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Stamkos Is My Dad · 03-11-2017, 05:30 PM

Well I was going to an article with my picks for the awards but mpc beat me to the punch. But do you know what I say to that? I'm going to do one anyways and also steal his title while improving it to be even cooler! Here we go...

Anton Razov Award (Playoff MVP): Randy Randleman, Calgary Dragons

The award that has nothing of relevance to back up my selection. The only thing I am going off of here is that I have picked the Calgary Dragons to win the cup yet again. If that holds true than the guy I feel would lead them this year would be Randy Randleman. Randleman had a career season tallying 64 points, 152 hits, and 18 power player points. He was the best player on the Dragons roster and I would expect that to hold true in the playoffs. They have an incredibly deep roster, so any player can go off any night for these guys, but I predict it will be Randleman doing it the most often on his way towards the Razov award.

Sarmad Khan Award (Regular Season MVP by League Vote): Theo Kane, Edmonton

Is there really any debate to this one? Theo Kane had a season for the ages and was the driving force behind the Blizzard's season. The Blizzard had multiple players in the top 10 in points scored but Kane was the best of the bunch and also the best in the league. Couple his 72 points (33 goals, 39 assists) with 239 hits and you have what may be the single greatest season in SHL history. This guy did it all and after a Season 32 in which it looked like he was headed towards a downhill slope he changed that trajectory in a major way. Kane definitely earned and deserves this award.

Damian Littleton Award (Dedication Award): JayWhy, Manhattan Rage

You have to go with the simmer for this one. Being a former simmer in other sim leagues myself, I know how time consuming and somewhat mind numbing this job is, and to do it in a position where you have to put up a sim every night is incredible dedication. There are a ton of people that do great things to make the league run well but I will always believe that the key to a great sim league is having a great simmer. JayWhy went through a lot this season in his personal life but he never missed a beat and we should all appreciate his efforts every single day.

Joe McKeil Award (Best Coach): Edmonton

I don't know who specifically does the coaching aspect of the Edmonton Blizzard but I have to go with them for this award. Honestly, I did not expect much from the Blizzard this season after looking at their roster. I thought they would have a solid top line but not much outside of the that. Boy was I wrong. That top line was superb and the supporting cast was pieced together well enough for the Blizzard to be an impactful team and achieve the second seed in the West.

Lance Uppercut Award (Best GM): eggy216, lil New England

This award really depends on what you value. The team that did the best in the regular season or the team that made the most improvement whether it be in the win-loss category or what moves they made in the offseason to better the roster. I am going to go with the best team in the regular season because I feel that a team like the Wolfpack who are at the top year after year is no easy feat.

Aidan Richan Award (Most Improved Player): Steven Stamkos Jr., Buffalo

I really feel like this award is a no brainer and that is me not being (okay maybe I am being) biased. Getting an 18 point improvement from a rookie season to a sophomore season is impressive. Especially when you realize that improvement wasn't from 1 point to 19 for example but rather 32 points to 50 points. Stamkos Jr. was the driving force behind the Stampede's first ever playoff appearance with his 21 goals, 29 assists, 50 hits, and a +20 rating (a 17 plus/minus improvement from Season 32). Most impressive is that plus/minus rating when you consider the Stampede as a team had a point differential of -17. This award is an easy one to pick.

Jeff Dar Award (Best Two-Way Forward): Theo Kane, Edmonton Blizzard

I have to go with Kane for this award for the simple fact he was the leagues premier forward offensively as well as one of the best defensively. When you pair 72 points with 239 hits there really is no question who the best two-way forward was. The only thing he lacked a little in is shot blocks with 18 but his point scoring and hitting was so far ahead of every other eligible forward that it doesn't do enough to make him not win this award.

Ryan Jesster Award (Rookie of the Year): Terrence Nova, Minnesota Chiefs

It had to be one of the Minnesota rookies and I feel that Terrence Nova's offense was a bigger impact on his team that Noctis Caelum's shot blocks were. Nova registered 15 goals, 21 assists, and 36 points in a pretty impressive rookie campaign. He also tacked on 29 hits and 10 shot blocks. The offense is particularly impressive considering outside of Alonzo Garbanzo and Lord Pretty Flacko this team had no other gifted offensive players to help pad Nova's assist numbers. Again this is a matter of do you value offense or defense more and I particularly lean to the offense in this scenario.

Scott Stevens Award (Best Defender): Alonzo Garbanzo, Minnesota Chiefs

Despite a terrible season, at least the Chiefs have a couple award winners to hang their hats on. Alonzo Garbanzo had a resurgence of a season this year being one of the three best offensive defenders as well as the best defensive defender in the entire league. The offensive numbers are impressive with 48 points but the 110 shot blocks and 172 hits take Garbanzo to a whole nother level.

John McBride Award (Best Goaltender): Mikke Laukanen, New England

There has been much debate on whether Matt Lewis-Flood or Robert Andersson deserve this award but I am here to say that neither do. I am going to go with Wolfpack goaltender Mikke Laukanen. Laukanen had an incredible season and for some reason incredibly overlooked season. He was second in the league in wins (25), third in save percentage (0.913), second in goals against average (2.47), first in shutouts (4), and only was defeated 13 times. Also to add onto that third in save percentage, he was only 0.003 behind the first place guy. You can debate all day long about how the team in front of the goalie is a major factor in goalie performance, and you may be right, but I still say Laukanen was the most consistent and the best all-around goalie this season.

Ron Mexico Award (League MVP committee vote): Theo Kane, Edmonton Blizzard