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6/17/2019 6:45 pm  #1


Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0


TORLAND HOCKEY LEAGUE (THL)
Founded 1960

For those of you who remember my baseball league (Torland Star League) based in my fictional country of Torland, this will take place in the same place, time and universe as the TSL. I have to completely revamp my structure for the TSL as it got out of hand with massive baseball rosters and simulations. In the meantime, I've been developing Torland's first professional hockey league. 1960 was a big year for sports in Torland, as leagues for American football, baseball and hockey all took off. This series will follow the hockey side of Torland. As in the TSL, I'll be sharing many details about Torland itself to illustrate the world in which these teams play. Any and all questions about Torland or its people, players, customs, culture and infrastructure are welcome!

An Introduction
The northern regions of Torland have long been a home to the sport of ice hockey. While the long and icy winter months kept the proud mariners and fishermen at bay, a strong tradition of hockey was seared into the very DNA of these hearty and competitive people. Rivalries were formed so deeply that marriages between rival families was essentially prohibited. It became more than just a pastime to pass the time during the winter. It became a way of life.

[ FULL MAP OF TORLAND: https://www.dropbox.com/s/rm59o41fthdzxlx/T2%20Map.png?dl=0 ]

After the second world war, with sporting and entertainment back on the rise, several independent team owners took notice of the sports leagues and teams being formed both in Torland and in the United States and Japan. Baseball was beginning to boom. The Dodgers had moved to LA and the Giants had taken over San Francisco. In Torland, Waterdee had become the new capital for baseball in the north Pacific and teams were joining rapidly as stadiums were being built or renovated.Collegiate hockey was a way of life in the northern coastal areas of Torland, even more so the numerous independent teams. With the resurgence of entertainment and organized sports back in the public eye, the smaller teams and their non-existent budgets were struggling to keep up with the demand. In the spring of 1958, Rey Marcotte, an aging businessman from Trowburgh, called a summit of fellow businessmen with interest and strong ties to ice hockey. They met in the lakeside retreat town of Lobure, Lismane, as a neutral location between all of the bad blood in their hockey veins.

Marcotte called in Wayne Leyva from Port Alrene who owned several independent teams and a decently-sized domed rink on the South Pier. From bitter rival Portarra, Seymour Duval was brought in as he was also an owner of several independent hockey teams and a large rink facility in his downtown. These would be the keystones of the new hockey quotient. Quiet, shy money mogul Claud Elam was brought from Chasonne, the quirky music capital of Torland with a strong hockey following. The captain of the brawling lot of the Isle of Kirk, known as “Sir” Captain Don Giordano was brought in to represent Kirkenport. Two mainlanders, Tamokeva-native Leo Rankin with business ties in Trowburgh and Lecayne-native Bernard Willard with business ties in hockey-crazed Kirlow rounded out the list. Both Rankin and Willard had played independent hockey in their younger days.

The topic at hand was how to build a league that would take advantage of the new demand for sporting entertainment and organize the talent in northern Torland along with the many international players who called Torland home. Leyva and Duval in particular were very well connected with international talent. A loose skeleton of a league structure was drafted and voted upon and each potential new league owner was in favor of moving ahead with the plans to found a new hockey league for Torland. The beginning of winter 1960 would be the target date for the inaugural season. In the meantime, each owner would begin building or renovating proper centers for league hockey games.

The new clubs would be formed from existing rosters of independent teams and leeway was given to each owner to have priority for players already signed to their current teams. There was some concern over roster weighting with owners such as Leyva, Duval and Elam already having talented players in their organizations, but to keep the process moving forward to start the league, no provision was made for an inaugural draft.


- Map of Inaugural THL Teams in Torland 

Wayne Leyva's club in Port Alrene kept their most famous local team name of the Anchors. Across the channel in Portarra, Seymour Duval went with Whales as his moniker. In Chasonne, Claud Elam, ever the historian, dug into the rich local history and chose Heralds. To the surprise of no one, Don Giordano, the self-proclaimed captain of the wild boys of Kirkenport chose Captains as his team name. Leo Rankin chose Lions for his new Trowburgh club and over in Kirlow, Bernie Willard went with a local favorite in the Kodiaks.


