VHLM Insight - A Look Inside The VHLM (Pre-30 GP Mark)

[AcousticKazoo 73]

 

In the first installment of VHLM Insight, we will take a look at the top two teams in the league, the team sitting comfortably at the bottom, and give an honorable mention. 

 

We're approaching the 30 games played mark in the VHLM, and the field is starting to take shape. The picture is becoming a bit clearer as teams that are dominating, teams that are in the middle of the pack, and teams who are falling out of playoff contention are settling in on the standings bracket.

 

The teams who make up the Top 5 are Philadelphia, Ottawa, Minnesota, Halifax, and Houston - each having less than 10 loses and coming in well above .500 in terms of wins and loses. Yukon currently sits in the sixth position, and is the only other team outside of the Top 5 to be above .500; the remaining five teams all sit well below. The exception to this is Saskatoon, who is only a few games back from evening out their average, and could potentially get it together to be above .500 at some point in the season.

 

THE TWO TITANS OF THE VHLM

 

Philadelphia currently sits on top of the VHLM with 47 points, and a record of 23-3-1. The Reapers leading scorer is Center Alex Pearson, who has 24 goals and 22 assists for a points total of 46. Pearson also leads the VHLM in goals. Defenseman Brandon LeBlanc leads the team in assists, with 33, but also currently sits 4th on the Reapers for goals with 12. LeBlanc also leads the league in assists, and is also sitting atop the league for Defensemen. Goalie Fang Flashback holds an impressive record of 22-2-0, a 2.16 Goals Against Average, with 5 Shutouts and a Save Percentage of .883. Flashback is number one in the league for wins, and has three assists, the most for any goalie in the league. With the help from their spectacular goalie, and their powerful offensive performance, it is easy to see why the Reapers are sitting atop the standings.

 

Ottawa finds themselves in second place with 43 points, two games behind the Reapers, with a record of 21-5-1. Center Zeno Minti leads the Lynx in both goals and assists, 20 and 29 respectively, for 49 points which is also the best on the team. Left Winger Anthony Hawk holds second place in points for the team at 41, and is probably one of the deadliest on the ice with his impressive 112 hits. Goalie Raymond Bernard has a record of 17-3-0, a Save Percentage of .87, 1 Shutout, and a Goals Against Average of 2.74. With the strong play from Minti and Hawk, look for Ottawa to stay on the heels of the Reapers in the coming week. 

 

STARTING AT THE BOTTOM

 

Sitting in the very last spot for the league is the Mississauga Hounds, who hold a record of 5-21-1 with 11 points. There's not a single player on the Hounds roster who has a positive -/+ rating, with the exception of one player who has only played a total of three games. You could blame the abysmal record on schedule strength, maybe. It's hard to win games when your leading goal scorer has only 7 goals in the 27 games they have played, and the rest of the offense isn't getting enough chances to help produce. Maybe some trades could help correct the ship on this team, time will tell, but

for now they looked to be destined to sit at the bottom of the pack. 

 

HONORABLE MENTION

 

It's worth noting the play from the Minnesota Storm, who currently hold the third place spot in the standings at a record of 20-6-1, sitting one game behind Ottawa with 41 points. Defenseman Kefka Palazzo leads the team with 44 points, and also leads in assists with 30. Left Winger Berocka Sundqvist leading the team in goals with 20. Goalie Justin Cole has a 20-6-1 record, an impressive 7 Shutouts, and an equally impressive .899 Save Percentage. Cole leads the league for goalies in Goals Against Average (1.91), Shutouts (7), and comes in second for Goals Against Average (0.899). Sitting one game back from Ottawa, look for the landscape to change when it comes to the Top Three Teams in the VHLM.

 

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