Create Account

(2x draft media) Analyzing the S77 Draft and their rookie season
#1
(This post was last modified: 02-03-2025, 02:27 PM by Popol. Edited 1 time in total.)

I wanted to take a look at the S77 draft now that those players have played their rookie season in the pros. Why S77? Simply because this is the draft I was drafted and that most of these players just played their rookie season in the SHL.

Context of this draft class
First, let’s look at this draft class a whole. It was on the smaller side with 66 players. It is the smallest class between the seasons S74 and S81 where we saw an average of 82 players per the draft class. 52 players were selected in the SMJHL draft and 62 players selected in the SHL draft even though a few of the players selected in the SHL drafted weren’t selected in the J draft (waiver wire pickups).

This S77 draft is remembered as the draft where Seattle had 4 first round picks and Winnipeg 3. It occured at the bizarre location ‘’Kahri's Last Day of School Sno-Cone Truck‘’. It was the 2nd season in the 4 consecutives season (S76 to S79) that Edmonton had one of the first two selections. There were no big surprise at the top when @Revontulete was selected first overall.

This was a year with a bunch of SHL GMs being drafted: @Ace, @HabsFanFromOntario, @roquefort, @Whitecap, @Eggcracker.

Top Risers compared to SMJHL draft

Teams that select players in the J draft can never know if a player will live up to their selection and who will become true active players for their teams. Because of this, it’s expected to see many players drafted high in the SMJHL and be selected lower in the SHL draft. Let’s look at the biggest risers and fallers. I tried to exclude players that were SMJHL or SHL GMs.

1. Yuri Boyka III - @soulja 
SMJHL Draft: 42nd by Winnipeg Aurora
SHL Draft: 11th by Nevada Battleborn
Difference: +35

Yuri saw the biggest rise from the J draft to the pros. 35 ranks is quite the achievement! I believe I have never spoken to him, so I’m not sure why he came out so late in the SMJHL draft but he was a great late pickup by Nevada.


2. May O’Nayse - @AW13
SMJHL Draft: 69th by Maine Timber
SHL Draft: 34th by Tampa Bay
Difference: +35

May O’Nayse was the last pick of the SMJHL draft. What an impressive rise to then go in the 2nd round of the SHL one. When a player goes that late in the J draft, they are normally drafted as IA and to be a warm body at the end of the lineup. Kudos to him to proving all SMJHL teams wrong and being able to get selected a lot higher in the SHL draft.


3. Nor Ge - @NorwegianDemon
SMJHL Draft: 38th by Quebec City Citadelle
SHL Draft: 14th by Philadelphia Forge
Difference: +28

From a late 2nd round pick to a middle 1st round pick, Nor Ge proved that it was mistake for him to be selected this low in the SMJHL draft.


4. Crazy Tomato II - @Crazytomato
SMJHL Draft: 33 by Regina Elk
SHL Draft: 15 by Minnesota Monarchs
Difference:+18

A younger player, Crazy Tomato probably did not have the best of reputation when he recreated and therefore went quite low in the SMJHL draft, his growth in maturity helped him bump to 18th in the SHL draft. I left this one in the rankings since I believe CrazyTomato become cogm of Minnesota after being selected but I’m not entirely sure.


5. Baron Samedi - @Baron
SMJHL Draft: 34th by Colorado Raptors
SHL Draft: 18th by Winnipeg Aurora
Difference: +16

Another player that I don’t know so I’m sure why he went so low in the SMJHL draft and saw a big rise during his rookie SMJHL season.


1st round pick waiver wires: @’’popol’’ (7th), @HillsHaveHats (10th), @Gage2 (13th), missjmt (16th)
These are players that were not selected in the SMJHL because they joined the league after the draft and before the trade deadline. They were picked in the first round of the SHL draft. How would of they of done in the SMJHL draft?

Popol: I won’t comment on myself
HillsHaveHats: He would have probably gone early in the SMJHL, great LR presence and active user.
Gage2: Never spoken to him unfortunately so I’m unsure how early he would have gone in the SMJHL draft.
MissJMT: Would have probably gone early in the SMJHL simply for being one of the most active members on Discord in recent memory. Unfortunately, not always for the good reasons and she was a very controversial user. She was permanently banned before he made it to SHL.


