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***JKortesi81*** · 08-21-2020, 04:18 PM

My tenure of the Co-GM of the St. Louis Scarecrows can easily be called the team’s Golden Age. I know that sounds cocky, but from when I took the job in Season 34 all the way through my final Season 45 the Scarecrows were the winningest team in the SMJHL by a large margin. That’s just the regular season though. The Scarecrows struggled to turn their regular season success into Four Star Cups. After a few season of heartbreak however, St. Louis finally won the Four Star in Season 39. There were some historic SHLers on that squad, most notable DeMaricus Smyth (who won MVP that year), Dermot Lavelle, Otis B. Driftwood, The Dude, GOD McZehrl, and Brady McIntyre. St. Louis would be unable to repeat that success for a few seasons, before finally capturing the cup in S44, thanks to an amazing S42 draft class.

The Season 42 draft class for the Scarecrows was chock full of talent that would go on to become SHL superstars. Things didn’t look great for us coming into the draft. We had the 5th overall pick, but we had previously traded our second rounder and then we had to forfeit our 3rd rounder for reasons I don’t recall. Luckily, as you’ll see in a minute, we had two picks in the 4th round that MORE than made up for it, along with the greatest steal in SHL/SMJHL draft history. Here’s how the picks shook out:

1st Round, 5th overall – Goku Muerto. I’d say we knocked this pick out of the park. Muerto would go onto be drafted by the San Francisco Pride before being named GM of the Winnipeg Jets, a title he still holds today.

4th Round, 25th overall – Lil’ Manius. Another fantastic pick who never should’ve fallen out of the top 5, much less the first 3 rounds. SMJHL GM’s were terrible back then, I swear. Manius would go on to be drafted by Winnipeg, where he won a Challenge Cup. He’d later be moved to the New Orleans Specters in a blockbuster trade. In New Orleans he became one of the best players in the league, routinely known for scoring points and hitting everything that moved. He would be a key component of the Specters’ S54 Challenge Cup win.

4th Round, 31st overall – Nicky Pedersen, Jr. 3 for 3. These are three first rounders in the first 31 picks. Pedersen would follow his father’s footsteps in the league, going to the Calgary Dragons. He’d grow into one of their best players, helping them to a Challenge Cup of his own in Season 50. Pedersen wouldn’t grow into an Elite player, but at his best he was constantly among the league leaders and played a great physical game. He’s still one of the leaders for Calgary.

5th Round, 39th overall – Nikolaj Boyle. This was a shame. He was such a good dude who had so much promise, but he vanished one day and was never heard from again.

6th Round, 41st overall – Nicholas Williams. But we more than made up for it here. Williams was everything to the Scarecrows. He helped a ton on and off the ice. He became one of our best players. Williams was drafted to Winnipeg and also won the cup with Lil’ Manius there AND in New Orleans in Season 54 as well. Williams would grow to become one of the highest TPE players in the league, and he’s flirted with multiple accolades along the way. Most importantly to the Scarecrows, he was selected to become the GM of the team once I stepped down to start my expansion team. Williams would lead St. Louis to a third straight Four Star Cup in Season 46. He would leave the team a few seasons later to become the Co-GM of the New Orleans Specters, where he helped them win the S54 Cup.

6th Round, 45th overall – Kiko Rytmyer. Kiko was great a great dude. He capped out at 350 and was a mainstay on the Scarecrows blueline for multiple cups. Sadly, he left the site for a bit because of real life things, and never found his way back. He had future HOFer written all over him, as Texas took him 9th overall in the S43 Entry Draft.

6th Round, 47th overall – Adam Taylor. Taylor was a great addition to the team who was on the S44 and S45 Four Star Cup teams. He was drafted by the Edmonton Blizzard, where he’d go on to have a short career. His time in St. Louis though was great, as he unselfishly position switched for the team to have the best shot at winning.

7th Round, 55th overall – Milo Momoka. Milo was a fun person who never really got hooked by the league. He went IA right away. RIP.

8th Round, 63rd overall – Helmuts Akmenlauks. Helmuts was a steal in the 8th round. Though he was a slow earner, he was never inactive. Helmuts was a key part of the S44 and S45 Cups. He was drafted to the Calgary Dragons, but was taken by the Chicago Syndicate in the expansion draft, where he’d go on to be a solid player for the early years of Chicago.

9th Round, 71st overall – Ricky Weaver. Swing and a miss. You can’t win ‘em all.

10th Round, 79th overall – Derek Moore. See above.

11th Round, 87th overall – Aleister Cain. The final pick in the entire draft ended up being the best one of the bunch. Cain went from afterthought to a two time Four Star Cup winner and a two time Challenge cup winner (he was on the roster for the S45 Blizzard cup). Cain would become one of the top goalies in the league, as he is today. Things never came easy for Cainer. He got robbed of the McBride in his rookie season. A stupid rule about rookie status robbed him of being Rookie of the Year. Drafted by the Edmonton Blizzard, Cain would be exposed in the expansion draft. New Orleans took him first overall in that draft, and Cain rewarded them by carrying them to Game 7 of the Challenge Cup finals in the franchise’s first season of existence. He’s constantly mentioned among the best goalies in the league. He won the cup in S54 with the Specters. He grew into an international monster, shutting down the IIHF year after year. Cain was a crazy good steal, and may even be the best steal in SHL history. Go ahead, find a better one. Good luck.

So there you have it, a deep dive into one of the best drafts in my history. It might even be one of the best drafts in history for anyone. A boat load of SHLers, some with HOF considerations. This was fun. (1120)

APPROVED! +5 TPE @JKortesi81

Muerto · 08-21-2020, 04:20 PM

Can't spell steal without STL!

'twas an awesome draft for sure

***JKortesi81*** · 08-23-2020, 03:54 PM

08-21-2020, 04:20 PMMuerto Wrote: Can't spell steal without STL!

'twas an awesome draft for sure

It was the peak of GMs loving first gens and ignoring the HOF bound recreates. Perfect for us.

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