(S62 Class) Fredinamijs Krigars [1/2]

[Quik 4,113]

C - Fredinamijs Krigars

Birthplace: Nereta, Latvia
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 210 lbs
Jersey Number: 43

Drafted: QUE (2/11)

Username: @hedgehog337

 

It is not often that a player is inducted into the VHL Hall of Fame without playing a full 8-season career; in the past 15 seasons of inductees, only 3 other players have managed the feat. Even rarer is the non-first round drafted player, as you need to go all the way back to the S33 draft to find someone drafted outside the first round that is now in the Hall of Fame! Fredinamijs Krigars (Pronounced: Fred-in-ahm-is Kree-gahrs), in that context, is a VHL unicorn! Taken in the 2nd round of the S53 VHL Entry Draft, 11th Overall, by the Quebec Meute, Krigars returned to the VHLM, for a second season with the Yukon Rush, before being acquired at the deadline by the Riga Reign, where he would go on to star in his native Latvia!

 Awards

S56 Dustin Funk Trophy - Most Improved
S57 Mike Szatkowski Trophy - Most Points
S57 Brett Slobodzian Trophy - Most Outstanding Player
S57 Continental Cup - VHL Champions (RIG)
S58 Mike Szatkowski Trophy - Most Points 
S58 Alexander Beketov Trophy - Most Assists 
S58 Continental Cup - VHL Champions (RIG)

Season 54

VHL REGULAR SEASON 
S54(RIG) 72GP | 38G - 45A - 83P | +18 | 603SHT | 73HIT | 9SB | 12GWG
VHL PLAYOFFS
S54(RIG) 5GP | 2G - 0A - 2P | -2 | 17SHT | 5HIT | 0SB | 1GWG

After being acquired by the Riga Reign, the team that Krigars agent, Benjamin Zeptenbergs, was General Manager of, during the S53 Trade Deadline, the Latvian Leader made his debut in Season 54! The Reign were coming off their first playoff miss since Season 48, and were looking to return to their S51 glory days when they won just the 2nd Continental Cup in franchise history! Alongside Guntis Petenis, Elijah Dotran, and fellow rookie Marc-Alexandre Leblanc, Fredinamijs (Fred for short) put up a spectacular rookie campaign, posting 38 goals, and 45 assists, for 83 points in his inaugural season. Unfortunately for Fred, some guy named John Locke, who would have been his teammate had Krigars not been traded from Quebec, lead all freshmen that year with 43 goals and 87 points, to take the Stolzschweiger Trophy out of Fred's hands. Still, the Reign managed to finish 3rd in the European conference, and 5th overall, to qualify for the VHL's Continental Cup Playoffs. Unfortunately for Krigars, his Reign ran into the red hot Helsinki Titans, and were dispatched relatively quickly, as the Titans would take the series in 5 games en route to winning their first of back to back Continental Cups.

 

Season 55

VHL REGULAR SEASON 
S55(RIG) 72GP | 33G - 30A - 63P | -42 | 451SHT | 104HIT | 49SB | 6GWG

Riga, and Fred in particular, took their quick exit harder than most expected, as Season 55 was a down year for both player and team. Krigars would see the worst numbers of his career, finishing the season with 33 goals, 30 assists, for 63 points, and a -42 plus/minus rating. The Reign, a team purposefully taking a step back, fell to 4th in the European Conference, finishing with less than half the amount of points as they did in S54. However, it was just a small blip on the path to a Hall of Fame career!

 

Season 56

VHL REGULAR SEASON
S56(RIG) 72GP | 50G - 69A - 119P | +51 | 536SHT | 132HIT | 31SB | 8GWG
VHL PLAYOFFS
S56(RIG) 6GP | 2G - 3A - 5P | -4 | 42SHT | 11HIT | 2SB | 0GWG
AWARDS
Dustin Funk Trophy - Most Improved 

In Season 56, the Nightmare from Nereta truly arrived! After an off-season that saw the Reign bolster their roster with some much needed veteran influence, Riga took the league by storm. Finishing 4th in league scoring, Fredinamijs formed a dynamic duo with Essian Ravenwing, leading the Reign to top spot in the VHL Regular Season standings. For his performance in the regular season, more than doubling his previous season's point totals, Fred was awarded the Dustin Funk Trophy as the league's Most Improved Player. In the playoffs, the Reign took home-ice advantage into the European Conference Finals, after receiving a bye through the first round. Playing host to the Davos Dynamo, the experienced Riga team had a much better time in the playoffs than their previous trip, including Fred putting up 5 points in the series, as opposed to just 2 in his first taste of playoff action. However, sometimes you have to learn to lose, before you can learn to win, and the Reign were on the wrong end of a 6-game series, playing there final game of the season in Switzerland.

