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Now that we're actually a bit past the Spring season's midway mark, it's finally time to take a look at some of the hottest and coldest teams in the competition. Who's on the up and who's been on the way down? Keep on reading to find out.   Similar to the previous season, this article will be highlighting two kinds of teams: those who have been on a roll, or, in turn, performing below the expectations we set out to them in our season preview. To see exactly how the standings stack up, and to find out all the individual statistics you would possibly want to, take a look at the league page. Without further ado, let's get into it. Bear in mind that the teams within each category are listed purely in alphabetical order. Every team's record as of 22 April is in brackets. Group 1   HOT    HanaaHC (15-3-0) Written by @jahajaha93 ECL Pro mainstay HanaaHC looks to be on the up as of late, and are sporting a really hot record throughout their first 18 games of the season. They really seem to be clicking on all fronts as statistically, the squad is performing up to par with just about any top team in the division. Hanaa's sole weakness this season seems to be in the faceoff circle, in which they are only besting the opponent at a rate of 45.74%, so that is one of the quirks in their game they'll still have to iron out before the playoffs. Their goalie situation also seems to have been sorted out nicely, as both @Simbanho and @Esko-etikka have done their part in clinching some important wins, and are expected to continue sharing the workload.  Individually, left winger @xLeikku has been in a class of his own for Hanaa with his 18+22=40 points thru 18 games. This leads his team by a wide margin and puts him in 9th in the scoring race for the entire division. Also worth a mention is defenseman @ripKeisari, who in his second season with the team now leads the league in scoring for defensemen with 6+20=26 points. On top of that, he has been on fire intercepting pucks and launching counter attacks for his team.    Hokurit (9-4-3) They were listed here last season as well, but it looks like Hokurit keep proving any doubters wrong. New additions LD @Frans-Fin (16 GP, 2+8=10) and C @J-_-Jamaltheman (16 GP, 14+17=31) have seemed to fit right in, perhaps in part fueled by their old Hotbox chemistry. Especially the latter has been on fire, clicking at nearly two points per game during his first season as a forward in Pro. The team's left-winger and leading scorer @Jondeezz (16 GP, 17+18=35) has already proved his ability to put up points at this level in seasons past, but goalie @wilinhoo (12 GP, 83.58 SV%, 1.83 GAA, 1 SO) seems to have taken a meaningful step forward in his development, currently posting a SV% five points higher than what he finished with in ECL '22: Winter. While Hokurit cooled down a bit during the second half last season, the same shouldn't be expected this time: they've already played against most top opponents, opposite of last time around when their start of schedule was weaker. Don't be surprised if they keep climbing up towards higher seeds.    Reality Check (19-0-1) As the title says, Reality Check has absolutely dominated Group 1. Currently sporting a 19-0-1 record in the midst of a 14-game winning streak, the only team they dropped a point against was GIFU Hockey. Matching Delusion's (now hREDS) 29-0-1 record from ECL 9 Pro may not happen, but for example Vesa Pompa HC's 26-2-2 from the same contest or FILADELPHIA's (now Frölunda HC) 27-1-2 from ECL 6 Pro surely seem attainable. Finishing off the regular season strongly is always a big plus, but their sights are surely set on postseason success and finally getting that championship they've been yearning for. It's safe to say that the two new faces compared to last season's runner up squad, @JesseL2002 (20 GP, 14+25=39) and @Mikax222 (20 GP, 7+18=25), have fit in nicely, with the former being joint-leading scorer among their forward group and the latter leading the way for defense.   Notable mentions: Hawaii Hockey, Sulkavan Sudet   COLD   Almtuna eSport (2-14-0) The ECL '22: Winter Core Champion has had a tough time adjusting to the higher level of competition. They've only managed to claw points from fellow bottom table team Pasilan SKA, and just two of their 14 losses have been by a one goal margin. Having a 1.06 GF/GP and 4.75 GA/GP is far from ideal, with the former being 0.32 less than second-worst, and the latter a whopping 1.75 higher than second worst. They've had a lot of rotation with ten different skaters and two goalies making appearances, so perhaps having a bit more longevity in their lineup would be beneficial. Luckily for the Swedes sitting last place, multiple teams above them in the table are well within reach. All they have to do is start winning games to avoid instant relegation. Sounds simple enough, right? Most of their remaining opponents are at or below the playoff line too.    