Top Fallers compared to SMJHL draft

When you have risers, you also have fallers. Unfortunately, we saw multiple players fall, some quite hard.

1. Thomas Harley - @Harley x55
SMJHL Draft: 28 by Regina Elk
SHL Draft: 59 by Toronto Stars
Difference: -31

2. Limu Emu - @Inf1d3l
SMJHL Draft: 19th by Carolina Kraken
SHL Draft: 48th by Hamilton
Difference: -29

3. Boofa Benson - @dasboot
SMJHL Draft: 13th by Maine Timber
SHL Draft: 37th by Hamilton Steelawks
Difference: -24

4. Gina Pinard - @JURT
SMJHL Draft: 4th by San Diego Tidal
SHL Draft: 27th by Seattle Argonauts
Difference: -23

JURT is a player who, from what I understand, had notified teams he would only be playing in the SMJHL which explains why he wasn’t selected high in the SHL draft. Seattle still selected quite high, picking him in the 2nd round hoping they could change his mind before his J career was finished.

5. Argenti Gorilla - @GraylessRex
SMJHL Draft: 29th by Great Falls Grizzlies
SHL Draft: 46th by Calgary Dragons
Difference: -17


Analysing rookie seasons by draft pick

1. Edmonton Blizzard - Gwendolyn Telenn -  @Revontulete
TPE: 1133
TPE RANK: 3

As I mentioned earlier in this text, it was no surprise to see Gwen selected first overall pick. Gwen had a great rookie season in the SHL scoring 22 goals and 41 assists for 63 points, very close to being a Point Per Game producer. However, something important to note is that Gwen only played 3 seasons in the SMJHL which means she just completed her 2nd season when other players from this draft class have only played one. Playing on a bad Edmonton team, she also had a lot of ice time compared to the other rookies, especially with 4PPTOI per game. She has a bright future ahead.


2. Montreal Patriotes - Swedish Chef - @DrunkenTeddy
TPE:1125
TPE RANK: 7
DrunkenTeddy is a well known recreate that is very involved on the dev side of the league. Teddy had 39 points, 12 goals and 27 assists as a RW.


3. Chicago Syndicate - Sam Volta - @Tripl3tsGamer
TPE: 1131
TPE RANK: 4

Triple3Gamer was a very active user in the Draft class discord server. Producer of his own music, he likes to share his passion with those willing to listen. A great pickup for Chicago, Sam Volta had 40 points in his rookie season, in line with most rookies. He wrote a review of his 4 seasons in the J, I recommend to read it!


4. Argonauts Seattle Argonauts - AT-AT Wolker - @Muerto
TPE: 1150
TPE RANK: 2

A well known and active user. Kez is also someone like Glen who only played 3 seasons in the J. In his first season with Seattle in S79, he had 2 goals and 14 assists, but it’s defensively where he truly shined: He had 248 block shots which was first among all rookies.


5. Seattle Argonaut - Jefferson Steelflex - @Steelflex
TPE: 1116
TPE RANK: 10

This is where the draft truly started as the top 4 was pretty well known among front offices. It was a big surprise to see Seattle select Jefferson Steelflex and I remember being stunned by this pick because most of us were expecting it to be between Hockey Player (@Ruggsy) and Trevor Lopez (@tredpalo). Jefferson has proved doubters wrong and is still a max earner. He is the third player on this list to have promoted his player to the SHL after only 3 seasons in the J and performed relatively well in that rookie season scoring 15 goals and a total of 35 points.


6. Winnipeg Aurora  - Hockey Player - @Ruggsy
TPE: 1084
TPE RANK: 16

A recreate, Ruggsy had a peak 1574 TPE with his first player. This one however is on track to exceed that and he should be able to be in the 1900s. His first season in the SHL was a strong one, finishing 4th in points among rookies with 48. Winnipeg was a very young team this season and fielded 6 rookies, 4 on offense and 2 on defense. Furthermore, 2 of these rookies were from the S78 draft.


7. New England Wolfpack - Louis Bélanger - @Popol
TPE: 1115
TPE RANK: 11

I had no idea on draft day where I would go and got selected by New England with the 7th pick. My rookie season went quite well scoring 19 goals and 41 points. I led the offensive rookies in Shoot% with 15,2%. I joined the league as a waiver wire pickup, so I’m quite happy with where I am currently TPE wise.


