VSN Presents: Under250- VHLM Playoff Roundup

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The Talents Behind the Trophies: The Ryan Sullivan Trophy  |  Around the VHL- December 23rd 2020  |  Under250- Building a Powerhouse: San Diego Marlins

 

The regular season finally wound down and while 4 VHLM teams began clearing out their locker rooms for the offseason, the other 8 began preparing for their long journey to the Founder's Cup. In the West, Mexico City wrapped up their season finishing with an impressive 54-13-5 which was more than enough for them to earn the Western Conference title, as well as the Prime Minister's Cup which is awarded to the team with the best regular season record. Meanwhile out East, the Philadelphia Reapers took the Eastern Conference title with ease, posting a record of 51-17-4, a full 23 points better than the team behind them in second. Florent Vericel of the Saskatoon Wild wrapped up his pursuit of the Ethan Osbourne Trophy for most points on the season, finishing with 43 goals, 71 assists which is good for 114 points. This marks the second consecutive season a Wild player has topped the league in points (last season's winner was Brian Strong Jr). Interestingly enough, after establishing this great feat, Vericel announced he would be retiring following his playoff run with Saskatoon. This definitely came out of left field and surely will be unfortunate news for his pro club, the Vancouver Wolves. The 8 playoffs clubs all enjoyed a little bit of a Christmas break and a few extra days off before the playoffs to prepare for their quarter-finals matchups. On Boxing Day the puck dropped on the postseason, let's take a look how all four series shaped up.

 

(1) Mexico City Kings def (8) Halifax 21st - MEX Wins Series 4-1

 

Mexico City were the overwhelming favourites going into this series, and things went pretty much as you would expect. Halifax made moves before the trade deadline to recoup assets in order to get them in better shape going forward in Season 76. The only chance they had was to lean on their superstar left winger Dolant Fertitta to see how far he could carry his team. As it turned out, the answer was 5 games. And to completely fair, Fertitta did his part by contributing 11 points which was a pace over 2 points per game and let all players in the first round. The Kings stormed out to an early lead in the series by taking both the first two home games by a combined score of 11-3. When the series shifted back to Halifax however, things did become much tighter. Game 3 saw Halifax jump out to an early 3-1 lead and they even outshot Mexico that game 33 shots to 31. However, the Kings stormed back and scored three unanswered goals to edge Halifax 4-3. Justin Lose  potted the game winner. On the brink of a sweep, and more importantly elimination, Halifax poured everything they into game 4 and their offense exploded for 7 goals which was enough for a 7-5 win. Fertitta finished the game with 3 goals and 2 assists and at least the 21st fans had a game to have something to be happy about. For Game 5 it was back south to Mexico City and the Kings decided it was time to end things and win the series on home ice. Game 5 saw Mexico double up Halifax 6-3. Through two periods it was a back and forth affair but by the third period the wheels came off for the 21st, only mustering 3 shots all period with their playoff lives on the line. With their series settled, Mexico would await the ending of Las Vegas and Saskatoon to see who they would face in the Semis!

 

(2) Philadelphia Reapers def (7) Yukon Rush- PHI Wins Series 4-0

 

The Eastern Conference champs began their Cup hunt by taking on seventh seed Yukon Rush in the quarter-finals.  While Yukon did experience some regular season success against Philly, the playoffs are a different animal and the difference in skill was evident from the get go. Yukon was very much like Halifax in the sense that they were selling off pieces of their team leading up to the trade deadline, deciding to focus on the draft rather than make a run in Season 75. The Reapers on the other hand added some key pieces to their team for their potential Cup run, and if this series was any indication, those moves are proving to be quite instrumental to the club. Game 1 saw the Rush jump out to an early 2-0 lead in the first but would quickly see that lead evaporate. Unfortunately for Rush fans, that would be the only time in the series Yukon held a lead. The game remained tied until 1:02 left in the third period when  Jivere Zolnek potted the game winner to put the Reapers up 1-0 in the series. The Rush should look back on this game and be a little disappointed as they had 7 powerplay opportunities and converted on none of them. From here on out though, the Reapers rode their wave of momentum. Game 2 saw Philly have 5 different scorers as they blanked Yukon 5-0.  Star goalie Jacob Carson went a perfect 28 for 28, turning away all shots for his first playoff shutout.  When the back half of the series shifted north to Yukon, the results remained the same. Game 3 was a dominant 4-1 win for the Reapers. This win was largely in part  to the undisciplined play from Yukon, taking a total of 11 penalties. You aren't going to win many games when you spend over an entire period worth of time down a man. Game 4, Philadelphia landed the final blow by cruising to a 7-2 win. It was another game that saw even contributions across the board as Philly had 7 different scorers. While defensemen Tom Eagles led the way with a goal and 3 assists, the Reapers were really clicking on all cylinders. They will go on to face San Diego (spoilers) in the semi-finals in a clash of two absolute powerhouses in the VHLM.

