Leaderboard

NHLGamers, The ECL 12 Lite regular season has finished and we are ready for the playoffs. It is time to speculate briefly on the fixtures and predict the outcome of those exciting series. There are many very even matchups ahead and some with a bit more of favorites but like we have seen in previous ECL seasons, the playoffs are full of surprises and there are many competitive teams so anything can truly happen. Note: At the time of writing this GIFU Hockey vs VANHAT KYLJYKSET series has already begun so it is left out in this preview for that reason. (1)  Reality Check HC vs Grilli Tulille  (32) Number one seed with lots to prove Reality Check HC faces the very multi-talented team Grilli Tulille, consisting of several players merited on the virtual football pitch. Grilli Tulille had a very tight situation to even reach the playoffs with both Thunder United and them being tied in all tie-breakers. The two completed a best-of-three series, ending in Grili Tulille claiming the last Playoff spot. In this game, we've got the top seeded team versus the bottom seeded team. Reality Check HC had a huge regular season as expected and Grilli Tulille barely managed to squeak into the playoffs by the narrowest possible margin. Grilli Tulille is already accustomed to playoff style hockey, but they are unlikely to beat a team as talented as Reality Check. Prediction: Reality Check  HC wins 4-2.   (2)  noRex Gaming vs The Last Line  (31) Two teams from the same group in the regular season will face off. noRex Gaming won both regular season games. Both squads are in good form to start the playoffs - The Last Line beat Powerhouse HC in the last game and had an impressive 6-3-1 record in their last 10 games, whereas noRex finished their regular season campaign with a 7-1-2 record in their last 10. Quite an interesting point is that The Last Line beat Powerhouse HC in the last game and noRex Gaming lost to the same team in their last game. Despite that, noRex Gaming is without a doubt the favorite in this clash. Prediction: noRex Gaming wins 4-2 (3)  GIFU Hockey vs VANHAT KYLJYKSET  (30) This series has already started and is even at 1-1. (4) Royal HT vs BIK Karlskoga Esport  (29) Both teams were in same group. Royal HT won the group and BIK Karlskoga Esport barely reached the playoffs. Royal HT won both their games between each other quite comfortably so there is a clear favorite in this series. BIK Karlskoga Esports needs all going exactly as planned and lots of luck to advance from this series as their opposition has already proven their skill against their system in the groupstage. Goaltending must be on top and BIK would need to convert on any chance they get, although unlikely, anything could theoretically happen. Prediction: Royal HT wins 4-0   (5)  Barys eSports vs United Front  (28) Barys eSports have been quite impressive in their debut season in the ECL. They finished second after noRex Gaming in their group and with that reached a favorable position in the postseason. United Front finished 7th in their group after a decent regular season. They had quite the roller-coaster form throughout but overcame teams like FILADELPHIA Academy and in the last matches played rather tight games against group winners GIFU Hockey. Barys eSports seems to be a slight favorite but this series is likely to be tighter than you might expect.  Prediction: Barys eSports wins 4-2   (6)  UNI Gaming vs Hokurit  (27) UNI Gaming finished 2nd in their group and Hokurit 7th respectively. Hokurit had a fluctuating regular season but beat teams like Powerhouse HC so they have the caliber to challenge UNI Gaming for sure. On the other hand, UNI Gaming has been strong throughout and possess quality and experience from Pro last season, they also beat their group winner GIFU Hockey an both occasions in the regular season, which is a show of strength. UNI Gaming is the favorite but Hokurit is capable of challenging well in this series. Prediction: Hokurit wins 4-2   (7)  IK Oskarshamn vs Almost Retired  (26) Two teams that were in the same group. Both games between these teams went the way of IK Oskarshamn, but one of them did take overtime. IK Oskarshamn is a favorite no doubt. We could restate the same mantra as in many other series, we've got a heavy favorite going up against an underdog that needs all the hockey gods on their side in order to overcome the big obstacle and move on. Prediction: IK Oskarshamn wins 4-0   (8)  TuTo Esports vs Baby Goons  (25) Again we've got two Finnish squads who already clashed in the groupstage. TuTo won both tight games, out of which one extended to OT. This series is likely to be tight even though TuTo finished second and Baby Goons 7th in the group. Baby Goons have underachieved and could fulfil their potential come playoffs. Prediction: TuTo Esports wins 4-2   (9)  Powerhouse HC vs Tic Tac Toes  (24) Both of these squads were in the same group and if we looked at it ahead of the season, the seeds should perhaps be inverted. Powerhouse came through this season, though and won both games between the two with two goal margins. Tic Tac Toes is a team with tremendous talent and has challenged the likes of noRex Gaming very well.  