Nemesis (5-9-2) For a team predicted to be in the playoffs or at most barely missing the cut, Nemesis surely has had a lot of troubles to start off the campaign. They've been pretty good at keeping the puck out of their own net as expected, with a 1.94 GA/GP good for sixth in the group, but finding ways to put it in at the other end has been tough: they've only scored 1.38 goals per game, second lowest in Group 1. They have to win all but a few of their remaining games to even think about making the playoffs, but, like Almtuna, they mostly have bottom half of the table teams left in their schedule. They have dropped too many points thus far, but their season is still salvageable if they can right the course quickly and start performing at their own level.    RCTIC (4-4-6) Reaching the quarterfinals last season and being predicted to finish in the top four, RCTIC has had a start reminiscent of some quite big upsets from past seasons. A light at the end of the tunnel is Deadly Phantoms' performances from two previous seasons: they were able to reach the playoffs after being in a similar position at the midway mark, even going all the way to the finals in ECL 12. The "icy boyz" have steadily taken two points from every opponent, but they're soon going to have to start winning some more if they want to get there. RCTIC's playing style will thrive in postseason play as seen the last time out, but first they have to get there and a P/G of 1 isn't going to cut it. Captain/backup player @layout (JxLayout) (6 GP, 1+2=3) has slotted back into the lineup during the past week, so it'll be interesting to see whether that continues. Something of note, @Limbe65 (14 GP, 23+6=29) has scored almost two times as many goals as everyone else in the team *combined*.   Notable mentions: Djurgården Hockey, Mora IK/Pasilan SKA     Group 2   HOT    Deadly Phantoms  (11-3-4) After having cold starts to both previous campaigns since their relegation back to Pro, the longstanding German outfit has finally arrived in the hot column. Getting @Timasy (8 GP, 5+9=14) and @PlaymakerSJ (16 GP, 16+12=28) back was expected to push them towards the top again, but the acquisition of @GERxVillain (12 GP, 2+4=6) to bolster their depth options has also helped. Utilizing meaningful rotation hasn't exactly been in style for some time now, but DPH has been pulling it off with enough quality and existing chemistry. Preventing goals has been their forte as usual, with the Phantoms sitting clearly above the rest in GA/GP in Group 2 alongside Växjö Lakers.    Renascor (9-4-1) The lineup changes were expected to hit really hard on Renascor, but they've been able to pretty much continue where they left off last season. Their goalscoring hasn't been at the rate it was before, but in turn their defense has been top notch and they've been able to turn tight games into wins with the help of goalie @sumskoy26 (14 GP, 82.72 SV%, 2 GAA, 1 SO). It's not to say that they would've had a tough time scoring though, with captain @Virusactive leading the way with a solid 8+21=29 points in 14 GP. While they're currently sitting at third place, it's an extremely even group so we'll see how far their flight lasts.    Växjö Lakers (15-1-0) Offense was always going to be Växjö's strong suit, and that's definitely been the case: their 3.88 GF/GP is a whole goal more than the second highest mark in their group, Fiasko's 2.85. Wingers @Kattenj (16 GP, 18+26=44) and @Birkedal96 (16 GP, 20+20=40) have scored well over two points per game, meanwhile center @dzouvi (16 GP, 16+15=31) isn't too far off either. The players' quality was never a question, but the uncertainty around how their squad would click seems to have been cleared. They have some tough opponents left, but the group's number one spot looks slated to remain theirs.   Notable mentions: Powerhouse HC, Fiasko   COLD    FILADELPHIA ACADEMY (6-8-2) The ACADEMY started its season with @Tappu (TAPPUU_) playing four games at RD, but soon signed @Wenger (re_Wenger) (4 GP, 0+3=3) to move TAPPUU_ back to goalie. When re_Wenger left to Elite division GOONS after another four games, last season's RD @Ipana27 (8 GP, 0+3=3) stepped back in and seems to have taken the spot for now. Coping without @xAaro89x's scoring has been tough, and in addition to being one of the lowest scoring teams, FILADELPHIA ACADEMY has also conceded the most goals per game (3.06) in Group 2. They don't have the easiest opponents left, so clawing back lost ground is a tough task ahead.    GHETTO FIREBIRDS (7-6-1) GHETTO FIREBIRDS have usually been known for their tight team defense, but troubles in their own end have been prevalent this season: they've conceded the second most goals per game in their group, an even three. Their goalscoring has been decent enough, but if they want to climb towards the top four we expected of them, limiting goals allowed should be priority number one. They have ascended above the playoff line during the past week, so maybe it was just a rocky start with a changed roster and the FIREBIRDS are on the up now.    