 

(3) San Diego Marlins def (6) Miami Marauders- SDM Wins Series 4-0

 

The third seed San Diego Marlins got their playoffs rolling in a clash with the sixth seed Miami Marauders in what was a clash of teams that finished second place in their respective conferences. Heading into the playoffs, the Marlins were the VHLMs hottest team by far. They kept that momentum churning into this series as they opened up Game 1 with convincing 8-2 win.  San Diego got offense from everyone, and even more impressive was the fact their defense limited Miami to only 14 shots. Rookie defensemen Gunnar Odinsson had a great start to his playoff career with a 4 assists and Red Lite continued to live up to his name by lighting the lamp twice. Game 2, while closer in goals, was more of the same. For the second straight game, Miami only put 14 shots on net, and when the final buzzer sounded it was a 3-1 San Diego win. Nik D'Andrea scored his 3rd of the playoffs in what would be the game winner, and Odinsson stayed hot by adding an insurance marker. For games 3 and 4, the Marlins took their talents to South Beach where it was more of the same. Game 3 saw another 3-1 victory for the Marlins. All of their offense came early in the first period. The Marauders did manage to put forth more shots this game, but couldn't find a way to breakthrough the tough as nails defense of the Marlins.  Cabe McJake scored his only goal of the series this game late in the third period, but it wouldn't be enough. Limiting the offensive dynamo to a single goal really was essential to San Diego's success this series. With their backs up against the wall, the defending champs played their best game in Game 4. It was a super close affair, being tied 1-1 going into the final frame. Sadly for Marauders fans, a quick flurry of 3 goals in less than three minutes midway through the third spelt the end of Miami's hopes to go back-to-back. Marlins tough guy and captain Cowboy Prout had a huge game 4 putting up a goal and an assist, along with 5 hits and a block. The Marlins will enjoy some time in the sun in Miami before heading to Philadelphia for matchup with the Reapers in the semis!

 

Las Vegas Aces (5) def Saskatoon Wild (4) - LVA Wins Series 4-3

 

In the quarter-finals matchup, we saw the 4 and5 seeds clash in an all Western Conference matchup. The Aces and the Wild have been super close to another all season both in the standings and overall in team strength.  The Aces finished just 5 points back of the Wild in the regular season. This was largely thanks to the Wild's insane winning streak in the second half of the season that saw them even give Mexico a run for their money for awhile atop the standings in the West. The series opened up in Saskatoon as the SaskTel Arena and the Aces immediately took away the Wild's home ice advantage by taking both road games. Game 1 saw defenseman Matty Thunder lead his Aces to an impressive 6-4 victory. Thunder laid the boom with 2 goals, an assist, 5 hits and 3 blocks. Game 2 saw another Vegas victory, but this time it was blueliner Linus Zetterstrom leading the way with  a solid 3 point effort of his own. Netminder Thad Sales also had a big game turning away 30 of 33 shots. It looked as though we were about to see another quick series, but the Saskatoon Wild had other plans. Games 3 and 4 were in Sin City and it was clear the Wild were ready to double down on their seasons hopes.  Game 3 the Wild made some adjustments and it showed. Lenny Sanderson came out flying and put up two goals in the first period. Though the Aces got one back in the second, the Wild hung on for a 2-1 victory. Michael Fletcher was brilliant this game, turning away 23 of 24 shots. I would assume Battre Sandstrom bought his goalie dinner post-game, having took 5 minor penalties that game. Game 4 saw the series tilt back in the Ace's favour. Vegas won the game 5-2 and it really wasn't close in this one. Vegas got scoring from five different players and they almost managed to double Saskatoon in shots (41-21).  Game 5 was back to the Canadian wheat fields and it seemed the home cooking and hospitality did Saskatoon well. The Wild staved off elimination in two straight games. First they edged out Vegas 3-2 in Game 5, and then in Game 6 the Wild's top offensive threat Florent Vericel finally made his mark on the series with a 5 point performance which helped the Wild win a 6-5 thriller and tie the series. Sandstrom also had himself a five point game in what many considered to be his best game of the series. Finally, it all came down to a seventh and deciding game back in Saskatoon. Much like Game 6, this was an exciting back and forth affair that saw the lead change multiple times. After the first period saw a flurry of five total goals, the Aces were out ahead 3-2. The Wild would go on to score the next two thanks to a pair of goals by Lenny Sanderson, taking a 4-3 lead into the final frame. With just 2:37 left in regulation and their playoff hopes on the line, rookie phenom Hex Rose tied the game and would send things to a sudden death overtime. At 7:45 in OT bad habits reared their ugly head again as the undisciplined Battre Sandstrom took a hooking minor. From there it was academic. The Vegas powerplay sustained good offensive pressure. Chase Crosby had the puck down low and moved it up to the half-boards to Connor Sim. From there Sim zipped a laser of a pass cross ice to defenseman Linus Zetterstrom who wound up a bomb from the point and the rest is history. In what was easily the best series in the playoffs, the Aces knocked off their conference rivals in a 7 game brawl. Things will not get any easier for them though, as they will be headed to Mexico City for a semi-final matchup with the Kings, who have had some additional rest. 

 

 

Looking ahead, we have four teams left vying for the Founder's Cup and it's anyone's guess as to who will go the distance. The quarter-finals all things considered did not provide a ton of surprises for the most part. While the WIld/Aces series definitely was extremely hype, that series was a coinflip from the get-go. The other 3 series pretty much unfolded as expected as Mexico City, Philly and San Diego are widely considered to be the league's three elite level teams. Looking ahead to the semis, things will get much more interesting as the Reapers and Marlins matchup could literally be a toss-up. Can the Marlins rock solid D lockdown the Reapers big guns? And do the Aces have anything left in the tank when they go up against the Kings. Time will tell, but for now thanks for reading and have a safe and Happy New Year!