Prediction: Powerhouse HC wins 4-3   (10)  Central Hockey Canucks vs Södertälje SK  (23)  Central Hockey Canucks has put forth impressive efforts against top teams like Project X and GIFU Hockey throughout the season. Södertälje SK has also in their own group had some good games against top teams like IK Oskarshamn. Therefore, there isn't any major favorite in this series and it could eventually swing either way. Prediction: Central Hockey Canucks wins 4-2   (11)  Lulea Hockey vs Hyperion  (22) Lulea Hockey did pretty well in their group, which included some high seeded teams like IK Oskarshamn and Reality Check HC. They played tight games against both, winning once in each matchup. Hyperion finished 6th in a tough group as well, beating teams like GIFU Hockey and Project X both once along their way. Hyperion has potential although Lulea is a favorite in this series. Prediction: Lulea Hockey wins 4-1   (12)  Spirit vs Ducktales BK  (21) Spirit ended their regular season in good form: 10 games and 8 wins (1 OT win) and 2 losses (one in OT), which pushed them into 3rd place in their group. Ducktales BK also had similar form at the end of the regular season (8 wins/3 OT and 2 losses/1 OT). Both were in the same group and played two even games against each other. Spirit won both times but with narrow goal margins on both occasions. We're expecting a tight series with lots of drama, especially as both clubs come into the clash in good form. Prediction: Ducktales BK wins 4-3 (13)  Unwanted vs RoKi Esports  (20) Unwanted finished 4th and RoKi Esports 5th in the same group. The two played each other just before the end of the regular season and shared wins, but Unwanted walked away with a point more through an OT loss. RoKi Esports had a disappointing last season so they have a lot to play for. Game 7 is most likely a very good guess in this series. Prediction: RoKi Esports wins 4-3   (14)  Project X vs FILADELPHIA Academy  (19) These teams were in positions 4th and 5th in the same group. Project X won both their tight regular season games so FILADELPHIA Academy has it out for them in the form of revenge on their minds. FILADELPHIA Academy has the reputation and integrity of their mother club to play for alone, but also has the backing of FILA-fans alike behind them going into this bout. A lot of pressure for success in Lite this season. We're in for an exciting and tight series with potential to extend into a game 7. Prediction: Project X wins 4-3   (15)  AiKnown vs EHC Biel Bienne eSports  (18) These teams finished 4th and 5th in their groups respectively. AiKnown has the skill and experience in their roster and has showcased it by beating a strong squad like Royal HT which is an achievement in itself. HC Biel Bienne eSports beat IK Oskarshamn 4-2 and lost only in OT so you could say they've done exactly the same on their own part.  Prediction: HC Biel Bienne eSports wins 4-2   (16)  AfroDunk vs TTK  (17) TTK started the regular season in their group with 7 consecutive wins, but later on their form has cooled off a bit. There is potential for the better, however. AfroDunk challenged teams like Reality Check and IK Oskarshamn in their group and won once each without conceding a goal and just before playoffs. AfroDunk finished 4th in their group and TTK 5th. Expecting a 7 game series. Prediction: AfroDunk wins 4-3   Players to watch As usual, Lite has showcased some exceptional skill this season and with that, here are just few players to follow in the playoffs. Grilli Tulille is an exceptional team due to their multi-game talent and their goaltender has also done well against tough opponent - if the mechanical skill isn't there, the mental strength definitely should be. It'll be exciting to see new names rise to stardom in the crucial moments of these series. Here we are trying to highlight top players for their teams that are expected to shine in these big games of the season too.  some defensemen have also been highlighted, and for these guys the +/- stat is something that was looked at besides point production. The +/- is a decent measure of individual defensive skill but even more than that, team defensive skill. A high production paired with a good +/- is a sign of a winning team.   @egoapina Grilli Tulille GP 12 7+14=21  @Valdoboii Grilli Tulille GP 15 10  4 1 SV% 86,21 GAA 1,87  @Pursuitti Reality Check HC GP 28 35+54=78  @Toivonen_ Spirit GP 29 40+44_84  @Oliverigood TuTo Esports GP 30 29+47=76  @s_w1ld_rus Barys eSports GP 28 22 4 2 SV % 82,05 GAA 1,75  @Burtsi980H Baby Goons GP 28 48+38=86  @GERxVillain noRex Gaming GP 28 14+27=41 +38  @Tumpp1A Royal HT GP 30 5+27=32 +66  @Fightlocke3 noRex Gaming GP 28 21 1 6 SV % 83,71 GAA 1,29  @PSchibra Barys eSports GP 28 9+32 =41  @JLopatko noRex Gaming GP 28 27+27=54   

We're now midway through the ECL 12 Elite season, which means that some teams have by now been able to solidify their spot - be it for good or for bad - in the standings, whereas others might have fluctuated a bit more. One thing that is certain is that now, if ever, would be a great time to turn on the jets for the home stretch of the season. Surpassing the midway point of the season marks for an exciting time, as it is just about the last chances for any team to attempt turning things around for their season. We've got the usual suspects HAVU Gaming and FILADELPHIA up top. Although HAVU has four games in hand already, there should be no reason for them dropping too much below 3rd place at the furthest if they are able to keep things up. For FILADELPHIA, there's some clouds on the horizon with the potential absence of centerman Joonas @Patzlaf Paatiala for some games in the near future, but with solid backup goaltending by Edvin @Thunborg5 Thunborg and the offensive skillset of Casper @ICappeI Lundgren on the wing, the team should be able to remain competitive, should they schedule any games in Patzlafs absence. One of the most surprising outcomes around the league this past week was KOVA Esports clinching two victories against contender hREDS by winning 3-2 in regulation and 2-1 in OT, thus leaving hREDS with only one point from a matchup they should have had in the bag. It was in fact an all around very solid week for KOVA, led by clutch efforts and big goals mainly from right winger Jere @Jerax13 Hällström and a string of excellent performances by goaltender Axel @MonkeyHeadAF Falck. While the middle of the pack is very even and we have around eleven teams in total still fighting for remaining playoff spots, it is looking grim for a few clubs. Newcomers ZSC Esports and Tunnel Vision have fallen into bad runs and haven't been able to convert tight games into points for at a favorable rate. With that, the Swiss are currently sitting at 14th, while the Finnish outfit is dead last, tied in points with Rusty Blades, but at a disadvantage due to tiebreakers. The biggest issue for the teams at the bottom has been an inability to defend as a team at a high enough level combined with some immense struggle scoring. Especially Tunnel Vision is in a pickle, converting at a rate of only 1,29 goals for per game. When it comes to the individual scoring side of things, hREDS have stepped things up despite their stinging losses against KOVA this past week. Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen and Niklas @NikkeDangles Tukiainen have secured a double lead for the big, bad reds just ahead of FILADELPHIA's Erik @Eki Tammenpää and Paul @PleeMaker Arontie. As for netting goals, the Swedish sniper Andreas @affelj96 Ljungberg continues to impress with 23 notches to his name so far and is en route to a career high, should he keep up the pace. FBK only played two games last week, but the left winger managed to cash in on five goals against Tunnel Vision. Seems to be a weekly theme to highlight Johan @Lehmannens Lehmann in these reports too, but the fact is that despite playing only two games this past week, the FBK defenseman is still topping the points department for defensemen throughout the league. However, Joel @jtorro-_- Tourunen from HAVU Gaming is creeping up on him by collecting FIVE goals and seven points in four games throughout the week. With that performance in the books, jtorro now also leads the goal scoring table for defensemen. As far as goaltending goes, @ICappeI is still performing at the very highest level together with several of his Swedish colleagues, Filip @Faze91- Azri and Johan @McSavid Rundqvist in 2nd and 3rd place respectively. The very experienced Mika @FinKonna Paasikontu for success story GOONS breaks up the Swedish dominance with his 9 wins, putting him at 4th place. Erik @MrAllsvenskan Rotsenius and Ben @benu Rinnet stand out from the pack with exceptionally high saving percentages due to a higher amount of shots faced compared to their peers.   