VHLM Week 1 Power Rankings

[fromtheinside 1,289]

We are mere days away from puck drop on our new VHLM season. It's an exciting season to be sure, with lots of teams in the mix for the Founder's Cup. With an absolutely massive S75 Dispersal draft in our rear view, we can now break down who got the best talent and which teams have best prepared themselves in the early going for season 75. Without further ado lets look at the Power Ratings.

 

Last Week: -  |  This Week: 1

The Reapers enjoyed an absolutely massive draft that secured many positions of need. They are stacked across the board with top TPE players in every position. Their probable first line consists of @tcookie25Addison McLaren, @Gaikoku-hitoRobert Bouchard and @dariusmarimotomanDarius Marimoto, all of who will more than likely be capped sooner rather than later. On the blue line they will be rolling with @DoktorFunkJolly Greene Giant and @Greg_DiTom Eagles as their probable first pairing. JGG was probably ready to take the leap to the pros. but sent shockwaves through the VHLM when he stated he was going to commit to one more season down in the M. Meanwhile, Greg Eagles is a notable recreate and it's assumed his defensemen will develop quite rapidly this season. If these 5 skaters weren't enough, they also boast a max capped goalie to boot. With the Wranglers goaltending already strong, @jacobcarson877Jacob Carson will be looking for one more season in the minors to go for broke and win a Cup.  What's even more scary is that they have solid depth to go with a very scary core. In my mind, Philly is the team to beat. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 2

This one may come as a bit of a surprise to some, but if you take a closer look at the Kings roster, there is plenty to be excited about. They will be leaning heavily on forwards @jhatty8RJ Thatcher, @FirekissChris Foley, and @youloser1337Justin Lose to carry the offensive load, however they also can ice a formidible second like that could do some damange, especially if the other forwards keep earning at a good pace throughout the season. While they don't have any studs on D, they do have two promising players of note. The first is a VHLM journeyman that goes by the name @LefLopKing Kruul. He has been in the minors since Season 69 and went inactive for an elongated stint but seems to be back. He's right under the 200 TPE mark, so if he can prove to be a steady earner for Mexico City, they will have found themselves a nice little free agent signing this offseason. His D partner will be a high profile re-create from last season, @Beaviss Hulk Hogan Jr.  The Kings know they can rely on Hogan to reliably grow thanks to the job pay Beaviss will earn, so he will be a lock to end the season close to, or fully capped. Lastly, between the pipes we have another player who is at the cap. @Xflexz Marcus Emerson Jr. Last season Emmerson Jr. posted a winning record and decent stats on a subpar Mexico City squad, I think with a much better team in front of him this season, that he could be in store for a great run. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 3

Las Vegas is one of the hardest teams for me to judge. They could arguably be even higher on this list, if not for a glaring weakness. But the aforementioned weakness may be remedied by another strength of the team. Let's break it down... on the offensive side of things @frescoelmo It's Gucci will be centering a line with @Hoopydog Artair McCloud and one of @NordinKelly Power or @SimmerDown99Connor Sim. Regardless of which line's these guys end up on, the Aces boast a great deal of players who are veteran simmers as well as newcomers such as @Hex UniverseHex Rose, who I have taken note of and think could be a standout rookie and a potential top tier pick in the S76 Dispersal Draft. Now we get to where Vegas really shines, and that's on D. The Aces will be icing 4 players on defense this season who are at 200+ TPE! @Matt thunderMatt Thunder (237) , @WreckeningChase Crosby (232), @Ledge_and_Dairy(potential best username on the entire forums) Linus Zetterstrom (223) and @Bouncyelf Joakim Lund (194) will make up the defensive core for Las Vegas and this is undeniably the best overall defense in the league, bar none. And this is where what I said earlier comes into play. Starting goaltender @matt sovick Matt Sovick Jr only sits at 148 TPE, however this may not even be that big of a deal when you have your Top 4 D all close to being capped. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 4

@Ricer13 and @Zetterberg are out to prove S74 was no fluke and there will be no Cup hangover in Miami. After pulling off perhaps the most stunning Cup run this league has ever seen, Miami had very little time to celebrate as they had a ton of work to do. Most of the core that won them their title was going into the S75 Dispersal Draft. Despite this, Miami claims the 4th spot on the Week 1 Power Rankings and here's why... the Marauders first move was to bring back their rookie sensation and playoff MVP @RedSusCabe McJake. And while they weren't able to secure his partner in crime McLaren, they went and got the next best thing in @Jayrad28Ryan Ryker. There's no doubt in my mind these two will tear it up this year. While the Marauders do also possess some nice depth at wing, one area of concern in their strength at center. The will really need to rely on @snackheroTheodore Hoffman and @Jake SumnerThe Great to keep developing this season so they can be viable options to center these incredible wingers. On defense, the Miami brass brought back another familiar face by drafting rock solid D-men @chiknChicken Wing. Chicken will be partnering up with @Martin BradacMartin Master to form the top D pair in Miami, but there isn't much depth to speak of after that, so that could be an area to address for the Miami execs later on in the season via Free Agency or trade. Last but more certainly not least, we have @thadthrasherThadius Sales manning the crease. Sales has been one of the most rapidly developing rookies in the past month and half in the VHL. He was an absolute steal at 36th overall in the draft, and he is going to prove why this season. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 5

