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***Hallsy*** · 02-25-2022, 02:14 PM

CW GM Pass

G2019 · 02-25-2022, 02:14 PM

GM CW Pass

Raven · 02-25-2022, 02:21 PM

Code:
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is completed through a Google form linked below. Make sure to spell your answers correctly or you will not get credit. Post your verification word in your CW post.

CW

+ 3 TPE

Code:
3. Written, 3 TPE, Those That Came Before (150 words min.)

When did your franchise last win a Challenge Cup? Write about that team, some of the key players, and what intangibles they had going for them to be able to win it all. If your franchise hasn’t yet won a cup, choose any cup winning team and talk about why you’d like your current team to emulate them. Did they have an all time great roster? Were they scrappy under dogs?

My team the Toronto North Stars have been around since S1, but have only won one Challenge Cup to date. This was back in S35. The regular season ended with the Stars getting a total of 61 points off a 28 win, 17 loss and 5 overtime loss record. This put them second in their conference behind the New England Wolfpack and 4th in the league behind the Dragons, aforementioned Wolfpack and the Portland Admirals.

The first round saw them take on the West Kendall Platoon who the Stars easily dismanteld in a 4-1 series. Next up where the team to beat the New England Wolfpack, who had swept the Buffalo Stampede in the previous round. Once again the Stars made short work of their opponents and beat the Wolfpack 4-1 as well.

The final saw them take on the Portland Admirals, who had beaten the Los Angeles Panthers 4-1 and the Calgary Dragons 4-3 in their previous games.

The final went to a game 7, a game which the North Stars won 4-2. Damie Wert and Lukas Johnson, both scoring the third minute f the game, got the North Stars to an early 2-0 start. Veli Kaalinpää would answer back for the Admirals to round out the first period. Geronimo Otto scored a short handed goal to level the two teams once again. However the North Stars came back just over a minute later with a goal from Kristian Eriksson and another 5 minutes later Evandrus Jesster would score the 4-2 and seal the game.

The North Stars had an amazing group of players this season and that showed in the playoffs. 4 out of the 5 top point scorers were from Toronto. Kristian Eriksson (10G,10A) and Damien Wert (7G,13A) lead with 20 points followed by Andrey Barbashev (6G,13A) and Pedro Sarantez (10G,8A)

(304 words)

+ 3 TPE

Code:
6. Written, up to 4 TPE - Grab Bag: Pick up to 4 Challenge Cup related topics to write about! Each topic is worth 1 TPE. Each answer must be 50+ words.

a. Los Angeles has been riding their top players for almost a full minute more of ice time than Hamilton has theirs. If you were a coach, do you buy into this strategy? Do you let your top guys leave it all out there every night or aim for the most balanced attack possible?

b. Guy O'Shea and Evangelos Giannopoulos have been absolute block machines for Hamilton in the playoffs with 109 between them. If you’re looking for offense in this series, how do you get around these two defensemen?

c. Los Angeles’ defense, on the other hand, has not been afraid to join the play and put up points. How do you prepare for a five player offensive attack? How do you counter?

d. The starting goalies for these teams, Olof Karsikko and A Jobin have been nearly unbeatable up to this point with a 0.937 and a 0.927 SV% respectively. If you’re a player on the other team, how would you get inside their heads so that you can put the puck in the net?

a. I feel as a coach I would look to balance out the lines more. However, what the Panthers have been doing so far has been working immensely for them. So it is hard to disagree with their current tactics. If the big boys can keep up with their stamina and keep delivering why would you switch it out. (58 words)

b. These two have been preforming their tits off so far. Any team who is looking to put shots on net will have to consider these two beasts and consider how to get around them. One might say, just wait for them to be off the ice, but you really cannot, because their other defenders can also use their body very well. I think the Panthers need to overload the defensive areas more, so they can always take on one of the defenders 2 on 1. (85 words)

c. You prepare for a ton of offensive. I feel like playing for a counter will be huge. As these defenders are more risk takers it opens up the opportunity to take the puck off them and hit with a quick counter. I think you need one or two people who are really going to put pressure on these defenders and try and get them to make a mistake and punish them for it. (73 words)

d. I feel like I would try and shoot very different shots every time. Try and really work them. One time I will go for the slick slap shot and then just try a soft annoying shot on a weak side. These goalies are mentally strong, so it will be hard to really get in their hands. (56 words)

+ 4 TPE

Code:
11a. Written, 2 TPE - The Procrastinator Special! (100 words min.)

