VHLM Playoffs: First Round Recap

[fyrefly 172]

VHLM Playoffs: First Round Recap

 

By fyrefly

 

 

It's playoff time in the VHLM! The top eight teams of the regular season faced off for the first round of the VHLM playoffs. The playoffs in the M are a time for capped players to give their last hurrah in the minors before heading up to the big leagues, and for freshly signed potential draftees to show off their skills before the draft. Either way, it's an exciting time. And with the Founders' Cup on the line, tensions are high and players are willing to give whatever it takes!

 

 

       In this recap, I'll be summarizing each series that has been played. Watch for the spotlight on star players and predictions for the next few rounds. 

 

 

Series 1: Mexico City Kings(1st seed) vs. Halifax 21st(8th seed)

Notable Performances: Dolant Fertitta(HFX), Javad Kamkar(HFX), Justin Lose(MEX), King Kruul(MEX)

This was one series that was expected to go by fast. The Kings blitzed the M in the regular season, capturing the top record with an astonishing 54 wins. But surprisingly, the 21st put up a fight. Nothing too much, only enough to stretch the series to 5 games. But enough to let everybody else in the league know that the Kings aren't invincible. But they sure are close. Justin Lose @youloser1337 was an absolute force for the Kings, putting up 4 goals and 8 points in those 5 games. Jakob Sosa @TMGSosa also contributed offensively, notching 5 assists and 7 points. From the back end, King Kruul @LefLop kept his fruitful career fruitful with 6 assists and 7 points, enough to tie for first among defenceman scoring. And then there's goaltender Markus Emerson Jr. @Xflexz, who's a rock of a goalie in between the pipes with a .872 save percentage and a 3.2 goals against average.

The 21st were a tyrant of a team last season, but experienced a crazy insane upset by the hands of the eventual champs Miami Marauders. This year, they had a much weaker team, but they managed to take a game in this series. They were largely riding the performance of superstar and shoo-in for MVP Dolant Fertitta @Dolant, who lead the playoffs in points somehow. Javad Kamker @Parriyah9374 was also a massive contributor from the blueline with five assist and six points. Poor Mike Sterling @SilverMike, who has to face the loaded Mexico offense with such a lackluster defense. He has a depressing 5.2 goals against average. Halifax also doesn't look to have the strongest team next year, as they don't have a first round pick.

Series score: 4-1 Mexico

 

 

Series 2: Philadelphia Reapers(2nd seed) vs. Yukon Rush(7th seed)

Notable Performances: Jivere Zolnek(PHI), Jacob Carson(PHI), Tom Eagles(PHI), The great(YUK)

This was another series involving a top regular season team and a team that barely made the playoffs that was supposed to go by very fast. And unlike the prior mentioned series, it did. The Reapers executed a perfect 4-0 sweep, eliminating the Rush. A couple of top VHL draft prospects did extremely well in this series, namely Jivere Zolnek @Sixersfan549 and Tom Eagles @Greg_Di. Zolnek, after an underwhelming regular season of only 13 points, exploded against the Rush for 3 goals and 7 points in only 4 games. Eagles, on the other hand, continued what he had gotten done in the regular season. He translated his amazing 64 points into 6 points in the first round. Also worth mentioning is goaltender Jacob Carson @jacobcarson877, who had an incredible .946 save percentage and 1.25 goals against average. Pekko Viitanen @Xdjk93 also stunned the Rush with 5 assists in the series.

The Yukon Rush, in a sense, played as was expected of a team who sold at the deadline and squeaked into the playoffs. They had no real stars to rely on for points, as they traded them all away for futures. But they managed to keep the Reapers close in all but 2 of the games they played. The only really performances worth mentioning are The great @Jake Sumner, who scored 2 goals and has an astonishing 40% shooting percentage. Other than that, no one really made a difference as the Reapers changed the Rush's championship chances to 0.

