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NHLGamers, As advertised over the past month or so, Monday night was the start date for one of the most anticipated NHL esports tournaments yet, as we kicked off the eSHL with a full six game round, where Växjö Lakers and Färjestad BK stood for the main action in the eSHL studio at Sportbladet. A total of 12 (out of 14) SHL clubs have signed their own teams going into the eSHL. Some have been announced a longer time ago whereas others waited until the last weekend before puck drop, but all teams have in unison stated that the esports initiative that the SHL is taking is an exciting road to travel and holds a tremendous amount of potential. That surely goes to show based on the viewer numbers during the first night, which ranged between 800-100 viewers on the main channels, not included the Sportbladet broadcast. What is the eSHL? If you've followed the news section at NHLGamer within the past month, you should be up to speed with the concept, but if not - here's a recap. The eSHL is a virtual counterpart to the real world SHL, which is the Swedish elite league in ice hockey. The league consists of 14 teams out of which 12 are now participating in the eSHL. The points system is similar to what you're used to seeing in our other leagues and tournaments, meaning that teams are awarded two points for a victory in regular time or OT, one point for a loss in OT and zero points for a loss. Eight teams will be making the playoffs, which will culminate in a live-event between the 28th and 29th of February in Stockholm, Sweden. The prize pool of the league totals up to 150 000 SEK (~14 235 EUR), which will be divided among all participating teams in a following split: 1. 50 000 SEK 2. 25 000 SEK 3-4. 13 500 SEK 5-8. 8 000 SEK 9-12. 4 000 SEK Participating teams Djurgården Hockey Djurgården is the current pride of Stockholm when it comes to hockey and they will be looking to continue on that path in the virtual world too. Having signed a talented roster for this tournament, it shouldn't be out of the question for this team to finish in the top half of the standings. Check out our team announcement here. Farjestad BK Having been one of the first SHL teams to announce their roster, the boys representing Farjestad have had some time to adjust to their new surroundings already. The team hailing from Karlstad made some massive signings just prior to the season by bringing in HAVU Gaming defensive pari Kristian-Mikael @Nassustelija Katajisto and Wille @willekunq Juntunen. A top four finish should be expected. Team announcement here. HV71 eSHL HV71 is a team that's been in the works for quite some time during the past few months. Captain Daniel @Demski13 Gadd has handpicked a group of local players and is hoping to create a coherent unit that could go far in the tournament. It's an interesting approach and should do good for the esports interest in the Jonkoping region. Check out our team announcement here. IK Oskarshamn Oskarshamn also went with a local initiative in the signing of their roster. Tryouts were hosted in cooperation with the local esports team E-sport Hultsfred in order to recruit local talent to the roster. Time will tell if it pays off, but we're expecting a tough challenge for this team. Leksands IF A very experienced group of guys is what Leksand got when they signed the roster of former Synergy Hockey. It'll be interesting to see if they can find their stride again and get back to the glorious form that they once possessed. Expected to finish in the top half of the table. Check out our team announcement here. Linkoping HC Having signed the complete roster of former FILADELPHIA, Linkoping instantly made their way into the talks of championship contenders. Nothing but the cup will be enough for this team. Check out our team announcement here. Lulea Hockey Lulea announced their team quite early on and they've been performing very well in their new colors. The team has a very deep roster, which can be switched around into several different outlooks and should be dangerous in any given form. A top four finish is expected. Check out our team announcement here. Malmo Redhawks Championship potential definitely not lacking from the roster of Malmo Redhawks as all of their players are currently reigning champions of some form. Together with Linkoping HC, Malmö will form the duo that is most likely to take home the title in this inaugural season. Check out our team announcement here. Orebro Hockey Orebro signed an experienced bunch of players, who are looking to improve their performances after some difficult times as of late. Captained by Joakim @Nexhztah Stewart, the team has made some new signings and should be able to fight their way into the playoffs if all the pieces fall into place. Check out our team announcement here. Rogle BK One of the latest roster announcements came from Rogle BK as they signed the former Company of Geeks, which is one of the most long-lived EASHL clubs despite some short breaks in their history. The roster is experienced but hasn't shown much in terms of competitive success as of late. They should be able to fight for a playoff spot. Check out our team announcement here. Skelleftea AIK Much alike their SHL counterpart, Skelleftea is investing in local players to represent them. Players were mainly recruited by local tryouts. Captain Christoffer @Xence1 Kauppi has a massive task at hand in generating a competitive unit in a short period of time. Anything is possible, but most likely this team is out of the playoffs at the end of the regular season. Vaxjo Lakers HC Vaxjo was the very first SHL team to announce their roster and have been doing rather well in their new colors. The team has found a good balance in signing local players such as captain Fredric @EDHOLMINHO Edholm and defenseman Johannes @Hockeyjohannes Hultmark but simultaneously bringing in external talent such as highly touted Finnish goaltender Joona @Hullued Saarinen. Växjo should finish in the top half of the standings. Check out our team announcement here. How to watch? The league is played with a fixed schedule, which makes it easy to follow whichever games you want to. Every gameday consists of six matchups, out of which one will be the selected main matchup of the night. The main matchup will be streamed by Sportbladet, and will feature an eSHL studio with a commentary team consisting of Fredrik "JAEGARNS" Andersson and Adam @esdor Ericson. The Sportbladet broadcast will start at 19:00 CET, whereas other games will start at 20:00 CET. Fredrik "JAEGARNS" Andersson and Adam @esdor Ericson in the Sportbladet studio. Here is a list of all the main matchups during the season: Monday, 13th of January at 19:15 CET: Vaxjo Lakers vs Farjestad BK Friday, 17th of January at 19:15 CET: Malmo Redhawks vs Linkoping HC Monday, 20th of January at 19:15 CET: Leksands IF vs Djurgården Hockey Friday, 24th of January at 19:15 CET: Rogle BK vs Vaxjo Lakers Monday, 27th of January at 19:15 CET: Orebro Hockey vs HV71 Friday, 29th of January at 19:15 CET: Leksands IF vs Lulea Hockey Monday, 31st of January at 19:15 CET: Djurgarden Hockey vs HV71 Friday, 3rd of February at 19:15 CET: Rogle BK vs Orebro Hockey Monday, 7th of February at 19:15 CET: IK Oskarshamn vs Skelleftea AIK Friday, 10th of February at 19:15 CET: Farjestad BK vs Linkoping HC Monday, 14th of February at 19:15 CET: Lulea Hockey vs Malmo Redhawks Find the full schedule here. All of the games except the headline matchup of each gameday will be streamed on the teams respective Twitch-channels. Remember to follow the eSHL on all social media channels for information about the league! e.shl.se Twitter Instagram