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***trashae*** · 09-08-2023, 02:33 PM

GM PT Pass

AW13 · 09-08-2023, 03:13 PM

Code:
3. Written, 3 TPE, Peggy's Back, Tell a Friend (150 words min.)

Winnipeg is a cup finalist for an astonishing fourth year in a row! To make that happen in the current era of the SHL requires serious skill and deserves appreciation. What is it that makes this Aurora era so successful? What have been the most crucial factors in their Western dominance? What lessons should the rest of the league learn from their success?

I think in a lot of cases in the SHL, it is about serving up a vision, having a group that is tied to and wants to accomplish that vision and then sets out to do it, it is very hard to stop that once it comes to the forefront. Winnipeg I believe had that happen and they are staying in that zone right now making their 4th cup final in a row. I think the SHL changed regression not long ago but in general, the first 3-5 regressions seems to be pretty light with the amount of tpe and abilities for the highest earning players. Winnipeg was able to get a ton of high earning players and have them hit their prime around the same time along with regression keeping them from falling too much and when younger players grow to match, they can easily swap. I don't know all the details in general but it seems to be the way things go a lot of the times in lower turnover leagues such as the SHL. Other leagues have more player turnover and it shows with less dynastic sort've play. It is nothing against Winnipeg but they are taking advantage where they can.

***JKortesi81*** · 09-08-2023, 04:04 PM

GM Pass.

***Toast*** · 09-08-2023, 05:52 PM

Last GM pass :(

*Otrebor13* · 09-08-2023, 06:46 PM

Task 2 – 4 TPE

a. I think I have to lean towards New England winning it this season. They have significantly outscored the league in the regular season and were the only team to break 100 points. I think they’ve got what it takes. I also have to assume that Winnipeg gets this far and gets scared at the thought of winning the cup based off of recent finals.
b. I think Winnipeg has the tools to win it all, but they need to get over the mental hurdle they’re dealing with. 4 straight finals and they have not been able to win any of the previous 3. This is more of a mental battle within the locker room than it is with their opponent I think. Both teams got the skill but do they have the mental toughness to overcome the previous seasons’ adversity.
c. I think it has to be Winnipeg. They absolutely breezed through a very good Edmonton team, whereas New England had a little bit more of a tough time with their matchup against Philadelphia. It does help with playing tough games, but you always like being fresh and rested going into a finals.
d. I’m going to take New England. I think they were the league’s top team this season, cruised to a 51 win regular season, outshot the league, were solid defensively and have been shutting teams down whenever they play. I also like that their series went 7 games against the Forge. While Winnipeg will be more rested, I think having that playoff adversity is important and makes a huge difference when the games count.

Task 3 – 3 TPE

I think they have done an excellent job building a team that wants to be there with lots of dedicated members. On top of that, I think they have lots of players and staff who want to win and have made sure they do what they can to succeed. Obviously in the SHL there comes a certain amount of luck with it too, as you have to draft well, keep players active and have them update and improve. They have a great crop of players who have continued to improve, have fought off regression and continue to enjoy being on a team together to try and get a cup.

It's somewhat unfortunate that they have run into such a hard time closing out a final series, and it’s not something that’s probably very enjoyable, which could also be another reason why the players have stuck around. They know the team is good and I think they finally want to see themselves win one together and accomplish the goal they set out to do.

Task 4 – 3 TPE

I think when you’re firing on all cylinders like they have been throughout the regular season and even the playoffs – which is absolutely crazy to think about – you just have to admire what they’re doing. Of course the teams going up against them want to beat them, but there’s no denying it’s incredibly impressive and should not be overlooked.

I personally don’t think it’s something that can be imitated. This is something that happens when everything just goes right in all areas. Even if you tried to replicate the production, you likely will have a negative impact in your overall team play. For the Aurora, who have the opportunity (if that’s the word that should be used) to play the Wolfpack in the final, they have to stick to their game plan and try to mitigate the play of the opposition. If you try to play your opponents game, they’ll likely beat you at it. Do what you’re good at and make it happen.

tomtommen · 09-08-2023, 08:52 PM

CW Pass

***Pythonic*** · 09-08-2023, 09:22 PM

gm pass

Rotti · 09-08-2023, 10:02 PM

CW pass

***hotdog*** · 09-09-2023, 12:20 AM

cw pass

***aleks*** · 09-09-2023, 04:01 AM

cw pass

***Citizen of Adraa*** · 09-09-2023, 06:07 AM

cw pass

ValorX77 · 09-09-2023, 10:02 AM

Trivia: word is Valor

ISFL Affiliate PT

3. The Winnipeg Aurora is the classic example of patience paying off, They drafted pretty well with the picks used and acquired by trading their old core away. The critical part about a rebuild and how to do one properly is to have patience and a vision shared by those who come among your ranks, and Winnipeg has been one of the best teams in the league since S67/S68 when they first emerged out of their rebuild and began their competitive window. Another advantage that Winnipeg has is a rather weak Western conference, During the beginning, it was a dogfight between them and Seattle for control of the west, that is until regression swallowed up Seattle's window, and regression hammered New Orleans and Chicago, their in-division competition. The only competition that they will face shortly is Edmonton, and maybe Texas. Winnipeg also has a crop of young prospects that they can turn to replace an older player when needed, which is why Winnipeg will become something close to those Hamilton teams of the S50's and early S60's.
(177 words)

9/8

sulovilen · 09-09-2023, 10:53 AM

Code:
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1.5 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is completed through a Google form linked below. Make sure to spell your answers correctly or you will not get credit. Post your verification word in your CW post.

champ

Code:
2. Written, up to 4 TPE - Grab Bag: Pick up to 4 Challenge Cup related topics to write about! Each topic is worth 1 TPE. Each answer must be 50+ words.

a.