Series Score: 4-0 Philadelphia

 

 

Series 3: San Diego Marlins(3rd seed) vs. Miami Marauders(6th seed)

Notable Performances: Gunnar Odinsson(SDM), Michael Olson(SDM), Nero Endrizzi(SDM), Ryan Ryker(MIA)

Since the seeds were closer for this series, it was more than expected to be close. Miami was a decent team heading into this playoffs. But the Marlins sure proved they were the stronger team. They went all out at the deadline, and reaped necessary rewards for a long playoff run. They picked up a bunch of waiver players to fill their depth spots, and still had room for stars to fill the top spots. Some of their guys who particularly shone during this series were top VHL draft prospect Gunnar Odinsson @BOOM, who had to have raised his stock with his 6 assists and 7 points from the back end. Goaltender Michael Olson @MSO94 also made a massive difference, with a .934 save percentage and a 1.25 GAA, effectively shutting down the Miami offense. Nero Endrizzi @TurnDaddy, a player the Marlins picked up in the dispersal draft last season, also put his skills on display with 2 goals and 6 points in the series. A lot of Marlins will be heading up next season, and the Marlins used a lot of their futures acquiring all that talent, so we can expect a basement finish next season.

As I said before, the Marauders had a promising squad heading into the postseason, grabbing the 6th seed in the playoffs and securing a slightly weaker matchup in the first round. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. Nevertheless, they had some decent performances from some of their players. Ryan Ryker @Jayrad28 was a beast throughout the series, picking up 3 assists, 10 hits, and 3 blocked shots. Phoenix Dawson @Toastalso impressed, with 2 goals and a 33.3% shooting percentage. He will also be among the top VHL prospects. Finally, there's my old friend Cabe McJake @RedSus, who, with a goal and an assist, couldn't manage to carry the Marauders to victory. Either way, a successful season for Miami. Unfortunately, they spent a lot of their picks at the deadline, so they should sink into mediocrity for next season.

Series Score: 4-0 San Diego

 

 

Series 4: Saskatoon Wild(4th seed) vs. Las Vegas Aces(5th seed)

Notable Performances: Lenny Sanderson(SSK), Battre Sandstrom(SSK), Jordan Tate(LVA), Linus Zetterstrom(LVA)

Well, this one had a wild finish, didn't it? Game seven OT. That doesn't happen often. And what a series. The Aces take the 3-1 lead, but the Wild come roaring back and force the final game. But the Aces came up big. Linus Zetterstrom @Ledge_and_Dairy was the man with the winner, and he notched 7 assists and 9 points in those 7 games. Also incredible was the performance of Jordan Tate @Aye my name jeff, who got 11 points and leads the playoffs in scoring right now. He and fellow deadline pickup Sheldon Juniper @fyrefly along with linemate Connor Sim @SimmerDown99 combined for 28 points in the series. Matt thunder @Matt thunder also got a point per game in the series. Overall, the Aces' deadline acquisitions made the difference for them this series. They have a bunch of clutch players that should really help in their next round series against Mexico. 

The Saksatoon Wild are a playoff team, and probably a second round caliber team. But they couldn't manage to complete the comeback and knock off the Aces one last time. But they played a hell of a good series. Notably, rookie and top draft prospect Lenny Sanderson @Gally, who must have raised his draft stock with his 5 goals and 10 points. Battre Sandstrom @Acydburn , who is projected to go second overall in the VHL draft, also shone as an offensive defenceman, with 6 assists and 9 points. Other that, Vivek Weiner @coochiman got an assist per game plus a goal for 8 points. Although the Wild don't look to be strong next season, they had a really good team this season and should be proud. 

 

 

 

This concludes the series for round one of the VHLM playoffs. For the next segment, I'll give you the next round of series plus predictions for who will win. 

