I came into the J as a Draftee Free Agent and linked up with the Armada. They were the only team to offer me, and I knew some friendly faces there already, so it turned out to be a great fit. It was such a good fit that they brought me back at the next draft. I told other teams that I was only interested in going to Armada. I would have played for other teams my one season in the J, but would have requested my SHL team to call me up immediately after drafting me, even if it was for a 4th line role. The Armada wasn’t happy that I only stayed down one season after being draft, but it was longer than I would stay down for any other team. I had a lot of fun with this group and I still cherish those memories and relationships built in Anchorage. I follow them in the standings still, and root for them. Go boats!
I had arguably 1 of the biggest rollercoaster's anyone ever has in the minors.
The first season was just getting adjusted and went alright albeit a lack of points but I joined the league at a piss poor point. Got shafted in the draft even though I would end up being one of the better Wing options overall if not the highest TPE player now (Will either be 1st or 2nd easily depending on the other lad) and going the lowest out of the Whalers even though I would the following season be one of the best (And damn near only active remaining from that draft past Bruins10)
Jon would end up helping helping Whalers absolutely dick Anaheim which felt great but then the rollercoaster would go back down as they would draft me to Raiders which fucking sucked.
In hindsight I should have just stayed down 1 extra season to get to 425 TPE and see if Raiders could actually do something but hindsight is hindsight only. I am now at least doing good on a great team. All is well.
[183 words]
Proud S67 - S69 Colorado Raptors Captain S57 Forward of the Season Award winner
Anthony Archer didn’t know what to expect going into the SMJHL. He went from playing in small multipurpose venues, generic locker rooms, and riding buses to having his own workout facility, his own arena with his own locker room and own cubby, taking flights for distant games. In terms of life on the ice, he was a lot weaker than some of the guys he was playing against and definitely a lot slower. This was made up for though through having a more dedicated practice schedule now that he was on a pro team and not to mention, not having to worry about school helps just a bit too. His whole life was now devoted to hockey whether its his sleep schedule, diet or training. Archer had a frustrating time in juniors, constantly coming just short of a championship but on a positive note, his medals on the international level sort of made up for that. To finish out his junior career he was traded where he had his worst season (as a team) unfortunately.
Anthony Archer - S49 12th Overall 1x IIHF Silver Medalist (S51) 2x WJC Gold Medalist (S48, S49) 2x Four Star Cup Finalist (S48, S50) SMJHL: 42G 40A 82P 304HIT // SHL: 17G 17A 34P 326HIT
I was lucky to have one of the best experiences in the SMJHL from the moment I was drafted until I was called up into the SHL. At the time, GM @adamantium took a chance on me, a guy returning after 8 seasons of inactivity on my previous player, since I was unproven and unknown, and had a track record of being an inactive prior to this. The nurturing and welcoming attitude, and winning formula, that Vancouver has had since my return is part of what kept me around. Also, with other GMs like @Glyc and @"luketd" taking the helm, the locker room was always a solid area to be for any player. Not to mention that I was able to win both a Four Star Cup in Season 43 and a Quilha Agante Trophy in Season 44, it's pretty safe to say that my Juniors league time was a fun, scucessful period in my young career, Too bad I peaked early...
Phineas Gold made the leap to the SMJHL in S49 of the league. Having felt like he was preparing for his entire time growing up, he was ready to finally make the jump to professional play. Phineas was actually quite nervous while he was waiting for his name to be called during draft day and was completely surprised when he was drafted in the top 20. He wasn’t so much of a household name, the scouts had barely looked at him, and he was pretty much ready for anything. So he packed his bags and set off for Montreal. His Freshman season was pretty lackluster. During the season he racked up some penalty minutes and barely broke 10 points with his 85 shots. While not all went exactly as planned for a rookie season, he was able to come away with a four star cup win as the underdogs of the season. The team had a 6th place finish but as the rookie team grew throughout their games they came to the playoffs ready to win. It was an amazing moment crystalized in time.
Karl came in to the league with full said behind him. He slammed the smjhl last season for a worthy send-off of over 1 ppg, and on that high note came to West Kendall to help fill out their roster in a defensive capacity. Despite the defensive focus Karl has preformed pretty well, posting around 0.5 ppg, he's doling very well despite the option to spend another season in the minors seasoning.
