8. Written, 50 to 200+ words.
Both teams had to only face elimination in game during their journey to finals as San Francisco was taken to game seven by Calgary on second round, while Manhattan took Philadelphia to game 7 during their first round matchup. While both conference finals had multiple close matchups both teams should be coming to the finals being pretty confident to themselves. Both have also lost only one game at home so far, which would give advantage to Presidents’ Trophy winning San Francisco. But who do you think will end up lifting the Challenge Cup? Which team has the edge and why?
The thing that I really enjoy about this as a Challenge Cup final matchup on paper is that there are two legitimate contenders here who have a real shot at winning it all and that makes for a hell of a contest. If you really held my feet to the fire and made me pick a single team that I think would win, I would have to give it to the Pride. They were a real force in the regular season, powered by a great campaigns by MVP candidate and perhaps the league's best goaltender Justin Time, and given the fact that a large part of this roster already has a Challenge Cup win to their name from back in S76 really makes me think that they'll just have the intangibles, the knowledge and the nous to get over the line and beat the Forge for the cup. The Forge cannot be underestimated however, as they ended the regular season as the best team in the Eastern Conference and would undoubtedly be a handful for any team that they might come up against. There's a real chance they might prove too much of an obstacle for the Pride to overcome, especially given how difficult the atmosphere in their building has been for opponents to overcome in every playoff game they've played this season. This should be a great series, and there's a real argument to be made for either team having the edge when it comes to this one.
249 words
Code:
9. Written, 50 to 200+ words.
During their 20 seasons in league Philadelphia has never missed the playoffs. Which is impressive but still there are other teams with longer playoffs streaks, while other teams clean the house others try to stay afloat and do a retool while still staying in playoffs, both with varying successes. Out of last 5 Challenge Cup winners both Los Angeles and San Francisco missed playoffs about 6 seasons before they won their cup while New England has been in playoffs since S67. What in your opinion is best way to achieve success in SHL? Is it better to have high but shorter peak or should teams try to aim staying close to top but likely never reaching it for longer, potentially almost indefinitely? Can they somehow do both?
This is a really interesting debate and one that I've thought a lot about internally, particularly when I was the GM of the Texas Renegades. For context, I had gone into GMing with a mindset that a team could achieve playoffs every year and build a cup winning roster, but after a few seasons of management, wherein I was responsible for bringing in players via the draft, trades and free agency, I soon changed my thinking to believe that going "all-in" and then facing the reality of needing to rebuild was the way to go. I think to win multiple championships with a team is incredibly difficult, and in order to acquire the kind of high end talent that is needed to power a team to multiple championships you really need to be picking at the top of the draft and acquiring those kind of players. In my mind, the reality is that if you are consistently making the playoffs and consistently picking later in the draft, unless you have a generational run of luck and are able to acquire players who go on to become elite names later on in the draft, you won't be able to compete with the franchises that have stacked talent when it comes to a 7 game playoff series. I think credit must go to the Forge, because they have done an incredible job of building elite rosters while still being competitive season in and season out; there's very few organisations that have been able to replicate what they've achieved.
11-25-2024, 11:03 AM(This post was last modified: 11-25-2024, 11:23 AM by Rabidsponge21. Edited 2 times in total.)
Code:
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1.5 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is 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.
Dougcat
Code:
14. Written, 50 to 200+ words.- The Procrastinator Special!
Looks like [TEAM] won Season 79 Challenge Cup! So who won and why? What could the other team have done differently to change the result? What was your favorite part of the series?
San Francisco won and it wasn't even close in the end. Philly pulled the "at least we tried" win to make it so it wasn't a total sweep but couldn't stop the train that was the Prides line up and bowed out in just 5 games. Watching this felt like the Ottawa and Anaheim series from years ago where the Ducks couldn't be stopped and the Senator had their 1 line of offense with now much else. Once it was shut down the finals was over quickly and even though the Senators won 1 game - it sure didnt feel like it watching the series. The Pride controlled almost ever aspect of the series and could have opened a bakery it was that much of a cake walk. They should take pride in what they were able to accomplish to bring the title home and remain a top contender for it moving forward to the seasons ahead. (156 words)
Code:
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1.5 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is 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.