 

 

Series 5: Mexico City Kings(1st seed) vs. Las Vegas Aces(5th seed)

The Aces are now the underdog as they take on the potentially unstoppable Kings. The Kings will try to ride their firepower and depth that got them the best regular season record, while the Aces hope their deadline pickups and waiver players, as well as the game seven clutch that got them past the Wild, will get them over top of the Kings and onto the finals. The Kings were eliminated in the first round last season, so they're looking for a much deeper playoff run this year. The Aces were one of the top teams last season, but they were beat out in the semis by the waiver warrior Miami Marauders. For this matchup, even with my biased opinion, I feel the Kings have a team that is nearly invincible this year. I think the Aces will take them to six games, and give them a run for their money. But the talent and depth of the Kings is hard to match.

Prediction: 4-2 Mexico

 

 

Series 6: Philadelphia Reapers(2nd seed) vs. San Diego Marlins(3rd seed)

This one I'm sure I cannot accurately predict. These two squads are so evenly matched it'd be hard to put one ahead of the other. The Reapers were a borderline playoff team last year, but were nudged out by the eventual champions Marauders in the final games of the regular season. The Marlins, on the other hand, were a basement team last season, losing out only to the lowly Minnesota Storm for bottom of the standings. They were, however, able to pick up the top two picks of the draft and select two very good players. Both teams acquired a truckload of talented players through the draft and trades, and it will be a long, tough series. But I think the sheer amount of capped players of the Reapers wil ultimately push them over the top. But not without a fight.

Prediction: 4-3 Philadelphia

 

 

 

 

El Finale: Mexico City Kings vs. Philadelphia Reapers

These two teams were in the exact same situation as each other last year. They are in the exact same situation as each other this year, too. The Founders' Cup Finals. Against each other. It will be a battle of two teams of roughly the same skill, roughly the same depth. It will be a nail-biter, I'll guarantee you that. But looking at their rosters, and their success in these playoffs so far, I have chosen a winner. And if I can figure out how to hide a result, it'll appear down there 

 

Spoiler

The Philadelphia Reapers! 

 

I just think this team is too good to possibly lose. They haven't lost a game yet this postseason, and they have so much star power and yet so much depth so fill all their spots. Congratulations to my chosen champs, the Philly Reapers!!!!

 

That concludes my recap and predictions for the S75 VHLM Founders' Cup playoffs. For the sake of honesty, I fully expect the Philadelphia Reapers to fulfil my prophecy and win the cup. This has been fun, and I wish all contestants hope, but especially the Aces. I hope we can break my prediction and bring the Cup back to it's rightful home, Sin City! Good luck to all, and we'll see you in another month or so because this media spot is so damn long I can claim it for that long! Either way, I hope you enjoyed this. Excuse me for making this final paragraph kind of awkward, but this is how I'm filling the gap to get to 2,000 words. 

 

I need five more words. 

 

 

 

2,000 words on the dot. Claiming this for four weeks. 

 

[BOOM 8,758]

Great read. Enjoy the 4 weeks of PT's 

[fyrefly 172]

Claiming week 1/4

[Suzuki14 24]

Review: I think it is good how you included predictions for every team (in the playoffs) and gave a lot of good details in this article. My one piece of criticism is that you stretched out details a bit too much to make it a longer article so next time just find and include more information. I rate it a 8/10.

[Jolline 13]

Very much good to read. Love the thesis behind every matchup and how it turns out. Predictions are ballsy but you do put up your words behind them. 8/10

[Ledge 1,131]

Review: So far, your predictions are spot on! I love how you go into detail about each team, and do it with good spacing and bigger and bolded titles. Bolding the players names is a nice touch, too. Crazy how you landed it on 2,000 exactly. 

9/10

[fyrefly 172]

Ha! I got it right!

 

Claim 2/4

[fyrefly 172]

Claim 3/4

[DangerGolding 222]

Review:

 

A really great in depth look at how the 1st round played out, pointing out the players that stepped up and also sometimes giving info on how the teams season went and how they acquired some of the players. A key point I noticed was thay you also gave shoutouts to players on the losing teams too, a nice touch that people often forget about. A picture or two could liven up the article a bit or even some text colouring but other than that it's a really great article.

 

9.5/10

[fyrefly 172]

Claim 4/4