Fall 2019 Season

The Fall 2019 Season features eight teams split up into two Divisions, Mecca and Medina.
Teams had a single GM which resulted in some early movement as teams tried to create some early chemistry and have the first round pick assist with the draft.

Draft Day Trades:
In an effort to grab the player each team wanted in the first round, Emaan traded their 2nd, 18th and 31st picks to Ihsan for their 5th, 12th and 28th.  Ihsan effectively moved down in the 2nd and 4th rounds in order to move up in the 1st round.  Easier to look at the deal once player names are associated with it and the deal boiled down to this:
Ihsan used the picks to select Dawood Ciomar (2nd), Belal Hafeez (18th) and Ammal Esmatyar (31st)
Emaan used to picks to select  for Yusuf Ingar (5th), Salman Khalid (12th) and Mohammed Abdus-Samad (28th).

Taqwa trades Ibrahim Khan to Ikhlas for Abdullah Patel
A deal more for Taqwa to grab a family member of GM Ali Wadee.  Khan is a solid piece moving back to Ikhlas and the players were selected in the same round so no premium paid here by Taqwa who initiated the deal.


September 25th:
Haya trades Umair Khan to Yaqeen for Omar Sadaat
A good move for Haya as Khan was going to have attendance issues and their style of play requires a deep bench as the team likes to roll all of their lines so Sadaat gives them the depth that they want.


September 30th:
Emaan trades Dawud Habib to Taqwa for Arif Khan and Aliudeen Mohammad
With the team struggling, Taqwa made a move to acquire a young prospect in Habib that they need to make the jump immediately or this trade hurts them.  Giving up Khan and Mohammad robs them of veterans who are more mature physically and in experience so a big gamble for Taqwa who is already having problems scoring goals.  For Emaan they cashed out high on a young player and pick up a pair of solid pieces to fill out their roster and Khan can be deployed as their first line centre where he may be able to spark their offence.


October 8th:
Ihsan trades Efran Bhanapatel and Saqib Sheikh to Ihsan for Saajid Bhayat and Umar Mahmood
Yaqeen gets the best player in the deal in Bhanapatel, Ihsan gets a defensemen they desperately needed and some depth.  Yaqeen will be able to put Bhanapatel with his brother-in-law Abu Manjra making for a deadly duo for teams to contend with on the offensive end.

Taqwa trades Ihtisham Qureshi and Imran Lakhanpal to Ikhlas for Taha Azhar and Adam Moftah
Taqwa continues to make moves to try and add speed to the lineup filled with veterans.  Azhar gives them that on the back-end and allows GM Ali Wadee


November 5th:
Sabr submitted a Replacement Player request for Ali Murtaza who suffered an injury in Week One that has held him out ever since.  They nominated Mehmed Rizvanovic as the new player however Ridha put in a claim, as compensation Sabr obtained Talib Contractor.

An interesting move but Sabr may get the best out of this in the end as Contractor is a fast physical forward.  Ridha did take a major risk by putting in a claim as Sabr could easily have elected to take on of their defensemen as Murtaza was a 5th round pick and with Ridha's defence being a bit thin losing one as compensation could have been a disaster forcing them to make a trade.

November 5th:
Ihsan submitted a Replacement Player request for Wessam Issawi who was forced to drop out due to injury, Emad Mahmood was nominated as the replacement.  During the waiver process Emaan put in a claim and Ihsan grabbed Sameer Sarfraz as compensation.  After some negotiations between the teams respective GMs a trade was made to send Sarfraz back to Emaan in exchange for Mahmood and Aliudin Mohamed.

All three players involved in the trade are all in their first year with the league so hard to really assess who gains the upper hand so only time will tell.


November 6th:
Ihsan trades Khizer Lakhanpal to Taqwa for Taha Azhar, Ihsan then submitted a replacement player request as Azhar dropped out of the league and put up Humza Chaudhry who was grabbed by Taqwa. Ihsan grabbed Dawud Habib as compensation.

A strange one for sure, Chaudhry is talented but is coming off some injuries so rust may be a factor.  For Ihsan they lose Lakhanpal who had played both forward and defence and bailed them out early on their versatility, Habib is a talented youngster but they may be making the same mistake Taqwa made when they traded for Habib early in the season as he has the skills but doesn't have the experience to make use of them yet.


November 6th:
Taqwa trades Naveed Mohammed and Zafir Rashid to Yaqeen for Fuzail Thakur and Dawud Abdus-Samad.  Yaqeen then submitted a replacement request for Rashid who is out with an injury and nominated Zaid Toorawa who was picked up by Taqwa.  As compensation Yaqeen took Sahil Mohammed.

