TASK ONE: In at least 150 words, write an introductory paragraph for a potential Wikipedia article about one of the players in the finals. Include draft season and the teams they have played for.

Dieter Dominique began his career with the Kelowna Knights of the SMJHL. He entered the league as an undrafted free agent, able to choose his own destiny. He went on to enter the SHL draft in S28, joining the New England Wolfpack at the same time as other legends of the team Mia Landvik and Mikka Laukkanen. Dominique spent a few more seasons in his original hockey home of Kelowna before joining the Wolfpack full time in Season 31. His early career in particular had some impressive team finishes, including winning the Challenge Cup in both S31 and S33, and also being part of IIHF championships for Germany in S32 and S36. Dieter's legacy lives on, as he already finds himself in the all-time Wolfpack record books for basically all important offensive statistics, including Goals, Assists, Points, +/- rating, and Games Played. He could go down as one of the greatest draftees in New England history, a truly dedicated member of the team.

TASK TWO: Who is your choice for the unsung hero of the S42 playoffs up to this point? Must be at least 150 words and include at least two statistics in support.

While Oisin Fletcher stole much of the show for the Wolfpack during the regular season, a different key forward has found more success for the team during the first two rounds of the playoff. That man is Xander Green, who managed 5 goals and 6 assists in those 12 games, good for a +4 rating. He has also been near the top of the team leaderboard in hits given with 20, though he's unfortunately taken a lot of them in return as well. Green has also been key to NEW's faceoff success, taking 420 of them (just blaze) and seeing a solid success rate of 52.62% for his efforts. Clearly Xander is doing things right all over the ice, maybe not being the flashiest player with massive goal scoring numbers or bone-crunching hits, but contributing in all facets of the game and helping lead the team to the finals.

TASK FOUR: Unscramble the names of these four players who will be competing in the Challenge Cup Finals. Send the answers to me by forum PM. You will not get credit for posting the answers in this thread. [Grading: 1 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer]

Will send PM

TASK SEVEN: Which young player on each team will have (or, if you're doing this later, has had) the biggest impact in the Cup finals, and why? Must mention at least one player S38 or younger per team. Must be at least 150 words.

While I'd love to be able to say that it was myself or one of my teammates who had the biggest impact on this finals, I think I pretty much have to go with Ostap Maksimov for his stellar performance as a young defender for the Dragons. He's not much of a physical presence out there, and not a particular sharp shooter either. But what he does exceptionally well is find open teammates wherever they are on the ice and get them the puck so they can make something happen. He started things off with 8 assists during the first two rounds of the playoffs, and followed that up with another 5 throughout the finals, including 2 big ones in the deciding game 6. He was overshadowed by a few other flashier and older teammates, but this youngster was a true playmaker for Calgary and stepped up big time when they most needed him.

TASK NINE: Trivia! Send the answers to me by forum PM. You will not get credit for posting the answers in this thread. [Grading: 1 TPE for participation, 0.5 for each correct answer.]

Will send PM

Bonus question: Who scores the Cup-winning goal? (NOTE: This question will be graded at the conclusion of the winning-game sim of the Challenge Cup Finals, even if that happens before the conclusion of Championship Week.)

Oisin Fletcher