Quote:1. Written, 3 TPE (150 words min.)
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 S53 playoffs have unfolded differently. What happened in that reality's playoffs and who's in the Challenge Cup over there?

My favorite task, again! Back in the first round, Buffalo and Hamilton meet (again). Buffalo plays Hamilton closely, doesn’t get swept, but falls in 6 games to the Steelhawks with an overtime series winning goal by Tig Murphy. The New England-Manhattan series goes the same, battling six games with the Wolfpack pulling through.

In the Western Conference, Calgary gets blown out by a much better Edmonton team with a 6-2 drubbing finishing them in Game 5. Julio Tokolosh had two game winning goals and 6 points to lead the Blizzard in the series, while Tony Pepperoni was held goalless but assisted on three of the Game 5 goals, including FR Finn-Rhys’ series clincher.
There is minimal drama in the seven-game-classic between NOLA and LAP. The battle back and forth without line goof drama, and late in the third period, the game is tied 2-2. Old-man Joe Kurczewski spurts his last bit of energy to snap a puck at Knox Booth. It goes off his chest protector, leaving a juicy rebound for Filip Zadina to redirect high glove side. It beats Booth and the Specters hold on to take the game 3-2 and upset the favored Panthers in 7 games. Aleister Cain held on and earned the first star, making 41 saves, 9 of which in the last 5:24 of the third period.

In the second round, the results go much the same. New England has no answer for Hamilton’s stifling two-way play, while Edmonton’s skill overruns the Specters. NOLA does pull off a win at home in Game 3 to stay relevant, but it wasn’t enough as Tony Pepperoni scored 5 goals and 9 points in 5 games to dispel the spooky bois.

In the finals, Edmonton and Hamilton meet again. It’s a close series, with every one of the six games being decided by only a single goal. Aaron Wilson rips the MVP trophy out of everyone else’s hands with an inhuman 11 points, including three game winners and 4 with the man advantage, as Hamilton captures the Challenge Cup.

The league weeps.

Quote:2. Written, 3 TPE (150 words min.)
With everyone getting a free redistribution this offseason, S54 is quite wide open at the moment. Before those redistributions take place, who would you anticipate being the top team(s) for next season?

Hamilton and New England will likely remain two of the better teams in the league. It’s clear aaronwilson’s working harder than anyone on strategies, so Hamilton will be as tough as ever as their younger pieces from S46-48 take more steps toward their primes. Then NEW had a good team this year and will now have a decent goalie option with Ben Blue. Beyond that, I think Buffalo will also be there, as the first team in SHL history to ice two 2000+ TPE defensemen at the same time. With that dominance on the blueline alongside their deep, talented group of forwards, the youthful talents of Elizabeth Doyle between the pipes, and Tomen’s elite strategic mind, Buffalo is going to be a damn good team. The West will remain inferior to the East, though Edmonton and Los Angeles will remain teams to beat. Still, I put the early odds on the Eastern Conference champions hoisting the S54 Challenge Cup.

Quote:3. Written, 2 TPE (100 words min.)
Which player from the Steelhawks or the Blizzard would you bet on to win a regular season individual award in a future season? What player and what award? What makes you think they'll live up to their potential and take home the hardware?

Who remembers S46? Remember when Karlstrasse Scholz @karlssens was one of the top prospects in the world? When we all talked about him as a finalist for the Quila Agante trophy? Remember that? Well, since he started playing for the Blizzard, nobody has been talking about Mr. Scholz, and that’s a shame. His name will be on all our tongues before too much longer as a contender for the Stevens as top defenseman. I haven’t even looked at stats, but I know this to be true. Give it time and we’ll all remember the power that is Mr. Scholz. Dude put up a 41-point season on a good team, and paired that with some other decent defensive stats. He probably won’t be a finalist this year, but in the next few seasons we will be talking about Karl again.

Quote:5. Written, 3 TPE (150 words min.)
Just like everything else in S53, IIHF is going to be an exciting mystery for us all! We've seen the introduction of a new format (all 14 teams in one group) and it's bound to be a very exciting tournament. What are your predictions for IIHF this season? What team or teams do you think have the best shot at taking home the gold? How do you think your team will fare?

Team USA is going to win Gold. They have the best all-around roster in the world, and Aleister Cain might as well win tournament MVP now. While teams from elsewhere were able to build rosters to compete, the FHM era will paint the rest of us poorly. Team USA may not lose a game this year, and I hate it. They’re too deep, too good, and scruff and Fuzz can’t fuck this up.

The other competition is the team with the best goaltending in Team Germany. While the blueline is young and shallow outside of superstar Cassius Darrow, the forwards are very good and the tandem of Benjamin Blue and Geezus Kryyst is the best in the world. They will likely platoon through the medal round to keep them fresh, then ride the hot hand again.

I was surprised when Darrow won the Best Defenseman award last year (I don’t customarily pay attention to IIHF anymore, to be honest), but I think I have to be a contender to take it home again. Germany will need me to play well to help carry a group of good, but not great, blueliners, and I think Darrow (soon to be the highest TPE in the league) is up to the task. I’m hoping we can medal this year; we’re definitely good enough and I trust Tomen more than almost anyone when it comes to strategy. I want a Gold medal game between USA-Germany.

Quote:13. Written, up to 4 TPE Pick up to 4 Challenge Cup related topics to write about! Each topic is worth 1 TPE. Each answer must be 50+ words to qualify.
a. Who is the best player in this CC finals? Plenty of good candidates: Lagerfield, Phelps, Kryyst, McIntry, Pepperoni, Scholz, etc. Who's your choice for best player and why?
b. Based on player ratings, EDM has the advantage in speed and acceleration and HAM has the advantage in balance and strength. Which team's physical skills will give them the edge in this series?
c. Assemble your ideal fantasy team out of players in this series - F, F, F, D, D, G. Explain your choices.
d. Blizzard... snow... ok debate time - do you like snow? yes or no? why or why not?

b. I don’t like Hamilton, but I think aaronwilson is the key. Dude clearly cares, or he wouldn’t drop the hundreds of hours he does min-maxing everything to make Hamilton win. If Hamilton’s builds favor a certain stat, that’s probably what we should all be favoring, at least a bit. Everyone but New England figured out Strength was key this year, so I give the edge to Hamilton’s physicals here.

d. Snow is okay. I hate shoveling snow SO MUCH, and hate driving in it more. It’s nice to look at occasionally, so if I was securely inside and just getting to watch snow fall softly, I think that would be relaxing. If I had to be out in it and the gross ice mess that accompanies it all too often, I don’t think that would be much fun. The -50 wind chill day last year where I still had to work was miserable. All in all, I don’t think I’d ever want to live somewhere without snow, like Florida. I mean… Florida is horrific. There’s a reason “Florida man” fills us all with fear and reluctance.

Quote:16. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is now 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.

Phalanx