The deadline closed with this one where Taqwa gets a pair of veterans to try and offset the loss of Rashid and the elder Mohammed.  They got a bit more mobile but still have a mountain to climb as they  try to climb back into the playoff race.  For Yaqeen they upgrade with a veteran leader as they look to hold onto the top spot in their division.

Summer 2019 Season

Draft Trades

June 9th: Trade

The draft was barely completed before this deal went down, some suspect that peer (and more importantly family) pressure resulted in this transaction happening.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:

Ihsan gets: Abraar Gangat and Saajid Bhayat

Yaqeen gets: Ahmad Ibrahim and Rizwan Malik

Reports indicate that Yaqeen GM Mohammad Hamoud was cornered on this deal as he acquired his brother-in-law Ahmad Ibrahim and Rizwan Malik but paid a high price in sending Abraar Gangat and Saajid Bhayat the other way.  Ibrahim and Malik are both solid physical veteran forwards which is good but losing Bhayat who can play both forward and defence hurts along with a young forward in Gangat.

June 12th: Injury Replacement

Yasser Habib has been forced to withdraw from the Summer Season due to injury, Sabr nominated Mehmed Rizvanovic as his replacement.  Rizvanovic cleared waivers and will join Sabr for their Week One Game.

June 24th: Injury Replacement

Zahid Hussain from Sabr has been forced to withdraw from the Summer Season; Sabr nominated Shan Malik as a replacement.  Ihsan put in a waiver claim for Shan Malik and offered their 8th Round pick Abdul-Jalil Shaikh as compensation as he was selected in the same round as Hussain.  

Sabr had the choice to accept Skaikh as compensation or select another player from Ihsan's Roster drafted in the 9th Round or beyond and they elected to take Syed Talha Iftikhar who was drafted in the 13th Round as compensation.  Shan Malik now joins Ihsan and Syed Talha Iftikhar moves Sabr with both players eligible for Week Three.

June 26th: Injury Replacement

Abdu Sharkawy from Yaqeen has been forced to withdraw from the Summer Season due to injury.  Yaqeen has nominated Mudassir Hussain as the replacement.  Any team choosing to put in a claim would need to send their 6th Round pick as compensation.  No team elected to put in a claim and Hussain will join Yaqeen for their Week Three game.

July 10th: Injury Replacement

Naiem Malik from Haya has dropped out due to personal reasons and Haya nominated Luqman Arshad as the replacement.  Yaqeen put in a waiver claim for Luqman Arshad and offered Rizwan Malik as compensation, which Haya accepted.

Rizwan Malik joins Haya and Luqman Arshad joins Yaqeen for this week's games.  Both teams gain something here, Haya was down a key defensemen in Naiem Malik so picking up a gritty veteran forward like Rizwan Malik gives them something.  Yaqeen is in last and while their defence core gets a big boost by adding Arshad they lose a leader for their forwards as it cost them Malik.  

July 30th: Injury Replacement

Munaf Nathalia from Ihsan has dropped out due to injury and Ihsan nominated Ejaz Malik as the replacement.  No team put in a claim so Malik clears waivers and will join Ihsan for their August 2nd game.

A blow for Ihsan to love veteran defensemen Nathalia but they get another solid veteran in Malik who has played both forward and defence in I-Slam in the past so a comparable replacement for Ihsan to work with.

July 31st: Injury Replacement

Faraaz Alvi from Ihsan has dropped out due to injury and Ihsan initially nominated Ahmad Khawaja as the replacement and he cleared waivers.  However after clearing waivers he indicated that he was hit in the face during Salaam Cup and saw a doctor after clearing waivers and was advised that his nose was broken and he should not play for a bit.  The resulted in the Waiver process having to begin again with Ihsan nominating Farooq Sani as the replacement.  Haya put in a claim for Sani and Ihsan selected Ibrahim Hindy as compensation.

Alvi was playing well for Ihsan so a loss there but picking up Hindy in the process should be a big boost as his presence as a leader should help this team and as a solid two-way centre he will be able to open things up for Ihsan's talented forwards.  Haya will benefit from the speed Sani brings and he is a competent two-way forward but the leadership void left by Hindy will be something that Haya will struggle to cover.

