First, I'd like to thank Esa and congratulate him. He reached out to me when I first became a GM to congratulate me and that means a lot to me. He built a helluva team there in Detroit and I wish him the best in the future unless he's playing us.

It was a good series and I think this is only the beginning for them, and the beginning for us. I think we may see more of these matchups in the future and I look forward to that.

Now, I will begin fielding any questions you may have. You may also direct questions towards Co-GM Harry and Captain Sean Leonidas.

Quote:What were the main contributions you got from your guys that allowed you to have such a successful season?

Chemistry, I think the players we had on the lines we had all complimented each other very well and exponentially increased their offensive out put that otherwise wouldn't have occurred.

Quote: How did you feel about being named to take over the team, and how did you enjoy your first season of GMing?

I was thrilled to head up the team, and this season more than lived up to my expectations. I originally came into it a little hesitant because I so badly wanted to not fuck up, but I eased into it pretty quick and it became a lot of fun.

Quote:What were you able to do to lift the team over the hump and get them back to the top for the first time in 10 seasons?

I took what I learned under Kez as far as creating a positive LR, took what JY taught me with the player builds and studied the sim and looked at what other teams ran and just sort of experimented with that. I tried, and succeeded, in creating chemistry in all of my crucial lines and it created a prolific offensive output for everyone involved and I think that lead to our sustained success throughout the season and into the post season, culminating in a championship.

Quote:Is it weird to have a goalie last the entire season?

It's a godsend.

Quote:Which rookies from the Knights do you think will be drafted in the top 2 rounds in the upcoming draft?

Kwik, Harter, Smirnov, and Carter.

Quote: HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE THE CHAMP!!!! GKG!!

A FEELING LIKE NO OTHER, KNIGHTS #1!!!!

Quote:To Jedi:
Congrats on winning the Cup. What do you think attributed to your success the most?

How do you plan on continuing your success next season?

Thanks, much appreciated. I think chemistry is a really underrated thing with the sim, and I tried my best to put together complimentary lines and it ended up working, so I think that played a part. Also with the developing talent in Kwik, Smirnov, Carter, Harter, and even to an extent Ziggler and Csonka really came through in spades, and we can't really forget about Modano and Leo. Harter played his part in the post season when he was needed most.

Starts with scouting, ends at the draft. I have to do my homework and make the draft count if I hope to keep competing. In a league like the SMJHL, unlike the SHL, there's almost 100% roster turnover which makes moments like the draft almost make or break.

Quote:Compare my play from the beginning of the season to the taking over of the starting spot to my playoff performance.

We had, well, everyone, really, had shaky goaltending almost throughout the entire season.

I think a lot of yours, and even Demko's struggles came from the lack of consistent starts. Because you were both active towards the start of the season I had to find a way to make it fair and also at the same time evaluate and see which was going to be my starter full time towards the latter half of the season.

Eventually Demko's activity fell off and you were putting the time in to learn more so I made the call and you became Kelowna's starting goalie with about 10 games left in the season, and all throughout the playoffs.

The new found consistency, coupled with your improvements over the season, I think, made a world of difference for your performance in the Playoffs.

Quote:How can you explain some of the horribly out shot games allowing 40+ shots on net? Did you adjust the line up after that?

The randomness of the sim

Quote:I'm disappointed in your performance. How do you feel you did in the regular season and playoffs?

Leonidas: I'm sorry I failed to reach my goal of 60 points in the regular season. That being said I still had a hell of year here in Kelowna. I played my best hockey yet. Scoring 23 goals and handing out 32 assists for a total of 55 points. 5 points away from my mark. Not bad at all. I became exactly what i wanted to be for the Knights. I became the go to guy. I played consistently and tried to teach as much as i could to the rookies. If i was to rate my performance for the regular season I would say 9 out of 10. If I had gotten my goal of 60 points then I would have said 10 out of 10. I kicked ass man and I loved it. Same thing goes for the payoffs. I had yet another excellent run in the playoffs. Last year I recorded 18 points and this year I did the same. 9 goals and 9 assists. Only difference between now and then is that I won the fucking cup baby! I played %110 percent out there. I made sure to stay focused and keep my team focused. I did everything I could and it showed statistically. I'd give myself a 10 out of 10 for my level of play in the playoffs.

Quote:What aspects of your game do you wish to improve before you head to Seattle?