In New England what impresses me is just how dominant they were in the regular season. WPG, CHI, EDM, MTL and PHI all had great season as well, yet nobody still got that close to NEW. New England just had an incredible amount of offensive power: to rack up more than 46 shots for per game in the regular season, and more than 5.5 goals for per game, is kind of crazy.

c.

Edmonton and Philadelphia were just one point apart in the regular season, which makes both pretty equal opponents. Obviously Winnipeg was just one point ahead of them, which makes that a tougher matchup for them, as NEW had a 9 point gap between them and Philadelphia. Thus I have to say WPG winning Edmonton in five games is more impressive than NEW beating Philly in game 7. Especially when NEW was leading 3-0 before nearly being reverse swept. So yeah, WPG had a more impressive victory.

Code:
4. Written, 3 TPE, Pack Attack (150 words min.)

The New England Wolfpack have two defensemen and seven forwards that went over a point per game in the regular season, and one in Ivan Lackasmus that lapped it with over two points per game. They haven't slowed down in the playoffs either, so they aren't just inflated by hot games against the tanks. What is it that makes the Wolfpack's offense so incredibly lethal? Can it be imitated, or only envied? Will it be enough to get them another cup with this core?

Well if it can be imitated, it probably will, but I don't know how easy that would be. But yeah, there were 6 teams that had less goals against, so it's pretty clear that their offensive production is carrying the team. They do have a decent amount of S65-S69 players, and Ivan Lacksamus still has multiple great seasons in him. Just judging from the regular season stats, it looks like they have two super solid F lines, as they have 7 forwards scoring more than 1 point per game. They also have a lethal PP, where Lacksamus, Samuelsson and Svoboda have combined 60 PP goals, so they basically get one goal per game from just those three players. Lacksamus is an absolute monster on PP by himself - as he has 24 goals and 34 assists. He also has whopping 11 shorthanded points. A fun detail is that they have more shorthanded goals than Manhattan, for example, had powerplay goals! (19 vs 18). So yeah, I don't know they do it, but it seems that they have found a way to generate offense on even strength, on PP and even on the PK, and Ivan Lacksamus is somehow most of the time creating or finishing those opportunities. Good luck to teams trying to find their own Lacksamus's.

***Whitecap*** · 09-09-2023, 11:41 AM

GM pass

***JR95*** · 09-09-2023, 12:00 PM

Trivia Verification Word: Pizza

Quote:3. Written, 3 TPE, Peggy's Back, Tell a Friend (150 words min.)
Winnipeg is a cup finalist for an astonishing fourth year in a row! To make that happen in the current era of the SHL requires serious skill and deserves appreciation. What is it that makes this Aurora era so successful? What have been the most crucial factors in their Western dominance? What lessons should the rest of the league learn from their success?

While there's no doubt a lot of skill is involved in getting a team to the finals as consistently as Winnipeg has, there's really so much more that goes into it behind the scenes that most people will never really be privy to. When i took a bit of a break from the league last year I was with Winnipeg in a time where they had big plans for the future. But one thing that always stood out in that LR, and which made it obvious it was going to work one day, was the quality of people they gathered. From top to bottom they have nothing but standup guys and gals and I really think that goes a long way in leagues like this where the social and community side of things can be a major sticking point for a lot of people. They were a place good people wanted to play, and wanted to stay. Now that I'm back I'm very much not surprised to see them doing as well as they are, and it probably won't be stopping any time soon. Even that Ace guy isnt half bad, even if he's a stinky bruins fan.

Quote:2. Written, up to 4 TPE - Grab Bag: Pick up to 4 Challenge Cup related topics to write about! Each topic is worth 1 TPE. Each answer must be 50+ words.

a. You can never take success for granted, but these are two of the league's heavy favorites coming into the cup finals. Pick either of our finalists, and tell me what about them impresses you the most!

What impresses me the most about winnipeg is their will to keep finding a way. It's been a rough go for a few seasons, coming so close but never quite making it. But they never gave up and kept doing everything they can to take that next step. It finally paid off for them this season and their window isn't closed either.

Quote:b. New England vs Winnipeg makes this a rematch of the S70 finals! What does Winnipeg have to do differently to take round two, two seasons later, in season seventy-two?

I know I'm writing this after the fact but I honestly don't think that Winnipeg needed to do anything particularly different to push through the barrier this time. They've played well every season and post season this calendar year and it's not like most of their finals losses are huge blowouts. They got unlucky but if you give yourselves enough chances you're bohnd to win eventually.

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