The player I think who has gone through adversity to reach this stage is Manhattan Rage forward Luke Atmey. Atmey was originally drafted by the Hamilton Steelhawks, and them trading him is my first situation he has gone through. Atmey was originally drafted along with Kyle Kylrad as the team's future franchise faces, however things changed a couple of seasons later and Atmey's face didn't fit the cast anymore, and the Steelhawks moved him on. Obviously this would have been a big knock to the confidence of such a young player and it is to Atmey's credit that he was able to overcome this. Secondly, his team's performance during these playoffs was something of an obstacle for Atmey to overcome, with the Rage falling behind to the margin of 3-0 during their second round series. He was able to play his part in pushing through it, scoring a vital game tying goal in Game 7, inspiring his team onto victory.



My unsung hero of the playoffs is Manhattan forward Ace Redding because he has been a physical beast in addition to actually putting up some points. Redding has been on his shit flying about the ice and laying people out, he's got 92 hits in 20 games which is absolutely obscene, the best in the league by far. Teams simply couldn't keep up with the kind of hard game he was playing, you almost feel sorry for them. Redding has been a power play beast, getting 6 points and scoring 6 goals and 18 points as well. Granted, he wasn't the best scorer for the Rage during the playoffs, or even second best for that matter, but he was a physically punishing player who made his presence felt and showed his dominance over any opponents who were silly enough to get in his way. He's put on an absolute clinic in being a two way forward and that deserves recognition.



Calgary's second year forward Mike Izzy will be looking to use the Challenge Cup finals as a way to make a statement of his ability in the SHL. Izzy has been a force so far in these playoffs, scoring 6 goals in 11 games played, tied for second on the Dragons formidable team. To go along with his impressive goal tally, Izzy has accumulated 46 hits and also boasts an impressive shot percentage of 22%; a seriously impressive stat line for a young player. Izzy has been an important cog in the Dragons playoff machine, being a powerful two way power forward presence who can take hold of a game both with his offensive ability and his physical capabilities. The Dragons will be expecting a big series from their young forward and I'm sure Izzy will be more than up to the task of delivering and making an impact on the finals series.



The Dragons know what they're doing, like they've won a lot of cups, but if I were them I'd make the bold move to bring Mike Izzy onto the top line, maybe swapping places with Esa Anrikkanen. We've already talked about how Izzy is the real deal double threat, he has the offensive skill and the physical chops to mark him out as an all round player and I think putting him on the top line might allow him to both expand his game and score some more, and to play more of a shutdown role, laying big hits on the Rage's top line players. It's not like the Calgary lines need a lot of tweaking but bringing in a player with such a high energy level onto the top line wouldn't hurt their scoring ability but would create even more room for the star players in Randleman and Kurczewski to operate in. It's not perhaps a necessary move but it could be an interesting way to help take things up a level.