After expressing his desire for more playing time and better statistical numbers, Tommy Helanen was traded following the Orange County Otters championship victory, to the Yellowknife Wraiths. Orange County sent Tommy Helanen, Elvin Enchant and 2 million in S13 and S14 cap space to Yellowknife, in exchange for Glenn McPoyal and the 6th Overall Pick in the upcoming draft. Tommy expressed after the deal's announcement that he is positively thrilled to be heading to Yellowknife, and that his first experiences with the Wraiths staff and teammates were awesome and beyond his wildest expectations.
"They've really cultivated a great locker room culture here in Yellowknife, and I'm stoked to be a part of it now. I feel really involved, engaged, and wanted, and with them having sought me out, I'm pumped up about football again. This is my club, hopefully for a long time, and I'm looking forward to starting a new page of my career and basically getting to restart everything. I'm going to grow as a football player, forge some new relationships, and hopefully I can add a lot to this great franchise over the years," said Tommy Helanen.
The Yellowknife Wraiths have an excellent quarterback in Ryan Applehort, who has accrued over 1100 TPE in just 5 seasons in the league, which should help to pad Helanen's numbers and allowed him to rack up yards. Helanen was notoriously disappointed with the results of his rookie season, as he was often sidelined and was rusty in rare appearances, so this is the perfect scenario for him to flourist. Playing with a veteran quarterback with such an array of skills and a tremendous arm is all that a young receiver can hope for, and Tommy is bubbling with enthusiasm about the opportunity.
"Applehort just radiates pure confidence out on the turf, and that's a contagious vibe and such a great dynamic for his teammates. Obviously, he's great, he's always the best player on the turf and everyone knows that, but he's really humble and friendly. He never talks down to anyone, he's very patient, and he's always ready to offer advice, especially to newer players in the league like myself. His reputation precedes him, and he's lived up to it and then some. I can't wait to get in some games with him and to work out some awesome plays that we can run," said Tommy Helanen.
Helanen has been seen training outside of practice again, as well as showing off his championship ring, since he did finish the season with the Otters and partake in the Championship game. With a 4 million raise incoming to his 3 year contract this season, Orange County gets to shed 2 million in cap that was tied down in the angsty, tumultuous wide receiver, even with the additional cap space that was tossed into the deal for the Wraiths over the next two seasons. That included cap space should mean that Helanen's deal does not burden the Yellowknife financial department too much though, so he can still receive his payday without hurting the team. And Tommy should have an easier time purchasing the expensive equipment and training that he griped about over the course of the previous season.
"Obviously, I'm struggling with money and indebted to the bank, just barely scraping together payments for training. It's tough and I just hope that the extra cash will even things out and cover some more stuff. I want to be a good player, but that takes money and a lot of time, which is something that I'm definitely lacking. Even with media, graphics, and Twitter, it's still way too much unless you're getting a respectable contract that actually constitutes a living wage," said Tommy Helanen.
On a side note, Tommy has always been fascinated by the supernatural and the paranormal, so he is enamored with the Yellowknife team identity. He also is captivated by the new city that he has relocated to in Canada; he seems unconcerned with playing outside of the United States and switching countries of residence. In fact, he seems quite happy about the move, almost as though Canada is preferable to its southern neighbor in his eyes.
"The word wraith sounds very edgy, it's literally the edgier version of ghost, so it's so fun to call myself a Wraith and talk about the team. Also, I love Canada, so it's great to get to move to a country that actually has a sane leader and a government that's not shut down. The people are very kind and welcoming, very easy going and casually conversational. It's pretty darn cold here for sure, and it's much further north than I'm accustomed to, but you can forget the weather after you see the Northern Lights for the first time. It's just a magical sight, it's awe-inspiring," said Tommy Helanen. "I've never seen anything so beautiful in my life; it's hard to think it'll ever feel normal to me."
So it looks like this move has worked out well for the youngster and as though he is adjusting to his new settings swiftly, getting back into the grind of training and gearing up for the new season. After lashing out at the media with a series of heated complaints, it appears as though a change of scenery may have been all that Tommy needed to find satisfaction in his NSFL career again. Even Tommy's agent, in rare sightings, seemed more chipper and even waved at the media, a rare show of cordiality. Canada's positive impact on Tommy's attitude and mentality is hopefully permanent, and if Yellowknife is a better fit, then that's great news for all parties involved. But to know for sure if this is a long-term solution to Tommy's discontent, we must wait for the commencement of the next season and allow a greater passage of time.