Spring 2019 Season

Draft Trades

January 3rd: Trade
A pre-draft deal sees Sabr and Haya exchange multiple picks, Haya picking up some more early picks and taking back a few later ones while Sabr loads up in the middle rounds of the draft.  An interesting move by both teams, assuming they draft well Haya has the chance to really build a strong core but will have more inexperienced players as support while Sabr goes for a balanced approach where each line they throw out has skill.

The specifics of the trade shake out as follows:
Haya will get from Sabr their 1st, 2nd, 7th, 11th and 12th round picks
Sabr will get from Haya their  3rd, 4th, 5th, 8th and 9th round picks

Post draft we can add names to those picks and while the respective GM teams may have chosen differently here are the players that ended up being moved in the deal:
Sabr gets Adeel Awan, Sadat Malik, Vasim Kagzi, Yusuf Kapoor and Fahad Panchbhaya
Haya gets Arssal Shahabuddin, Farrukh Khan, Zuhair Fancy, Khizer Lakhanpal and Wasel Kabir.

Both did well but Sabr achieved their desire for greater balance and depth while Haya has risked quite a bit to go top heavy.


January 5th: Trade
Another pre-draft trade with Shukr making this move to shift up in the draft to make sure they get their targeted player.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Shukr will get from Emaan their 1st, 3rd and 13th round picks
Emaan will get from Shukr their 1st, 2nd and 13th round picks

Post draft we can add names to those picks and while the respective GM teams may have chosen differently here are the players that ended up being moved in the deal:
Shukr gets Rizwan Kalair, Sufyan Shaikh and Abu Jubair Alam
Emaan gets Arif Bijabhai, Farooq Sani and Umer Buksh

A win for both teams here, Shukr was eager to draft Kalair and they managed that while Emaan picks up a pair of strong forwards in Bijabhai and Sani.


January 27th: Trade
An early season trade with Sabr looking to upgrade their defence core while Ridha adds another offensive player to their arsenal.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Sabr gets Abdur-Rahman Buttar
Ridha gets Fahad Panchbhaya

Analysis:
An unexpected deal here, Ridha needed help on the backline but gave away one of their better defensemen for a scoring forward when their team is already offensively stacked.  Panchbhaya is good friends with the GM core here and has Malton in his blood which played a major factor into this decision one would think.
Sabr picks up a defensemen when they have a pair of defensemen playing forward because they have too many rearguards.  One would assume that Sabr may be making more trades in the future, if there is one thing that their GM core has shown is that they are not afraid to make a move when things aren't working.


February 5th: Trade
Both Sabr and Emaan are winless after four games so a trade was inevitable as they try to shake things up before the season slips away.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Sabr gets Idrees Deen
Emaan gets Adeel Awan

Analysis:
Sabr has been struggling to generate offence apart from their top line so Deen gives them a great spring winger to help put up some goals.  The loss of Awan is huge as his leadership and versatility will be missed as he is able to score as a forward as well as play D and help start up offensive rushes from the backline.  Emaan has the lowest scoring offence so far and Deen wasn't clicking with his line mates so acquiring Awan gives them a more physical forward or they can line him up on the back and push up one of their other scoring D into a forward position.


February 6th: Trade
Emaan making a quick move to flip an asset a day after they acquired it to give the team a veteran presence.  Ihsan getting a versatile player to help cover forward and defence.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Emaan gets Arif Khan
Ihsan gets Adeel Awan

Analysis:
A surprise here as Emaan seemed to have settled on Awan as the answer to their problems only to flip him within 24 hours.  In acquiring Khan, Emaan does get a two-way forward who can finish and will be counted on to provide a positive boost to the locker room.  Ihsan gets a player in Awan who can play both forward and on the backline which helps them as having a short bench has forced players into new roles with mixed results.


February 26th: Trade
Shukr making a the move that many have been waiting for since the draft completed bringing over one of their regular core players.  Ikhlas upgrades with a pair of useful players in the highly competitive Mecca Division where depth is critical.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Shukr gets Arslan Mian and Firasath Ali
Ihsan gets Zaid Toorawa and Sufyaan Shaikh

Analysis:
No surprise here, Shukr has been watching Mian perform well this season with longing looks of what might have been.  Seems as though with the trade deadline approaching they could no longer wait and see if Ikhlas would lower the asking price and had to make a move.  They sacrifice two strong offensive players in Toorawa and Shaikh which hurts so the pressure is on Mian to continue his strong season; picking up Ali gives Shukr a physical stay-at-home defensemen which is an under-the-radar pick-up as it gives them some depth on the blue line.  Ikhlas does well here as they get two offensive forwards to replace their leading scorer in Mian.