Power Rankings Provided by @MartindalexC   1.   FILADELPHIA (12-0-0) [+3.75 | +16.00] 2.  SAWO Esports (9-7-0) [+3.50 | +9.25] 3.  JYP Jyvaskyla (7-8-1) [+3.00 | +2.625] 4.  KOVA Esports (7-7-2) [+2.50 | -2.00] T5.  Färjestad BK (9-4-1) [+2.25 | +6.25] T5.  IQUE (4-5-3) [+2.25 | -0.90] 7.  HAVU Gaming (12-3-1) [+2.00 | +10.75] 8.  YMCA Esports (7-6-1) [+1.625 | +2.375] 9.  hREDS (9-2-1) [+1.25 | +6.00] T10.  GOONS (9-4-1) [+0.25 | -0.625] T10.  ZSC Esports (3-8-3) [+0.25 | -5.00] 12.  POGGERS (7-7-0) [ 0.00 | +1.75] 13.  Vesa Pompa (7-3-2) [-0.75 | +0.50] 14.  Northern Ascendancy (5-7-2) [-1.00 | -4.125] 15.  Tunnel Vision (2-9-3) [-2.50 | -8.25] 16.  Rusty Blades (3-10-1) [-4.125 | -7.125]

The first half of the regular season in ECL 12 Pro is done and with that it is a good time to take a closer look at what happened in the first weeks of virtual hockey action. Which teams are performing well? Which players are making the difference and who are the new kids on the block? Only a few points will make the difference and things begin to heat up in the race for the playoffs as well as in the battle of escaping relegation. We can look forward to an exciting race to the finish line in the 12th season of the second highest tier in the European Championship League. Written by @Keuschemisch Djurgarden Hockey and VISU Gaming are leading Group 1 with 31 points each while the freshly promoted group of former Exerceo still has two games in hand on the yellow, red and blue. The Swedish side built around captain @Jungledonk seem keen on repeating their strong performances from last season when they finished at a solid rank 2 behind the eventual Pro-finalists GOONS in the group stage. With 47 points in 22 games, @Strumpan87 is Group 1's top scorer and underlines the offensive standards of Djurgarden. Goalie @Sorsa103 already has 5 shutouts and is performing on a high level to strengthen their defense. VISU Gaming's @Sagee95 is on his way to become one of this seasons most dangerous forwards and already contributed to 21 goals and 23 assists to help his team gain a good spot in the playoffs. Especially his performance in the 7-2 win over RCTIC, where he scored 7 points, stresses his offensive abilities. Both teams look very strong and on the road to home ice advantage in the postseason if they are able to continue in their winning ways. With only 16 games played so far, BoxinElite is one of the special teams to keep an eye out for in the second half of the regular season. Scoring more than 3 goals per game and and rocking an outstanding record of 12-4-0, the Finnish side is trying to gain one of the top spots in group 1. If they manage to set up yet another winning streak and maintain their focus, BoxinElite can surely secure home ice advantage in the playoffs. Right behind we find yet another two Swedish squads: HV71 and ECL 11 Lite Champions Bjorkloven Esport are on their way to playoff qualification. Led by their captain @Demski13, the esports team of the 5-time SHL champion HV71 has seemed to take their next step in their development after missing the playoffs by only three points in ECL 11. Bjorkloven's captain @Kallmanius made the right decisions and brought in @rakkauspakkaus- from Ringette HC as well as ECL Season 1 veteran @Janzuh. After starting their Pro campaign with 8 wins in their first 10 games, Bjorkloven Esport immediately made an impact in the league and showed that they can compete on that higher level. Both Swedish squads need to continue gaining as much points as possible, especially with Kiekko-Espoo Esports and Blackdawgs breathing down their necks. The Finnish and Russian warhorses started rather well and are on a decent run with room to improve still. Blackdawgs' @Valluxet is performing at a high level once again, contributing with 20 goals and 15 assists and is one of the main reasons for the success of his team. It will be interesting to see which sides are able to repeat their strong first half in ECL 12 Pro and manage to gain a spot in the playoffs. In the middle of the pack we find Sinister, Hawaii Hockey, Golden Nights and Rögle BK. All four teams are quite new to the league after managing to gain promotion following ECL 11 Lite or find their way in through the Pro Qualifiers. While Sinister and Hawaii Hockey both started with a negative record, they seem to have acclimated themselves to the Pro level