Rambling About VHL Expansion

[Jubo 1,839]

Arguments have been made on both sides of the case for VHLM expansion. There are currently 11 teams who can provide ice time to 20 players. Of those 11 teams there are 30+ open roster spots if each team was to ice 18 skaters and 2 goalies. It has been discussed that new recruits would not want to play 3rd or 4th line minutes, or for a goalie to play a handful of games for their first season as the backup. So how many spots are realistically available? After the announcement of two more VHL franchises it will be interesting to see how the pro league can manage having one more team than that in the minors. There are more and more 180 TPE+ players each season compared to when I joined in season 62. The issue that may become more clear is these members burning a year of their pro careers by remaining in the minors to avoid playing on the bottom six in the majors. The obvious benefit is having the opportunity to be a top line player in the minors. Will this trend bloat the minor league with maxed out returning players as opposed to new recruits? Should the TPE limit be slightly raised? I believe the answers will become more obvious next season as we observe how having a pro league of 12 teams fill out their rosters and if the roster availability in the minors experiences more of a squeeze.

Extra VHL.com article for this week. Claiming article for +1 and bonus +1 for completing both theme tasks.