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prettyburn · 02-23-2020, 03:17 PM

Olli Saarinen had no idea going into the SMJHL draft where he'd end up - he knew his name was out there, but as a goalie even the best prospects tend to fall lower, and Olli knew there were some other extremely talented netminders in his draft class. He'd had interviews with a number of teams, but he didn't know where any of them had him ranked on their draft boards. He was therefore both excited and surprised when he was picked by the Halifax Raiders at 7th overall.

Olli's first season in Halifax had it's ups and downs. He immediately bonded with his teammates, and put up some good numbers on the ice, but spent most of the season as backup to the team's veteran goaltender Biz Nasty. Biz struggled a bit, giving Olli a chance to get more ice time than he would have in some backup situations, but whether he was in goal or watching from the bench Olli took the experience as a chance to learn how the game was played on North American ice. The team had a good showing in the regular season, but were sadly bounced from the playoffs earlier than they'd hoped.

Olli's second season heralded the arrival of a bunch of young newcomers to the team, bringing some excitement off the ice but a few learning pains on the ice. His numbers definitely reflected both this and his own learning pains as he struggled a bit to step into the shoes of starter for the team. He's looking forward to continuing to learn and improve his game in Halifax before eventually making his way to the big leagues.

***SpartanGibbles*** · 02-23-2020, 03:57 PM

Collin Gibbles will always cherish the time they spent in the SMJHL. Gibbles was the second draft pick in franchise history for the Anaheim Outlaws(Following Jerry Mander) and came into the league with hopes to make an impact. No one expected too much from the new expansion franchises but the early Anaheim Outlaws fostered a winning culture and Gibbles was in the center of that team. He set the rookie scoring record for the franchise that would stand for a few seasons and became a top player as Anaheim went on to win a Four Star Cup in only it's 3rd season as a team. Gibbles even scored the game winning goal in the finals against the Montreal Militia as his last on ice act before being called up to the Minnesota Chiefs. Many memories were made in Gibble's 3 seasons with the Outlaws like proposing to his significant other during the S47 Four Star Finals PBP thread. One day he hopes one of his kids will play for the franchise.

Nerio · 02-23-2020, 03:58 PM

Bobby Sharp's jump in to the SMJHL was interesting. He flew under the radar of scouts and wasn't picked up immediately, however once he landed in Kelowna, the Knight's staff realized they had a solid player. Sharp had always played center but the Knights were in need of a winger on their top line and Sharp jumped at the opportunity to play top line minutes on a powerhouse line. He played along side Nickolas Klaus who both had ridiculous seasons that year Nolan Sawchuk. His time on that line, while only 1 season, showed him what it took to be a pro and helped him grow tremendously into the player that he is today. His first season also taught him the sting of defeat early on in the playoffs when he and his team fell 4-0 to the St. Louis Scarecrows. This braced him for a much more significant defeat in the next season, when they made it to the finals, only to once again lose to the Scarecrows, this time in a game 7. Sharp walked away as topping the playoffs in points that season but still felt empty handed.

hewasajazzman · 02-23-2020, 04:18 PM

RedCapeDiver · 02-23-2020, 04:55 PM

The jump for Adam Scianna from playing in Norway to playing in the SMJHL was a big one. Back in Norway he was one of the bigger players and was lighting up all of the stat categories. But there were alot of changes coming to the SHL, most players were of similar size and most were more skilled, the rink was a different size and the play style was completely different. During his rookie year Scianna got the opportunity to play in the Top 4 the entire year, and you would think that he would be able to keep up with his defensive partners Luciano Vessot or Danila Zhernov who got 35 and 33 points respectively, but it seemed like any time Adam would get the puck the play would fizzle out and the Knights would have to regroup. Scianna only got 9 points his first season. Luckily though he was able to pick it up in his second season and get 30 points

Glyc · 02-23-2020, 05:01 PM

Sabo Tage had an interesting start to his career in the SMJHL, that is for certain. Upon approaching the SMJHL draft, Sabo Tage was seen as a top prospect and one that could make an impact immediately. He was drafted first overall which felt great but unfortunately his season would go off the rails, with under ten points in his rookie showing. His next season seems to be on the money though with, a positive season and over 25 points. However, that point total would come too late for the SHL draft where he dropped from first the previous season to 31st, a devastating drop. However as the players agent is a Gm of the Platoon, his seeding was guaranteed. Luckily it hasnt ended terribly in Vancouver for Sabo Tage, his Whalers intend to take on the Outlaw soon in the SMJHL playoffs and should be giving a good show.

raymond3000 · 02-23-2020, 05:06 PM

Jearim · 02-23-2020, 05:12 PM

White Goodman came into the SMJHL looking to make an impact right away. After being drafted 10th overall by Vancouver he knew he was the starter in waiting but took every chance to make a statement that he was better. By the time the first seasons playoffs came around he had taken the starters job from Braulin and has kept it ever since. Goodman has never been one to shy away from speaking his mind and has always said he would make an impact right away. 2 seasons later he has put together an MVP worthy season and going into these playoffs everything he has thought about his ability is proving to be true. In retrospect, Goodman has come a long way from his time in Italy and teh SMJHL has offered a higher level of competition, but he's been up to the task in the SMJHL, and will be in the SHL.