8. Chicago Syndicate (via Monarchs) - Trevor Lopez - @tredpalo
TPE: 919
TPE RANK: 22

Trevor Lopez has stumbled a bit since he was drafted, going down the rankings in TPE. He had an OK rookie season as a RD with 13 points, 127 blocks and 32 hits. He had low ice time for a defenceman which didn’t help, but this should increase in the next few seasons. I don’t know him personally, but Tredpalo seems well liked around the league going high in both SMJHL and SHL drafts.


9. Manhattan Rage - Jacppo Nummilavin - @SouthPaw
TPE: 879
TPE RANK: 24

Another recreate, Southpaw had made it 1699 TPE with his previous player Nibbles The Squirrel. Some SHL teams are always a bit wary of using high draft picks on SMJHL GMs for a few reasons, but Manhattan wasn’t scared to draft Jacppo in the top 10. His TPE is a bit low for a pick this high, but Jacppo still had a good rookie season as a RD in the SHL scoring 20 points and focusing mainly on defense with SHTOI of 2:27 and a DGR of 67.


10. Oliver Cornwall - @HillsHaveHats
TPE: 1077
TPE RANK:17

Oliver has slowly climbed up the TPE rankings. As a waiver wire pickup for Vancouver during the S76 season, he had a mountain to climb up but he did a great job and could enter the top 15 by the next season. He’s a great locker room presence and a good friend of mine in this league. His rookie season in the SHL wasn’t a strong one, but that’s expected out of a rookie defenceman. He was able to get a lone goal in the 2nd to last sim of the S80 season and finished with 11 total points. On the bright side, he had a great season blocking shots and putting his body on the line with a total of 153 block shots. He hopes to improve on this rookie season and become a force on the blueline for New England where he became co-gm entering this previous season.


11. Winnipeg Aurora - Yuri Boyka III - @soulja
TPE: 1129
TPE Rank: 5

Yuri is the first player in this ranking that was drafted a lot lower than his TPE rank. Ranking top 5 in TPE is quite a feat and to be selected 11th is quite a steal for Winnipeg when we consider TPE only. Furthermore, he had a very strong rookie season and finished 1st among rookies with 52 points. His 26 goals are very impressive, especially considering the 2nd place among goal scorers for rookies had 19. There are good chances Yuri is the winner for the rookie of the year trophy even though he had the 2nd highest time on ice among rookies. With 4 rookies among the top 5 in the rookie leaderboard of points, Winnipeg has a bright future on offense!


12. New Orleans Specters - Smitty Werbenjaegermanjensen - @ZodiacEXE
TPE:  943
TPE Rank: 20

Smitty has dropped down a bit in TPE ranking since he was drafted. Looking at his TPE events on his portal page, the activity level has gone down a bit with less and less PTs being completed. As it’s expected for a defenceman, his rookie season was quite meh with an okay 16 points and a 63 DGR. Smitty will need to get back to max earning if he wants to become a force in the SHL and for the Specters.


13. Stampede Buffalo Stampede - Peyton Campeau - @Gage2
TPE: 702
TPE Rank: 30

Ouch! No GM likes to see a first round pick this low in the TPE rankings. The good news is Peyton still seems to be doing his activity check and be active on the portal. He hasn’t earned any money since a lone chip in early december. The good news however is his once ice performance was quite good. Peyton had 17 goals and 22 assists for 39 points with quite low ice time with an average of 15:06 per game.


14. Forge Philadelphia Forge - Nor Ge - @NorwegianDemon
TPE: 1111
TPE Rank: 12
Nor Ge had a strong season with 49 points on a low 14:48 ice time. This makes Nor Ge a dark horse for the winner of the rookie of the season trophy. With a strong bank account of over $70M, this player is on the right track to be a force in the SHL. He made it to a peak TPE of 1694 so we can expect this recreate to have a strong career.


