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At only 17 years of age, prospect Kasper @Kaz_zu Ramstedt has climbed the ranks to the top of the pool in terms of goaltending talent. He has made a name for himself in the Elite division previously playing for Rusty Blades and Roots Gaming, but his most recent claim to fame was the ECL '22 Winter Pro title with JYP Jyväskylä. The young man says that his first memories of playing NHL games date back to being just a toddler, when he played games with his own father and relatives: "I was playing with my father and godmother's husband at the time, and they stuck a disconnected controller in my hands, but I still celebrated the goals as hard as anyone", the Pori, Finland native thinks back at that time. After starting school, Ramstedt says that he started playing HUT for the first time. He recalls how his father then created his first PSN account called kaz__zu. The current PSN ID is a bit shorter, and has changed due to some forgotten logins along the way. At home, the young goalie prospect is mainly about hockey, as both him and his father shares a mutual interest in hockey and the NHL series. He says his father (@tondeeee) has also played at the ECL level and serves as a goalie coach outside of the virtual rinks. One of his closest teammates is long-time community member Väinö @vSilenttio Pietilä, who has kind words to say about the young goalie: ”Me and @Kaz_zu first met back in Roots at the end of 2020, when we signed the young kid who had only played for the Clumsy Penguins to mind the net with Joonas @swagx88 Kuossari in shared responsibility. It really didn't take long for Kassu to earn the trust of the team to play as a tandem with Joonas." Despite his young age, Kazzu has grown very close to several teammates and he is held in high regard as one of the nicer guys in the community. He sees that he's been welcomed with open arms into teams he's been a part of: ”I think it's funny, I don't want to focus on what age the others are as long as they're good guys, nothing else really matters. And I think it's great how well I've been included. It's also easy to play when your own team members trust you. I don't really get any tips from them anymore, they let me focus on my own work and I let them do theirs” One of Ramstedt's newer teammates is defenseman Saku @Sakkem Saaranluoma, who joined JYP from KOVA Esports after the latest FCL tournament, and he has got to know the goalie well: "It's always fun to play with @Kaz_zu. He brings a lot of energy to the party with his mouth in perpetual motion. His laughter and lightheartedness really spreads to the whole team. On the ice, he makes the necessary stops and always gives the team a chance to win, and his performances usually get better as the pressure rises. Even in the lates finals, he strung together three consecutive shutouts." In addition to stopping pucks on the virtual ice, Ramstedt is no stranger to strapping on the pads in the traditional sense either. He's spent 12 years stopping pucks also on the real ice and sees some benefit translating that to his virtual game. Especially positioning and reading plays are something that translates well, great reflexes can also be a benefit. However, he stresses that the real game and virtual goaltending are two very different things. Some of the most important skills a goalie should have are great nerves and the ability to handle pressure. Kazzu also notes that you shouldn't be too hard on yourself, since the goalie could often be both the hero and the villain, depending on how the end result looks on the board. The goaltender states that excercise is of great importance and helps with focus going into games. He also stresses that sometimes excercise is out of necessity, since practice could end shortly before the ECL action starts: ”I don't really have any game routines other than that I always try to play sports before games, e.g. in the gym, but the routines vary a lot because sometimes the workouts end at 9pm and the ECL games might start at 9.30pm, so I might be in a rush sometimes. I've always somehow managed to fuse the schedules together, and for that I'd like to thank all of the great community at SportsGamer." His ECL 11 appearances in some high-profile broadcast games against YMCA Esports are some that come to mind when asked about the greatest gaming memories thus far. The inexperienced netminder really made a statement in those two clashes, leaving the traditionally very offensive YMCA without a single goal in the games. As customary, we asked Kazzu to form the top 6 of his dreams, with a short comment about why these players were chosen: @Frans-Fin - @Siltsu - @Timotei97 @tondeeee - @Tanski87 @Kaz_zu ”I thought that would be a classy line-up and of course I had to include my own father, I don't know if I would've been welcome home if I didn't. I think we'd have a lot of fun with that group, every player is a great personality. @Tanski87 has played a big part for my career and he's always been supportive and trusted me even when things didn't go as planned. Some day I'd like to play as a defensive pair with my best friend @Siltsu for example.” In the Winter season, JYP Jyväskylä managed to win the Pro Championship and claim their spot back in the European top 16. We asked the netminder about some comments about the past season and something about what's to come for the team: "The Pro title was great, out season was good but quite fluctuant. Moving forward, we need to develop our game and be more consistent. Our roster has changed a bit as fellow kiddo Aaro @xAaro89x Aarvala has joined us as a winger, but I'll still remain the youngest on the team. I'm excited for next season back in Elite. I don't have any specific goals for the season, as I think it's going to be very even and tough. It would be great to make the playoffs, but my main focus is handling my own tasks and giving the team a chance to win every night." When asked about the young man's personality, teammate @vSilenttio doesn't hold back: ”I don't know what kind of locker room presence Kazzu has in the traditional sport when I'm not there, but from what I've experienced, everything about Kazzu points towards his representing the traditional goalie type, which is known to be a bit of a different breed. Goalies tend to be a bit different from their teammates and they usually have their own little things going, and I don't mean this in a bad way. If I'f have to provide a practical example, you all probably remember Ilya Bryzgalov and his galaxy rant back in the HBO Flyers-Rangers 24/7 documentary. Kazzu rarely talks about space, but I think you get the point.” ”Kazzu is also by far the loudest in-game player I have ever come across in my career. Whether it's crunching down on some peanuts, shouting at the opposing team, singing along with the latest Finnish hits, watching TikToks or simply breathing heavily into the mic, this guy always makes his presence known. No wonder he's already made a name for himself as "the beast", not only for his performances on the ice I guess. He has always been a good teammate for me, quickly finding his spot in JYP, and despite his young age and lack of experience, @Kaz_zu is a goalkeeper who has proven his level and is easy to trust in a tough place. Never change, kid <3!”, @vSilenttio continues.