February 26th: Injury Replacement
Azhar Kalair has been forced to drop out due to injury, Yaqeen nominated Mohammad Patel as his replacement.  Patel was claimed by Emaan and as compensation Yaqeen took Hammad Khan from Emaan's roster.


March 3rd: Injury Replacement
Yousuf Sowdagar has been forced to drop out due to injury, Sabr nominated Adil Chohan as his replacement who passed through the waiver system and will join Sabr for their Week Eight game.


March 4th: Injury Replacement
Hammad Khan has been forced to drop out due to injury, Yaqeen nominated Yusuf Memon as his replacement.  Memon was claimed by Emaan and as compensation Yaqeen took Mohammad Patel from Emaan's roster.


March  5th: Trade
Emaan making a move to shake things up with their back against the wall, moving a sniper to obtain a winger with more speed.  Ihsan is loaded with speed so getting a winger with a shot helps their overall offence in this move.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Emaan gets Zahid Panchbhaya and Omar Din
Ihsan gets Arif Bijabhai and Umer Buksh

Analysis:
Bijabhai is a scoring winger but never found chemistry on Emaan so Ihsan hopes he can find his scoring tough or this deal burns them.  Emaan is hoping that the speed and grit of Panchbhaya will give their offence an element that has been missing this season.  Buksh has served the Emaan GMs loyally over the years so them dealing him is a surprise but they needed the versatility that Din provides them so he was scarified to make the deal work.


March 5th: Injury Replacement
Salman Syed has been forced to drop out due to injury, Shukr nominated Tayyab Kalair as his replacement who passed through the waiver system and will join Shukr for their Week Eight game.


March  6th: Trade
Sabr is always looking to make moves and Emaan was a willing partner here as the teams moved some big names hoping to make a change that will get their teams in the playoffs as currently both are in 4th place in their respective divisions.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Emaan gets Taha Azhar, Mehmed Rizvanovic and Abdur Rahman Buttar
Sabr gets Farooq Sani, Arif Khan and Aazar Zafar

Analysis:
Sabr has made a big gamble here as Sani is reportedly missing Week Eight and Khan is away until the final game of the season.  Zafar also is prone to miss games due to the great work he does in the community.  All of that said Sabr has acquired talent that when in the line-up will boost their offence but they have sacrificed two defensemen for a backline that is already thin as it is.
Emaan does well here, arguably they have given up more talent but they need to win their last three games and talented players who aren't available doesn't help them.  Rizvanovic gives them a strong two-way centre and Azhar and Buttar boost the defence.


March  6th: Trade
Emaan did not wait for too long before flipping a player they had acquired earlier in the night to send him to Shukr.

The specifics of the trade are as follows:
Emaan gets Firasath Ali
Shukr gets Abdur Rahman Buttar

Analysis:
This is a switch with the teams moving defensemen around, Emaan gets Ali who gives them a physical defensive presence while Shukr seems to have obtained their only family member not on the team.  Buttar has missed much of the season due to ride issues which presumably are now resolved with the youngster counting on his uncle to chauffeur him to the arena.

Fall 2018 Season

September 2nd:

Pre-Draft Trades:
Haya trades #2 and #19 to Shukr for #6 and #13
Analysis: After last season where the Shukr brain-trust traded down in the draft and ended up missing out on the player they wanted they seem to be taking no chances here and made a push to move up in the draft to make sure they get the player they want.

Post-Draft Trades:
Taqwa trades #118 Ommar Din to Ihsan for #95 Zain Ali

Ikhlas trades #123 Waqas Bajwa to Yaqeen for #119 Farzan Alam


September 19:

Injury Replacement:
Farzan Alam has been forced to withdraw, Ikhlas nominated Brian Beavais as his replacement.  Emaan put in a waiver claim and Ikhlas selected Wasel Kabir from the Emaan roster as compensation.


October 24:

Injury Replacement:
Nadir Hirji has been forced to withdraw for this season due to injury, Ikhlas nominated Madni Danial as his replacement.  Ridha put in a waiver claim and Ikhlas selected Haris Hyder from the Ridha roster as compensation.


October 25:

Trade:
Ikhlas gets Saajid Bhayat and Aamir Hanif
Shukr gets Farrukh Khan and Haris Hyder

An interesting trade for both teams, Shukr upgrades their defense with Farrukh Khan but with the lowest scoring offense in the league perhaps that was not their biggest need.  Ikhlas does well as Bhayat and Hanif give them flexibility as both players are able to play forward as well as defense.


