Easily it would be Edmonton. I have no clue what kind of food to buy because it is Edmonton and I’m not sure there is a thriving food scene in comparison to other cities but hey you never know. I guess the first thing I would do is load up on Tim Hortons and Pizza and have it overflowing from the VIP box like mana from heaven. A doughnut for every child and a coffee for every parent. Let none say Rykov is not generous. I would also take a clinic on passing just to make sure I am sharp and up on one aspect of my game. I would also take an ethics seminar just in case I get any silly notions to manipulate something for shortsighted gain. After that it is just limos, champagne, and throwing as many squids as I can on the ice until they kick me out of the box.


Well in this alternate reality the HO would have acted for subverting the league and attempting to destabilize by suspending Hamilton itself so basically, we would have the same setup as we do now but with Edmonton. My guess would be we would have seen Edmonton vs Manhattan it would have been a very tight series and I think in general would have left the league in better long-term health till the simulation could be replaced. Maybe even have less retirements and people leaving because they are burned out but alas, we are in the reality where the league was “saved” we shall see. Regardless of what timeline at least we are taking some good steps towards replacing the sim and even though it undermined HO’s authority and confidence that they refuse to act on Hamilton due to high placed members being in their ranks maybe they can regain it with a proper shift to the sim so that it won’t matter what reality we are in.


Honestly, I want to jokingly say goalie as I would be horrid in any position I was shifted too as winger seems to be what I am tailor made to do. I could play center though it would likely be a tough uphill battle with a barely touched faceoff percentage and the fact that while I do have decent strength I would be in a rather tough spot. Though defenseman might be a better choice as it provides the fact that Rykov is becoming a much more physical player and his amount of hits keep going up dramatically each season providing a stronger more active game. Though he would likely be a much more offensive dman because it is how he plays wing. There have also been precedents of forwards playing dmen successfully in the league especially if they are more offensive minded and seem to provide an edge against teams running typical defensive pairings. Wherever I ended up I would try my best to adapt.


Rykov’s plans for the offseason were unfortunately coming surprisingly early this season and he was caught a little off guard. A good part of it was spent going over with the rest of the Kraken what went wrong during the playoffs and how the curse of coming in first place for the season seems to come to fruition far too often even for someone who is not prone to superstition like Rykov. After that Rykov again went back to his plan of hitting the ice and gym while consuming inordinate amounts of Carolina BBQ and wondering what the next season will bring for the Kraken. Rykov also went back home to Russia not only to train for the IIHF and WJC but to visit his family back in St. Petersburg and host a clinic for the SKA youth program. At this point Alexei is excited to see what the IIHF and WJC tournaments provide and that he can help Team Russia once again make a run for medals in both.


Horrid wintertime
A garbage Hamilton run
on the Edmonton