and were able to start winning streaks and find themselves in a tight battle for a playoff spot as we speak. @Kumbik was one of Bjorkloven's top scorers last season before changing colors and joining Hawaii Hockey in the Pro Wildcard Battle. The Czech forward and his center @theMaddias crucial pieces in the offense of their team and are surely some of the most exciting players to watch on the last stretch of the regular season. Will they be able to lead Hawaii Hockey into the postseason? A bit surprisingly, we find Herlev Eagles in 10th place in the standings of group 1. The Eagles who finished on a solid third place last season have failed to live up to their expectations. Especially with Danish superstar @vibholm10, who found himself among the leagues top scorers the past few seasons. Starting with five losses in a row, Herlev is still lacking in offensive efficiency. In the last eight games the team around captain @oSandello needs to turn course in order to keep their dream of making the playoffs alive. At the bottom of the table we find freshly promoted Russian team Nearbird Fighters, who have only managed to win two out of 16 games so far. Just ahead of them, Finnish outfit RCTIC find themselves in 15th place and are currently suffering from a six game losing streak against Rogle BK, Herlev Eagles and VISU Gaming respectively. @Janikka's Finnish Roosters continue to lag behind compared to last seasons performances also. After a negative start, the Roosters got back on track with five wins in their last six games. A qualification for the playoffs seems to be very unlikely but after splitting points with the very strong HV71 and Bjorkloven Esport, the Finnish side can be optimistic to avoid relegation if they continue to play like their most recent games. Another surprising face in the bottom of group 1 is the 5-time GCL Champion Team LEISURE. After getting beaten by Tunnel Vision in six games in the Elite relegation, the former Deadly Phantoms HC were keen on proving themselves and paving their way back into Elite, but after starting with three wins including two shutouts on the first matchday, LEISURE's ambitions turned around. Nine losses in a row followed by three matchdays with split points are not what they want to see in terms of results. Defender @xXPsykoSkillsXx finds himself among the best defensemen of the league while the offense is lacking in efficiency - LEISURE needs to find a way to decide tight matchups in their favour to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Germans have 12 matchdays left to prove everyone wrong and find themselves a spot in the Top 8 of group 1! Written by @Mikka In the second group, Conquer Gaming seems to have separated themselves from the rest of the pack by only losing once in regulation and once in overtime, backed by a strong start from their goalie @Jeresti and the entire division’s leading scorer, centerman @Jertsicc. Pata Hellalla has also been able to immediately reach a high level, fueled by their top scoring defensemen @kungenkurwa and @JOHTAJAVIRTANEN alongside the last minute addition of current internal top scorer @apettaja. There are two teams at the middle of the table that have not broken from their tradition of relying strongly on their captains: Inter Iceland and Sulkavan Sudet, led by @PLA77NER (Hasek-39--) and @Oxdoggi respectively. Their squads have been up and down, struggling to get into consistent winning streaks but on the other hand have also avoided losing too many times in a row. A bit below them the two Swedish teams with more or less Finnish reinforcements, Sjukstugan and Lekstugan HC, have fallen to gruelling losing streaks after starting out okay. They need to quickly gain their focus back and start turning the streaks into positive ones, or else they will have to battle to retain their divisional spots instead of eyeing for the last potential playoff spots. At the bottom end of the standings we find SPARTIATES X MCES in a somewhat similar, yet more challenging situation as the aforementioned teams ending in -stugan. The French outfit have seemed to have some trouble adjusting to the Pro level of play, only winning two of the first 13 games. Could they now be on the up though, having won their last three against top teams Pata Hellalla and Rookie Mistakes? The later mentioned squad has not had as strong of a start as maybe expected, but led by captain @Niskalaukaus and his assistant @xColeslaww (Koleslaav_) they have still managed to claw their way to pose a challenge at the top. Along with SPARTIATES X MCES towards the bottom is another team with