Quote:1. Written, 3 TPE (150 words min)
VIP Status babyyyyyyyy - your player has been invited to attend one of the first homestands of the CC finals as a VIP guest - all expenses paid, front row seats, any hotel you want - and it's all on the Commissioner's dime! Are you going to Games 1 and 2 in Tampa or Games 3 and 4 in Calgary? Why are you picking there? And what are you going to do in that city to run up Eggy's tab?? (This is the same prompt as last year but we've got different cities! be creative! Don't re-use what was written last season)

Last year I think I stayed away from the cool places, this year I am definitely going to Tampa Bay. The Commissioner probably has a black card so it would have been nicer for him to actually give it to me so I could flash it to the ladies at the beach and bar but what can you do? I guess they'll have to just be swayed by my Challenge Cup ring. Anyway, first thing I'd do is take my Stampede Teammates out for a huge steak dinner the night before, run up the tab pretty nice then its out to our limos where we would find the best clubs in the city, probably down by the beaches and set up shop for the night. The next night, take my teammates and whatever survivors of last night's party are still alive and sober to games one and two to see some quality hockey action.

Quote:2. Written, 2 TPE (100 words min)
After a slow start to the regular season, the Dragons have surged of late and have rallied around the #CalgaWe notion of togetherness. On the other side, the Barracuda battled through a difficult East and are led by a very strong young core. Which team are you personally rooting for to take home the Challenge Cup and why?

For me its gotta be Calgary. When you play a team with heart the rushes get that much harder, the grit is that much tougher and everyone plays like their brother or sister are going to die unless they get the edge on you that minute. Tampa has a young core that is going to help them for 10 seasons to come whereas Calgary has experience and leadership on their side which do have a shelf life in the league. So for me, my money would be on Calgary to get it done. Tampa will get there for sure at least once or twice in the next ten seasons but this year its Calgary.

Quote:3. Written, 3 TPE (150 words min)
Are there any changes to the playoff format you'd like to see implemented? More wild cards? Move to a single-elimination to bring about even more chaos? 999-game series to minimize chaos? Be creative!

Probably the most unpopular and creative opinion here but I like how the Playoffs are currently run as they are now. The Wild Card system allows for play in of fringe playoff teams and gives the top seeds a bye to re-organize the lines and roster as they see fit. I'm not sure what adding to or taking away from this system will do other than shorten the GM/Coach workload going into the playoffs. But I was told to be creative and I need these TPE so here we go, a round robin double elimination quarterfinals. All four QF teams would compete, play each other once, the teams with the worst record are both eliminated and those two with the better records move on. It would be strategic to play a little worse so that the other team can't pick up on your routines and would involve a little more strategy.

Quote:4. Written, 3 TPE (150 words min)
Alternate Reality: Physicists and other smarties believe that this reality is just one of infinite realities existing alongside this one in parallel. Take us over to one of those realities in which everything is the same but these S50 playoffs have unfolded differently. What happened in this reality's playoffs and who's in the Challenge Cup over there?

In this reality its Tampa Bay vs Calgary but in the other world its Buffalo and Calgary. Look the facts are both teams did amazing this year but Buffalo got stood up by a strong Hamilton team who came on like gangbusters. Calgary, playing with a chip on its shoulder and like every game was their last barreled through the West and are still playing. But, I am a homer so obviously it was going to be Buffalo in the finals against them. I'd put the series at a definite game 7 slugfest. Neither one of our teams knows the meaning of quit nor does it know the meaning of losing. All of us, regardless of our city or our team aren't going to want to let our fans or coaches down and Buffalo would probably sneak out a winner in the overall series. Still, If I were a betting man I'd still put my money on Calgary making it a great series in both universes.

Quote:7. Written, 3 TPE (150 words min)
As competition ramps up for the playoffs, players (both those still in and those eliminated) work extra hard to improve areas of their game that are lacking. What one area of your game do you really needs to focus on improving and how will this benefit the team?

Id say for me its both Strength and Endurance. Scoring and passing those are things you always have to improve on and because of no injuries, no need to worry about durability. So its obviously making sure you have enough to keep yourself in the game (Endurance) and enough strength to keep the stars and the joes off the puck at both ends of the ice (Strength). At the moment on a star team like Buffalo I sit on the third pairing. Not a lot of time game in and game out to refine my craft with 10 minutes a night, sometimes less. So I have to do what I can to improve myself off the ice. Do exercise, lift weights, do squats, some yoga and pilates for those sore muscles after all three. But these two things are the core improvement areas for a two-way defenseman. So, thats what I'll say here.