Eagles off to good start with Reapers

[Greg_Di 1,028]

 

Tom Eagles is off to a good start with the Reapers.  In his first game for Philadelphia he registered 4 assists to start off his first full VHLM season. 7 games into the season and Tom is sitting at 9 points with 1 goal and 8 assists. He also has 8 hits and 9 blocked shots.

 

Tom is hoping to gain some valuable experience in Philadelphia as he prepares for the VHL draft which he will be a part off at the start of next season. The team has been playing very well so far as they have jumped out to a 7-0 record to start the season.

 

“It it all goes back to everyone’s going to develop in their own way. He’s still a very young player,” said a Reaper coach. “He had a slow start last season in the VHLM, but we are hoping that this full season with the Reapers will be a new challenge for him and that he will rise to the occasion. So far he is doing great and showing great potential.”

 

Many were surprised that Eagles dropped so far down in the VHLM dispersal draft. He dropped down to 16^th and much like his father Greg, many people will come to see that at 16 he was a steal. Early on he is showing the same dedication to training as Greg as he has been in the training rink 2x a day every day, working on his game. His father also was passed up in both VHLM and VHL drafts but by the end of the career many mentioned him as a potential top 5 pick if the draft was redone.

 

“ I was actually very surprised I dropped to 16th but you know I am glad I ended up here in Philly “ Said Tom “ They have a great team, great coaching staff and our group believes that we can go all the way to the cup. We have depth everywhere on the ice, the coaching team is excellent with some great tactics and its just a fun locker room to be in. That is what you look for in the minor leagues. I think it will be a great place for me to learn and grow my game”

 

The Reapers were excited to see he dropped down to 16 and they have very high expectations of Tom this season. So far he has been anchoring on the second defensive line and has been the top pairing on the power play and penalty kill. He is being given every opportunity to produce in different situations.

 

Eagles, who plays with tremendous vision on the ice, and has a very good offensive and defensive game, with great puck handling. He is a very good defensive player that forces the opponent, especially forwards in his zone to create turnovers. His physical play in the defensive zone has been a question of concern for many scouts, but that is a minor detail of his game, and is a constant work in progress. Many are saying he hasn’t fully grown into his body yet and as the season goes on you will start seeing him throw it around more. He has also run into some penalty trouble, racking up 10PIM in 7 games. He has to learn to be more disciplined so to not put his team down a man with stupid penalties.

 

Many were expecting Tom to be more of an scoring threat but early on in his career he has been the playmaking quarterback on the Reapers second line. He is always willing to share the puck with everyone and has been passing more recently then shooting.

 

“I know I can score but when I see an open team-mate I have to give them the puck” Said Tom “ It’s great setting up your team-mates and my passing first mentality gives us a better chance to get some good scoring chances. As the season goes on I will start shooting more but right now I am surrounded by some quality players that are able to put it in the back of the net.

 

Reapers coach believes Eagles needs to continue bringing a “dynamic brand of hockey” to the table. This is what will set him apart from the other prospects heading into the next draft.

“For me, the big thing, he’s a good player, but he’s a good pro,” Coach said. “He’s done a good job working really hard at it and is open to learning and is handling those steps with maturity.”

 

The move from Polish college hockey to the VHLM was definitely something that didn’t exactly click right away for Tom. When he entered the league with the Marlins for the last 19 games, he found it tough to adjust and didn’t put up as many points as he wanted.

 

“No matter how ready I felt to make the jump to the VHLM and thinking I would be able to contribute right away… I realized it’s another level here,” Eagles said. “The game moves quicker, the puck moves quicker and guys are stronger. You have to adjust to make plays quicker and constantly be thinking on your feet before making a play.”

 

The Reapers coaching staff though have been impressed with how quickly Tom is adapting his game to the Reapers playbook and how quickly he learns

 

“He’s very coachable and hard working” Coach said. “Those are two points he has that are excellent qualities … from this level to the VHL level, if you don’t have the work ethic and drive, you’re not going to go.”

Many are wondering if Tom’s draft stock will rise or if VHL teams will sleep on him just like they did on Greg Eagles. Time will only tell but with the pedigree Eagles name, his hard work and if he continues to pile up the points in the VHLM, no matter what team gets him will have a top pairing defenseman that is quite capable on both ends of the ice.            

 

 

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1006 words will be claiming for week ending Nov 29 and Dec 6                                       

Edited November 21, 2020 by Greg_Di

[ROOKIE745 608]

Nice media spot Greg, good pacing, good picture choice and good insight to your player. Good cover on his progress and all good spelling. Through out the whole media spot I found it entertaining, wanting to keep reading it till I got to the end. The only thing I can think of is maybe incorporating bold or italics into the quotes or somewhere but otherwise great post. 9.5/10

[Rhynex Entertainment 487]

Very good read. Good information on an up and coming player playing in the VHLM. I haven't been following the VHLM as much this season since joining the big leagues. It's important to know about what's happen there as any good players could become future teammates or rivals in the coming seasons. Could proof read as there are grammatical mistakes, or maybe it was supposed to be like that. Could add in more structure to article for easier distinguish of quotes (as prescribed by @ROOKIE745. Also not sure if you had provided tags, but if not could have provided tags. 9.5/10

[Greg_Di 1,028]

Claiming for week ending dec 6