SportsGamers, It's time to put yet another exciting season of the best virtual hockey in Europe in the rearview. This season, we had also an influx of fresh blood into the division with Roots Gaming, HV71 and Djurgården Hockey all having their first sniff of action in the top 16. On the other hand, we also saw the rivalry between top teams hREDS and Frölunda HC grow deeper, while trusty old HAVU Gaming was once again forced out of the battle for the brightest positions. One of the most exciting storylines of the season was the explosive growth of the talent in SAWO ESPORTS, who against all expectations managed to grab a #2 seed into the playoffs, and as a result were rewarded with several individual player awards at the end of the season. For some, this season will be the end of their time at the top for now, whereas others will come back in a few weeks time to continue their quest for greatness and a ticket to the Grand Finals. Regular season Throughout the regular season, we saw some fluctuation in the standings. Characteristic to the NHL 22 game, some games were perhaps tighter than usual, resulting in several somewhat surprising outcomes in individual games. In the long run, however, also luck and fortunate bounces have to be earned, which led to hREDS being the sole team to dominate the standings throughout. As stated, the biggest success story of the season was SAWO ESPORTS, who surprised everyone with their very mature play despite being such a young team. In fact, SAWO were the best defensive team in the regular season with a GAA of only 1. At the other end of the spectrum, we've got HV71 with a GAA of 3.2, which is interesting for a team that has been notorious for their structured defensive play. This season, we expected to see GOONS cement their place at the top in contention for the title along with the greats Frölunda HC, HAVU Gaming and hREDS, but that storyline didn't unfold quite as expected. GOONS acquired talented young centerman Arttu @laitineen64 Laitinen from IQUE in the offseason to bolster their offense, but their play never really seemed to click as expected. Instead, we saw IQUE take some great steps forward as they had greatly improved on the defensive side, which had been one of their biggest problems in previous seasons. Their acquisitions of Aaro @Ikavalko Ikävalko and Jean-Patrick @Patsberg_ Kotonen proved to work out excellently as both managed to improve, and are looking as formidable top player competitors moving forward. The Swedish side Granit Gaming gathered a real super team for their push to glory, but at leas their regular season ended up being a minor disappointment. We were certainly used to seeing the great chemistry between cover gamer duo Johan @Lehmannens Lehmann and Hampus @l-Furyan-l Duvefelt, but while they were great on the offense, the team struggled a bit in keeping the puck out of their own net at times, which led to them missing out on very important points at times. Outside of the playoff picture, teams like Roots Gaming and ZSC Esports fell short, eventually by quite a large margin, but their campaigns can be considered successful nonetheless. On the other hand, Örebro Hockey and YMCA Esports finished in no man's land and would have liked to do way better based on their starting point. Northern Ascendancy, HV71 and Conquer Gaming would head to relegation battles, whereas Djurgården Hockey would face direct relegation to end their first stint in the Elite division. Playoffs Quarterfinals didn’t let anybody cold as for example we had battle between two of the biggest dynasty´s in ECL history, Frölunda HC and HAVU Gaming. Every tight game ended up going for indians and they became second team going to the semifinals by a sweep with hREDS getting it done as well against GOONS. Quarterfinals also offered us one of the biggest surprises of ECL 22 Winter. After great regular season second seed SAWO ESPORTS didn’t get their game going against Granit Gaming. After being down 3-0 Sawo found a way to get things going on the other way by winning two next games. This wasn’t enough as Swedish guys punched their ticket to semifinals in game 6 with a 2-1 win. Fourth team going to the semifinals was the other Swedish group Färjestad. They got things done as well in six games against regular season surpriser IQUE. Like Sawo also IQUE started a little comeback after being down 3-0 but couldn’t finish it.If you have to choose one player who was most important for their team you have to go with Andreas @affelj96(affelj-) Ljundberg. Färjestad BK´s winger found a way to light the lamp 9 times when the whole team scored 10 goals in quarterfinals. You have to give credit also to the whole Granit Gaming squad because beating talented Sawo wasn’t an easy task. Other semifinal pair Frölunda HC-Färjestad BK wasn’t first between these two but again the result was the same. Frölunda had the control in the series whole time and found a way to get in to the ECL Elite finals in 5 games. Fans got their wanted trilogy as hREDS was on another level in the semifinals too against Granit Gaming like they were the whole season. Filip @Faze91- Azri continued where he left