VHLM Insight Vol. III - Looking Towards The Playoffs!

AcousticKazoo · August 12, 2019

We are nearing the end of the 67th season here in the VHLM, with about a dozen games or so left on the schedule it's going to be nothing short of interesting as we get ever closer to that final game of the season. Last week didn't bode too well for us, as the possible scenarios we laid out between Minnesota and Houston didn't pan out the way we had originally thought; However, hindsight is 20/20, and we will yet again look to harness the powers of the crystal ball as we try to predict yet again a possible shuffle in the standings.

WHAT WE KNOW..KIND OF

If there is one thing we can almost for certain, without a doubt, guarantee...is that Minnesota will finish out the season in the third place spot. This is almost a certainty, as they currently are riding a hot streak of four games, and are 10 points ahead of the fourth place Yukon Rush. Yukon is the only team that could really threaten Minnesota and overtake them for the third place spot, but honestly it doesn't seem feasible as it is far too late in the season to catch up. The San Diego Marlins will probably stay in the seventh place spot they are at in the standings, being 21 points behind sixth place Houston, and 12 points ahead of eighth place Las Vegas, it appears they will ride out the remainder of the games looking to expand that gap between them and the Aces.

KEEPING PLAYOFF HOPES ALIVE

While Philadelphia and Ottawa are busy battling it out for the top spot in the league, which will delve into a bit, one thing to keep an eye on is that coveted eighth place spot. As mentioned before, Las Vegas currently sits in that spot with 39 points. Which means for the time being they are in the playoffs if the season ended today. It's not ending today, and there are enough games left that they could see their playoff dreams shattered by the team sitting only two points behind them, Saskatoon Wild.

Both of these teams are coming off a loss in OT which could be considered a missed opportunity for both clubs; Had Vegas won, they would have expanded the distance between them and Saskatoon, while on the flip side, had the Wild won, they would have closed it. Still, being separate by two points this late in the season where teams are trying to gain points to get further up the standings to have a better match-up in the playoffs makes this one item to watch out for in the coming games.

THE BATTLE FOR FIRST

The two juggernauts of the league, Philadelphia and Ottawa, have been in a close fought battle for the top spot practically all season, with the Reapers clinging to that top spot for the majority. At one point, Ottawa was only a single point behind, and now find themselves two points ahead with a game in hand of the Reapers.

This is likely to change, as Ottawa would need to win the majority, if not all of the remainder of their games, while Philadelphia would need to lose the majority of theirs. This is all just taking into consideration the points left up for grabs to solidify the first place spot. It is really anyone's game at this point, and don't be surprised if the two swap places over the last few games before the dust finally settles on who is top dog.

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM...

Last time, we predicted that it would be entirely possible to creep up on Minnesota and overtake them for the third spot in the league. Not only did this not happen, Houston fell from the fourth spot and down into the sixth spot. It looks like we may have jinxed the Bulls in their hunt for third, and we'd like to offer a sincere apology if you are superstitious. Although, Houston will most likely not fall any further than the sixth spot, but do have a chance to move up to the fifth spot if they can chain some wins together heading into the playoffs.

IN CONCLUSION

The last handful of games are going to cement where certain teams land themselves for the playoff seeding, while others who remain well outside the realm of even having a chance in the playoffs are looking to play upset and shake up the seeding a bit. Some things to look for heading into the final stretch will be teams experimenting with new line changes to find that extra spark heading into the playoffs, and where the middle of the pack end up come seasons end. Until next time, thank you for reading, and we will see you in the VHLM Playoffs!

THE CRYSTAL BALL PLAYOFF PICTURE

We are going to lay it out all on the line and be a bit ballsy here for a moment. We're going to look into the possible match-ups for the first round, and keep in mind, this is all guess work at this point - somewhat. If you'd like to join in on the conversation, post your first round match-ups in the comments.

#1 Ottawa Lynx v. #8 Las Vegas Aces
#2 Philadelphia Reapers v. #7 San Diego Marlins
#3 Minnesota Storm v. #6 Halifax 21st
#4 Yukon Rush v. #5 Houston Bulls

Word Count: 896, using for PT week 8/25