Congratulations, procrastinator!  Through your terrible time management skills, you’ve unlocked a special task! [TEAM] has won it all! Was it an exciting final, or predictable? Did anything surprise you about the outcome? What players performed above or below what was expected of them?

Woo Hamilton wins again. Honestly I do not really follow much of the sim, so I had no idea who was in the final till it was 1-1. Which at the time was pretty exciting to see. Were the Panthers going to size up against the Steelhawks? Sadly as this is a post final review, we all know that is not true. The Steelhawks ended up being too strong 4-2. Even looking at the scores is kinda depressing. The Panters had a great start with a 2-0 shutout win. Then it was a 1-5 blowout and a 1-3 loss. Then a great tight 3-2 win for the Panthers to tie the series once again. But then it was a 0-3 shutout loss and another 1-5 loss. Panthers showed up in some games, but in the end the Steelhawks were just too strong.

[142 words]

+ 2 TPE

Code:
12. Milestones, up to 3 TPE

Milestones are folded in with CW. So just link your Milestone claim as task 12 for up to 3 TPE towards your 16 total.

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Post your claim in the milestones thread for tpe earned per stat, and then link that post in your CW submission. This is done because the person who grades CW will be a different person than double-checks milestones.

S63 Milestone claim

+ 1 TPE

Code:
13. Written, 3 TPE, Parody (150 words min.)

BWOMP BWOMP BWOMP PARITY ALERT PARITY ALERT- Well, a new team in the finals since the mid s50s, it only took ten seasons. Is parity solved? Will new teams make it in as the old guard becomes a forgotten waste of brain space? Don't forget, Hamilton is here AGAIN. Yes we have new teams... but what if it's TEX HAM again next season? Is that even likely?

When I saw that the Los Angeles Panthers made the finals that was absolutely a spark of enjoyment. Which quickly withered away when I saw Hamilton was also back again and was then als totally withered into a dark, empty, void and or abyss once I saw that the Steelhawks had also once again won the cup.

I think a new team making it to the finals is great. However as the prompt suggests, I still feel very wary about the future. I remember seeing a TPE ranking from before the season started and Hamilton was ranked 11th overall in TPE and Los Angeles 5th. So depite all that, Hamilton was still able to tactic their way into the playoffs. Which of course is a double edged sword. You want a balance where the top TPE teams are good, but can be beaten. The future will tell if tactics are too strong and they always carry lesser teams to the top, We will have to see futher from there.

[169 words]

+ 3 TPE

16/16

Thank you Fever, sköldpaddor and OD for the amazing sigs!

Montreal Impact/Militia Militia-Old

|Player Page| Stars

|Update Page| Japan

***Leafs4ever*** · 02-25-2022, 02:27 PM

Task 1: (3 TPE)

Verification: Strongo

Task 2: (3 TPE)

Man was the SHL different back in the days. If you watched video of our games in Season 1 you'd think it was two different sports. The speed and skill of the game is so much higher in today's SHL than in the beginning, there is almost no comparison you can make.

In Season 1, the players were using such outdated equipment, which definitely hindered their play. They had bulky pads and two piece wood sticks, it was like going back in time. Offense was definitely not the name of the game, which is why the Jeff Dar award for best defensive forward was so sought after. You needed to be able to defend while getting points to be considered an elite player. Nowadays, everyone is putting up 50+ points. You'd be lucky to crack that in a career back in the day.

I recently caught up with a player who played in Season 1. When asked his reaction to watching a game in Season 63, SHL Hall of Famer Damian Littleton was quoted as saying, "Holy smokes I can't even follow the flow of the game! Why are they going so fast? I blinked and missed 4 goals! Back in my day, it took you half a season to get down the ice and score 4 goals. The integrity of the game is gone!"

Season 1 to Season 63, quite a change.

(233 words)

Task 3: (3 TPE)

It's been quite a long time since Los Angeles brought home the Challenge Cup. You have to go back 46 seasons to find the last time the Panthers hoisted the Cup. Let's look back at that team and what made them so special.

