, as I may have missed something.

 

Players Available (Only players over 50 TPE represented)

 

Calgary Wranglers

(S53) C - Marc-Alexandre Leblanc, TPE: 537

(S53) RW - Motherfucker Sharpe, TPE: 504

(S54) C - Shawn Gretzky, TPE: 607

(S54) RW - JourneyMan, TPE: 195

(S56) RW - The Process, TPE: 204

(S56) D - Ho Lee Fook, TPE: 113

(S56) G - Brienne O'Tarth, TPE: 128

(S56) D - Emil Martinov, TPE: 82

 

Cologne Express

(S56) D - Aeschylus Jigglejawns CXXXVIII, TPE: 108

(S56) D - Jabby McFullO'Schmidt, TPE: 71

(S57) G - Shawn Brodeur, TPE: 324

(S57) C - Chase Keller, TPE: 423

(S57) C - Mike Szatkowski III, TPE: 60

 

Randomized Order:

1. Toronto Legion

2. Calgary Wranglers

3. Helsinki Titans

4. Seattle Bears

5. New York Americans

6. Riga Reign

7. Quebec City Meute

8. HC Davos Dynamo

 

 1. Toronto Legion: C Shawn Gretzky

To me, the first pick of this draft will be down to three players. If it’s a relatively young team or a team entering a rebuild (like Quebec), then Keller is the clear choice. If it’s a team that has an older goalie like Helsinki that has a goalie entering the depreciation side of his career, then I can see an argument for Brodeur. But for a team that’s looking to compete right now and has no eye towards the future – and really, I think this might be only Toronto and Riga – then I would expect a current top-flight player like Gretzky to be the pick.

 

Right away, Gretzky would become the best Legion player on offense by TPE, slotting in with likely Reinholdt and Boeser to create a formidable top line. In fact, it’s not hard to see where Gretzky would have made a major difference in this year’s playoffs, where Toronto’s Boeser scored 22 points in 13 games, but no other Legion player had more than 14 points or 6 goals. With Gretzky in the fold, Toronto would certainly be looking at a second or third seed in the playoffs next year, at worst.

 

 2. Calgary Wranglers: C Chase Keller

Remember, these Wranglers are the assets from the old Vikings, meaning the young team centered around players like Norris Stropko, Mats Johnsson and Boner. In this regard, Chase Keller would seem to be an absolutely perfect fit and the face of the franchise for years to come. There’s just one issue…

 

Quote

Heads up GM's, if you are thinking about drafting a player; contacting them first is still a good idea.

 

Well, that’s rather ominous. If you remember, Keller had a number of demands about what teams he wished to play for before the S57 draft, drawing the ire of some around the league. Perhaps chief among the naysayers was Bushito, now the GM of Calgary. Couple that with a situation where Keller wishes to play on a franchise his agency isn’t as familiar with—which certainly isn’t Calgary—and I wouldn’t be surprised if the Wranglers are dead last on his list of preferred teams. But with a young goalie already on the team and no use for older players like Sharpe or Leblanc, would they take the chance anyway?

 

 3. Helsinki Titans: G Shawn Brodeur

I don’t think there’s a potential better fit between team and player in this draft than if Brodeur ends up on the Titans. With a glut of goalies in the league, there aren’t many places for Brodeur to reasonably land. Helsinki, however, is one of them, with Astrid Moon the oldest goalie in the league when taking into account Quebec’s future acquisition of Marcel St-Laurent. Barring a mass goalie retirement – which actually wouldn’t surprise me, given that guys like Jacob may be left without a team in free agency and others like Mist4ke may be a backup – Helsinki may be the only place he reasonably can land.

 

And yet, Helsinki is another team that may be seeing their window of opportunity closing, given that some key players like Moon and Franchise Cornerstone are beginning to move into regression. Furthermore, the retirement of Theo Axelsson leaves an absolutely massive hole at wing on the first line. And Motherfucker Sharpe is very familiar with the Helsinki franchise and would slot into that position nicely. I don’t have Helsinki pulling the trigger in this scenario, but it’s certainly something to consider, if they’re not interested in a Moon succession plan.