"People say the grass is always greener, but looks weren't deceiving this time; it really is greener. I feel such certainty in the core of my being that Yellowknife will be a great place for me, and that I'm going to learn and develop a lot here. I was just assigned my locker and mailed my uniform yesterday, and I'm well aware that this is only the beginning of our partnership. There's only brighter days around the corner; the past, however dark and dreary it was, is in the past," said Tommy Helanen.
Words: 1058 Words
"They've really cultivated a great locker room culture here in Yellowknife, and I'm stoked to be a part of it now. I feel really involved, engaged, and wanted, and with them having sought me out, I'm pumped up about football again. This is my club, hopefully for a long time, and I'm looking forward to starting a new page of my career and basically getting to restart everything. I'm going to grow as a football player, forge some new relationships, and hopefully I can add a lot to this great franchise over the years," said Tommy Helanen.
The Yellowknife Wraiths have an excellent quarterback in Ryan Applehort, who has accrued over 1100 TPE in just 5 seasons in the league, which should help to pad Helanen's numbers and allowed him to rack up yards. Helanen was notoriously disappointed with the results of his rookie season, as he was often sidelined and was rusty in rare appearances, so this is the perfect scenario for him to flourist. Playing with a veteran quarterback with such an array of skills and a tremendous arm is all that a young receiver can hope for, and Tommy is bubbling with enthusiasm about the opportunity.
"Applehort just radiates pure confidence out on the turf, and that's a contagious vibe and such a great dynamic for his teammates. Obviously, he's great, he's always the best player on the turf and everyone knows that, but he's really humble and friendly. He never talks down to anyone, he's very patient, and he's always ready to offer advice, especially to newer players in the league like myself. His reputation precedes him, and he's lived up to it and then some. I can't wait to get in some games with him and to work out some awesome plays that we can run," said Tommy Helanen.
Helanen has been seen training outside of practice again, as well as showing off his championship ring, since he did finish the season with the Otters and partake in the Championship game. With a 4 million raise incoming to his 3 year contract this season, Orange County gets to shed 2 million in cap that was tied down in the angsty, tumultuous wide receiver, even with the additional cap space that was tossed into the deal for the Wraiths over the next two seasons. That included cap space should mean that Helanen's deal does not burden the Yellowknife financial department too much though, so he can still receive his payday without hurting the team. And Tommy should have an easier time purchasing the expensive equipment and training that he griped about over the course of the previous season.
"Obviously, I'm struggling with money and indebted to the bank, just barely scraping together payments for training. It's tough and I just hope that the extra cash will even things out and cover some more stuff. I want to be a good player, but that takes money and a lot of time, which is something that I'm definitely lacking. Even with media, graphics, and Twitter, it's still way too much unless you're getting a respectable contract that actually constitutes a living wage," said Tommy Helanen.
On a side note, Tommy has always been fascinated by the supernatural and the paranormal, so he is enamored with the Yellowknife team identity. He also is captivated by the new city that he has relocated to in Canada; he seems unconcerned with playing outside of the United States and switching countries of residence. In fact, he seems quite happy about the move, almost as though Canada is preferable to its southern neighbor in his eyes.
"The word wraith sounds very edgy, it's literally the edgier version of ghost, so it's so fun to call myself a Wraith and talk about the team. Also, I love Canada, so it's great to get to move to a country that actually has a sane leader and a government that's not shut down. The people are very kind and welcoming, very easy going and casually conversational. It's pretty darn cold here for sure, and it's much further north than I'm accustomed to, but you can forget the weather after you see the Northern Lights for the first time. It's just a magical sight, it's awe-inspiring," said Tommy Helanen. "I've never seen anything so beautiful in my life; it's hard to think it'll ever feel normal to me."
So it looks like this move has worked out well for the youngster and as though he is adjusting to his new settings swiftly, getting back into the grind of training and gearing up for the new season. After lashing out at the media with a series of heated complaints, it appears as though a change of scenery may have been all that Tommy needed to find satisfaction in his NSFL career again. Even Tommy's agent, in rare sightings, seemed more chipper and even waved at the media, a rare show of cordiality. Canada's positive impact on Tommy's attitude and mentality is hopefully permanent, and if Yellowknife is a better fit, then that's great news for all parties involved. But to know for sure if this is a long-term solution to Tommy's discontent, we must wait for the commencement of the next season and allow a greater passage of time.
"People say the grass is always greener, but looks weren't deceiving this time; it really is greener. I feel such certainty in the core of my being that Yellowknife will be a great place for me, and that I'm going to learn and develop a lot here. I was just assigned my locker and mailed my uniform yesterday, and I'm well aware that this is only the beginning of our partnership. There's only brighter days around the corner; the past, however dark and dreary it was, is in the past," said Tommy Helanen.
Words: 1058 Words