16/16


I haven't been super in touch with the league in recent seasons, but it's very surprising for me to see the New Orleans Specters riding the bottom of the league.  I see the names of players whom I respect dearly having a disasterous season with craterous -50 ratings. It will continue to surprise me every time when good teams are dominant and rebuilding teams are scrubbing the floor.  It makes me appreciate how difficult it must be / have been for Kez and Strom to keep our team consistent for so long.  We haven't been a dominant force yet, but they keep us out of the basement and trending upward among some rapid movers.

It's also surprising for me to see the West and East kind of switching patterns.  For as long as I've been around, it's felt like the East is 2-3 really dominant teams and then a huge drop off, whereas the West had a less dominant top and more competitive bubble.  However, this season it seems like Toronto has cracked into the top club and everyone else is really close.  In the West, it very quickly drops off after Texas, Calgary, Edmonton.  Four teams in the West did worse than all teams in the East.


I am choosing immunity from penalties, offsides, and icing.  I am posting up two skaters by the other team's goalie and I am banking passes to them all game.  No offsides means they can stay in place with no concerns.  No icing means I don't have to worrry about being off target.  No penalties means that I am interfering with that goaltender pretty much non stop.

We'll have to defend 3 on 6 the whole game, but we can also play like total goons.  Every time we can draw a "matching" penalty, their advantage evaporates because my guys can't get sent to the box.  Even if they are allowed to replace the penalized skater ("play the whole game with 6 skaters"), we can still just hold and trip non stop on the backcheck and mail the puck down to my goal scorers.


I feel like probably I need to update next season to help my team reach the promised land, but it's hard to tell.  I did not do a post regression update and arguably performed better even while we backslid a bit as a team (although the shifting landscape of the West may also have something to do with the team backsliding).  I scored a couple more points, took less penalties, blocked a ton more shots, and was consistent in a lot of the other aspects of my game.

I think the key may be, when I update to try and focus on my strengths rather than trying to round out my weaknesses like usual.  I am never going to generate a ton of offense, but I serve the team best by shielding young talented defensemen while they grow.  I can carry most of the defensive responsibilities on the blue line so any defensive prospects can taste the top minutes and go from there.


I think the most obvious answer to this is the Texas Renegades.  Their series against Hamilton went to seven before Hamilton took Buffalo in 5.  Games 3 and 7 were wide open, 7-4 and 6-2, but every other game was a 1 goal difference, including an overtime win in game 4 to stay alive in the series.

In the regular season, they absolutely dominated with almost a 150 goal differential and the President's Trophy.  If game 7 went differently in that series, I think Texas walks away with the cup instead of Hamilton.

I think the non-obvious answer is the Tampa Bay Barracuda.  They've got the most Fitted per game out of all the teams in the league and that makes them the best in some jurisdictions.


+3 milestone tpe
https://simulationhockey.com/showthread....pid3012353


@FuzzSHL is the wind beneath my wings, god bless him and god bless team USA
Also cheers to Winnipeg, gonna peg this league until the day I ride off into the sunset.  The beautiful bastards running the show are gonna get me that cup any day now.