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Spartan · 10-08-2021, 11:11 AM

Where do they all belong?

Apparently, it took a second trade to send Leon Athanasios to his third SHL team to finally find a place where he belongs - the Edmonton Blizzard of all places. At the end of S60, Atlanta GM Hotdog called up Leon to chat about his future. Having spent 3-4 seasons in the SMJHL with Newfoundland, it seemed like the gritty winger had finally earned a spot on the pro roster, and fully expected the call to tell him as much. However, he was told that while he'd be invited to the team's training camp, it'd take a truly fantastic performance to unseat a veteran and claim a spot on the S61 roster, so Leon was set to head into S61 with the Berserkers to complete a swan song season. Signing a one year extension with Atlanta at the time seemed like a prove-it deal, one where his performance in the SMJHL would determine if he had a future with the Inferno organization

"It's certainly a bit disappointing to be told that I'm not ready yet to go pro, especially when I had tried to develop my game as I did. I really felt like I had gotten better, and I think my performance on the ice over my time in Newfoundland showed that. Able to get to the dirty areas of the ice, fight for the puck and finish off plays in front of the net. I worked a lot on my strength and reflexes to be able to play a more well-rounded game and fill in a need for my team. Scoring 5 against Maine was sort of my declaration y'know? That I'm ready to come up to Atlanta and be part of their team and continue to grow. But I've really enjoyed playing with Newfoundland and after winning a cup, it would have been great to leave on that note. But being told that I'll be staying down just gives me another shot to really prove my SHL readiness and maybe even step up and be a leader on the Berserkers squad. I am glad to have extended with Atlanta, and will make sure to show that I am a strong prospect for them"

Just 2 days after signing a one year extension with Atlanta, another phone call came in from Hotdog, and yet again, Leon expected to hear good news. However, it was somber news, with the GM calling to inform Leon that Edmonton had just hired a new front office member who knew Leon from their shared Newfoundland days. With Edmonton needing forward depth, they sent over a 3rd round pick, 3 drafts away to bring over Leon in a low cost move. While the implied opportunity and the chance for a fresh start was exciting, the underlying tones left Leon concerned. Was his value truly that low to be sent away for a 3rd round pick so far in the future? Did 3rd round picks even have much value? Why sign an extension and trade the player away so soon. It was a real whirlwind of emotions for Leon who was starting to truly feel like he belonged in Atlanta, just a season removed from being traded there from Buffalo. That night though, GM Sota of Edmonton reached out, stating how excited he was to have the winger on the team. It was satisfying to hear, and especially so when he was told that he'd be starting immediately on the pro roster, making his SHL debut in S61.

When training camps opened for S61, just days after the trade, Leon had his first press conference as a member of the Blizzard:

Q: Leon, welcome to Edmonton. It's been quite the whirlwind for you over the past season, being traded to Atlanta last offseason and then being traded to Edmonton now. How are you handling it all?

A: It honestly wasn't that insane, mainly because I lived and played in Newfoundland for the duration of my time in the J. Traveling out to training camps was the only hectic part, having to head to Buffalo one season, then Atlanta the next. I knew that I'd have to find a new place to live after I finished my time in Newfoundland, but I expected to be staying down for another season, so I really am not prepared. Luckily some vets on the team reached out after the news broke, Tony and Julio were able to help me get set up with an apartment in the area for the meantime.

Q: You're going to be making your pro debut this season, how does it feel? Are you ready?

A: Well, the speed of play and the skill has definitely increased a bit from the juniors. The vets may not be as fast or agile as junior players, but they're a lot more cerebral and intentional with their play. Tony's on his last legs but was able to dangle me a bit in our first morning skate just because he knows things as someone who's played for a long time. Being part of a team with these folks is going to teach me a lot, so it's a good place to develop.

Q: You are the only rookie for Edmonton this season, but the Blizzard brought in defenseman Gabriel Johnson and winger (Clean) Andrei Kostitsyn to finish out the roster. Have you had a chance to speak with them at all, and how do you feel about being the only rookie?

A: Truthfully no, I haven't really spoken to either one of them yet because they were announced pretty recently, but we've skated briefly together. I'm sure we'll get more time to chat. In terms of being the only rookie, it's a good thing in my opinion. I get a lot more feedback since I'm the youngest guy on the team, and I'm sure the vets won't have to handle too many rookie mistakes since I'm the only one. I'm only really concerned about rookie dinners, maybe we'll have to get the new front office folks involved so that I'm not the only one paying for that stuff.