The Panthers in Season 17 were a very close knit group. They had a great mix of youth and experience, but there was no superstar or elite player that carried the group. They were the definition of winning by committee. Looking back, they had a bevy of SHL elites, with names like Brian Morley, Brandon Donini, Adam Kylrad, Dave Smith, and Shawn Velevra. They were so well balanced and could throw any line out on the ice and be competitive. That depth definitely shined in the playoffs as this group of players brought Los Angeles their second Challenge Cup. They finished the season with only 1 all-star, Christian Bauer, and no major award winners. That Season 17 Los Angeles Panthers team accomplished the highest of highs and did it as the epitome of the word "Team".

(179 words)

Task 6: (4 TPE)

a. Los Angeles has been riding their top players for almost a full minute more of ice time than Hamilton has theirs. If you were a coach, do you buy into this strategy? Do you let your top guys leave it all out there every night or aim for the most balanced attack possible?

I don't think it's about playing your top players more, it's about playing the ones who have stepped up and are producing. It's the playoffs, you have to play your hot hands as much as they can handle. Either way, I think the gap here is overstated. The top players are averaging 23+ minutes on both teams. At that point an extra minute isn't that much different. Both teams are riding their best players, it's not unusual, especially at this point in the season. (84 words)

b. Guy O'Shea and Evangelos Giannopoulos have been absolute block machines for Hamilton in the playoffs with 109 between them. If you’re looking for offense in this series, how do you get around these two defensemen?

For Los Angeles, it's not going to be easy against any players, but yes these two players have really stepped up defensively. However, what I would say to the Panthers is that those shot block numbers should tell you one thing. You are going to have the puck a lot and are going to get a lot of chances to fire shots on net. If you want them to actually get to the net, you need to get the puck off the ice. Anything low to the ice and these two are going to get feet and shin pads in the way. Raise the puck and direct everything to the net. (111 words)

c. Los Angeles’ defense, on the other hand, has not been afraid to join the play and put up points. How do you prepare for a five player offensive attack? How do you counter?

The Panthers defense loves to move the puck and get it to their forwards. For Hamilton, they need to limit those breakout passes as much as possible. They need to clog the neutral zone and take away as many passing lanes as they can. If they can read the defenseman's eyes and follow the play, they could also jump on any pass attempts before they reach the forwards. Outside of that, when setting up in the defensive zone, block off any passes to the point and keep everything to the side boards. (92 words)

d. The starting goalies for these teams, Olof Karsikko and A Jobin have been nearly unbeatable up to this point with a 0.937 and a 0.927 SV% respectively. If you’re a player on the other team, how would you get inside their heads so that you can put the puck in the net?

Both goalies are have a fantastic run and it's going to be hard to to find offense in this series. Having said that, you need to try something to get each one of their game and if there is one thing that every goalie hates, it's players crowding their crease. Goalies are a special breed of player and need things to be a certain way. The crease is their home and they hate when anyone enters their home. Hamilton and Los Angeles need to send one player to park themselves directly in front of the goalie and get them moving around to see through them and frustrating them. If you give them a chance to get comfortable in the net, you're in for a tough time trying to get anything by them. (132 words)

Task 12: (3 TPE)

3 TPE from Milestones

Guy Incognito - D - #24
Texas Renegades
Season 76
47-17-2
Regular Season - [G 7] [A 13] [Pts 20] [+/- +27] [PIM 36] [Hits 37] [SB 125]
Playoffs - [G 0] [A 2] [Pts 2] [+/- +4] [PIM 0] [Hits 0] [SB 12]
[Image: ERs3IrD.png]

***golden_apricot*** · 02-25-2022, 02:34 PM

Give me my free tpe

***ValorX77*** · 02-25-2022, 02:34 PM

MTask 1: (keyword is Valor)

Task 2: The first season of the simulation hockey league was quite unique; as there was no dominant team in the league and no clear strategies to win like in today’s SHL. Players did not wear helmets, and the league was not based on speed and goal scoring, it was based off of grit and strength, and beating each over up. Shots were also much slower than that of today’s stats such as Aaron Wilson, or Karl Krashwagen. The goaltending situation was much different then, as goal scoring was at a modest rate compared to today’s game. So they had smaller pads and did not have masks to protect themselves, as you could not raise the puck back then. Goal scoring was also at all time low due to how solid defenseman were back then, as the champion of that season, Winnipeg, based themselves on a strong defensive counterattack that very few teams could defeat. S1 was based on defense and puck luck. (161 words)

