Claimed:Wranglers' Year Summarization

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Wranglers' Year Review

 

The Calgary Wranglers had an up and down season, and although that was not very surprising there were some positives to look at. With a respectable 28-39-5 record, this rebuilding squad is not far away from where they want to be. Calgary was never expected to make the playoffs at all, so there was some great progress done on development. If the Wranglers are ever going to make the post-season and go anywhere in them then player building will be a huge factor. The fan base here has a ton to look forward to in seasons to come.

 

One of the strongest assets of this club is their goaltender, Martin Brookside. He has been going through some growing pains himself, but posted a pretty good 23-36-5 record this year. Not a bad season for a developing team. Within those games, he managed to achieve a .909% save percentage and a 3.59 goals against average. Calgary last year was a team that could have let in many more goals if not for Brookside. As a side note, he even had 6 assists which says something about his involvement in the team's offense. He can release a nifty breakout pass to his forwards. Heading forward, everyone will be hoping for the same consistency from Martin.

 

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Martin Brookside in action

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As far as anticipation goes, the fans had it all this year in rookie Travis Boychuk. Nobody really knew what to expect from the centerman stepping into the big leagues for the first time, but he sure did perform. Boychuk had 103 points in just 69 games becoming one of the top scorers in the VHL. His 35 goals were impressive as well. Travis was never an elite-level player in the VHLM but he stepped up to the plate 100% on the Calgary Wranglers. Building the team's offense around Boychuk will be a very interesting situation to watch for anyone.

 

The Wranglers had a good amount of depth this year with forwards Travis Boychuk, Simon Tremblay, Marcus Figgarowta-Nahimal, Henrik Larsson, Lucas Smith, Zach Cuff and Milan El Shaarawy. Tremblay actually led the team in goals with 36 in 72 games beating out rookie sensation Travis Boychuk for the Wranglers lead. Figgarowta-Nahimal had 56 points on the season and Zach Cuff had a respectable 52 points. Not bad numbers for an up and coming squad, but they will need to get better if they want to get further.

 

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Koji Yamazaki on the Outlaws

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On the defensive side, things were much weaker. Although they were quarter-backed by veteran Godavari Yumalatopinto, this area was easily the biggest problem for the team. Yumalatopinto out-shined the rest of the defensive core for Calgary, coming not far behind Boychuk in team scoring with 94 points. 31 goals is also a nice feat for a defender in the VHL, but despite his efforts the rest of the back end just could not shut down the league's top players. If there comes a time when the Wranglers rise to the top, they will need to acquire top-tier defense. With GY likely departing this may become a bigger problem next season.

 

In this off-season's draft, the GM looked to address the team's main issues through the re-build. The first pick for the Calgary had uprising defensive star Koji Yamazaki become a top prospect for the team at 2nd overall. Yamazaki had outstanding numbers on a deep Turku Outlaws VHLM club earning 128 points in 70 games. This kind of production is what Calgary has been looking for. The young stud in Koji is going to have some pressure on his shoulders once he steps into the VHL, just like Travis Boychuk did. The Calgary brass is confident in his abilities to develop and have them carry over to another level. They have also acquired defender Tony Stark to bolster the D squad while trading D prospect Jack Ryan.

 

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Travis Boychuk celebrates

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The Wranglers had another 1st Round pick at 9th overall, acquiring centermant Lukas Nykvist. This up and comer will look to balance out the offense in the future. Calgary did not stop there, picking up left winger Hudson Backenbauer and right winger Mike McGrattan in the 2nd Round. They also drafted another right wing in Dan Cooper in the 3rd Round. With all these promising forwards looking to find a place on Calgary in the future, things are looking bright in cow town. It is difficult to predict how all prospects will find their place, but Calgary's management, team, and fans alike are excited for what the future holds there.

[Will 4,626]

Content: 3/3

Good read. Boychuck had an outstanding year and, by the sounds of it, Calgary players and fans have a very bright future to look forward to.

 

Grammar: 2/2

Didn't find a thing.

 

Appearance: 1/1

Looks great.

 

Overall: 6/6

Edited July 14, 2014 by Draper

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