San Diego Replenishes Roster Thanks to Efficient Draft

[fromtheinside 1,290]

San Diego Replenishes Roster Thanks to Efficient Draft

Charlie LaFlemme- VHLM Beat Writer

 

The much anticipated Season 75 VHLM Dispersal Draft has finally come and gone and there's no end of talking points to go over. There were winners, losers, and plenty of teams who fell somewhere in the middle. Among the teams that were longing for an overhaul this offseason were the San Diego Marlins. Coming off a forgettable Season 74 campaign, the Marlins were primed to "restock their coffers" in the draft, having accumulated numerous extra picks via trade. When it was all said and done and the dust clearled, the Marlins will be welcoming 16 new players to camp this fall. Let's take a look at how they did...

 

1st Round

Cowboy Prout - D - 1st Overall @Prout

The Marlins were boasting the first overall pick in the draft and there was plenty of speculation as to who they would take. Moments before their pick was made official, Assistant General Manager @IamMOOSEKevin King expressed that the Marlins were looking to bolster their blue line, and he thought that there was some great first-gen top end talent to be had, but was also worried about the major drop off in defensive talent after the first couple of rounds. That being said, the Marlins (to many people's surprise) took "The Sheriff" Cowboy Prout first overall in this year's draft. Prout has been touted as one of many elite first-gen talents to come out of the S74 rookie pool. While many may have had Jolly Greene Giant as their top rated D-man because of his superior TPE, the Marlins were confident in their choice, opting for a younger player who has known to be active in during his short stay in the community. Prout was said to be beaming after hearing his name be called first overall. He will have much to prove this coming season, but the San Diego brass seem confident he can fit the bill! And the Marlins were just getting warmed up....

 

Scotty Kaberle -D- 2nd Overall @fromtheinside

The next pick in the draft belonged to the Minnesota Storm, however before Storm management took the stage to announce their pick, Draft Host Spartan announced a shocker. The Marlins opted to send 3 S76 draft picks (SDM 1st, LVA 3rd, YUK 3rd) to Minnesota for the rights to the 2nd overall pick. The draft onlookers were buzzing. True to their words, @InstantRockstar and Kevin King added another core piece to their blueline by taking another first-gen rookie, Scotty Kaberle. The Marlins really seemed to trust their gut and stick to the strategy of taking younger yet established rookies with the intention of molding them in young thoroughbreds.  Another player that draft pundits had going a little later, Kaberle shares alot in common with Prout. His development in year one was amongst the top of his class and he is known to bring an infectious positive attitude to the dressing room.  If these two defensemen turn out the way Marlins management hopes, this could be the best 1-2 punch on the blueline in the VHLM this upcoming season. 

 

Nero Endrizzi - C - 10th Overall @Jonessee27

If the top 2 picks in the draft weren't enough, the show rolled on as the Marlins made their THIRD pick in the Top 10 of the draft! At number 10 the team shifted its focus to offense. Any team rebuilding knows elite centres are hard to come by. After a streak of defensemen went off the board from picks 1-9, the Marlins pretty much had pick of the litter with only one centre being drafted by this point. With the 10th pick San Diego took Nero Endizzi, who many considered to be the best pure centre in this draft. While Endrizzi's stats from last season don't jump off the page at you, don't be fooled. Endrizzi came onto a LOADED Las Vegas Aces squad last season and was only given the opportunity to play  a depth role. Despite that, Endrizzi stayed hungry and was another one of the top TPE earners in his rookie class. The Marlins will be looking to Nero to provide a big part of their offense this season!

 

2nd Round

Red Lite - RW - 13th Overall @Tate

Opening up the second round, the Marlins stayed on the offense both literally and figuratively. Looking for potential linemates for Endrizzi, San Diego chose winger Red Lite to kick off round 2. Red Lite was a late joiner in the VHLM last season with the Philadelphia Reapers.  Red Lite only managed to catch the tail end of last season, amassing 19 games total. While only being in the league for less than a month, Lite has earned at a rapid pace and has developed the skill set to be a lethal offensive player this season.  His skating, stick handling and raw scoring abilities leap off the page at you and along with Endrizzi, these two could make a big splash come puck drop this fall!

 

3rd Round

Nikolas DAndrea - C - 25th Overall @Nikdandrea34

In the third round San Diego shifted back to between the dots by drafting their second centremen of the draft, Nikolas DAndrea. DAndrea will bring some championship pedigree to the Marlins, having been a part of the Cinderella story Miami Marauders in S74. The 6'3 forward has shown he can consistently earn and develop at a decent rate and the Marlins will be depending on that to continue throughout the course of the upcoming season. Nick has shown some great flashes of both passing and scoring  and it a formidible skater, but as a centre he will need to improve his faceoff work to truly help the team out in puck possession. The Marlin brass are eager to get DAndrea in camp and keep his development going!

 

Frank Funk Jr - LW - 32nd Overall @Rayzor_7

In the latter half of the third round, the Marlins came back up to the podium and selected Frank Funk Jr, l promising left winger from Russia. This is a smart pick by the San Diego management team. Drafting a member of the community who is in good standing and should be reliable enough to continue developing his player throughout Season 75. It is somewhat surprising that Funk didn't find his way to Minnesota, but the Storms loss is the Marlins gain and the Marlins scouts and management are happy to have him.  The Russian may slot into the second line to start the season but it wouldn't be surprising to him expand his role over the course of the season.

 

 

Other Notable Picks

Gunnar Odinsson - D - 37th Overall @BOOM™

This is probably one of the most interesting picks in the draft... no matter what the outcome it should be safe to say you should put this one in the memory bank and revisit it at the end of the season. For those who are unaware BOOM is a Hall of Famer who has recently come back off of a long hiatus. With literally 0 TPA (but 98 banked) , who knows what is in store for the feisty Norwegian Gunnar Odinsson. BOOM gave heavy forewarning and clearly attempted to temper expectations last week by stating they will be taking the league in this time around at a much more casual pace. Honestly, I respect the transparency and even if San Diego gets a sliver of BOOM's old self, at pick 37 this could be the steal of the draft! If not, at least it was late enough in the draft were there isn't so much risk involved. 

 

Kaladin Kvothe - LW - 49th Overall @DangerGolding

In Round 5 the Marlins secured another forward by taking Vegas product Kaladin Kvothe. I've heard a ton of buzz about this Brit going into the draft and taking a shot this late in the draft on a guy like this is a no-brainer. Despite getting a late start and being put in a limited role with powerhouse Las Vegas, Kvothe has been earning and improving at an exceptional rate. It should most definitely by noted Kvothe boasted some of the best raw scoring ability in the VHLM. If Kvothe continues to develop and starts fine tuning some other parts of his game, this could be an absolute steal at 49.

 

 

The aforementioned players were just some of the players the will lead San Diego into a very wide open Season 75. At first glance it seems that the Marlins have one of the best top end D pairs in the league, an above-average netminder, and some of the best offensive depth in the minors. Camp starts next week and it will be fun to watch internal battles for lineup spots. Stay tuned for updates on the Marlins and other teams that are readying themselves for the quickly approaching season. 

 

Edited November 9, 2020 by fromtheinside

[Prout 373]

Thanks for the tag and write up! Definitely excited! Good writing keep it  up!

[IamMOOSE 361]

Really satisfied with what we were able to secure in this draft. A lot of amazing players and maybe just as well some top end personalities for the league as a whole.