a freshly signed esports contract, METALLURG MAGNITOGORSK. After winning four of their first seven games, the Russians have had losing streaks of five and four, with only a win in between. Any playoff hopes are probably over for the French and the Russians, leaving them to fight for their lives to at a minimum avoid instant relegation and even the qualifiers if all goes well. Company of Geeks had quite a decent beginning but have only won one of their last nine, with only the two most recent losses coming in overtime. The young rookie @xLeikku has taken his first strides on the ECL ice quite effectively, leading the team and at one point the whole division in scoring alongside with his captain @Jesus (eJezuz). The story of the German organization PENTA has been different, starting the season with an eight game losing streak before they began to pick up steam. Despite the tough adjustment period at the new level, their current form has them right at the brink of a playoff spot with Dynastia trailing them closely behind. The Finns started the season playing a lot of games with up and down results, ending up with a 8-7-1 record after the first seven days. As they have continued on a similar path since, captain @Majuri20 (Diktaattori62) definitely needs to lead his team towards more consistent results if they want to solidify their spot in the playoffs. They have had some trouble scoring relative to the rest of the group, so that should be a big area of focus for the remainder of the season. Despite never being a team expected to be seen in the relegation battle, the quite recently formed Patience has still managed to exceed expectations by mounting a challenge at the top of the table. Contrary to the best inexperienced newcomer teams we have grown accustomed to seeing in seasons past, it has not come with crazy offensive fireworks, but instead with the second fewest goals against per game in the group after Conquer Gaming. Their most experienced skater and former ECL 3 champion @Karkkyjaa has proved valuable, leading them in a fight for a top seed with an A on his chest. If Patience has been overachieving relative to pre-season expectations, bottom of the pack Sack Brothers have done exactly the opposite of that. Heading into their sophomore campaign after a first round exit last season, they looked like one of the group's better teams on paper with some added strength on the back end. That wasn’t necessarily reflected in their on-ice performance, with them only managing to cough up three points in the first 10 games alongside a couple of big margin losses. Perhaps they have finally started to gel together after the roster changes and are now back on their way up though, with four wins in their last six games. Finally, there is the squad that managed to upset team after team as a lower seed in the ECL 11 Lite Playoffs: Hotbox. Their rookie season in Pro began as anticipated in the season preview, with only three points amassed in the first eight games. After the rough start their lord and saviour emerged though, in the form of forward @James (Jamechkin), who joined them from Lite’s Reality Check HC after his qualifier related roster lock ended. Before the season got underway it looked like he was slated to be acquired as a defenseman by Rookie Mistakes, but fortunately for Hotbox that did not end up happening. Things have seemed to click for Hotbox and Jamechkin from the get go, with the Finns going on an eight game winning streak as soon as the move happened and only dropping three points overall during that period. If they can keep on going with the same flow, Hotbox now looks like a lock for the playoffs. Some of the pre-season predictions have been accurate and others have not, meanwhile some have been in the correct range but still not quite. That is the nature of the game though, and we will excitedly await to see how the rest of the season shapes up. Still a lot of points left up for grabs as the ECL 12 Pro regular season is to end on June 23rd, so fight hard and have fun doing so - see you on the ice!

NHLGamers, We are extremely excited that the ECL 12 Neo season is already entering the Quarterfinals, which means that we are inching closer to crowning a new champion! Now we're left at only the eight best teams, who are all eager to hoist the trophy on July 4th. Good luck on your journey! The ECL 12 Neo Quarterfinals are to be played between Sunday, 13th of June and Wednesday, 16th of June. Here's the full ECL 12 Neo playoff schedule: Find all the ECL 12 Neo Playoffs: Quarterfinals matchups here. As usual - have fun - play hard!