Carry on

[VanIslander]

If you don't want to play my game, i"ll take my ball and go home. Someone else step up to play whatever you want. Have fun!

In 2003 a commish of a draft set the rules. If you didn't like it you argued your case or f'd off, maybe starting your own. These days there isn't a commish but instead an administrator, who does the work of poll results set by savvy GMs who know which buttons to push - a political game. Ugh.

Times change. I haven't. I've PM'd a few GMs about continuing MY IDEA of a draft. Don't hold my proposal withdrawl against me. You don't want to do it my way but you like my idea. Great. Run with it your way.

All turns out well! It is what it is.

Click to read more...

 

[VanIslander]

My idea was to profile the first half century of hockey. That was the guys who made their mark from the 1890s (three of whom i would draft) to WWII when replacements watered down the NHL, making the world's top league (other than the 1970s when Soviets and Czechs may have been better - may). Few players increased their esteem during the war years (other than guys like Toe Blake and Frank Brimsek, neither of which would have qualified for my draft!

 

[VanIslander]

I was too busy this summer personally to organize the MLD. I have always initiated or supported with countless PMs the recruitment for the MLDs. After all, it is my baby. I started it and proudly so as there are always guys undrafted in the ATD who should have been selected.



HC Spartak Moscow
Alum: Bure, Kozlov, Kovalchuk, Hasek.

Broome Dusters
A minor pro league NY state team logo designed by its famous resident, a great cartoonist.

Asbestos Aztecs
Hands down the greatest pro team name ever. The Quebec town eventually changed its name for PR sake.

 

[tinyzombies]

Montreal Wanderers for me.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Alright let's give this a go.

I'll be the Seattle Metropolitans.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Great idea @VanIslander

 

[Claude The Fraud]

I’m in!

 

[BenchBrawl]

.

 

[VanIslander]

Players like Toe Blake should not be part of a pre-WWII draft because his career is squat without the 1940s. His later coaching career rubs him well, but out of bounds.

 

[Hawkey Town 18]

Thanks for the invite. I'm getting married in a couple weeks, so won't have time to participate in this one. Good luck everyone.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Thanks for the invite. I'm getting married in a couple weeks, so won't have time to participate in this one. Good luck everyone.

Wishing you a happy wedding! Joy and love.

 

[Professor What]

I'm a little hesitant, but I think I'll give it a go.

 

[VanIslander]

I initiated this early era draft because i believe the ATD draft order and spacing is wonky. I mean, some picks are waaaaaay before their equivalent, others are waaay behind those they are better than. A draft focused on the early era should make some GMs say WTF?

 

[rmartin65]

Thanks for the invite, but I'll pass this time around.

 

[Professor What]

Nice. And your team's name is...?

I'll stick with my old standby, the Gallifrey TARDIS.

 

[BenchBrawl]

@jigglysquishy you playing?

 

[jigglysquishy]

Sure I'll take a go as the Regina Capitals.

This will be my first ATD.

 

[Professor What]

Sure I'll take a go as the Regina Capitals.

This will be my first ATD.

We'll be expecting you for the big one now. This is a lot of fun.

 

[seventieslord]

Crosstown rivals the Regina Pats will join.

How do we define end of career?

AHL mattered in those days. So if a guy played in the AHL till 1948 I'd be inclined to not count him as eligible.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Crosstown rivals the Regina Pats will join.

How do we define end of career?

AHL mattered in those days. So if a guy played in the AHL till 1948 I'd be inclined to not count him as eligible.

Great to see you join in!

If we're going AHL route, I would push the limit to 1950.

Basically, I would hope to keep the 1930s players like Dit Clapper eligible in the spirit of "pre-WWII", but I'm cool with whatever we decide to go with.

Sure I'll take a go as the Regina Capitals.

This will be my first ATD.

Welcome! Glad to see you play.

 

[Habsfan18]

Portage Lakes Hockey Club.

 

[VanIslander]

I invited 40+ past GMs to this early era draft.

I did not invite seventieslord.

He has not participated in drafts for years, i think. (How many in the last 10 years since he won a draft? He was in two?)

Immediately it was apparent his participation was continuing his grudge against me. He almost literally said so in his post. Ugh.

 

[seventieslord]

Welcome.

A hard line at 1945 as: Is there a single ATD-worthy player who finished his NHL career by 1945 but continued in the AHL? ... i see none in the ATDs we've done. If there are one or two depth guys, they are eligible, as they finished playing at the highest level of competition by the end of WWII in 1945. Just make sure they never played a single NHL game after 1945.

on the other hand, BenchBrawl is absolutely right that Dit Clapper should count as a pre-WW2 player. It would be silly not to include him. May be worth looking at case-by-case.

 

[seventieslord]

We are definitely going to get to a place where there are guys who continued their career in one noteworthy league or another beyond whatever cutoff date we use.

Just looking at the pool of top-550 most frequent ATD picks, only 149 of them are even in the realm of contention (started relevant part of career by 1939) and a further 25 of them would be excluded by a hard 1945 cutoff. We are already at 8 teams, which is 200 picks, so based on both of those numbers, we would need to get to players often taken at the ~850th pick in the ATD/MLD in order to complete the draft and fill our teams. That's guys like...

Red Hamill
Marty Burke
Art Gagne
Johnny Gagnon
Herb Jordan
Billy Coutu

and so on.

So it's not like we're going to have 200 slam dunk obvious deserving picks here. We're gonna have guys looking at Ott Heller, Neil Colville, Bob Davidson, Sweeney Schriner, Bill Cowley, Syd Howe, Toe Blake, Flash Hollett and Babe Pratt, just to name a few, and wondering why on earth they can't pick them and instead have to fill out their lineup with the likes of Baldy Cotton, Nick Mickoski, Gord Fraser, Fred Scanlan, and Moose Goheen just on the basis of the date their careers ended.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Earl Seibert is another big time player from the 1930's we probably want to be eligible.

I would be fine going case-by-case basis for guys like that.