John Poremba: VHLM MVP

[DMaximus 1,046]

There was a recent discussion around the merits of the case for Philadelphia Reaper goalie John Poremba to be named VHLM MVP this season.  There were some counter points made by detractors. I’d like to make the case for him winning the Mitch Higgins Trophy (League MVP) and the Benoit Devereux Trophy (Best Goalie).

 

We’ll get the Benoit Devereux out of the way, because that’s about as straightforward as it gets. Poremba won the Devereux last season with a .904 SV%. Really impressive. Poremba will finish this season with a .921 SV% and that is while facing over 1,000 more shots than last season! A .921 SV% is the highest SV% since season 50 when Apollo Skye had a .927 SV%. Skye faced over 1,350 fewer shots than Poremba, a stat which makes Poremba’s all the more impressive.

 

Compared to his peers this season, Poremba’s closest competitors have a .896 SV%. He’s faced almost 500 more shots than any other goalie and over 1,000 shots more than either of the goalies with a .896 SV%. He’s been so much more dominant than any other goalie for the entire season and has improved his performance from his award-winning standard set last season. He should easily win the Devereux again this season.

 

Reason 1: Statistical Superiority

 

Poremba’s consistency in the face of so many shots is unprecedented in the history of the league. That is why he deserves the MVP award as well. No goalie in the history of the VHLM has ever performed as well under these circumstances. Here’s his stats for the season.

Season	GP	W	L	OTL	SV%	GAA	SO	GA	SA	MP
73 (PHI)	68	25	42	1	0.921	3.21	7	219	2770	4097

 

Poremba faced 2,770 shots this season. Here’s the stats from all goalies who have faced over 2,750 shots in a season sorted most recent first.

 

Name	Season	GP	W	L	OTL	SV%	GAA	SO	GA	SA	MP
John Poremba	73 (PHI)	68	25	42	1	0.921	3.21	7	219	2770	4097
Calvin Harvey	72 (SDM)	72	10	60	2	0.889	4.45	3	321	2890	4329
Jean Pierre Camus	72 (YUK)	72	21	47	4	0.906	3.69	3	267	2847	4346
Hex Valentine	70 (HFX)	72	20	50	2	0.876	4.83	0	344	2769	4275
Devin Fox	58 (SSK)	72	4	64	3	0.88	7.2	0	491	4104	4094
Emil Woods	58 (OSL)	72	40	30	2	0.89	4.83	1	345	3133	4287
Revan Gotze	53 (BER)	72	8	58	6	0.89	4.74	1	332	3019	4205
Our Lady of Perpetual Motion	53 (BRT)	72	9	62	1	0.912	3.68	1	263	3001	4288
Chris Fekete	46 (YUK)	72	10	55	7	0.886	4.47	0	321	2826	4310

 

 

Poremba leads everyone in that list in SV%, GAA, and shutouts. This evidence dispels the notion that Poremba’s statistics are artificially inflated because of the number of shots he faced. In fact, it shows how amazing his stats are despite the number of shots faced. It shows that his performance this season is unrivaled by a goalie in the history of the VHLM. This historic performance should be rewarded with the MVP trophy.

 

Reason 2: Value to team

 

Last season, season 72, Philadelphia Reaper management made a decision to go “all-in” to win the Founder’s Cup. They mortgaged much of their future as part of the all-in move. This meant they had almost no picks in the season 73 draft (their first selection was in round 5) and almost no remaining players on their roster. For the majority of the season. Philadelphia had 3 active players on their roster, Poremba, 5^th round pick Darius Marimoto, and early waiver pickup Carson Walkers. Poremba had no supporting cast. It was all him all the time. He took the weight of that role and excelled in it. Thanks to his efforts, Philadelphia made the playoffs this season. Without Pormeba in between the pipes, there is no way Philadelphia would have made the playoffs. He carried the team on his back into the playoffs. That is a performance worthy of winning the MVP award.

 

 

There are a lot of factors and a lot of reasons to name someone MVP. To me, Statistical performance and value to team are the two most important factors. Poremba has demonstrated his excellence in both of these categories. That is why he should win both Mitch Higgins Trophy (League MVP) and the Benoit Devereux Trophy (Best Goalie).