Leon Gutzwiler - Definitely Going to the Hall of Fame

[DaftRaincloud 62]

(2x theme week bonus) 584 words. @Gwdjohnson

 

Leon Gutzwiler. The name alone strikes fear into the hearts of men. The name "Gutzwiler" traveling through locker rooms like the cold wind of death. A man who's status exceeds his stature. The type of hockey player who will have not one, but multiple statues carved in his honor. Leaguewide jersey retirement? Definitely not out of the question. Actually, I'm going to guarantee that one day it will happen. The Minnesota Storm are having a historic season this year, and a large driving force behind that success is the first forward line, centered by Leon Gutzwiler with two elite scoring threats - his brother, Gabriel, on his left and Dick Cheezy on his right. 

 

In just his second season in the VHLM Leon is putting up a 97 point campaign, a majority of his points coming off of assists showcasing his elite playmaking abilities. I will now compare the stats of Leon's sophomore campaign to those of some recent centers that have been inducted into the hall of fame. Keep in mind that this season still has not been completed, so it's possible if not likely that Leon's point total will improve from where it currently stands, perhaps to 100 points or beyond.

 

First up - Lukas Muller. Lukas was the most recently inducted center that there was a full write-up available for so for the sake of simplicity that is where I will start. In Muller's second year he put up a point total of 102. He had 11 more assists than Leon currently has, but had 6 fewer goals. If Leon can maintain or improve his scoring output to reach the herculean 136 point season high for Muller I believe that there will be no argument against him being inducted into the hall.

 

Next - Franchise Cornerstone. Cornerstone had only one year in the VHLM, but he lived up to his namesake with this campaign. He put up 125 points. And while this is clearly more than what Leon currently has, Leon is on pace to potentially beat this point total if he spends another year in the VHLM next season with more experience under his belt. His record setting minor league outing saw Cornerstone dish out 64 assists, which is only 9 more than Gutzwiler's current assist tally. 

 

The last hall of fame center we will look at is Aleksi Koponen. In Aleksi's first season his point total was exactly where Leon currently sits, but Leon has 14 more goals than Aleksi had (Aleksi therefore with more assists). These point totals show both of these players at their rawest - the beginning of their careers. If Leon is currently bang on with the points that a hall of fame level center had at the same part of his career - it posits that Leon himself is then also on a collision course with the VHL hall of fame. 

 

Knowing Leon and his dedication to improving his level of play and finding the best strategies and tactics to maximize his abilities, I have no doubt in my mind that instead of following the current trajectory that he is on (which, even if he did, would be impressive), he will instead change his trajectory, increasing his efforts along the way and turning that 45 degree line into a 90 degree line and take his production all the way to the moon. By the time the last page of Leon's book has been turned it will be indisputable that he belongs in the annals of the hall of fame.