last season in these playoffs and one of his highlights this season was 2 shoutouts in a row to start the series against Granit. In the finals we hoped for a long series but first day didn’t go in that way. HREDS continued were they left last season by winning all three games and led the series 3-0 after first night. It wouldn’t been unfair if Frölunda would have gotten at least their first win in the series that night because games were played good by both and there weren´t big margins between these two. Second day started with game 4 and Frölunda came to the ice with lots of energy. They didn’t look team that were down 3-0 and Paul @PleeMaker Arontie was the key for their first victory against hREDS by scoring three goals and one assist. Frölunda gained a lot of momentum from that game but it wasn´t enough. After Frölunda tied game 5 minutes before third period ending everybody expected to see overtime action but that didn’t happen as Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen scored a real buzzer beater only second before time expiring. With that goal hREDS became the first back-to-back champion in ECL Elite and they also got their ticket to the Grand finals. Niklas @uhNikke Nieminen for SAWO ESPORTS really put on a clinic in net all season long. There's no overstating how great he was for his team despite their amazing defensive efforts. Also, it's not like SAWO ESPORTS managed to suffocate all of the oppositions chances, uhNikke certainly did it all, from backstopping his team steadily throughout to timely gamesavers when needed the most, this man deserves the Goaltender of the season title above anyone else this season. Some othe goalies worth the mention were ZSC goaltender Reto @afc_Tschitsch Ulrich, who despite missing out on the playoffs, managed to push his team to their highest Elite finish yet, playoffs next perhaps? On the other hand, your usual suspects Filip @Faze91- Azri and Johan @McSavid Rundqvist were as strong as ever for their teams, guaranteeing success and the big saves when called upon. There is no denying that Aaro @xDoumi Ruuhinen was one of the biggest factors in hREDS' domination this season. Stats don’t lie as this youngster was the top point producer among defencemen in both the playoffs and the regular season in his second season with hREDS. You have to have a great defensive pair to even have the possibility of producing those numbers, but it isn't a coincidence that after this guy came to hREDS they have won almost every possible tournament. There were a lot of great defenders this season including top defender trophy winner @xDoumi. You have to mention Tuukka @Tuukka.R(KingOfApes) Röpelinen who played once again a very solid season throughout. The semifinal matchup Frölunda HC - Färjestad BK also included two great defense pairs. From the regular season you have to mention Wille @willekunq Juntunen and Putte @Putteekiing Unasin, both of these guys scored 11 goals which was most among defensemen. When you talk about top forwards this season you have to mention the whole trio of hREDS. Vili @Vilupoika Häkkinen scored an incredible 47 goals in the regular season and was the top point producer in both the playoffs and the regular season. Two dynamic duos who also deserve credit from this season comes from SAWO ESPORTS and Frölunda HC. Erik @Eki Tammenpää and Paul @PleeMaker Arontie were enjoyable to watch just like rookie of the season Jere @jxrska Laukka and top forward nominee Valtteri @Vattuyy Virtanen. With the season now being in the rearview, we once again take this chance to congratulate the decorated players and teams of the season. The spring season is just over a week away, so it's time to sharpen up the skates and warm up the thumbsticks again. Puck drop isn't far away!

We suppose it's safe to say no one has been able to escape the harsh reality we live in today, a world at war and very divided, truly difficult times. Our platform has always aimed to serve as a place to escape all that, and to focus on the games we all love together. However, today the need has come to take a stand and do what we can to help our brothers and sisters in need. Due to the hostile actions of the Russian government towards Ukraine and their people, and the entire Western world, SportsGamer has decided to hold all operations around the RCL effective immediately. This entails that the RCL 9 season will be terminated. In addition, SportsGamer has decided to prohibit the participation of Russian-owned organizations in upcoming tournaments and leagues indefinitely. The ban affects organizations, meaning that Russian players and their private created teams will be able to participate, but cannot be affiliated to a Russian-owned organization. Simultaneously, we must recognize that this is not a war of the Russian people, but its government. We appreciate and support all of our players of all nationalities and hope to see you join us in our continued journey. Let's come together wishing for peace.   If you're looking to help Ukraine, there are many organizations collecting donations right now. Here is one for Unicef: https://help.unicef.org/ukraine-emergency