Task 3: It’s been 14 seasons since the Edmonton Blizzard last won the challenge cup, having last won it in S49. Edmonton made it into the playoffs as a wild card, only behind their rivals in Calgary standings wise in their division. They were led by team captain Cory Knouse, as had a good amount of youth of this roster, including Tony Pepperoni, FR Finn-Rhys, and Julilo Tokolosh, all still in the league today, with the exception of Knouse. The Blizzard first took out the Los Angeles Panthers in 6 games to advance onto the next round. Their next opponent was their in-Provence rivals, the Calgary Dragons. It was not a good start as they were down 0-2 after 2 games, but ended up beating their rivals in 7 games, advancing to play the New Orleans Specters. The Blizzard would eliminate the heavily favored specters in 6 games, then they swept the New England Wolfpack to clinch their 8th challenge cup championship. (160 words)

Task 10: S63 Playoffs Talk + Finals Predictions (11 minutes)

Task 13: Another championship series comes around, with the almighty Hamilton Steelhawks back in the finals for the third straight time. The only reason they are back in the finals, is due to the lack of FHM knowledge outside of Hamilton, and not due to parity issues, as the playoffs aren’t real until the second round. Thanks to the new regression system, and stricter cap, older teams seemingly finally got weaker (outside of Hamilton obviously). There is more proof on why parity exists in this league, Los Angeles only placed third in their division, yet got to the challenge cup finals. How did they get in you may be asking? They got all the free agents and traded the necessary capital required to create a contender in this league. The simple thing is that restrictions on builds are going to be the way to adjust parity moving forward. Also making sure there is not one "dominant" build that takes over the league and accidentally creates the next Hamilton. (166 words)

16/16 TPE

*AgentSmith630* · 02-25-2022, 02:40 PM

CW Pass

*Fluw* · 02-25-2022, 02:44 PM

CW Pass

***Air Crou*** · 02-25-2022, 02:50 PM

Simmer Pass

*JURT* · 02-25-2022, 02:51 PM

CW Pass

*thiefofcheese* · 02-25-2022, 02:53 PM

Code:
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is completed through a Google form linked below. Make sure to spell your answers correctly or you will not get credit. Post your verification word in your CW post.

cheese

+3 TPE

Code:
2. Written, 3 TPE, Back In My Day (150 words min.)

The SHL has been around for the sim-time equivalent of 63 years now! That’s a lot of time for things to change. What was the league like 62 years ago in season one? Did nobody wear helmets? Were players allowed to smoke on the ice? Plenty would have changed in over six decades!

63 years is a long time for a sport. In almost every sport the equipment gets better, the training gets better, and the rules change (notice I didn't say "gets better"?). When the SHL started the core of the game was completely different than it is today. One may say it was a "simpler" time. The league rules were run by this guy named Simon who had a great idea, but had a lot of rough edges in the process. Players were encouraged to train in very specific areas in order to be good and the gap between the teams was quite large. You may think a well rounded player would shine, but Simon said no. Now we've moved on to bigger and better (?) things and while the current league still has it's challenges parity is getting closer and closer. Maybe soon we'll see some team other than Hamilton in the finals.

+3 TPE - 152 words

Code:
4. Written, 3 TPE, Extinction Event (150 words min.)

Rumour has it that millions of years before the SHL began, there was a pre-historic “Dino Hockey League” that dominated the global sports market before a meteor wiped out most life on the planet. Describe that ancient league. Maybe name a couple of teams or players, tell me about how the Dino league’s rules differed from our current ones? This one is pretty loose, just have fun with it!

Whenever talking to people about the Dino Hockey League there is common misconception that the league's heyday was pre-meteor but I believe it was post-meteor. With the high level of dust in the air the temps dropped and ice became plentiful in areas where it wasn't before. With this increased ice there was a boom in accessibility to dinos that historically wouldn't have had the option. This included adding teams further south and the league expanded rapidly. However, this expansion led to more and more violent altercations as many of these dinos were not very accepting of others that weren't of their "own kind". This meant that smaller dinos had to come to games with a large bench of players to replace those that were violently attacked and the overall skill level was inherently low. Attendance was high during these times though as crowds tend to self create larger crowds and the feasts were legendary.

