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raymond3000 · 07-15-2023, 02:21 PM

Beginnings and Endings

The Season 72 Simulation Hockey League Entry Draft took place last night. This annual event marks the beginning of many players’ professional hockey careers, and dozens of young athletes were able to live out their childhood dreams as they heard their name be called by a SHL team and were welcomed into new organizations and locker rooms as they embarked upon their new journey.

However, for one man in Texas, yesterday wasn’t a day of new beginnings but rather the end of a long journey. Andreas Kvalheim, the longtime captain of the Texas Renegades, had been informed by his general manager that the team would not be retaining his services for the following season. This meant that after the final player was selected in the SHL draft, an action which also marked the start of the SHL off season, Andreas was officially a free agent. For the first time since being selected 2nd overall all the way back in the Season 45 SHL draft, Kvalheim was no longer a member of the Renegades organization. While certainly a disappointment, this outcome was not a major surprise to Andreas. His play had dropped off dramatically over the past few seasons and he had found himself relegated to a third line role and seeing the fewest ice time of any player on the team. With the Renegades aspiring to progress further in the Challenge Cup playoffs and with young prospects knocking on the door of the SHL, the time was right for the team to move on from their grizzled leader.

A Look Back

After twenty five seasons, Kvalheim departs the Renegades as their franchise leader in nearly every meaningful statistic including games played (1,490), goals (486), assists (667), points (1,153) and hits (3,428). He also cemented his place in history as one of the league’s top two-way forwards with a record four Jeff Dar trophies, including back-to-back-to-back victories between seasons 54 and 56.

The Renegades were a team in transition when Kvalheim joined them back in Season 47. While they made the playoffs that season, they soon found themselves mired in a deep rebuild as their previous group of core players aged out of their primes. The next few seasons were a struggle for the Renegades, as they continuously found themselves out of the playoff picture. However, these turbulent seasons helped shape the next generation of Renegades stars, including Kvalheim but other Texas stalwarts such as Josef Kubinec, Bjorn Leppannen, Kaarlo Kekkonen, Alexander Wachter, Adam Scianna and Noah Brusky. The Renegades did not make the postseason again until Season 55, but led by this group of players, they quickly found themselves as perennial Challenge Cup contenders and as the only outside team capable of resisting the indomitable triple headed monster of the Great Lakes division. This period of success ultimately culminated in two Challenge Cup victories, as Andreas was able to lift the cup in Seasons 59 and 62.

[Image: Anze-Kopitar-Cup.jpg]

Andreas celebrates after winning the Challenge Cup for the first time in Season 59.

However, only a few seasons after the last Challenge Cup victory, the Renegades management decided to pull the trigger on a rebuild. The Renegades, while having had a dazzling run of success, had been unable to draft well and replace their aging core. And so, Andreas found himself going through another lengthy rebuild, and he watched as one by one his old running mates all departed the team until he was the last remaining member of the Renegades’ era of success.

There were a few seasons of tumultuous management at the start of the rebuild process, but the current management regime was able to step up and right the ship for the Renegades. The future is once again looking bright in Texas, and though he is no longer a part of the team, Andreas will be eagerly following the team to see just how far this young talented Renegades roster can go.

Next Steps

Andreas Kvalheim is no longer officially a member of the Texas Renegades, but he is not ready to hang up the skates just yet and has announced his intention to enter free agency. He will be joining the ranks of fellow SHL veterans such as Slip McScruff and Dick Clapper as former star players turned greybeards determined to extend their playing careers for as long as possible. When asked about his future plans and his goals for free agency, Andreas had the following to say.

“At this stage of my career, my main objective is to become the SHL’s all time leader in hits. I am happy to join any team in free agency, and I hope they will support me in pursuing this goal and allow me to play my physical brand of hockey.” – Andreas Kvalheim

[Image: GettyImages-1252076874.jpg]

Andreas Kvalheim discusses his future during a press conference.

There likely isn’t a huge market for a player who only managed half a point per game last season and is firmly in the twilight years of their career, but Andreas is hoping to find a team to roster him for the upcoming season and allow him to continue his climb up the SHL record books.

He currently sits third all-time on the hits leaderboard with 3,428 hits. Andreas only needs six more hits to claim the second spot currently held by Taylor McDavid. However, the main target is 3,585 – the number of hits dished out by Mike Izzy, the SHL’s current hit king. It is likely that two seasons will be required for Andreas to reach this lofty milestone, but he is determined to play for as long as it takes to claim his place atop the history books.

*puolivalmiste* · 07-15-2023, 02:50 PM

Truly a Texas legend, hopefully you can find a place to get those last hits in and then get some well deserves rest

**Lime** · 07-15-2023, 04:07 PM

seeing kvalheim in a different jersey is gonna be insane

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