Login

spidey · 03-17-2023, 10:40 AM

Normally this is the time of year where General Managers of the SMJHL start reaching out to rookies. Getting a feel of who they are, what their goals are, if they are a fit within their roster, locker room, present and future plans. What is often missed, is what the General Managers are thinking. What is important to them, and why a player should want to be on their team.

In the end players have little input on their destination during the draft, they could request to not be drafted by a team, or make their intentions known for whom they are hoping to play for or with. Knowing this, let’s get a little information out to the players about the General Managers of the SMJHL and about their teams. We decided to take a bold approach and play the UNO Reverse card on these SMJHL GMs as they were interviewing me. I will also give my final thoughts at the end of this article about the GMs as a whole and how to get to a desired destination.

A quick side note, I know all you General Managers are busy, so a big thank you to the ones that had a little time to quickly answer my questions. The ones that did not, I completely understand you guys are busy at all times, but specially this time of year.

Question 1:
What is your team’s strengths for season 70?

Ragnar (Armada):
Our Forward Core will be good for season 70

Blakec (Elks):
Our biggest strengths next year will be defence and a building team culture, and also the most important metric: e/60 . We’re coming out of a rebuild still so lots to be done!

Malamutes (Fluw):
The Malamutes are a youthful team, noting we underwent a rebuild last season and as such were faced with growing pains resulting in a low standings placement. Going forward for this season we have a solid top 4 D core, and Top-6. Hopefully this draft will help in addressing the bottom 6-D pairing, and the 3rd forward line.

Faelex (Citadels):
We just won the cup in S69 and are returning most of the roster so we are hoping to go back to back

SpartanGibbles (Grizzlies):
We are coming off a strong season with a less than exciting post season. We are aiming to be back again and making a deep push in the playoffs by adding some young guns to replace the talent moving up to the majors. We still have a strong core, but we need some extra pieces to push us that much further. Outside of in the sim we are a great group of people who are trying to make the most out of the time in the J.
Artermis (Kights)
We've got a lot of returning players in their 3rd and 4th seasons. Our Depth is deadly.

Aleks (Whalers)
believe we are very strong on forward, especially center.

Erikvm New-AGM (Falcons)
We just came off a league-best 98 points and a cup finals loss, but to be honest from an honest GM perspective it will be hard to match that success this year, but we have a strong top line and top pairing on D and one of the best G’s in the league, so the playoffs are still the expectation.

Question 2:
How would you develop my player to best help the team?

Ragnar:
. We kind of let the player do what they want and just guide them where to go to be most successful.

Blakec1414:
Me and my CO-GM Reno have had some pretty good success developing all positions and can provide sound build advice, but we also let people go their own route if they want to.

Fluw:
Ideally, I would like for you to inform me what kind of playstyle or build style you want to play, however if you leave it completely up to me, I would have to wait and see when I get access to the file. This will allow me to review what line combinations and roles are best suited for each player and team.

Faelax
QCC has a long history of developing great players between great build advice and making sure people stay active with a fun and engaging locker room
SpartanGibbles
The best way to help develop talent from my job is to make help my players know what is happening and what opportunities are available from TPE, SHL Money, PTs, Fantasy and more. After that we have some great minds who can help shape your players training and skill allocation to be the next star.

Artermis
I try to stay hands off with regards to players directly, so for that I'd defer to those more knowledgeable than I and the resources we have in the LR.

Aleks:
To be honest, it's hard to say. I've always placed a emphasis on drafting rookie users to get them into the best possible rhythm for staying active, but you're a hall of famer so your knowledge probably transcends mine by a lot. Like we spoke about earlier, I am trying to build a community in our LR and so I am of the belief that this community feeling leads to more activity, leading to updating feeling less like a chore but more like fun.

Erikvm
As a winger, you are in a great position to be a top-6 forward for us really soon, towards the end of your rookie season you could be on line 2 getting significant minutes, and if you ever have any build questions the whole team can answer any questions, it all depends on the style of winger you want to be.

Question 3:
What has been your best move so far as a SMJHL GM? (trade, pick up, or drafting a future LW)

Ragnar:
Probably the S66 draft. Made some trades and drafted a whole bunch of good folks.

Blakec1414:
I’ve only been GM for 2 seasons but the best move I’ve made so far was trading for our current captain, Jack McCarthy (Operation Ivy). He’s a great asset and his player kicks ass too.