 

Season 57

VHL REGULAR SEASON
S57(RIG) 72GP | 66G - 81A - 147P | +89 | 633SHT | 131HIT | 30SB | 6GWG 
VHL PLAYOFFS
S57(RIG) 11GP | 10G - 16A - 26P | +11 | 69SHT | 20HIT | 3SB | 3GWG
AWARDS
Mike Szatkowski Trophy - Most Points
Brett Slobodzian Trophy - Most Outstanding Player 
Continental Cup - VHL Champions (RIG)

Following their Conference Final disappointment, the Riga Reign made perhaps the best acquisition their franchise has ever made, bringing in the Batman to Fred's Superman. John Locke, who had some questions arise about his off-ice work ethic (which were soon to be answered in their own right) was acquired in the off-season from Davos, who had received him as a cap casualty from Quebec. At the time, nobody knew what the two had in store for the league, as they would become the greatest duo of a generation! Krigars and Locke would go on to be a pair that teams could only dream of, as they would run roughshod over the league, finishing 1-2 in both goals and points, in the league, while the Reign would finish 19 points ahead of the next best team in the VHL! For his part, Fred posted 66 goals and 81 assists, both 2nd in the leauge, for an incredible 147 points, winning him the Mike Szatowski Trophy as the league's leading scorer. His efforts also won him the Brett Slobodzian Trophy, as the league's Most Outstanding Player, as voted by his peers. In the playoffs, Krigars, Locke, and the Reign made quick work of a resurgent Helsinki squad, defeating them in a 5-game Conference Final series. In the Continental Cup Final, Riga drew reining Champion Quebec City, and would not be stopped, taking the series in 6-games, ending it in enemy territory! Krigars continued his dominance in the playoffs, netting 10 goals and 16 assists, impressive numbers that were only topped by Locke's 13 goals and 14 assists in post-season play.

 

Season 58

VHL REGULAR SEASON
S58(RIG) 72GP | 50G - 76A - 126P | +45 | 534SHT | 105HIT | 39SB | 7GWG
VHL PLAYOFFS
S58(RIG) 11GP | 5G - 10A - 15P | +7 | 67SHT | 11HIT | 5SB | 0GWG
AWARDS
Mike Szatkowski Trophy - Most Points
Alexander Beketov Trophy - Most Assists
Continental Cup - VHL Champions (RIG)

Season 58 saw more of the same from Krigars and Locke, as the Hall of Fame duo continued to own the league. Finishing 1-2 in league scoring once again, the Reign repeated as Victory Cup Champs, 4 points ahead of the Toronto Legion. Krigars finished first in the league in both assists (76) and points (126) to take home the Alexander Beketov and Mike Szatkowski Trophies. In the playoffs, the league's new one-conference structure threw a new kink into the Semi-Final, as Riga would take on the New York Americans. They would once again make quick work of their first playoff opponent, winning the series in 5 games, before moving on for a Finals match-up against the Seattle Bears! Things went very much the same as the last meeting, as Riga once again won the Continental Cup on North American soil, defeating the Bears in 6 games! Krigars and Locke continued their dominant play into the post-season, with Krigars finding twine 5 times in 11 games, and finishing with 15 points during the Continental Cup tournament!

 

Season 59

VHL REGULAR SEASON
S59(RIG) 72GP | 43G - 57A - 100P | +38 | 430SHT | 74HIT | 49SB | 9GWG
VHL PLAYOFFS
S59(RIG) 3GP | 1G - 3A - 4P | -2 | 18SHT | 3HIT | 0SB | 1GWG

When you catch lightning in a bottle, it can only be contained for so long; while the Reign entered Season 59 with hopes of achieving the ever-elusive 3-peat as Continental Cup victories, age and a decision to split the Krigars-Locke combo up caught up to them. Riga ended the season with just 82 points, a far cry from the 117 they earned the season prior, but, still enough to claim the final Wild Card spot, where they would face an upstart Seattle squad. During the regular season, Fred was still a force, as he put up 43 goals and 100 points, good enough to finish 4th and tied for 5th, league-wide! It was a great season, but not quite what the Hall of Famer had become used to during his 3-season peak. In the playoffs, Krigars put up a valiant effort in trying to return his Reign to the Semi-Final round, posting a goal and 2 assists in the first game of the 3-game Wild Card Series, to put Riga up 1-0. However, the Bears proved too much in the remaining 2 games, as Krigars could only manage a single assist, and the Reign would bow out to the would-be Champs.