- Official THL League Logo

A 60-game season would be played with the top four teams qualifying for a seeded 7-game semi-final series with the winners advancing to a 7-game championship finals for a brand new large gold trophy which was dubbed the Marcotte Cup.

Rey Marcotte was elected the first acting commissioner for the fledgling new league which was named the Torland Hockey League. (THL)

Up Next: The Teams Are Assembled


THL League History:

Marcotte Cup Champions:

1960 - Portarra Whales
1961 - Port Alrene Anchors
1962 - Chasonne Heralds
1963 - Portarra Whales
1964 - Chasonne Heralds
1965 - Yubay Falcons
1966 - Port Alrene Anchors
1967 - Yubay Glaciers
1968 - Yubay Glaciers
1969 - Yubay Falcons
1970 - Yubay Falcons
1971 - Kirkenport Captains
1972 - Port Alrene Anchors
1973 - Kirkenport Captains
1974 - Chasonne Heralds
1975 - Kirkenport Captains
1976 - Narva Neptunes
1977 - Yubay Glaciers
1978 - Narva Neptunes
1979 - Fort Bevin Rockets
1980 - Chasonne Heralds
1981 - Chasonne Heralds
1982 - Chasonne Heralds
1983 - Trowburgh Herons
1984 - Kurohara Killers
1985 - Kavalos Electrics
1986 - Bancana Kings
1987 - Portarra Whales
1988 - Portarra Whales
1989 - Portarra Whales
1990 - Kirlow Kodiaks
1991 - Kirlow Kodiaks

UHA League History

Champions:

1975 - Vensessor Swans
1976 - Bancana Kings
1977 - Bancana Kings
1978 - Kurohara Killers
1979 - Vensessor Swans

Last edited by Steelman (4/11/2023 12:32 am)



AHS Admin. Creator of the THLPUCHWHA: Redux and Retroliga.
 

6/18/2019 12:25 am  #2


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

Very intriguing, I look forward to seeing where this goes!



 

6/19/2019 3:10 am  #3


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

Love that this has been moved to my favorite sport. But if I am a Tars supporter in Baseball, who am I suppose to go for now?



 

6/20/2019 4:35 pm  #4


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

Thehealthiestscratch wrote:

Love that this has been moved to my favorite sport. But if I am a Tars supporter in Baseball, who am I suppose to go for now?

I believe Portarra or Port Alrene might be the ticket for you. The State of Maienzona and San Ferrio are not big hockey places yet, but those two cities will have some similarities. You'll see in the descriptions when I post the identities and uniforms! As one of my true Torlands sports supporters, can't wait to see who you choose!



AHS Admin. Creator of the THLPUCHWHA: Redux and Retroliga.
     Thread Starter
 

6/20/2019 7:30 pm  #5


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

I'll pick my team when I see the identities..maybe something will scream at me being a Boston fan


 

6/20/2019 10:28 pm  #6


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

The Teams Are Assembled

With a full year to construct rosters and outfit their arenas, the new clubs began in earnest to promote the new league. Players signed to the new teams but still playing on independent teams began to see more fanfare.

PORT ALRENE ANCHORS


#22 F Gary Wisniewski / #27 G Ferdy Haight

Quick Facts:


  • City: Port Alrene, Alrene Isles
  • Nickname: Anchors
  • Owner: Wayne Leyva
  • Head Coach: Don Easterling
  • Home Ice: Harbor Dome

About the City:

Port Alrene (all-reen) is a maritime mecca in the one of the oldest continuous seaports in Torland. The city boasts a steadfastly proud and longstanding seafaring tradition. Built around the natural harbor on the big island of the state's 7 islands, Port Alrene holds resolute to their "pledge to the sea" which is also the state motto. The city is close-knit despite its relatively congested and large size, and everyone knows just about everyone and the many generations of sea captains and maritime purveyors have established a tight community. They are fiercely loyal and hard-working and don't put up with laziness, contributing to a strong and stable economy. The business sector, even with the close kinship, can be cutthroat and unforgiving, especially toward outsiders, and even more especially, toward hated rival city Portarra. The city adopted hockey as its civic sport with the long and harsh winters keeping many holed up at home. The people of Port Alrene are a special brand of tough and kind and will be a force as a fan base. New owner Wayne Leyva captained fishing vessels during college before transitioning to building a maritime supply empire based in the city and servicing most of the northern ports of Torland.