 

 4. Seattle Bears: RW Motherfucker Sharpe

Another team that is looking to take a big leap this year, especially given the dissolution of conferences that saw them on the outside looking in last season, the Bears’ goal should be nabbing one of those top three playoff spots and staying out of the Wild Card game. Improved goalie play would go a long way towards that goal, but more than that, the Bears simply need offensive consistency. Right now they have a mish mash of players with different, sometimes cannibalistic, skill sets, especially given the three centers they have in Forsberg, Quill and Yu. They never quite did figure out their lines for that reason last season.

 

For that reason, I see Sharpe as a better fit than Leblanc in Seattle. While Leblanc may have more TPE, he also have a bunch of skill in face-offs, which would be a pointless skill given the current composition of the Seattle offense. Sharpe, meanwhile, is a defensive forward to his core, and his checking out be an incredible skill to pair with more finesse players like Forsberg and McAllister. His pass-first style, meanwhile, would fit quite nicely with McAllister’s tendency to shoot first and ask questions later.

 

 5. New York Americans: C Marc-Alexandre Leblanc

The Americans may claim that they’re still in the rebuilding stage, but in actuality, last season showed that they’re not that far away and can certainly hang with some of the more talented teams in the league. Especially when adding Season 58 draft picks to the mix, New York is going to be in contention for those Wild Card playoff spots, whether they add more talented players or not. In my eyes, they’re certainly ahead of at least Davos and Calgary in talent as it stands, and if Quebec commits to rebuilding, there’s your three non-playoff teams.

 

With that in mind, why not give yourself a fighting chance with the best player on the board? Leblanc isn’t a perfect fit given that the Americans already have two pure centers in Komarov and McQuack, but he’s enough of a talented player elsewhere that the Americans should be able to fit him in any given situation. Similar to Gretzky and Toronto, he would immediately become one of the most talented offensive players on the team’s first line and be expected to carry a large portion of the load. And slotted next to Fujimoto, he would have a line mate that complements his skills well. It makes a lot more sense to me than hoping a lottery ticket like Fook or Process pays off, at least.

 

 6. Riga Reign: D Ho Lee Fook

As you might be able to tell given how steeply TPE drops off a cliff after the top five, sixth is the worst spot to sit in this draft in my opinion. There are going to be some nervous people when the random draw occurs, and three teams that could certainly use the help are going to be left out in the cold. That’s what happens sometimes, though, and the three teams at the bottom will need to figure out how to turn lemons into lemonade.

 

To me, the two best lottery tickets at this point are Fook and The Process. I can certainly see an argument for the latter, especially considering that Eagles and Hedgehog seem to have a working relationship with one another forged by seasons of playing on each other’s teams. With Will’s seeming return to activity, though, the pick here is clear to me. The Reign only have two current defensemen on their roster, and a low TPE, high activity defenseman is actually probably preferable for a team trying to keep its championship-winning roster together under the salary cap. Plus, being on the defending champions could be a nice hook to make sure Will remains at full activity.

 

 7. Quebec City Meute: RW The Process

After so many seasons of GMing against one another, this would certainly be fun to see. I’m not sure whether this would actually help or hurt Eagles regaining full activity if he were no longer a GM and instead on Quebec, but Frank is one of the best GMs he could possibly ask for in that regard. This pick up would make a lot of sense too if the Meute are rebuilding, as Process is young (S56) and could still be around as a depth forward when Quebec intends to compete again in a few seasons. And if the Meute decide to suddenly reverse course and compete again for one more season, picking the highest TPE player available isn’t a bad strategy, either.

 

 8. HC Davos Dynamo: RW Journeyman

Whoever gets the last pick really gets the short end of the straw, as there really isn’t much left in terms of activity at this point. With that in mind, why not hope once again that Eagles decides to come back to full activity, with his second player on yet another team? This one is an even worse fit than The Process on Quebec, as Journeyman is an S54 player with fewer TPE on a team that’s rebuilding. The other options, though, are hoping players like O’Tarth, Martinov or Szatkowski return to activity at some point in the future, and at least Eagles has been around the board in recent days. That’s about all you’re going to get at this spot.

Edited December 7, 2017 by CowboyinAmerica

[CowboyinAmerica 2,880]

This is 2000+ words and for the weeks of 12/4, 12/11, 12/18 and 12/25 for Gabriel McAllister.

