03-14-2016, 05:44 PM
"But what are the options when someone great is gone?"
LCD Soundsystem
This season will see the Los Angeles Panthers, one of the most storied franchises of the SHL, lose one of their franchise players to retirement. As he plays out a career built on excellence, fans who gathered at the Staples Centre night after night to watch his electric play will be devastated that he is no longer around. He is a man who has shown immense loyalty to the Panthers and played out his entire career with the team, enduring both agonizing lows and euphoric highs and continuing to stand strong throughout. He is universally beloved throughout the league and synonymous with achievement in the SHL and will be someone long remembered after their time in the league is up, both within the franchise and likely leaguewide as a future inductee to the SHL Hockey Hall of Fame. Just in case any of you were still unsure, that man is of course..
<center>TOMAS PYLON</center>
![[Image: JxV5YoJ.png]](http://i.imgur.com/JxV5YoJ.png)
Pylon is all of the above and more. Shall we take a closer look at the career of this LAP great? We shall.
<center>The Marek Martinek Years</center>
Many may be unaware but Pylon entered the SHL under a different name, that of Marek Martinek. Maybe this was to disguise his true "pylon-esque" nature, but who knows. Martinek entered the SMJHL in S20 after being drafted by the Vancouver Whalers, and had a very impressive first season in the league putting up 34 points in his 40 games played, a glimpse of the talent the young man possessed. His impressive performances led to him shooting up the draft boards and being drafted 6th overall in S21 by the Los Angeles Panthers, the team he would call home for his whole career.
Martinek's impressive performances in the SMJHL led to him being played by LA as a true rookie in the S21 season where he once again impressed, putting up a very respectable 21 points in 52 games with a positive plus minus rating. It was after this season however that Martinek would make a huge change in his career that led to him becoming the player he is today.
<center>Becoming the Pylon</center>
During S22 Martinek revealed his true name and nature, electing to instead be called "Tomas Pylon". Pylon continued to grow on the ice and delivered a sterling season in S22 when he put up 32 points in 52 games played to solidify the Panthers defense and provide big secondary scoring.
S23 saw Pylon endure the first tough season of his career, as his scoring dropped from 32 points to 24 as the Panthers endured a tough year of personal scoring. Had Pylon finally lived up to his name after dazzling thus far in his career?
Pylon bounced back during S24 to put up 28 points and revitalize the entire Panthers organisation through his strong performance on the ice, in addition to being a real figurehead (or traffic-cone head) off it. It was around this time that the Pylon made the decision to retire from the sport of hockey, much to the shock and disappointment of LA management and fans worldwide. Luckily for everyone, Pylon was talked around and stuck it out with the Panthers. The rest is history.
S25 was hard times for the whole team as Pylon's scoring dropped again as he put up only 25 points, a long way from his dizzying standards set back in S22. The Panther's missed the playoffs and many began to realise that strong Pylon=strong Panthers.
The team hoped to rebound during S26 and they expected Pylon to be the man to lead them to the postseason. Instead, his scoring dropped once again and he fell below the golden "1 point every 2 games" boundary in the SHL for the first time since his rookie season. Another rough season for Panthers fans as the team once missed the playoffs and their key defenseman showed signs of slowing down.
S27 would see Pylon post his lowest ever points total in the SHL with just 19 scored in total. This alone caused a lot of heartache for LA fans, but when he went public with his retirement, it must have been truly heart wrenching for them.
<center>What now?</center>
The face of the LA Panthers franchise will play his last game for the team this season. It will surely be a very emotional time for everyone in the team, but beyond that, who knows what the future holds for Pylon? A likely candidate for the SHL Hall Of Fame, expect to see his name amongst those considered in upcoming ballots. I also believe his number should be retired. Here is a mockup of how the banner could look.
<center>![[Image: iLA3TD1.png]](http://i.imgur.com/iLA3TD1.png)
</center>
All in all, Pylon enjoyed a legendary career and the Panthers will never be quite the same without him on the team.
o yea some guy called "Morley" also retired. You've never heard of him either?
