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JohnnyPatey · 06-22-2024, 06:23 PM

As we reach the mid way point of the season in the simulation hockey league, I wanted to take a look at some of my fellow draft class members who have been performing in their potential first season. We have now seen a good chunk of play from these S74 group of players, which are mostly rookies from what I would assume. Although most of them still are not top players on their teams currently like they were in the SMJHL, let’s take a look at how some of them are currently performing on their teams.

Round 1 pick 1: Frøya Solberg

One of the most anticipated players from this draft was one of the Solberg sisters from Norway, Froya. Although this Calgary team still has a long way to go, Froya is playing pretty well considering all of the current pieces on her team. With 10 goals and 14 assists for 24 points, that is not something to be upset about as a rookie, almost a point per game. Froya has also been one of the top performers on her team with a 69 GR, tied for 4th on the entire team, which will hopefully equal to a great production for the rest of the season. A few things that Solberg might not be happy about with their play is that -18 +/-, which is 5th on the team, but when you are playing top minutes against the top teams, it is going to have to be expected on a team with a 9-21-2 record, which is currently 3rd last in the league. With more future pieces around them, expect to see big things from this Solberg sister this season and in future ones.

Round 1 pick 2: Céleste Desjardins

As we head into pick two, we look at another player who is on a bottom team in Manhattan who are currently 5th last with a 11-20 record, which could be a reason why they may not be performing even better than they are. As it stands, Celeste is performing well, despite the team's play, with 11 goals, 18 assists for 29 total points which is 4th on the team. Celeste is a first line player so we should expect them to be near the top as it is getting all those minutes. Although Celestes +/- is not the worst on the team, it is still a -12, which honestly could be much worse considering the players they are going up against each night. As for some negatives, they currently have 20 GA and only 11 takeaways, which you do not want as a top line player. Another thing I would be looking to improve on is their power play efficiency as they only have 2 goals and 10 assists, while taking a lot of the PP1 time. As we move into the future, MAN does have a lot of the current team being young, with only 2 players being prior to season 70, so Celestes time to shine will definitely be coming over the next few seasons while they hope to contend.

Round 1 pick 3: Will Tomlander

While this player has played a few extra games prior to the others, Will has had the best season by far out of the first three picks, and is showing why maybe they should have been picked in that first spot. With 18 goals and 23 assists, they have racked up 41 points to date which may be the top point total we see through this write up. Will is also on one of those teams near the bottom of the standings on Seattle, which currently have a 11-22-1 record. With a record like that, I would expect much worse, but leading the team in points, only having a +/- of -8, and almost having a 20% shooting percentage, what is not to like from this top three player from the S74 draft. There really are only a couple things I dislike, which is 34 giveaways and only 18 takeaways, which is a lot of the time giving the puck away, especially to those top lines on opposing teams. One other thing I dislike is the 26.4 FO percentage, which does not matter too much as they are a winger, but you would still like to see some improvement moving into the future. Seattle is not as young as MAN, but do have a lot of young starters, and about a million prospects in the minors, so it will be interesting to see how Will performs over the next few seasons with the team.

Round 1 pick 4: John Peanut

Moving on to pick 4, we are seeing a trend with the top players where their teams are still in rebuild mode 3 years later, as we see Peanut and the Patriots. The Patriots are currently 2nd last with a 4-28-2 record, which could be a massive reason why we see Peanuts stats the way they are, or maybe not. Peanut currently rocks 3 goals and 13 assists for 16 points, which is mid pack on their team, but first overall on the team as a defenceman. Peanut is another S74 player that is playing top minutes, so their -25 +/- makes a ton of sense, along with their bad shooting percentage at 6%. A few things I do love about Peanuts play is their 71 DGR, which is first on the team, and their 48 takeaways, which is also first on the team by a long shot. Along with the takeaways, they only have 9 giveaways, which is amazing when looking at the team makeup. Moving forward into their career, the Patriots also have a million prospects in the pipeline, so Peanut will be a future senior on the team, who can hopefully bring their positive experiences from seasons like these, into better ones moving forward.

Round 1 pick 5: Dag-Otto Björntjänst

With another amazing player rounding out our top 5, Dag is another player like Will who are performing highly for their team, but unlike Will, Dag is playing the 3rd line C role and almost performing to the same expectations. Dag currently has 15 goals and 23 assists for 38 points, and a +/- of 22, which is first on the team! It helps that Dag is playing on TBB, who are currently 8th in the league with a 20-12-2 record, but it is still beyond impressive what they are doing with limited minutes. Dag is another one of those players shooting at a high shooting% of 21, which may be the cause for their success, and might dwindle as the season goes along. What is extremely impressive about those stats is that Dag has virtually no PP time and they are almost all on 5-5. A few things I would like to see moving forward from Dag is having an overall better game, as they are in the bottom half of their team in GR, and also to stop giving the puck away so much, especially against other 3rd lines (38 times, which is second on the team). As we look into the future for Dag, it looks bright the way they are performing on the third line, and the team is still relatively young but a lot of experience, so we should not expect anything less from this first round talent for their foreseeable future.

