ATD 2023 Draft Thread II (see post 1,069 for ATD Final voting result)
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I should start off by saying that the Voyageurs road to the title certainly can’t compare to other champions in terms of overall debating difficulty and activity. There weren’t pages upon pages of back and forths in attempts to sway voters like there have been in previous years. And of course we have to take into account that there were only a handful of voters compared to the typical amount.
But with that being said, when looking strictly at the lineups that the Voyageurs had to overcome to win the Milt Dunnell…holy hell does that ever look like a win for the ages. I’d be curious to know where this win ranks STRICTLY looking at the strength of opposition on paper. And again, I’m not saying it’s an especially impressive win relative to other champions considering the lack of overall activity for this run. But on paper, this is pretty damn impressive.
Consider this:
Round 1 - We match up against a team that has Martin Brodeur manning the crease. That team is captained by Steve Yzerman. It has Denis Potvin leading a strong blueline group. And it has Sergei Makarov, Toe Blake, and Johnny Bucyk among others filling out the lineup.
Round 2 - Next up is a date with Mario Lemieux and his club. Joe Sakic, Jari Kurri, and Alex Maltsev lead a strong offense while Chris Pronger, Mark Howe, Lionel Hitchman and Jacques Laperriere headline a very strong defense. Georges Vezina is in goal.
Round 3 - After getting through Mario, the Voyageurs now get to deal with the greatest player of all-time..Wayne Gretzky and his Soviet linemates Vladimir Krutov and Boris Mikhailov. It’s a team coached by the duo of Anatoli Tarasov and Arkady Chernyshev. The D is lead by Duncan Keith and Pierre Pilote. Oh, and in goal? Jacques Plante.
Round 4 - Brodeur? Check. Mario? Check. Wayne? Check. The reward? A date with Mr. Hockey himself for all the marbles. Gordie Howe. Phil Esposito and Nels Stewart down the middle. Sprague Cleghorn, Bill Gadsby and Eddie Gerard on the backend. And coaching this team? Toe Blake.
I mean, on paper that HAS to be an unreal run..right?
I know activity was down, but I’m very proud of the team TC and I built!
Thanks Claude! Your Petes this year was your best lineup yet. Great work! I considered you being in the mix with the best of the best.
I’m not sure if you mean this in a positive tone, or if you think the win was undeserved. Either way, hope to see you around next year again Van.
But with that being said, when looking strictly at the lineups that the Voyageurs had to overcome to win the Milt Dunnell…holy hell does that ever look like a win for the ages. I’d be curious to know where this win ranks STRICTLY looking at the strength of opposition on paper. And again, I’m not saying it’s an especially impressive win relative to other champions considering the lack of overall activity for this run. But on paper, this is pretty damn impressive.
Consider this:
Round 1 - We match up against a team that has Martin Brodeur manning the crease. That team is captained by Steve Yzerman. It has Denis Potvin leading a strong blueline group. And it has Sergei Makarov, Toe Blake, and Johnny Bucyk among others filling out the lineup.
Round 2 - Next up is a date with Mario Lemieux and his club. Joe Sakic, Jari Kurri, and Alex Maltsev lead a strong offense while Chris Pronger, Mark Howe, Lionel Hitchman and Jacques Laperriere headline a very strong defense. Georges Vezina is in goal.
Round 3 - After getting through Mario, the Voyageurs now get to deal with the greatest player of all-time..Wayne Gretzky and his Soviet linemates Vladimir Krutov and Boris Mikhailov. It’s a team coached by the duo of Anatoli Tarasov and Arkady Chernyshev. The D is lead by Duncan Keith and Pierre Pilote. Oh, and in goal? Jacques Plante.
Round 4 - Brodeur? Check. Mario? Check. Wayne? Check. The reward? A date with Mr. Hockey himself for all the marbles. Gordie Howe. Phil Esposito and Nels Stewart down the middle. Sprague Cleghorn, Bill Gadsby and Eddie Gerard on the backend. And coaching this team? Toe Blake.
I mean, on paper that HAS to be an unreal run..right?
I know activity was down, but I’m very proud of the team TC and I built!
Thanks Claude! Your Petes this year was your best lineup yet. Great work! I considered you being in the mix with the best of the best.
I’m not sure if you mean this in a positive tone, or if you think the win was undeserved. Either way, hope to see you around next year again Van.
@Habsfan18 I've been watching since 2008. I think your team is the most legitimate winner I've seen. Traditionally the winner has been decided by rhetoric on a message board. Attorneys such as TDMM and Sturm have done very well. I believe the best team "on the ice" should win and I think that's what happened. I also consider you and @Johnny Engine the two gentlemen scholars of the ATD and really enjoy reading your posts. Congrats!
I very much appreciate the kind words, thank you. I suppose I just don’t feel great about the lack of activity and voting leading to the championship win, but I must remember that this was league-wide. And a win is still a win. TC and I will go down as Milt Dunnell champions and for that I am immensely proud. Sure, at the end of the day it’s just a “silly” online hobby for all of us with a great appreciation for the history of hockey. But it’s one that we are all passionate about. And I imagine the vast majority of GM’s set out with a goal of winning a title one day (or in the cases of the REALLY good GM’s, multiple titles) so to accomplish that, however the road was to get there, it’s a pretty nice feeling.
I just hope to see positive change next year that helps increase participation and activity. A lot of the regulars have been missing in action for months.
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ChiTownPhilly
Not Too Soft
Re: sentence #1- it's definitely up there.
Re: sentence #2- for me, there will always be a place for "team advocacy" in the voting process. This year (before the voting process began), I resolved that I would be more forgiving of imprecise arguments in the match-up threads. I decided I'd prefer imprecise arguments to no arguments at all. At least in the case of the former, someone's out there trying. Sort of frustrating to lose to someone who makes no attempt at advocacy whatsoever. Most extreme example of that this year was @Hawkey Town 18 's Chicago squad, who deserved a better fate.
That said, @Habsfan18 & @Transplanted Caper DID put together a worthy winner- and I would have voted for them in The Final if I'd gotten my ballot in on time.
I AM relieved that I get enough of my voting results "wrong" that I can attribute my serial team failures to valuing certain aspects of team-building and participation more than others do, and can take solace in the likelihood that there's nothing personal to the matter.