Camel
+3 TPE
Code:
9. Written, 50 to 200+ words.
During their 20 seasons in league Philadelphia has never missed the playoffs. Which is impressive but still there are other teams with longer playoffs streaks, while other teams clean the house others try to stay afloat and do a retool while still staying in playoffs, both with varying successes. Out of last 5 Challenge Cup winners both Los Angeles and San Francisco missed playoffs about 6 seasons before they won their cup while New England has been in playoffs since S67. What in your opinion is best way to achieve success in SHL? Is it better to have high but shorter peak or should teams try to aim staying close to top but likely never reaching it for longer, potentially almost indefinitely? Can they somehow do both?
I think I can speak for everyone in the league that you would much rather be having the post season fun and activity than missing out on it ever, even if you do not win the cup. You get actual live sims, something to look forward to every day, and just a sense of brotherhood (or sisterhood!) in the locker room that is not there during the regular season. It is so easy to fall off into the inactivity droughts during the regular season, but seeing your team actually perform live and have actual stakes each game makes it a brand new fun experience. Of course you can certainly have streaks and keep in the playoffs, just look at teams in the past such as Hamilton. I consider myself lucky to have won both the Junior and SHL cups on my previous player, but have still yet to get one with Paul Bondage. I have faith that Atlanta can get there with the new co-GM of Micool!
WC: 167
TPE +3
Code:
10. Written, 50 to 200+ words. But I Thought You Were Tanking
For first time since league changed to 66 game schedule all teams in league finished with more than 30 points and it wasn’t by small margin as Edmonton who finished last ended up with 38 points, which would have been enough to make playoffs ten seasons ago. Do you think it shows change in mentality of teams when it comes to tanking? Maybe they just got lucky? Or are we seeing the impact of the changes to how draft order is determined?
I honestly cannot speak for how the draft order changed affected anything as I am completely ignorant to what changes were made, but it is awesome to see! I do think luck had a good amount to do with it, but I am hoping that it's just that these teams are finding more active players! The more active this league is, the more fun there is to be had. I have not yet been on a "stinky" team that is consistently last place in the SHL, but while I was on Kelowna we were pretty close. Now Kelowna is a locker room full of fantastic people, but losing that much just gets so old and it did bring down the morale of staying active. Hopefully with these better seasons we will see closer competition from here on out.
9. The Atlanta Inferno hockey team of the eastern conference of the Simulation Hockey League, sometimes abbreviated to the SHL, have never missed the playoffs - with an incredibly impressive league-record ironman stream. While the Inferno don't have the most cups to their name, sustained success has made them a team where free agents and players alike are excited to join. And Atlanta Inferno are going to win many more cups in the years to come surely - so being good consistently is a way to success, and by no means is tanking necessary. But every team has their own secret sauce to try to win, and none is more or less valid than the other. As long as everyone is happy with their outcome or willing to change if it doesn't work. (130 words, +2 TPE)
14. It looks like the San Francisco Pride, a hockey team in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the Simulation Hockey League, sometimes abbreviated to the SHL, won the Challenge Cup. The San Francisco Pride went 16-5 on their road to the Challenge Cup, an impressive record. In order to prevent a San Francisco Pride Challenge Cup victory, other teams could have scored more goals, thus winning games. For example, in game three of the Challenge Cup Finals, the Philadelphia Forge, a hockey team in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the Simulation Hockey League, allowed the San Francisco Pride to score 14 goals, while the Philadelphia Forge scored a total of zero. Had the Philadelphia Forge simply scored 15 more goals, they would have won the game and had a better path to winning the Challenge Cup. Instead, teams chose to allow the San Francisco Pride hockey team to score more goals than them and win games. On a personal note, as a competitor, I think that is a silly decision which clearly didn't work out for any of the other teams - a lesson they surely have now learned, and will not allow to be replicated next season, as they play towards achieving the ultimate goal of the Simulation Hockey League - a Challenge Cup of their own. (221 words, +4 TPE)
3+2+4=9 TPE, can only claim 8 but did an extra for redundancy in case I messed up CW answers.
2. You could think that having the top 2 in scoring goals and making points will do the trick to get the upper hand on the offensive side. but unfortunately that doesn't help much when the opponent has the majority of the other places in the top 10.
So to figure out if one team will have an offensive advantage you have to look at other stats.
Like, How the teams are doing in PP and BP. And how the players are doing in the column for +/-. if the pp is over 89% and the bp is under 29% then that team probably has a great offensive touch. And if the players that play in the team have got a greater deal of being on the ice when goals happen instead of being on the ice when the let goals past, it will be a better indication to show what team will have the offensive advantage on the ice.
