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tredpalo · 03-30-2024, 03:45 PM

To my esteemed friends in the SMJHL,

Today marks the dawn of a new era, my friends. I am no longer "Trevor Lopez, the S77 Draft Prospect", but instead I am now "Trevor Lopez, Left Defenseman for the Vancouver Whalers"! I was fortunate enough to be selected with the 2nd overall selection in last night's draft, and I can truly say that it's an honor to have been valued that highly by the Vancouver front office. There's a long list of people I'd like to thank for getting me to this point, so why not take some time to thank them all properly while also recieving media money? I think it's a rather smart idea if I do say so myself, so let's get this started!

The first individual I'd like to thank is Kahri (@kahri). I'll put it quite bluntly, if Kahri didn't personally suggest this league to me, then there wouldn't have been a Trevor Lopez to draft in the first place. She's the one who personally invited me into this league, and she's the one who helped guide my way through the draft process. She's a great person and was a great "mentor", so to speak, so thank you for bringing the Tijuana Tornado into the SMJHL!

The second person, or rather, persons I'd like to thank are my fellow S77 SMJHL Draft Class members. By all accounts, everyone in this draft class besides 3 people (Shoutout to Raw Cheese McPickle, Skylar Stevens and Rock Solid) were complete and total strangers to me, but you'd have never guessed that if you looked in the S77 Draft Class Discord server. It felt less like a room of random people, and more like a closely-knit band of brothers, sisters, and/or non-binary siblings in arms. Every player would build their fellow draft members up, rather than knock em down in order to raise their own draft stock, and things like that don't go unnoticed. There's so many great people in that class, and I'm proud of my fellow draftees for being selected last night.

Next, I'd like to thank the GMs and scouts who scouted me. In total, I was scouted by 11 different teams, and while I only got selected by one of them, that still leaves 10 other teams that all made a favorable impression on me. I thoroughly enjoyed my conversations with each and every scout who reached out to me, and while I may not be on their teams, it gave me the opportunity to make bonds and connections with individuals that I may have never interacted with otherwise.

Speaking of GMs and scouts that I'd like to thank, I believe there's one organization that deserves the biggest thank you of all, and that's the one that drafted me. To Seany (@Seany148) and Shiamus (@Shiamus), you both took a huge gamble taking a relatively unknown name (at least, compared to some of the other players who have already had multiple players) with your #2 overall pick, and I want to thank you both for taking that chance on me. Through our conversations, I managed to get a clear picture of the ideal team you wish to build, and I plan on dedicating every fiber of my being to this team. I WILL be a player that will make you proud to have selected me. That's a promise, and a Lopez man NEVER goes back on his word.

Lastly, I'd like to thank two people who will likely never read this. I'd love to thank my Mother and Father for getting me to this point. One thing a few scouts have told me is that they love the attitude I bring to a conversation, but the honest truth is that I wouldn't have that attitude if it wasn't for my parents who raised me to behave and act the way I do today. My family has gone through a rough patch in real life over the past two and a half years, and it's done a lot of damage to my mental state that will take a long time to truly heal, but it's thanks to them that I still manage to keep holding on and am still able to participate in sim leagues like this. Every time I look back on those events, I'm reminded of one of my mother's favorite poems "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes

Life for me ain't been no crystal stairs.
It's had tacks in it,
And Splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor
Bare.
But all the time
I'se been a-climbin' on,
And reachin' landin's
And turnin' corners,
And sometimes going in the dark
Where there ain't been no light.
So boy, don't you turn back.
Don't you set down on the steps
'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.
Don't you fall now-
For I'se still goin', honey,
I'se still climbin'
And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

Mom, dad, I love you both so very much, thank you for all you've sacrificed for me, and for raising me into the man that I am today.

And with that, I think I've thanked everyone that's helped mold me into the kind of prospect and player that I want to be. Thank you to everyone for introducing me into this wonderful team, and I look forward to competing either alongside you or against you in this upcoming season. Much love to all of you, and with that, there's one thing left to say...... LETS GO WHALERS!!!

Whalers