Edited December 7, 2017 by CowboyinAmerica

[Beketov 9,004]

Since you mentioned it BTW the reasoning behind keeping UFA’s out of the dispersal draft is simply that it would take their choice away to put it in. People go to Free Agency usually because they want a choice in their destination. If we included them in the dispersal draft they would lose that choice which doesn’t seem fair to them. Restricted Free Agents meanwhile (which I don’t believe there actually are any) were included because technically they were still the property of the contracted teams.

 

Also, unrelated to whether or not the draft order has been chosen: man it would be nice if Toronto actually got the first pick.

[CowboyinAmerica 2,880]

1 minute ago, Beketov said:

Since you mentioned it BTW the reasoning behind keeping UFA’s out of the dispersal draft is simply that it would take their choice away to put it in. People go to Free Agency usually because they want a choice in their destination. If we included them in the dispersal draft they would lose that choice which doesn’t seem fair to them. Restricted Free Agents meanwhile (which I don’t believe there actually are any) were included because technically they were still the property of the contracted teams.

 

Also, unrelated to whether or not the draft order has been chosen: man it would be nice if Toronto actually got the first pick.

 

Oh yeah, I totally agree with the reasoning. Does make the draft interesting since there's like no defense in that case.

[Beketov 9,004]

1 minute ago, CowboyinAmerica said:

 

Oh yeah, I totally agree with the reasoning. Does make the draft interesting since there's like no defense in that case.

It would have been fun to have them in for sure but it just doesn’t make sense. Should be interesting regardless. Like you said, top picks here could really make a difference for teams immediately if that’s what they are after.

[hedgehog337 3,483]

4 minutes ago, Beketov said:

Since you mentioned it BTW the reasoning behind keeping UFA’s out of the dispersal draft is simply that it would take their choice away to put it in. People go to Free Agency usually because they want a choice in their destination. If we included them in the dispersal draft they would lose that choice which doesn’t seem fair to them. Restricted Free Agents meanwhile (which I don’t believe there actually are any) were included because technically they were still the property of the contracted teams.

 

Also, unrelated to whether or not the draft order has been chosen: man it would be nice if Toronto actually got the first pick.

 

Idk... puting UFA into draft is more interesting. And I don't think they should lose their UFA status. If a team can't re-sign a player, he still goes to FA, ez.

[Kesler 1,514]

Not feeling those standings at all.

[Beketov 9,004]

7 minutes ago, hedgehog337 said:

 

Idk... puting UFA into draft is more interesting. And I don't think they should lose their UFA status. If a team can't re-sign a player, he still goes to FA, ez.

I agree it’s more interesting but it isn’t fair to the players. Since it’s officially the off-season they are officially Free Agents and thus not part of the teams getting contracted. I mean I guess players could claim they’d rather be in the dispersal draft if they want to but I can’t see many going for that.

 

@Higgins @Frank @Kyle (probably others but those are the obvious 3) any takers?

[Kendrick 4,741]

I don't think Calgary is dumb enough to draft me, especially since restructuring contracts will be a thing

Edited December 7, 2017 by Kendrick

[hedgehog337 3,483]

Just now, Beketov said:

I agree it’s more interesting but it isn’t fair to the players. Since it’s officially the off-season they are officially Free Agents and thus not part of the teams getting contracted. I mean I guess players could claim they’d rather be in the dispersal draft if they want to but I can’t see many going for that.

 

@Higgins @Frank @Kyle (probably others but those are the obvious 3) any takers?

 

Well, fine. The FA market actually sucked since S51 class so it also works.

[Beketov 9,004]

1 minute ago, Kendrick said:

I don't think Calgary is dumb enough to draft me, especially since restructuring contracts will be a thing

Subtle haha

 

FWIW I’m sure Toronto would love to have you.

[Kendrick 4,741]

15 minutes ago, Beketov said:

Subtle haha

 

FWIW I’m sure Toronto would love to have you.

Just saying, doesn't make much sense for them to grab a rental through a rebuild.

[Kyle 667]

I'd like to remain a free agent. But if you want to put our rights up on the board feel free, but I don't think an extra day or whatever to discuss contracts will be much help.