WC: 158
13. One fun kind of tournament would be the Old school tournament. The correct number of coaches get to draft anyone in the league, one by one. Like in the school in the gym class. When the teacher picked some people to choose teammates and the best got picked first and so on.
It's probably not the greatest idea among school kids. but in a hockey league it could be the best idea.
Then the teams are divided into a fair amount of groups. Just like random, You go this way and you go that way. Then it is a simple everyone meets everyone and the top 3 in each group goes to playoffs. This type of tournament occurs every 6th year. And that's simply because it's a fun number.
The real beauty with this kind of tournament is that it got room for everybody in the league, doesn't matter if your in Shl or Smjhl, everybody gets picked, sooner or later, by one team or another.
WC:166
11-25-2024, 10:56 PM(This post was last modified: 11-25-2024, 11:10 PM by RainDelay. Edited 4 times in total.)
1. Jackson
(3 points)
10. I think having less incentive to tank will certainly encourage franchises to try to have at least some kind of competitive lineup out there. It’s not always possible based on several factors, but it’s not like you can start a team of bots and get the #1 pick easy. Rebuilding in this league is already no easy task, and it’s gotten a little bit more difficult. But at least now there’s no opponent that is just content to roll over and die. Everyone should be trying to score and win a few games, even if they’re few and far between. Rebuilding is a not a job I’d want to take on right now that’s for sure
(100+ words 2 points)
12. I’ll admit I’m a bit out of the international scene, but this IIHF tournament should definitely be a good one. I’d watch out for Canada. Much like in real life, they’re a force to be reckoned with in this tournament as well, and I think they’re a shoe in for the gold medal. If there’s a team I could see challenging them from Europe it would have to be Sweden. Two true bred hockey countries duking it out would be a suitable finish for what will shape up to be must see SHL TV! Don’t count out the USA though, as a nation on the rise. The Americans bring the boom everywhere they go and always look to shake things up and make noise. If I have to pick a player to spotlight it’ll be Dominik Winters. Sure this may seem like an obvious choice, but hey, have to highlight class when you see it!
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1.5 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for
each correct answer. This is 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.
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1.5 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is 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.
norway - 3 TPE
Code:
4. High end offensive talent is cool and all but Justin Time is ahead of BASE PACK on save%, goals against average and goals saved above average. Can Philadelphia solve them or is it Time for another Challenge Cup in San Francisco?
I think it will be really difficult for the Forge to find a way to beat Justin Time consistently during the final. Time has over high-level performance regularly during the last few seasons and I don’t think it’s going to change during this series. He also has a tremendous defense in front of him.
54 words - 1 TPE
Code:
8. Written, 50 to 200+ words.
Both teams had to only face elimination in game during their journey to finals as San Francisco was taken to game seven by Calgary on second round, while Manhattan took Philadelphia to game 7 during their first round matchup. While both conference finals had multiple close matchups both teams should be coming to the finals being pretty confident to themselves. Both have also lost only one game at home so far, which would give advantage to Presidents’ Trophy winning San Francisco. But who do you think will end up lifting the Challenge Cup? Which team has the edge and why?
Going into this season’s final, I think the team that currently has the edge to win the Challenge Cup is the San Francisco Pride. I think both teams went through a similar path during the playoffs to get to the final and they both face around the same level of adversity, so I don’t think we can give the edge to one of the teams based on their playoff’s performance. However, if you look at what both teams did during the regular season and the roster composition of both teams, I think that San Franciso have to be the favorite against the Philadelphia Forge. San Francisco finished the regular season with 100 points which is 13 points more than the Forge and it translates to six wins in terms of games when you look at it more closely. On top of that, San Francisco ended the regular season with an impressive goal differential of +143, while Philadelphia had a goal differential of +87. It shows how dominant the Pride were during most of the season, they were crushing their opponents out there. When you look at the team’s roster, you can clearly see that the Pride are in their Prime, since they have 10 players with a TPE higher than 1700, while their opponents only have six players who have reached that level.
1. CW TRIVIA, 3 TPE max - 1.5 TPE for participation, 0.5 TPE for each correct answer. This is 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.
dankoa![[Image: VkRiFym.png]](https://i.imgur.com/VkRiFym.png)
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