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It’s been an exciting summer for NHL and 6v6 competition, as the 32 best North American 6v6 teams out of 90+ teams that played in the qualifiers faced off against each other in the regular season of the Northern Arena Cup, presented by NHLGamer. These teams played 15 regular season games, and have gone through multiple best of 5 series’ against the best of the best, and we are now down to the final teams left fighting for the $6000 prize for first place, and the $10,000 total prize pool. Let’s talk about the finalists! New York Underdogs - Eastern Conference Champions Record: 13-1-1 GF/GM: 4.47 GA/GM: 1.73 PP%: 41.18 PK%: 41.67 Road To The Finals: Quarterfinals: Defeated Long Island 6th Sense in 5 games. Semifinals: Defeated Philadelphia Problematic in 3 games. Conference Finals: Defeated Tampa Bay Vertigo in 3 games. The Underdogs have not felt like underdogs in recent times, feeling more like the top of the class with their performances. Going into the regular season they did have fairly high expectations, but they managed to blow them out of the water amassing a 13-1-1 record and top seed in a top-heavy eastern conference. They haven’t looked back since, with a slight scare in the opening round, before sweeping their next 2 opponents to make it to the finals. To add to the already impressive feats, their series against Vertigo went to overtime in all 3 games, with them tying the game to send it to overtime in game 3 with 1 second remaining. It also happened to be Team Captain @Karmuh x 86 scoring all 3 game-winning goals, who also leads the playoffs with 4 GWG. Seattle Entourage - Western Conference Champions Record: 12-1-2 GF/GM: 3.33 GA/GM: 1.73 PP%: 52.17 PK%: 86.36 Road To The Finals: Quarterfinals: Defeated Arizona Mars in 4 games. Semifinals: Defeated Anaheim Ducks Gaming in 5 games. Conference Finals: Defeated San Jose Chilltown in 5 games. The top seed in the west comes into the finals looking for their second title of the season, with their lone win being in the Caps Gaming Showcase in January. They have had a very successful run in every event, however, with multiple top 4 finishes since, but still looking for that elusive title. @hxndry currently leads the playoffs in scoring with 28 points in 14 games, 4 points ahead of @McFleury, whom he will be up against, and his teammate in @x Fisher 81, both with 24. You also have to talk about @Scheckel29 when you talk about Entourage, and he has certainly carried his load, facing the most shots out of any goalie in the playoffs with 138, while still posting a 1.79 GAA (4th) and an 84.66 SV% (3rd) Series Prediction: While it’s certainly going to go the distance between these two teams, I think the New York Underdogs are going to take the series in 5 games. They impressed by beating arguably the number one team in Tampa Bay Vertigo in only 3 games, not to mention they are coming off of a disappointing but solid 2nd place finish in the CBJ Summer Cup. Everyone on each team will need to be playing at their best in order to take home the title. X Factors for each team: Seattle Entourage: @Regs84 (0g 16a 16p in 14 GP) New York Underdogs: Karmuh x 86 (11g 8a 19p in 11 GP) 3rd Place Match Predictions: San Jose Chilltown vs Tampa Bay Vertigo 10-4-1 Record 12-2-1 3.13 GF/GM 4.73 2.20 GA/GM 2.47 24.24 PP% 26.32 85.29 PK% 83.33 It’s always a tough heartbreak losing so close to the finals and so close to the trophy, but both of these teams are very solid squads and certainly deserve some credit here. They have a chance at taking $1,000 home though in the 3rd place match, so there is still something to be played for. Prediction: Tampa Bay Vertigo in 4. Thanks for reading! Good luck to the remaining teams! Be sure to check out the streams and support everyone involved!

NHLGamers, We're getting into the real important games of the SCL and with the play-in round being over, we're now down to the best 16 teams in Sweden to battle it out for the title - and the cash. According to the above excerpt from the SCL 6v6 rulebook, the first round of the playoffs is to be played between 17.9 and 20.9. The playoffs will be played in a best-of-seven manner. (1) Vesa Pompa HC vs Nordic Nosebleed (16) The reigning champions decided to reject a direct invitation to the first round of playoffs in favour of playing through the group stage and building chemistry with their somewhat overhauled talent arsenal. In the first round we'll see an undefeated, seemingly championship-ready Vesa Pompa face an experienced and resilient Nordic Nosebleed. (2) Vaxjo Lakers HC vs Rogle BK (15) In this matchup we'll see two dear enemies face off, Vaxjo paving their way through the group stage as clear winners of their arguably slightly easier group whereas Rogle struggled through the play-ins as clear winners over Viper HC. Vaxjo has a major advantage going into the series. (3) Northern Ascendancy vs HockeyProfessorn HC (14) NOR was the second highest scoring team throughout the league during the group stage and to no surprise - just looking at their lineup you'd think we'd be talking about a hall of fame of some sorts! HockeyProfessorn is in for a massive challenge and will need to think defense first if they want to get a whiff of a victory in the series. (4) Farjestad BK vs Orebro eHockey (13) FBK is known for being a tough team to play against - knocking out JYP in the ECL 10 playoffs was a major surprise and this team looks to continue their good run of form. Solid defenders combined with their multiple offensive weapons will pose a challenge for Orebro, who need to bring top level focus and next level luck if they want to advance. (5) Djurgarden Hockey vs HV71 eSHL (12) DIF has skill up front and a solid defensive core - but so does HV71. This series is going to be a tough battle that's up for grabs for either team. Despite gelling well over time, HV71 still relies heavily on captain Daniel @Demski13 Gadd to provide, so DIF should target him in order to shut the opposing offense down. (6) Company of Geeks vs SSK Esports (11) The legendary CoG proved to be a serious force in the group stage, even challenging Vaxjo for the group win but falling just short. On the other side, SSK is built around the former Syndicate base and possess a tremendous amount of skill, but will need to tighten up defensively if they wish to advance further into the playoffs. (7) Leksands IF vs Studspoikarna SWC (10) Leksands IF has proven to be a tough team to beat when they get going and the eSHL semifinalists sure know how to play competitive playoff hockey. Studspoikarna is something of a counterpart to the Finnish SOPPAJENGI, where skilled players from various teams have built a competitive ensemble to challenge the greats - and doing so in a convincing manner. These guys have the talent to go far, but will need to overcome the sheer experience that gives LIF the advantage. (8) Sjukstugan vs Bask Nation (9) Sjukstugan is one of those teams that has a long tradition in the scene and is always a joy to see take the ice. This time, the team has some new faces in their roster and hasn't seemed to gel quite that well yet, but once they click, they do have the skill to make miracles happen. Bask Nation looks to prove themselves in the playoffs and had some promising showings in the group stage, like beating Northern Ascendancy once. Tune in for the playoffs tonight! The SCL playoffs start tonight with a bang as we'll see Farjestad BK take on Orebro eHockey and Sjukstugan take on Bask Nation in a broadcast commentated by Adam @esdor Ericson and Johan @Zalaz Nilsson, starting at 19:50 CEST on twitch.tv/NHLGamer.