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NONAME · 02-23-2020, 05:32 PM

The SMJHL was the first time Kane actually played an organized league of hockey let alone professional. it was a massive learning curve for him. Luckily the Colorado Raptors took a chance on him in the 2nd round and were a massive help in developing his game on and off the ice. They helped him with learning how to properly prepare for games through dieting, workouts, and practices. The leadership throughout the organization from players, alumni, and management were outstanding and always available. Kane became a leader within the team and was voted Captain numerous times and decided to bow out of the vote his last season to pass the torch along. Due to the developmental system that the Raptors have Kane became a stellar player in the SMHL and received awards from the league and is going down as one of the more decorated Raptor from team awards. His draft sock skyrocketed and he was selected 3rd overall by the San Francisco Pride.

Kylrad · 02-23-2020, 05:55 PM

Coming off another dominant year of hockey with his brothers in Korea both domestically and internationally, Daniel Smeb was finally draft eligible for the SMJHL and was drawing some interesting along with his brothers. Eventually Daniel participated in the combine and some prescouting interviews and it does not appear as if GMs were impressed with his answers/abilities as he fell to 54th oa to the Colorado Raptors with most of his fellow Smeb brothers following after also to Colorado.For some reason Kit Smeb was the first Smeb taken at 41st oa by Detroit which made no sense seeing as he was the worst of all the Smebs. The season in Colorado was up and down both team wise and individually for Daniel but things started to pick up towards the end of the season as the team made a decent playoff push making it all the way to the semi finals before losing with Daniel seeing more play and putting up a better offensive and defensive game.

Bonk · 02-23-2020, 06:22 PM

Lil’ Manius leap from the SMJHL to the SHL was exciting on several levels, as when he entered the SHL it was with the Winnipeg Jets to the great satisfaction to his father Big Manius, considering Big had retired from the Jets only a two season prior to Lil’ being called up. Therefore, it was exciting for the youngster to play with several players that is father had won the Challenge Cup with. Lil’ made that a multigenerational thing as he won a Challenge Cup his rookie season and had his name enshrined with many of the same player that Big Manius had his name enshrined with. In additional to making his father happy, Lil’ was also excited to be in SHL after so many years of hard work playing hockey. So it was true in honor for him to be called up especially after his second season the SMJHL, He figured that he would have been playing the SMJHL for an additional season and was surprise when management for the Jets gave him the call to come to the SHL.

Words ~180

**JaytheGreat** · 02-23-2020, 06:30 PM

Going from playing on the rinks of St. Petersberg to the rinks of the SMJHL was definitely an experience. My first season took a while to get used to and I wasn't as effective as I knew I could be. After that first season my career really took off, I became one of the best goal scorers in the J. I played for the best organization in the J the St. Louis Scarecrows, while we didn't always have the best seasons, we did the trophy for best team in the regular season. Looking back at it I wouldn't trade my four seasons with St. Louis for anything, they taught me so much about the game and me the player I am today. While I was there I was lucky enough to play with some great players, who are now tearing it up in the SHL. I still sometimes hang out in the locker room and chat with current players and alumni.

Rest In Peace Dangel

1st SHL Goal - S52 Game 1 vs Tampa 3. New England Wolfpack , Jakub Bruchevski 1 (Eko Van Otter 1, Delver Fudgeson 2) at 8:10

Scarecrows

Grum · 02-23-2020, 07:09 PM

Going from a small league in Japan to the SMJHL was surreal. I didn't really know what to expect when I moved to North America in order to join in on the S50 SMJHL Draft but it blew me away at how excited everyone was for hockey and getting to know my fellow draft mates made it so much better. It was just a fresh of new air to be somewhere where hockey was a big deal. It was only a few days when I got contacted for the draft by Donini. I didn't know at the time that was an early scout, but I remember being so stoked to be able to meet the gms of the SMJHL and get a chance to know what the league was about. I got contacted by around 6 teams in total but I knew Anaheim was where I wanted to be after that initial talk with Donini. Luckily they took me at second and the rest is history... well until I hit the ice. I was told I was going to play first line minutes which really surprised me considering I was a unproven rookie, but Ursin Zimmerman took me on as a line mate and he helped me practice to get use to the pace and tactics of the SMJHL.That helped a lot, and overall I put up a decent rookie season on the first line.

Naosu · 02-23-2020, 07:31 PM

Ryan Shepard is still in the SMJHL, but it’s his final year. There was a chance he could have been called up this season, but he really wanted to play one more season with Kelowna. With two finals appearances in three seasons and a devastating loss in game 7 last season he wants one more attempt at a Four Star. After leading the team in scoring the past two seasons, he was passed by Gylfi Eriksson down the stretch and finished behind by two points, also two points short of ppg this season. Shepard feels as though he was snubbed a Brandon Holmes nomination in S50, and hopes to be among the talks this season. He might only be 13th in scoring, but leads the league in +/- (other than being tied with one of his linemates) by a fair margin. He also has minimal PIMs for his amount of minutes played. In the end though, it’s only the Four Star that truly matters. Anything less than a championship will be a disappointment. To top things off, Kelowna finished with the best goal differential in the league but ended up in seventh. Shepard and his team will have to play an extra round in what could be one of the tightest J playoffs in a while.

TnlAstatine · 02-23-2020, 07:42 PM

the leap from juniors to the big bad pro leagues was nothing to laugh at for monkey d luffy. He made the transition smoothly and everything has been going up from here. The one thing he isnt used to is not being captain. He was a captain for all four season he played in juniors and his first season he saw no letter. Since his second season on the shl he has had the proud opportunity to wear the A and he has been proud of that, to be sure. His next craving is to lead the stampede to greatness and wear the C with proud and show the league exactly what he is worth. Coming behind from passamas and marius and following in the metzler legacy will be a hard road for sure but luffy has never bneen one to shy away from thge challenge. Let's see what the future has in store for our hero.

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