Round 1 pick 6: Emil Karlsson

Moving into the back half of the top 10, we see another rookie on a struggling Patriots team. Just like Peanut, we see another top performing player on the team who is leading the team in points with 32, having 13 goals and 19 assists. Emil, like Peanut, is playing top line minutes, so it makes sense to see stats like a -30 +/- when your team is almost in last place. One thing I do like to see is capitalizing on 15% of shots and about a 50% FO, which could only improve playing in the league longer. As a first line center, you really like to see more takeaways than giveaways with 33/22 as well, which we have not seen from all of our players in the top 5, who play on some better teams. One thing I was shocked to see was a 72 GR from Emil, which on a team that is playing this bad is great to see, especially moving into the future. As mentioned with Peanut, this team will need some experience with all of the players coming up in the near future, so whatever time we can give Emil to continue to be a first line threat will only be beneficial for future rookies.

Round 1 pick 7: Squidwardo Tentacles

Moving on to lucky pick number 7, we see another player selected to Seattle like Will, who was in the top 5. Will has been having an amazing season which has definitely overshadowed Squids a bit, but they are definitely putting up some great numbers as well such as 7 goals and 19 assists for 26 points, which is almost a point a game pace. Squid plays on the opposite wing of Will so these 2 are super familiar on that top line, playing against the stars of the league. By playing the stars of the league, we see some of the stats like -13 +/-, which is tied for second last on the team, and a below 10% shooting percentage. As we move forward into the future, I’m looking for improvement on a few things. A much better FO percentage, which is at 24.1% currently, a better GA/TA ratio, or at least achieving more TA than GA (currently 25/18 GA/TA), and finally, better use of that PP1 time (5 points total). Like many of these rookies above Squid, there are a bunch of prospects below them coming up soon, so getting the experience in and being a future leader will make them a better overall player moving into future seasons.

Round 1 pick 8: Juan Tymer

A once mighty team in Winnipeg is now moving into the next part of their rebuild, which includes this top 10 pick in a great defenceman in Juan. Juan is in a weird part of a rebuild where a team is getting old quickly, with not a lot of prospects in the bank, and the team is struggling decently with a 11-20-1 record. Winnipeg does have 3 firsts this season, so Juan is another one of those players who may be a veteran by the time the team is great and competing once again. As for Juan’s stats, the D-man has 4 goals and 12 assists for 16 points, which is top on the team as a D-man, which should be expected playing on the first line. With somewhat of offensive struggles, it can be seen from their 57 OGR, but that is balanced greatly with their 71 DGR, near the top of the team. As a trend we are seeing with defense in this top 10, the giveaways to takeaways are looking fantastic with 22/8 TA/GA. Those takeaways are third on the team as well might I add, good signs for a rookie. Moving forward, I am not really sure what to expect from Juan, it could be anywhere from great to bad, it truly depends on how this team re-structures over the next few seasons with the picks they have in the bank. Hopefully it all turns around for Juan’s sake.

Round 1 pick 9: Bartholomew Chungus Gingersnap III

Did not realize the reason for IA, sorry all.

Round 1 pick 10: Teal'c

As we round up our top 10, we have Teal’c, who also looks to be IA. I’m too lazy to go back and read what I wrote about pick 9 in Gingersnap, but we have another bust. The France native is currently sitting teamless but once upon a time was taken by New England in the top ten. I bet Teal’c wish they would have stayed somewhat active as New England is near the top of the pack with a 21-12-1 record, which is currently 7th. Looking at the Wolfpacks D-core, they did not necessarily need Teal’c, but they may have been a good trade piece for the future, but I guess we’ll never know anyway.

Thanks to those who have read up to this point, I’m hoping to continue on at a later date with the next 10. This class was one of the biggest ones I have ever been a part of, so there will be a lot of people still to write about. You really like to see the activeness in the top 10, (I've definitely never gone IA top 10)…but I am glad to see a great class coming along.

skyrrhawk · 06-22-2024, 06:30 PM

smfh where leo. hurry up /joke

but really this is a good look around at how people are doing! but one note on pick #9 - it's not really a bust considering the uh. extenuating circumstances

JohnnyPatey · 06-22-2024, 06:40 PM

06-22-2024, 06:30 PMskyrrhawk Wrote: smfh where leo. hurry up /joke

but really this is a good look around at how people are doing! but one note on pick #9 - it's not really a bust considering the uh. extenuating circumstances

Someone has just messaged me pertaining to the reason and have edited the post accordingly.

JohnnyPatey · 06-22-2024, 06:41 PM

06-22-2024, 06:30 PMskyrrhawk Wrote: smfh where leo. hurry up /joke

but really this is a good look around at how people are doing! but one note on pick #9 - it's not really a bust considering the uh. extenuating circumstances

Funny you say that, as I was writing it, I was searching up and down for the username thinking something happened, but could not remember for the life of me and then just gave up on looking lol

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