Herlev Eagles (6-7-1) Herlev Eagles have the exact same roster they reached the quarterfinals with last season, so it's unclear as to why and how they are struggling the way they are. The offseason was unusually short too, so it can't really be chalked to having a long break either. They've actually managed to keep the puck out of their net quite well, but their 2.07 GF/GP is only above Joukkue and Björklöven Esport among their group. We know they have the skill, so it's just a matter of getting out of a slump for the Denmark-based organization's squad. They need to win most of their remaining games to get into the playoffs.   Notable mentions: Björklöven Esport, Company of Geeks     There's still plenty to play for as the ECL '22: Spring Pro regular season is set to end on 5 May, so keep on following the action and stay tuned for our Round 1 preview come playoff time. If you're one of the players involved, good luck and have fun trying to clinch that postseason spot!   PS: We would love for you to follow our social channels, as they are an integral part of the ECL season. Discord Instagram Facebook Twitch Twitter

The second week of the Elite season is coming to an end today and the past week certainly shed some light on questions we might have had for some teams, but very much still lies unanswered. Many teams that were expected to be in the playoffs are still yet to heat up.  Last Sundays early broadcast games included GOONS challenging hREDS and HV71 playing against YMCA Esports. hREDS dominated their games involving Filip @Faze91- Azri's  two shutouts. GOONS have had a tougher start then maybe expected. The still to be identified badgerlike creatures made a change to their lineup for their games against Falun Coal Miners as they replaced Joel @jtorro-_- Tourunen with new player Veeti @Wenger(re_Wenger) Paloneva who was added last week from Pro's FILADELPHIA ACADEMY. YMCA Esports and HV71 split points in their games by both getting a win in regulation time. HV71 had a pretty decent week as they were able to collect full points against fellow Swedish team Färjestad BK and took hREDS all the way to overtime in the second game between them.  HAVU Gaming has had an incredibly tough start with their new roster. The multiple European Champion has only won two of their eight first games of the season. One player from the black and green who is still waiting to heat up is Ilmari @Buantso(Puantso) Lehkonen who has only one goal to his name thus far. That goal was big for HAVU as it was an overtime game winning goal against JYP. We have seen HAVU doing some rotation early on and they still don't seem to be sticking with one ensemble, so it'll be interesting to see what they go with in the end. JYP stole three points out of HAVU but got no points from Conquer Gaming on Thursday, which was an upset for them. Speaking about Conquer Gaming they started season on a five game losing streak but were able to turn the tide and right now are on five game winning streak.  Roots Gaming ended up having a six game losing streak after winning Conquer in their first games of the season, but that ended against Frölunda HC which is a big steal for the still very young team. Linus @Limu95 Christiansson has been on fire by scoring 10 goals and 16 points to this point. More can still be expected with the highly efficient shooting the guy is doing - 52.6% going in at the moment. You have to also mention Niko @vVoDee Vottonen who has scored 5 goals which is most among defenders. One of the teams who has had a decent start for the season is ZSC Esports who sits at 5th place in the standings when you look at points per game. Points from seven out of eight games is a great feat thus far and if they keep going, they'll be in the playoffs for sure. Örebro Hockey has split wins with every opponent so far and the biggest win out of those games came against hREDS, handing the defending champions their first loss of the season. The hero for Örebro in that game was Jan-Mikael @Janski (jansku23)Aittoniemi who scored all three of his teams goals.  It's tough to have a complete outlook on the standings when teams have various amounts of games played, and the same goes even more for the individual stats. Arttu @laitineen64(laiitinen) Laitinen is still leading the point producers with his 26 points in 14 games. The two other guys in the top 3 are Niklas @NikkeDangles Tukiainen and Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen. Both guys have two points per game as they have 20 points in 10 games. In total, hREDS have scored 3 goals per game which is most in the league. Another guy you have to mention is Kevin @Keuschemisch Berg who has 15 points in 8 games and has had a great start to his rookie season in Elite.  Last seasons top defender Aaro @xDoumi Ruuhinen has continued where he left off and leads all defensemen with 14 points in 10 games. Vvodee isn't the only defender who has found a way to light the lamp this season as there are four different defensemen who have notched five goals thus far. Among goalies, this weeks mention goes to cover gamer Niklas @uhNikke Nieminen, who leads the pack with his great 87.14 SV% and added two shutouts to his name against HAVU Gaming this week. Remember to join us tonight in the last broadcast of the week! We'll start off at 17:45 CEST with two great clashes between teams desperate to add to their point totals.