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The season itself started a bit rough, with 4 massive losses in the first 5 games. The media and the community generally expected a retooling season for Edmonton, a bridge season between the veterans of the group and the massive prospect class Edmonton is likely to bring up next season. It was definitely a tough start for the folks on the team because the season was in such limbo. Was it just a lost season, with any point to try to do well as a team? It was difficult for Leon in his first professional season, having known immense success throughout his career on Newfoundland. But at the risk of going into way too much unnecessary detail, the team was able to rally, using home ice as their backbone. Edmonton had one of the league's best records at home, going 25-7-1, but one of the worst records on the road at 11-21-1. Clearly the squad was unable to succeed in enemy territory, but the success at home sets up a good standard for the team to follow moving forward. Edmonton won their division narrowly, tiebreaking Calgary for 1st seed, and the division itself having just an 11 point gap from last to first.

Leon himself enjoyed a decent season for a rookie on the third line, serving as the primary goal scorer on a line with Kaapo Kampainen and Jean-Paul Boiven, two wily veterans. In 66 games, Leon scored 13 goals and 18 assists for a total of 31 points, but also boasting a rating of -11. Third lines are generally expected to be more defensively responsible, and that was a big area where the line failed this season. While they had some terrific clutch moments to score big goals in the playoffs or keep regular season games alive, a net negative rating means there's plenty of room to improve, and it'll be a focus for sure in the off-season. However, a good point to notice is that all of Leon's points came at even strength, as he didn't receive any powerplay time this season. Expect his point totals to bump up if he gets that special teams opportunity.

Here's a season exit press conference with Leon after a heart-breaking sweep loss to Texas in the playoffs:

Q: Leon, you guys just suffered a sweep, one of the worst ways to lose in the playoffs. What's the locker room like right now?

A: Obviously we're disappointed, and a bit frustrated in the outcome. No one likes to lose let alone get swept, but I can assure everyone that we had full confidence in our management and in each other to the very end. We'll review what went wrong and keep it in mind next season as some motivation. Overall we were counted out this season, not even expected to have gotten this far in the playoffs in what was called a rebuilding season, but we're going to keep growing off of it and be better next season.

Q: What do you think is going to be the biggest area of focus when it comes to your growth this off-season? Anyone you're going to work with to get it done?

A: There's a million things I can work on, there's a huge skill gap from the J to the pros, there's no area where I've mastered yet. But I played a lot on our third line and it's generally a line that needs to be defensively responsible so that's going to be a big focus this offseason since it was an area I wasn't great in. Working on conditioning as well to try and handle the grind of a full pro season, not get gassed in games which I noticed was happening. As for people to work with, I really liked Clean's work ethic and he was pretty close to being our team MVP if not for Tyler Ward in net. He's someone I'd love to work with over the off-season, as well as Gabriel Johnson. I suppose it's a bit cool that two people I really respect are folks who came in to Edmonton at the same time I did, and while I'm not sure if Gabe will be back next season, he's a monster on the ice and can help my defensive game out a lot. Clean was our offensive star, so both of them combined could really help me out on both ends of the ice.

Q: Any big plans for the offseason, after a pretty good rookie season?

A: Nothing crazy really, I probably have to do a bit of house hunting so I can get out of this apartment which we just found pretty quickly. It's not bad, would just like to find a place that I've vetted myself and really like the feel. A bit more personal decision I suppose. Will also take some time to go back to Greece, visit some family back there. Just spend some time relaxing there in a familiar environment with some better weather. Pretty low-key offseason for a bit, then I'll probably head back to Edmonton or maybe Toronto to get back to training before the next season. Whatever my teammates decide to do, wherever they decide to do it. We're all in on next season and we want to put forward the best versions of ourselves, and we all know that it's going to take a lot of effort and commitment to become the team we ultimately want to be.

Q: Thanks Leon, enjoy the offseason.

word count: 2013

Bfine · 10-08-2021, 11:45 AM

Great article, I’m thrilled that you’ll forever be my first SHL player trade. Love you Spartan let’s keep it going for seasons to come!

***Wally*** · 10-08-2021, 11:51 AM

Nice read Spartan... Awesome season with Edmonton!

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