October 26th:

Injury Replacement:
Hany Soliman has been forced to withdraw for this season due to injury, Ikhlas nominated Tahir Maarouf as his replacement.  Maarouf passed through waivers and will join the Ikhlas roster for the rest of the season.


November 1st:

Injury Replacement:
Kashif Taqiuddin has been forced to withdraw for this season due to injury, Shukr nominated Junaid Alvi as his replacement.  Alvi was claimed by Ikhlas with Shukr taking Arif Khan as compensation.


November 1st:

Trade:
Shukr gets Saajid Bhayat and Junaid Alvi
Shukr gets Arif Khan and Atif Mian

Shukr takes back Bhayat who was going to miss games with Ikhlas due to scheduling and gets their initial Waiver Nomination in Alvi.  Shukr gets back Khan and upgrades their forwards with the speedy Mian.

November 1st:

Injury Replacement:

Sufyan Shaikh has been forced to withdraw for this season due to injury, Haya nominated Umair Awan as his replacement.  Awan passed through waivers and will join Haya for the rest of the season.

November 1st:

Injury Replacement:

Ali Malik has been forced to withdraw for this season due to injury, Haya nominated Assad Darr as his replacement.  Darr was claimed by Taqwa who then offered Saqib Khokar as compensation to Haya who accepted.

Spring 2018 Season

January 20th:

Trade #1
- Ihsan gets Draft Pick #6 and #10
- Haya gets Draft Pick #2 and #15
Analysis: Pre-Draft deal where Ihsan felt confident that they could get the player they were targeting at #6 and made this move

Trade #2
- Sabr gets Abdu Sharkawy
- Shukr gets Saleem Malik
Analysis: Shukr seems to be looking to unite the Malik's in this move, although he will be missing the first half of the season he does give them speed and scoring on the wing.  Sharkawy can provide Sabr with depth at center which is always invaluable over the season

Trade #3
- Emaan gets Hany Soliman
- Yaqeen gets Idrees Deen
Analysis: Observers thought the Soliman's made a mistake in the draft passing on their talented brother and thinking he would be available late - they were wrong and had to make this deal.  Both players are talented so no real winner in the sense of someone getting an advantage

Trade #4
- Haya gets Naveed Mohammad
- Shukr gets Zuhair Fancy
Analysis: A shuffling of veteran players here, Mohammad provides Haya with some leadership and a gritty forward while Fancy gives Shukr a physical defenseman

Trade #5
- Emaan gets Fahad Siddiqui
- Ikhlas gets Jaudat Wasty
Analysis: A trade more of filling gaps in the line-up as Wasty gives Ikhlas some flexibility with his ability to play forward and defence and has played with some of their core before so he is a good fit.  Siddiqui gives Emaan a gritty forward to fill in their core


January 23rd:

Ridha gets Abdu Sharkawy, Saajid Bhayat, Farrukh Khan, Shereyar Khan, Ahmad Ibrahim
Ihsan gets Ijaz Chaudhry, Faraaz Alvi, Tayyab Kalair, Idris Kalair, Humza Amin
Analysis: Remember that pre-draft trade Ihsan made?  Well didn't work out since the player they wanted got grabbed before they could pick him at #6 forcing this deal.  Ihsan gets the best player in the deal in Ijaz Chaudhry while Ridha fills out a great deal of depth in their line-up.  It should be noted that Abdu Sharkawy is now on his third team before the season has even started - like bitcoin his value just keeps going up.

February 7th:

Player Replacement: Due to injury, Humza Chaudry of Ihsan will be replaced by Ahmad Chaudhry.  A big loss for Ihsan as they lose a speedy forward who can score replacing him with a solid veteran with a big shot but the speed differential is what hurts

Fall 2017 Season

Trade:
Mohammad Hamoudi has been traded from Haya to Shukr for Furqan Salam. 

Replacement Player:
Humza Hussain had to withdraw due to a back injury and will be replaced by Asim Khan who cleared waivers.

Replacement Player:

Firasath Ali has had to withdraw due to injury and will be replaced by Assad Darr who cleared waivers.

Spring 2017 Season

April 5th:
Replacement Player:
Emaan has been forced to replace Adeel Awan who went down with a torn Achilles last week.  A huge blow to Emaan whose defense had already seemed vulnerable over the past few games.  Emaan was able replace Adeel Awan with his brother Umair Awan.   The strategy is unusual as they have replaced their top defenceman with a winger but the team is in first place so perhaps they have earned the ability to make unusual moves.  Umair Awan has three games to play himself into game shape for Emaan who are hoping to make a big playoff run.