15. Minnesota Monarchs  - Crazy Tomato II - @Crazytomato
TPE:
TPE Rank: 25

Once again, we can’t expect defensive players to be dominating in their first season so it was a below average season for Tomato with only 14 points and a horrendous -51 on a very poor Minnesota team. He still had 97 block shots and 67 hits which is quite good. With Tomato being the cogm in Minnesota and he does have a direct effect on his player when choosing tactics.


16. Argonauts Seattle Argonauts Jacob Maccabees - @Missjmt
TPE: banned
TPE Rank: NA

Also known as Fatedsaber. The Argonauts took a risk and used a first round pick on this person. Even though she was a bit odd, no one could know how it would turn out so we can’t blame the team for this decision, especially considering how active she was on Discord. She was eventually banned for life but she won’t be soon forgotten thanks to all the controversial things she said. A rare user who preferred IIHF to the regular SHL, her love for France was quite notable.


17. Steelhawks Hamilton Steelhawks - McLovin - @Soviet Sexpot
TPE:1093
TPE RANK: 14

18. Aurora Winnipeg Aurora - Baron Samedi - @Baron
TPE: 819
TPE RANK: 27

19. Argonauts Seattle Argonauts - Theo Kane - @NONAME
TPE: 753
TPE Rank: 30

20. Barracuda Tampa Bay Barracuda - Doug Weight @"oilmandan"
TPE: Retired
TPE Rank: NA


Notable later round picks that are high in TPE:

25. Syndicate Chicago Syndicate - Elvar Gil-Galad - @Gaia Mormont
TPE: 1092
TPE Rank: 15

39. Minnesota Monarchs (via Argonauts via Platoon) - Marián Hanák - @Chris
TPE: 933
TPE Rank: 21

42. Patriotes Montreal Patriotes - Cadmael Ixazaluoh - @Vice
TPE: 971
TPE Rank: 19

52. New Orleans Specters - Émile Dionne - @hockeymil
TPE: 882
TPE Rank: 23
Reply
#2

How dare you not list me as biggest bust

Yukon Malamutes Hall of Fame
[Image: NwdnVLP.png][Image: fDB9MNX.png] 
[Image: 3j8MIXU.png]
Granny Panpan Count: 258
Reply
#3

02-03-2025, 02:41 PMEggcracker Wrote: How dare you not list me as biggest bust

Fail harder next time.

Ninja

[Image: Ak8rQKy.png?width=675&height=375]
Sig by Lazyeye
[Image: image.png?width=600&height=300]
Sig by DaBoot
Knights Timber pride
Reply
#4

NOTABLE PICK LETS GOOOOO

Reply
#5

Dang now that I look at it I'm glad I fell in da draft

[Image: avatar_6228.png?dateline=1722181476]
Reply
#6

02-03-2025, 02:41 PMEggcracker Wrote: How dare you not list me as biggest bust

I didn't even realize it because you don't show up in the TPE Rankings. You probably deserve a top spot haha
Reply
#7

This was a fun draft for the Aurora.

AuroraAuroraAuroraAuroraAuroraAuroraAuroraAuroraAuroraAuroraAurora
[Image: vb2mTMZ.jpeg]
[Image: 1n0REYx.png]

RIP Dangel. See you on the other side, brother
Reply
#8

ill-fated saber made the list lol!


Awesome article, super neat to see the late picks real value!!

[Image: TROYMCCLURE.gif]
Colorado Raptors Capitan S42-Until Forever!
Czechia Wants you! Ask about a transfer!!




Reply
#9

Awesome article but I actually am not a GM! Just a rat

[Image: draft-ad.png?ex=66247d0e&is=6612080e&hm=...cddcfb611&]
Reply
#10

I dropped in the draft because of my locker room activity (or the lack of it lol), but still cool to see I'm top 25 in tpe!

Now in Texas with Vice!
Reply
#11

Am I a joke to you?

“The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. ... There are neither beginnings nor endings to the Wheel of Time. But it was a beginning.”

[Image: HFFO.gif]


Reply
#12

I hate to see myself fall that much too but I can never get ahead atp

[Image: gageshl.gif]
Reply




Users browsing this thread:
1 Guest(s)




Navigation

 

Extra Menu

 

About us

The Simulation Hockey League is a free online forums based sim league where you create your own fantasy hockey player. Join today and create your player, become a GM, get drafted, sign contracts, make trades and compete against hundreds of players from around the world.