Edited December 7, 2017 by Kyle

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

1 hour ago, Kendrick said:

Just saying, doesn't make much sense for them to grab a rental through a rebuild.

 

A trade chip to a team you would actually play for.

[Kendrick 4,741]

3 minutes ago, KGR said:

 

A trade chip to a team you would actually play for.

As mentioned before, re-structuring of contract would happen regardless. So essentially it would be out of their hands

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

1 minute ago, Kendrick said:

As mentioned before, re-structuring of contract would happen regardless. So essentially it would be out of their hands

 

Bushito would take you for the sole purpose of trading you. It makes sense, whether restructuring was gonna happen or not. The thing is that you would finish your rookie deal though as it was stated.

[Kendrick 4,741]

1 minute ago, KGR said:

 

Bushito would take you for the sole purpose of trading you. It makes sense, whether restructuring was gonna happen or not. The thing is that you would finish your rookie deal though as it was stated.

As discussed in the BOD though those players on rookie deals would still be able to re-structure as forcing them to stay with teams that they never originally signed their contract with would be a huge negative for the league. Let's not forget the players in dispersal never asked to be there as they were committed to their teams. Not to mention, even a trade would be dictated by the player as "a team they would like to go to" would be the place they get traded to or the GM ends up biting themselves in the foot for drafting someone not staying long -term. It think you might think that the cards are solely in the GM's draftings hands, when they actually lean more to the player than anything.

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

1 minute ago, Kendrick said:

As discussed in the BOD though those players on rookie deals would still be able to re-structure as forcing them to stay with teams that they never originally signed their contract with would be a huge negative for the league. Let's not forget the players in dispersal never asked to be there as they were committed to their teams. Not to mention, even a trade would be dictated by the player as "a team they would like to go to" would be the place they get traded to or the GM ends up biting themselves in the foot for drafting someone not staying long -term. It think you might think that the cards are solely in the GM's draftings hands, when they actually lean more to the player than anything.

 

Quote

The Dispersal Draft

All current players, prospects, and RFA's of the removed teams will be placed in a special dispersal draft. The draft order will be completely randomized as a list. There will be no special weighting so every team has an equal shot at top picks. This draft will begin today, prior to the actual VHL draft and free-agency - due to that time constraint we are not going to do the draft live but rather in the GM forum and then it will be publicly posted. 

 

All players on rookie contracts drafted will have their contracts carried over in its entirety to the team that drafted them. All other players drafted will be signed to a 1-season contract with the team that drafted them, therefore allowing them to re-negotiate it or choose not to. 

 

As posted by Will himself.

Edited December 7, 2017 by KGR

[Kendrick 4,741]

Just now, KGR said:

 

 

As posted by Will himself.

Yes and as I stated above (which you may not have read) that portion is still being discussed. See even when the BOD does leak stuff people don't pay attention haha

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

1 minute ago, Kendrick said:

Yes and as I stated above (which you may not have read) that portion is still being discussed. See even when the BOD does leak stuff people don't pay attention haha

 

Why post a finalized version of something, just to edit it later with different things? It don't matter anyways as Bushito doesn't have the first pick in the dispersal draft. I am certain whoever does would probably take you.

[Kendrick 4,741]

2 minutes ago, KGR said:

 

Why post a finalized version of something, just to edit it later with different things? It don't matter anyways as Bushito doesn't have the first pick in the dispersal draft. I am certain whoever does would probably take you.

Well considering there is more in that paragraph being discussed as well, I think it's to inform people.

 

I know it doesn't matter as I've seen the order of it and given who is first they now might be passing on me anyways.

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

3 minutes ago, Kendrick said:

Well considering there is more in that paragraph being discussed as well, I think it's to inform people.

 

I know it doesn't matter as I've seen the order of it and given who is first they now might be passing on me anyways.

 

I doubt any team who got first with you in it would pass on you tbh.

[Kendrick 4,741]

1 minute ago, KGR said:

 

I doubt any team who got first with you in it would pass on you tbh.

I don't doubt it actually. Knowing the PM's i've been getting from the GM's.

[Da Trifecta 1,896]

3 minutes ago, Kendrick said:

I don't doubt it actually. Knowing the PM's i've been getting from the GM's.

 

Guess we will have to see in a few hours.

[Kendrick 4,741]