 

Season 60

VHL REGULAR SEASON
S60(RIG) 72GP | 52G - 48A - 100P | +9 | 565SHT | 5HIT | 43SB | 4GWG

Following a disappointing season in 59, the Reign looked at Season 60 with an eye to the future. John Locke left through Free Agency, and the team shipped out most of its remaining veterans to various contenders throughout the league. The lone constant, loyal to the team from his country's Capital, was Fredinamijs Krigars, the Nightmare from Nereta. Going into his final season of VHL action, and having already accomplished everything there was to accomplish in the VHL, Krigars decided that he would remain in Riga, finishing his career with the team he started on, never wearing another jersey in VHL play. Looking to finish strong, Fred put up 52 goals, and broke the century mark in points for his 5th, and final time, finishing 2 points ahead of old teammate, John Locke, for 10th place in league scoring! Unfortunately, his efforts were not enough, as Riga finished the season with 67 points, 8 behind the 5th-placed HC Davos Dynamo.

 

Career Overview

Superstars are defined as high-profile, and extremely successful athletes. Nobody could have predicted what was to come when he was drafted 11th Overall by Quebec, or even when he was first traded to Riga; but during his career, there wasn't a fan in the VHL who did not know the name Fredinamijs Krigars! With an incredible 2-season peak, where he notched 273 points - 20 more than the next highest scorer in that time - it is no wonder that Krigars was able to enter the Hall of Fame as a player with less than a full-VHL career! The individual trophies and achievements, the Continental Cup victories, and the professionalism with which he approached the game are all the parts that lead to Krigars being one of the best of his generation! A true superstar in the Victory Hockey League, Fredinamijs Krigars is now, and forever will be, enshrined in the VHL Hall of Fame!

 

 

VHL REGULAR SEASON
S54(RIG)  72GP |  38G -  45A -  83P |  +18 |  603SHT |  73HIT |   9SB | 12GWG
S55(RIG)  72GP |  33G -  30A -  63P |  -42 |  451SHT | 104HIT |  49SB |  6GWG
S56(RIG)  72GP |  50G -  69A - 119P |  +51 |  536SHT | 132HIT |  31SB |  8GWG
S57(RIG)  72GP |  66G -  81A - 147P |  +89 |  633SHT | 131HIT |  30SB |  6GWG
S58(RIG)  72GP |  50G -  76A - 126P |  +45 |  534SHT | 105HIT |  39SB |  7GWG
S59(RIG)  72GP |  43G -  57A - 100P |  +38 |  430SHT |  74HIT |  49SB |  9GWG
S60(RIG)  72GP |  52G -  48A - 100P |   +9 |  565SHT |   5HIT |  43SB |  4GWG
TOTAL    504GP | 332G - 406A - 738P | +208 | 3752SHT | 624HIT | 250SB | 52GWG

VHL PLAYOFFS
S54(RIG)   5GP |  2G -  0A -  2P |  -2 |  17SHT |  5HIT |  0SB | 1GWG
S56(RIG)   6GP |  2G -  3A -  5P |  -4 |  42SHT | 11HIT |  2SB | 0GWG
S57(RIG)  11GP | 10G - 16A - 26P | +11 |  69SHT | 20HIT |  3SB | 3GWG
S58(RIG)  11GP |  5G - 10A - 15P |  +7 |  67SHT | 11HIT |  5SB | 0GWG
S59(RIG)   3GP |  1G -  3A -  4P |  -2 |  18SHT |  3HIT |  0SB | 1GWG
TOTAL     36GP | 20G - 32A - 52P | +10 | 213SHT | 50HIT | 10SB | 5GWG

 

>2200 words, claiming for weeks ending: Nov 11, 18, 25, Dec 02

[Quik 4,113]

W/E Nov 18; Bailey

[hedgehog337 3,480]

On 11/2/2018 at 8:44 PM, Quik said:

before moving on for a repeat match-up against Quebec! Things went very much the same as the last meeting, as Riga once again won the Continental Cup on Canadian soil, defeating the Meute in 6 games!

 

Seattle Bears though

[Quik 4,113]

W/E Dec 02 - Bailey

[Quik 4,113]

W/E Dec. 09 - Final Claim for Bailey

[DollarAndADream 3,356]

Review:

Krigars. What a player he ended up being, especially after him and Locke found the chemistry that they did.

They both destroyed the league and it was unexpected by everyone. I definitely didn't have fun against them while in Toronto.

Great article for the HoF, and what a player he became.