A lot of people had flagged Karl as a draft over pick going at 23rd overall in S50 to WKP. That's a full 50 slots above his smjhl draft position and he only managed 4 points in that rookie campaign. Earning wise he was slotted quite a bit lower as well because at the time he was in the low 30s for overall in his draft class.
Since then he has proven to be a good selection at his spot, bumping up his overall earnings to match his position and recently signing a fairly decent extension with the Platoon. And the sky is going to be the limit after his rookie campaign where he will be looking to be one of the leaders for a long time.
Rex Kirkby was drafted to the Anchorage Armada as a relatively unknown prospect out of the United Kingdom. After going in the sixth round the expectations weren't very high of him but coming to the end of his eleven seasons since his junior draft he is now regarded as one of the best defensemen in Prince George/ Regina/ Anchorage history. He was drafted in the Armada's inaugural season back when not all the teams made the playoffs and after a pretty tough initial season they managed to scrape in with the last slot despite having to carry Cameron Carter II's bum ass all season. They eased past Detroit in the first round but got flattened by Kelowna who would go on the record a historic threepeat. That would turn out to be the only playoff action Kirkby would record with Anchorage and he was traded at the deadline the following season to St Louis after the Armada struggled badly and were languishing at the bottom of the table.
Credit to Ml002, King, Wasty, Carpy, Bruins10, Rum_Ham, Turd Ferguson, Ragnar and Enigmatic for the sigs.
Making a quick jump from the SMJHL to the SHL was an unexpected, but welcome challenge. When Calgary first told me I would be jujmping to the SHL as a true rookie I was shocked to say the least but was looking forward at trying to make an immediate impact for my new team. The season went about as well as expected, I played limited 3rd pairing sheltered minutes mainly with my fellow rookie Chico Smeb, but it was a good taste of what to expect from the league and a great introduction at getting our feet wet. We both got to see first hand what this team amd this league was all about. I really think jumping into the league immediatly made me the player I am today and helped me find the success that would make our team a Challenge Cup champion and perennial playoff contender for many years to come.
thedangazone Rookie Mentor Committee
S40 & S42 Challenge Cup Champion
The Velveteen Dream has had an amazing time in Carolina playing for the Kraken but the leap to the SMJHL has not been as easy as most things come for the Dream. The Dream has played admirably for the Kraken in his limited time on ice having been a 3rd liner for 2 seasons now and even getting penalty kill time with no power play time. Falling just shy of 30 points this season the Dream is 100% still upset though because he has had to sit behind other players when he could be out there proving his star power. If given the time on ice to be the best in the league the Dream has no doubt he would be. So the jump to the SMJHL has been a little difficult to get used to not being the main guy, so far at least. But the Dream knows his time is coming and he will prove himself. And when he does get that chance the other team's dreams will become nightmares.
Anders a really good time playing in the SMJHL. Christiansen was drafted by the Prince George Firebirds, a team that was contending for the league title when he got there. Anders mostly played as the fourth-line center, especially after the trade deadline, but he understands why he had such a role and he helped the team as best as he could. His first year ended up gloriously when the Firebirds won the league playoffs. The next year, Anders was promoted to the second line. During the following offseason, Anders was traded to Colorado once the Firebirds decided to proceed with a full rebuild. Anders stayed two seasons in Colorado, before making the move to the SHL. He spent in Colorado playing on the top six and getting both power play and penalty kill ice time which helped him developed in the player he is today. He put up 43 points and 49 points during his two seasons in Colorado.
After playing hockey for the first time in high school and having only 2 years on the varsity team, the transition to the SMJHL was a daunting one. Noah did not know how he would fair against players who had been playing the game since they were kids. His experience or lack there of would certainly hinder his ability to perform at a high level in the SMJHL. Noah was surprised to hear his name called in the first round of the entry draft though and was immediately embraces by his new teammates in St. Louis. He formed a strong bond with the boys very quickly. he became a leader in the locker room during his rookie year and went on to be named the rookie of the year for St. Louis. His dedication to the game did not go unnoticed, and he was named the most dedicated player in the SMJHL after his rookie season. His performance on the ice caught the attention of the SHL scouts, as he ended up being drafted second overall to the Texas Renegades. Noah played just one more season in the SMJHL after his rookie year before he was called up to play in the SHL.
Toivo![[Image: 2ew9foG.png]](https://i.imgur.com/2ew9foG.png)
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Proud S67 - S69 Colorado Raptors Captain 
S57 Forward of the Season Award winner 
Now Isaac Forty-One 
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