Next on our list is the Yukon Rush. Yukon was another top tiered team last season, but in spite of that they did not mortgage their future and go all in and leave themselves destitute long-term. The Rush GM @MexicanCow123 had himself a very efficient draft and replentished the team nicely. They are very similar to Miami in the sense that they are loaded on the wings but a little weak down the middle. Returnees @NeptoMaksim Yakolevsky and @DirtyDerekDaddy Derek will be joined by a couple high end offensive threats like @fyreflySheldon Juniper and newly appointed team captain @GreenGatoVick Fairchild.  While the Rush aren't amung the top of the league in defenders, the Yukon will look to @GoliathusTee Pee E II and @greywolf139Derek Redmarsh to carry the lion's share of the minutes If the Rush are going to make a run, they'll need one of the rookies on D to step up. Another rookie notable I've been keeping close tabs on is @HoPeFuLCheWBaCCaHan Shultz II, as he could prove to be a diamond in the rough this season.  In between the pipes, Yukon will rely on @KloxifiedKloxified. Yukon will be enjoying having the services of this max capped goalie for the entire season and will need him to perform to make up for some of the missing depth on defense. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 6

After an abysmal Season 74, the Marlins look to turn the page and get their franchise headed in the right direction this season. They created a ton of hype on draft day when they traded up for the number 2 pick in the draft, giving them both of the first 2 picks to begin the draft. With those picks, the Marlins head honchos took @ProutCowboy Prout and @fromtheinsideScotty Kaberle number one and two respectively. Taking a pair of defensemen 1-2 in the draft is a risky move that could prove to pay off. It seems as though these two players are more than up to the task of proving they were worth the picks. Both Prout and Kaberle will be capped within the coming weeks, so they will be a reliable tandem on the blueline all season. Up front there are some promising pieces as well. @TateRed Lite, @Jonessee27Nero Endrizzi and @Rayzor_7 Frank Funk Jr will lead the way on offense and there are a few of other really good depth pieces to be excited about as well. However if San Diego wants to do well this season, they will really need their forwards to work hard on capping every week during the regular season in order to maximize their development and keep up with the other teams on this list. On their last line of defense is @MSO94Michael Olson who is definitely a reliable netminder and will compliment the Marlins strong D-core nicely.

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 7

Coming in at lucky number 7 is none other than the #SaskyBois! This is one of the trickier teams on the board for me. I think there is alot of room to either climb or potentially fall for Saskatoon. It really all depends on how hard their team works to develop over the course of this season. There's a lot of questions surrounding this team With Brian Strong Jr moving up to the pros, can @EsoSteve Eso and @dartFlorent Vericel  carry the offensive load for the Wild. I think drafting Miami Marauder rookie standout @coochimanVivek Wiener was a great move, and bring back @dshervillBraxton Hunter for a second stint with the Wild could also prove to be a great call. On D, the Wild will be looking for more out of returnee @GeckoeyGeckoGabriel Johnson,  and while getting @yevtySilas LaFriend back for another year was a great move, they are going to need him to return to his torrid earning pace that he showed in his rookie season in order to help lead this defensive core. Between the pipes the Wild will look to @DragonFire420Michael Fletcher to hold down the fort, who is more than capable of doing so. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 8

After going for it all last season as perennial favourites and coming up short in a shocking first round exit, the 21st will be looking to rebound this season. It's not all doom and gloom for Halifax, as they boast a very nice starting 6, however the problem is there's not alot to speak of after that, and that can be expected seeing how as they lost so many of their players to the VHL this season. The 21'st's top line will undoubtedly put up big numbers this season Led by @DolantDolant Fertitta, @StamkosFanEmpty, and @Nick Kirkpatrick(and quite possibly the worst player name in all of VHL) Theodore James St. Louis, this line will really need to produce for Halifax to see any shred of success this season. The blue line also has a nice pair at the top, featuring @dylanjj37Rick Osman and the GoDaddy himself @OscarTheSwagDudeKate Upton (giggity).  @ThranduilClinton Giftopoulos also will provide good depth on the second pairing. Rounding things out will be @SilverMikeMike Sterling who is a very serviceable tender. All things considered, I expected Halifax to have a much worse roster this season. If they can maybe land a forward or two to help out with their team depth, they could easily fight for a playoffs spot and maybe play the Miami role this time around