Fluw:
I would say the best move I have made as a GM was likely last season when I decided it was time to rebuild the team. The Malamutes ended up with 2 1st round picks, 1 2nd and 3 3rds which from what I can see have been a big success. Trading up to 1 OA to get Badwolf helped immensely as she has made an impact on the management side of things as well.

Faelax:
Trading up to draft Jack St Clair who led us to the cup last season

SpartanGibbles:
It sounds corny but my best moves I have made as a GM have been drafting people who I consider to be amazing friends.

Artermis:
That is tough. More than anything I think I'm good at acquiring good people and users, so while many picks may be the best moves I've made, they're hard to think in those terms. Trade-wise, we got away with several high picks a few seasons ago which have helped set us up with the roster we have today.

Aleks:
I actually picked up this waiver claim named nerji, he's ben a great user for us and has been very active, and I'm really glad that I was able to get him. I also signed yagoyi in free agency who is leading his class in tpe, and has also been very friendly.

Erikvm
This is my first offseason with the team, but last season I was added to the Great Falls war room and we went from last to tied for third in the league in points based on my line and strategy adjustments!

Questions 4:
Are you in a rebuild or contending, what do you need to take the next steps?

Ragnar:
Kind of in the middle. Our forward core and goalie are solid, but our defense is very young.

Blakec1414:
As I said before we’ve been coming out of a quick rebuild, the plan is to start competing this season although our true window might not be until the season after.

Fluw:
With how quick roster turnover is in the SMJHL, I would say our rebuilding year was last season. Going forwards I expect to be competitive with a run at the title by next season.

Faelax:
We are going to be going for it again this season, I think our team is good enough to run it back

SpartanGibbles:
Last season we moved from rebuild to contender, despite running into the eventual champions in the 2nd round. We hope to keep that success and shoot even higher next season.

Artermis
We were third in the league last season and have only lost a couple key players, meanwhile the team's core has stuck with us. Contenders for sure.

Aleks:
I believe we are only a solid defender away from being really strong contenders. We are entering the very end of a rebuild so it's really just a piece away.

Erikvm:
Contending this year but there will be at the very least a re-tool next season, unless we pull off some magic this year.

Question 5:
Anything important that I should know about with your organization?

Ragnar:
We da Boats

Blakec:
We just have a nice and chill lr with some league veterans and new users, it’s lowkey but everyone is super friendly!

Fluw:
Nothing in particular, that I can think of, off the top of my head. Too much infant time.

Faelax:
Please show up for game nights on Tuesday, even if you aren't on the team everyone is welcome

SpartanGibbles:
We are one of the most recent additions to the league being added in the S61 expansion.

Artermis:
I've already spieled much about myself, so the philosophy is the key here and on any team I manage. I've got a bit of a science when it comes to scouting, but the secret is I just talk with people and take things from there.

Aleks:
We are a very young tpe org, so there's immense amounts of growth to be had here to work , play , and develop with the future of shlers

Erikvm:
We are an established, historic juniors team that has won 2 of the past 5 cups, winning is important to us but player development is always first and foremost at the juniors level!

For my two cents, each and everyone of these General Managers are lovely people. As long as you ignore the fact that none of them took the bait in questions 3 to select "future move of drafting a certain left winger." Take sometime chat with them, get to know them. My best relationships in this league started when I first chatted with my future general manager in juniors, well before the draft. We quickly became friends, and it encouraged me to become a better player and more involved with this league. He purposely targeted myself when it came time to draft me because we had a great relationship before the draft started.

There really is no wrong answer on a team to go to, each one has a plan on how to develop into a contender, and while your time in juniors may be short, it can still be memorable. Arguably the best moments of my career were in juniors, make the most of them. Finally, if there is somewhere you would like to be, let the General Managers know before the draft. They want to make sure you enjoy your time even more then drafting the absolute top prospect. They are happy to make sure you are where you want to be.

Finally, never let draft position dictate how you feel about the league. Teams draft on potential of the player, obviously successful recreates typically hold some value as we have been there before and can help coach newer talent. Also, teams will draft based on their needs, as you can see within this article some have needs on defense, or forward depth you may get skipped because a team is loaded with talent in your position.

With my first player he was drafted second overall in the SMJHL draft and finished with the third lowest scoring in the league that year. I was later drafted in the mid second round of a three-round draft in the SHL but ended up having one of the best careers in the SHL during his era. You never know how the simulator will react to your build at the time and you will always improve as long as you keep active.

Good luck everyone!

***Anthique*** · 03-17-2023, 04:41 PM

Interesting to switch side and interview them!

Hope you won't have to wait long before getting drafted.

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us