Leonidas: Everywhere. I wanted to improve everywhere. I want to be a better player. I want to excel at more than one area. I can shoot, pass, handle the puck, skate and I'm quick. I want to get better in all of these areas. Then you have my lesser strengths, defense and checking. I want to level up my game in these two attributes the most. Everyone loves a players that can play on both ends of the ice. I want to be given a bigger role on the teams i play for. I want to be relied on to score when it matters. I want to be relied on to defend and pressure the opposite team when it matters. That means getting time on the power play unit and the penalty kill unit. I stepped up my face-off percentage but I can get better. My vision, strength on the puck etc. I want to improve everywhere.

Quote:Who do you look forward to playing with, the most?

Leonidas: I look forward to playing with everyone on the Seattle roster. The most? Chris Mczehrl. He's regarded as one of the bets centers to play the game. He may be the best center to play the game. Even the best player. Next year he's gonna be the first player to reach 700 points! That's an amazing accomplishment. He's always at the top of the table when it comes to his craft. He'll an old vet but continues to be one of the best in the league. There's no one else I'd want to play with more than him. We play the same position. I can learn so much from him. I'm so blessed to be able to play with him in his last season in the SHL. I plan to absorb as much as I can from him as possible. He's already reached out to me and has given me a few tips for my game. I still got some time to spend here in Kelowna but as soon as i get to Seattle I'll be training with him. I'm really excited man I can't wait.

Quote:Any regrets during your time in the SMJHL?

Leonidas: To be honest nothing but the fact that I couldn't reach my goal of 60 points. I'm set to win some awards for what I did this season. To cap that off I'm a 4 star cup champion! Nothing but success this season. Hard to have any regrets. So ya. Not getting 60 points is my one and only regret. I like to push myself as you can see. :lol:

Quote:Compare my play from the beginning of the season to the taking over of the starting spot to my playoff performance.

Leonidas: Well hmm. Mark Harter was drafted as our second pick in the draft. He was the first goalie to be drafted in his draft class. Unfortunately he didn't play so well at the start. His play level for us since the start of pre-season to the first half to the regular season was 5/10. That being said we knew he could step it up. He has so much potential. Our backup ended up taking over his spot for a bit but he fought back and didn't complain once. I respect that and I'm sure everyone else on our team does as well. He practiced hard everyday and eventually found his groove and went with it. His bets hockey was by far in the playoffs. He was a monster and key to our championship win. He made crucial saves and really energized our team at times. He is very vocal which you don't see a lot on goalies. Mark Harter the starter gets a 7/10 for his level of play when he took his starting spot back in the regular season. Finally he gets a 10/10 in his performance in the SMJHL playoffs.

Quote:How can you explain some of the horribly out shot games allowing 40+ shots on net? Did you adjust the line up after that?

Leonidas: It was weird. We are a team that is used to facing less shots. We usually out shoot... and out score our opponents haha. I'm not sure about our stats during the entire playoffs but I know that in the finals we allowed way too many shots on net. I think even in the Vancouver series there was a game where Harter faced 40+ shots. I think we just weren't position ourselves well defensively. It's not just about the defensemen play defence but the forwards as well. We aren't perfect but we managed to play better defensively.

Quote:When is Smirnov bringing his booze? The strippers will be there around midnight.

Leonidas: Ales is our alcohol plug. He always has the connects for alcohol that guy. :lol: He should be at the cribo around 10 or 11 pm. Strippers ouuu! Too bad I got my bae Kendall Jenner. WE ARE CHAMPIONS!

Quote:Congrats!! Good luck in the SHL.

Leonidas: Thanks! I'm super excited to get my career started in the SHL.

Quote:Who do you feel like was tougher competition between the Falcons and Whalers?

Leonidas: That's a tough one. I would have to go with the Vancouver Whalers. They have always been the ones to get in our way to the finals. Every battle against these guys is always a hard fought battle. I think everyone just plays better for both teams when we face each other. Also the fact that this series and last series both went to game 7's speak volume. If we had lost to the Whalers they would have won the cup. That's my opinion anyway. GKG!

Quote:What the final series? I honestly don't know...5 games or 6?

Leonidas: The finals series ended in game 5. We went off son! I understand why you didn't know. Playing golf early does that to people. That being said good luck in the draft! GKG!