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 9

Despite having a rather small roster, the players the Hounds do have are formidable ones. The duo of @MMFLEXDan Dan and @Aye my name jeffJordan Tate will be heavily leaned on to provide the bulk of the teams offense. The team's real strength comes on the blue line where they boast 3 players who are over 200 TPE. That's a great thing because they will need them as their starting goalie @Lspinelli is still a raw prospect who is claiming about 2 TPE a week for the past month now. The Hounds will need Spinelli to find another gear if they want any chance to replicate the great run they had last season which saw them get all the way to the VHLM Finals. Hopefully @KylradR will mend his broken heart and find some chemistry after being broken up with his beloved partner in crime L (for now anyways).. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 10

I really feel like I am criminally underrating this Bulls team, so Bulls players and staff, please don't be insulted for coming in at 10 on this inaugural Power Ranking for Season 75. Spreadsheet God @rjfryman and VSN Scout @MattyIce are a formidible duo and have brought in a ton of fresh faces for the new campaign. Alot of these players still have quite a bit of developing to do, but their growth has already been noticed  this offseason. I am confident this Bulls squad will be an improvement over last year's team by leaps and bounds. Leading the way for the team this season will be former Wild rookie @domg5Dominic Gobeil who has had an absolutely massive offseason. Along with Gobeil, @Nope488Not A Player as well as @BrrbisbrrVladimir Minski look to be key contributors. Also, never count out @Caboose30Trent Gibson in net. This fiery netminder will continue to develop this year and should be rock solid by seasons end. Like the Wild, if the Bulls players put in the work, they could easily rocket up the Power Rankings, the only thing that truly hurts them is the lack of some veteran leadership. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 11

Getting towards the bottom of this list, things start to get ugly. Another team that is boasting a total of 9 players (4 forwards, 4 defensemen and a goalie). When you hear people say they want parity in the VHLM, ladies and gentlemen I present to you the Minnesota Storm. Look I get they have recently went all in and successfully won themselves a Founder's Cup in the not-so-distant past. But this team is not competitive in any way shape or form and I'd even go as far to say that the management hasn't really attempted to remedy that either.  While the #12 team below Minnesota is even worse off, at least I can say that their management has put the effort into trying to sign some players. This is gonna be a long boring season for the players on the Storm and I feel bad for them. I urge them not to worry so much about the scores of the games but just focus on developing their players for the future. Last year there were 3 or 4 teams like this so I guess we are trending in the right direction with only have a couple teams this season who are straight up non-competitive. 

 

Last Week: - | This Week: 12

They have 5 players and none of them are defensemen. I seriously don't understand how this happens, but I will at least say the Dok has been actively trying to recruit new members of the league to his team, so I am happy for that. But that being said, it's gonna be a rough year for Ottawa. 

 

That wraps up the Power Rankings for Week 1. If there's enough support I will make this a weekly thing. Good luck to everyone in season 75, it's shaping up to be an amazing season!

[Dom 1,445]

@fromtheinside you rock! I’ve been trying to rank them in my head for a few days and found it pretty hard. This helped me a lot to know what to expect this season and it was a pretty good read!

[thadthrasher 1,692]

2 hours ago, fromtheinside said:

Sales has been one of the most rapidly developing rookies in the past month and half in the VHL. He was an absolute steal at 36th overall in the draft, and he is going to prove why this season. 

^^^best quote of the whole thing.

 

Just kidding. This was really well written, and I love it. It's obvious you put a lot of work into this, and that work should definitely be recognized!

[DoktorFunk 810]

2 hours ago, fromtheinside said:

I seriously don't understand how this happens,

I depleted my pick pool by going all out the last two seasons. This one should be fun, though! In my opinion, the best time to be an M GM. You're teaching new members how to play and building a team from nothing!

[jhatty8 663]

Kings are gonna be #1 soon

[hylands 842]

Mexico coming for #1!

[mattyIceman 1,207]

Hot takes!  Great article from another up-and-comer!

[Ledge 1,131]

4 hours ago, fromtheinside said:

potential best username on the entire forums

 

[Hex Universe 253]

5 hours ago, fromtheinside said:

as well as newcomers such as @Hex UniverseHex Rose, who I have taken note of and think could be a standout rookie and a potential top tier pick in the S76 Dispersal Draft.

Note taken

The Rose is blooming and is sweet

[mediocrepony 1,216]

wonderful job bro! way to make your mark on the league!

[mattyIceman 1,207]

4 hours ago, Hex Universe said:

The Rose is blooming and is sweet

 

There's only room for one Rose in this league...

[DragonFire420 17]

Yee go Sasky

[BOOM 8,722]

[DragonFire420 17]

That's a dope read though. I'm still learning how stuff works so I like stuff like this. I think Yukon will be better than #5 though. They got a good team. Philly is gonna struggle later in the season IMO. I think Halifax trades Sterlinf. 

 

Edit *I forgot the rating thingy. 10/10 great stuff

Edited November 18, 2020 by DragonFire420