Crown Room Kings
The draft balls of destiny landed squarely on the chin on the Crown Room Kings in 2020 and finished with a first round pick right on their faces. Veteran GM Warden has struggled to find success in the WNHL and has yet to raise Welland’s holy grail, however, veteran GM Warden has never been granted the “Golden Choice” before. (Well he has, but it was a long time ago, they were young and he didn’t really know her that well). Did he use it to wisely to build a championship caliber team or will he waste a beautiful gift that was bestowed upon him by the WNHL Gods? Let’s have a look and judge him harshly.
In the first four rounds the Kings drafted two Bering’s, a Boots, and a Wurfel. Taking last years leading scorer Ryan Bering seems like the right choice and finishing the fourth by bringing in his brother Carl can’t hurt. I mean, brothers always get along…
Adding Boots to the roster in the second round is always a great pick if you are looking for a puck moving defenceman who doesn’t speak to anybody in the room and has a secret rivalry with Billy. WNHL rookie Steve Wurfel, who must have impressed at the prospect game, earns the third round pick. That’s a bit of pressure to put on a rookie who has to try to find the unique balance of playing hard, but not being a try hard dick that makes the WNHL the Champagne of Beer Leagues. ™
Moving to the middle rounds, Warden started to fill the roster with a couple of guys who names end in vowels. You know what I mean? Couple guys sound like they are from Niagara Falls. Get it? Couple of guys who probably make mean soppressat? Capiche? Coming straight to the arena from the kitchen in their basement, Frankie Mauro and Gabe Mollo.
In the 7th and 8th rounds Warden took Al Jones and Nate Brady. Two people who do not have much and to say and quite frankly neither do I. Couple of workhorses, not going to hurt you out there, and much like all of your mom’s, they can be used in any position.
Gordie Hudak continues his journey from referee to player in the 9th round, and it was just like when Dangerous Danny Davis joined forces with the Hart Foundation.
Much like Danny Davis, Gordie has yet to taste championship glory and the former Alexander Kuska standout is looking to impress after what some have called a disappointing rookie campaign. (It was me, I said it. Fight me Gordie).
Shoring up the team in the final rounds were Kevin Dyson and “Mr. Irrelevant” Henry Wiens. Warden was happy with Wiens as the last selection and is a believer in the off the glass and out is better than in the back of the net philosophy which Wiens has mastered so well in his time in the WNHL.
And with that Warden has submitted his roster for the Crown Room Kings. Is it enough to bring the King Street Cup home to the Crown Room? Can they make it through a 30 Wednesday grind to hoist Welland’s holy grail or will they choke stumble and fall like Macy Gray?
It all starts on October 7th when the Kings open their season against the Townline Tunnelers.