LCD Soundsystem
This season will see the Los Angeles Panthers, one of the most storied franchises of the SHL, lose one of their franchise players to retirement. As he plays out a career built on excellence, fans who gathered at the Staples Centre night after night to watch his electric play will be devastated that he is no longer around. He is a man who has shown immense loyalty to the Panthers and played out his entire career with the team, enduring both agonizing lows and euphoric highs and continuing to stand strong throughout. He is universally beloved throughout the league and synonymous with achievement in the SHL and will be someone long remembered after their time in the league is up, both within the franchise and likely leaguewide as a future inductee to the SHL Hockey Hall of Fame. Just in case any of you were still unsure, that man is of course..
<center>TOMAS PYLON</center>
Pylon is all of the above and more. Shall we take a closer look at the career of this LAP great? We shall.
<center>The Marek Martinek Years</center>
Many may be unaware but Pylon entered the SHL under a different name, that of Marek Martinek. Maybe this was to disguise his true "pylon-esque" nature, but who knows. Martinek entered the SMJHL in S20 after being drafted by the Vancouver Whalers, and had a very impressive first season in the league putting up 34 points in his 40 games played, a glimpse of the talent the young man possessed. His impressive performances led to him shooting up the draft boards and being drafted 6th overall in S21 by the Los Angeles Panthers, the team he would call home for his whole career.
Martinek's impressive performances in the SMJHL led to him being played by LA as a true rookie in the S21 season where he once again impressed, putting up a very respectable 21 points in 52 games with a positive plus minus rating. It was after this season however that Martinek would make a huge change in his career that led to him becoming the player he is today.
<center>Becoming the Pylon</center>
During S22 Martinek revealed his true name and nature, electing to instead be called "Tomas Pylon". Pylon continued to grow on the ice and delivered a sterling season in S22 when he put up 32 points in 52 games played to solidify the Panthers defense and provide big secondary scoring.
S23 saw Pylon endure the first tough season of his career, as his scoring dropped from 32 points to 24 as the Panthers endured a tough year of personal scoring. Had Pylon finally lived up to his name after dazzling thus far in his career?
Pylon bounced back during S24 to put up 28 points and revitalize the entire Panthers organisation through his strong performance on the ice, in addition to being a real figurehead (or traffic-cone head) off it. It was around this time that the Pylon made the decision to retire from the sport of hockey, much to the shock and disappointment of LA management and fans worldwide. Luckily for everyone, Pylon was talked around and stuck it out with the Panthers. The rest is history.
S25 was hard times for the whole team as Pylon's scoring dropped again as he put up only 25 points, a long way from his dizzying standards set back in S22. The Panther's missed the playoffs and many began to realise that strong Pylon=strong Panthers.
The team hoped to rebound during S26 and they expected Pylon to be the man to lead them to the postseason. Instead, his scoring dropped once again and he fell below the golden "1 point every 2 games" boundary in the SHL for the first time since his rookie season. Another rough season for Panthers fans as the team once missed the playoffs and their key defenseman showed signs of slowing down.
S27 would see Pylon post his lowest ever points total in the SHL with just 19 scored in total. This alone caused a lot of heartache for LA fans, but when he went public with his retirement, it must have been truly heart wrenching for them.
<center>What now?</center>
The face of the LA Panthers franchise will play his last game for the team this season. It will surely be a very emotional time for everyone in the team, but beyond that, who knows what the future holds for Pylon? A likely candidate for the SHL Hall Of Fame, expect to see his name amongst those considered in upcoming ballots. I also believe his number should be retired. Here is a mockup of how the banner could look.
<center>
</center>All in all, Pylon enjoyed a legendary career and the Panthers will never be quite the same without him on the team.
o yea some guy called "Morley" also retired. You've never heard of him either?
![[Image: tumblr_mdt0i5YTXE1rt5lm6.gif~c200]](http://rs919.pbsrc.com/albums/ad37/thebloodofkonstantin/reaction%20gifs/tumblr_mdt0i5YTXE1rt5lm6.gif~c200)