About the Identity:

With various shades of red and dark red being the official state color, the Anchors went with an odd shade of brick red, to tie into the numerous usage of brick in the insfrastructure of Port Alrene and the old original hockey rink in Bricktown on the west side of the harbor. The anchor has been a Port Alrene symbol since the early 1800's when it was just a deep harbor stopping point for larger vessels needing safety, since the harbor is on the leeward side of the island, it was a natural shelter from the vicious Arctic storms coming in from the North Pacific and the Bering Sea. The triangle connecting the anchor points references the general shape of the harbor and flag that the harbor uses. The primary features of the uniforms are the shoulder yokes and thick double stripes.

About the Team:

In Port Alrene, the new professional Anchors club was taking shape. Owner Wayne Leyva pulled on his substantial player talent and international contacts to fashion his roster, bringing in 22-year-old Poland-born forward Gary Wisniewski to captain the team. Known as Gary Wiz or just The Wiz, his considerable two-way talent will indeed be the anchor of both his club and the new league. Wisniewski moved from Poland as a young boy and considers Port Alrene to be his hometown. The Wiz will share a first line with capable forwards Dalton Causey and Rory Burkholder.

Young 18-year-old phenom, Ferdy Haight will be the primary goaltender for the Anchors. He's still wet behind the ears but his potential is through the roof. Steady vet Carson Higgs will be his backup. Tough, veteran defenseman Colly Lehman will headline the defensive group. Still just 27, Lehman has all-star potential. German-born Mitch Metz will pair with Lehman. Respected coach Don Easterling was brought in to lead the team.


Up Next: Portarra Whales

Last edited by Steelman (6/22/2019 11:41 pm)



AHS Admin. Creator of the THLPUCHWHA: Redux and Retroliga.
     Thread Starter
 

6/20/2019 10:30 pm  #7


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

Darknes wrote:

I'll pick my team when I see the identities..maybe something will scream at me being a Boston fan

I have a feeling I know which one will scream at you, but I won't sway your decision.



AHS Admin. Creator of the THLPUCHWHA: Redux and Retroliga.
     Thread Starter
 

6/20/2019 10:31 pm  #8


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

Section30 wrote:

Very intriguing, I look forward to seeing where this goes!

Thanks man! I ended up going a different direction on the template, but yours is so fantastic, I may use it for holiday classic presentations when those arrive in this league.



AHS Admin. Creator of the THLPUCHWHA: Redux and Retroliga.
     Thread Starter
 

6/20/2019 11:55 pm  #9


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

Port Alrene looks great! I do have a couple questions though. I noticed that they have two different pairs of breezers. I just was curious about that because at this time teams usually only had one pair and it was usually a block color. I will also suggest maybe darkening the shade of red to more of a maroon, right now it is like a brick red that I think looks kinda strange.

Overall, this is a great start and I look forward to seeing whats next!



 

6/21/2019 1:05 am  #10


Re: Torland Hockey League: THL 2.0

Although a pretty good start, I think I will sideline until all four are presented. I am awfully curious about the color set for a costal team, and I am surprised that there isn't some type of uniform or logo explanation section in your post given the deep history of Torland. I am not sold on this one because of the shade of red. I would either darken it to go in the direction of brown, like a ship, or just go with a truer red color, which would make a classic maroon/red and gold/athletic gold look. Either way, I think if there was a tweak put it into the story naturally. Have the raw creation you have set up used until it is time for an update and base the newer uniforms and logos off of constructive criticism down the line. No team is perfect and that is a part of history, but when it is right the fans adore them for years until they screw up again and have to do it all over (like the Sabers or the Canucks). I can't wait.



 

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