+3 TPE - 155 words

Code:
6. Written, up to 4 TPE - Grab Bag: Pick up to 4 Challenge Cup related topics to write about! Each topic is worth 1 TPE. Each answer must be 50+ words.

a. Los Angeles has been riding their top players for almost a full minute more of ice time than Hamilton has theirs. If you were a coach, do you buy into this strategy? Do you let your top guys leave it all out there every night or aim for the most 

balanced attack possible?

If it aint broke then don't fix it. Los Angeles has had good luck riding that first line and now that we are into the final round we have to expect these to performers to continue to perform. Do not get me wrong, every team needs depth and you can not just have one line doing all the work and expect to get results, but LAP seems to be seeing success. If Ham can shut down that first line I think we'll see the games go in their favor.

+1 TPE - 89 words

Code:
c. Los Angeles’ defense, on the other hand, has not been afraid to join the play and put up points. How do you prepare for a five player offensive attack? How do you counter?

Well there is a reason I do not GM any teams - I have no idea how to best stop this. In my head the counter to this would be to put up an aggressive defense and play an extremely phsyical game to wear out that offensive power. While it is likely that HAM will be forced to be in their own zone more than they like, the breakaway potential is definitely there and they may be able to exploit LAPs aggressiveness and holes.

+1 TPE - 83 words

Code:
14. Written, 3 TPE, Blew it up (150 words min.)

In your opinion, which team is has performed a successful rebuild and built a legacy around starting from the bottom? What constitutes a successful rebuild? Cups? Playoff appearances? Is this team still poised to do great things in the future?

I did not actually look but I suspect we are going to see a lot of people writing about the Baltimore Platoon here. 10 seasons ago people questioned a lot of BAP's choices in trades and keeping top players was tough. But JR and MasterSheep have put together a great core and are making waves throughout the SHL now. Although this season didn't end as many would have hoped (with BAP getting a finals appearance) they were top of the league in S63 with 109 points and had 3 players that pulled in more than 80 points on the season. BAP went from 14th place in Season 59 to 3rd place in Season 60 and haven't fell below that 3rd place since that point. I'm not sure what has been happening in the locker room or the management war room, but whatever they are doing they need to keep doing.

+3 TPE - 150 words

Code:
15. Written, 2 TPE, The yearly IIHF task (100 words min.)

Write your predictions for this year's IIHF tournament or WJC if you care about that more. Will there be surprises? Will any players make their country proud? Who's gonna suck? Be bold!

So I just did the IIHF predictions and I really do not follow this part of the league well so was not sure who to best go with. After digging into the rosters more it is pretty clear that Canada, United States, and Japan are all favorites to go far in the tournament. For no particular reason I am going to put my money on Canada this season. They have under performed for the last few seasons and are ready to make a comeback in the IIHF world. I expect a few upsets in the early rounds, but do not expect and underdog to rise to the very top and take home the championship in Season 63.

+2 TPE - 117 words

***hockeyiscool*** · 02-25-2022, 02:57 PM

GM CW Pass

This is just here so I can claim affiliate for the SSL

19. Written, 3 TPE, Bodysnatchers 150 words min

You've uncovered a devious plot employed by the Texas Renegades of the SHL. In order to create the illusion of parity, sometime after game 1 they swapped bodies with all of the Los Angeles team! The Panthers ARE the Renegades! I fucking knew it! How do you expose this to the SHL masses, and get them to believe you? Or do you let their evil plan work, and have the SHL believe we are leaving the era of the big 4 forever?

On the contrary, I believe that the Los Angeles Panthers in a round about way are actually part of the original big five. Many people like to forget that many of the current Los Angeles Panthers were core members of the original FHM S54 winning and S55 finalists New Orleans Specters. The Los Angeles Panthers had superstars from that New Orleans team the likes of MVP Jimmy Slothface, as well as two stud defensemen in Keith Lee as well as Kaspers Claude. Not to mention that the coaching staff and general manager that had left the polluted New Orleans in a switch for a city of lights in Los Angeles. Had Los Angeles had legendary netminder Alistair Cain I think they would come away with a win in this year's series. They have a amazing young goaltender in Olof Karsikko, but I'm not sure it will be enough for the panthers for this season, maybe next season. We aren't leaving the big 4 era, because it has always been the big 5 era.

160ish