Unsung heroes: Jacob Perry

[Seabass 593]

 

UNSUNG HEROES: Jacob Perry

 

This season hasn't been all too great for the Prague Phantoms, but nobody was expecting them to be doing well either. All that was expected of this young squad was an improvement over last season where they finished only ahead of the D.C. Dragons in the VHL Standings with 55 points.  Considering the team is currently sitting at 59 points with three games left to play, I'd say that goal is accomplished. They also leapfrogged HC Davos in the standings, which means the Phantoms are a little further away from being the absolute worst team in the VHL with the D.C. Dragons also poised to finish below them in the standings once again.

 

While last year's team featured a total of 9 rookie players making their debuts, this year's only featured 3 of them. Most of the media attention has been sent towards last year's 1st overall VHL Entry Draft selection, Cinnamon Block who's a favorite to win this year's rookie of the year due to being 2nd in rookie scoring and having good defensive numbers. But today I want to talk about the Phantom's other rookie defender, Jacob Perry. 

 

Perry was drafted in season 68 with the Prague's 38th overall selection. Perry elected to play in the VHLM and further develop in S68 but he was always bringing coffee over to his future locker room in Prague shooting the shit with his future teammates. Perry made a point to stay involved with the organisation and stayed in touch with the guys while he was playing in the minors. So, by the time he made the jump this season to the big leagues, everyone already knew Perry pretty well and his adjustment period in the Phantoms locker room was pretty non-existent as he was already tight with the boys in purp. 

 

Today Perry is one of the most active voices in the Phantoms locker room and is showing all the signs of being a good leader for the team. His fitness level is pretty hard to keep up with as he's at the gym all the time working on getting faster and stronger on the ice, setting a good example for his teammates. 

 

"Perry is somewhat of a fitness nut. The boys sometime go out drinking till 2 as most young men do, Perry however usually dissapears early in the night as he's so committed to his fitness that he usually only tends to limit himself to 2 drinks. But, he also pushes you to be just as committed. I don't know how many times I've woken up hungover after a late night to Perry blowing up my phone trying to get my lazy ass to the gym with him. He's a good motivator, i'll give you that." -Seabass Perrin, Phantom's defenseman

 

Last season Perry had a fantastic finish to his VHLM career by finishing 10th overall in scoring by a defenseman with 73 points in 72 games. He also managed to score 34 goals which is great for a defenseman. This season in a limited role Perry has fared pretty well for a rookie defender. Okay, he's not matching his offensive numbers from the VHLM but nobody expected those mind blowing numbers in the big leagues. Perry has only managed 22 points so far but considering he's not getting powerplay time and playing on the team's 2nd and 3rd pairings that's not half bad as he's tied with Perrin for 3rd in defenseman scoring on the Phantoms. He also hasn't really been a liability on defense, he's played pretty well and I anticipate that Perry will probably have a breakout season next year as I assume he'll start getting powerplay time and that's where Perry seems to do magic as he lead the VHLM with 21 Powerplay goals in his last season with the Reapers. 

 

"Im casting my vote for Perry to be nominated as our unsung hero as he's been the perfect teammate and I think he doesn't get enough media attention. He was a sleeper pick since we selected him at the draft and he's absolutely gonna take off next season I think. Good work out there Perry." @Liberty_Cabbage

 -Seabass Perrin

 

[Seabass 593]

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