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SportsGamers, the Player Spotlight series is making its return with the objective of showcasing gamers that would perhaps otherwise fall outside normal reporting, but that we want to get to know better. Our strength is this community, so let's get to know each other! You asked for it, so we'll provide! This time we had a chat with Santeri @Sanezh Maanselkä, who has spent all of his virtual hockey career with Hokurit. The defenseman hailing from Mikkeli in southeastern Finland has come a long way together with his team, with their sights set on consistent improvement, one step at a time. 1.    What was your first experience with the EASHL mode in NHL? I think it was back in NHL 13 when I first played EASHL with a couple of friends, quite casually. The fire for playing competitively was ignited somewhere around NHL 16, when Hokurit was founded. 2. What’s the best part of playing for your current club Hokurit? I've played for Hokurit for my entire career and several of my teammates have become great friends for me even outside of the virtual rinks. The best part though is the way the core players have been committed to our long project that started already in 2015. Naturally we've had some roster turnover over the years, but it's been great to see how each player has grown through the years and with each iteration of the game. 3. What is your greatest NHL gaming memory? There's so many and it's tough to pick just one. I think one of the most memorable moments was our ECL 8 debut when every player was so nervous and some shaky hands were evident! Another more recent memory was our promotion to ECL '22 Winter Pro through the qualifiers. The five season grind finally paid off and the feeling was incredible when we managed to secure our spot at the second highest tier in the final matchup of the qualifiers. 4. Describe your perfect breakfast! I'm not a big breakfast person and often tend to skip it, but a true and tested combo I've stuck with is a few slices of rye bread with ham and cheese, washed down with a couple glasses of cold milk. 5. You're GM for a day and get to pick any player for your 6v6 team but none of your current teammates. Who's in your starting six and why? I could easily pick a player each from the top 3 teams, but I'll go with players I've played with over the years and that have made an impression on me: @jouni29 - @MozjaTG (Mozjayh) - @vepdsssss (Werppi) @Maestroffi - @ripKeisari @burban26 I started my career playing with Mozja so he is an easy pick for center. He is a very skilled player and I'd say he is one of the best centermen in Elite right now. Flanking him I've got Jouni, who I've played with for several years. He's a guy who handles his defensive duties with care and backs his teammates regardless of the situation. On the right flank I've picked a rather unknown name, Werppi. Be on the lookout for his skill. On defense I've picked my former defensive partners. Maestroffi is a very good player in his own zone and also handles scoring when some backup is needed on that front. ripKeisari is a guy I've known for over ten years and he is a high-skill defenseman who is great with the puck.  In net, I've got the Swiss beard king, Burban. I had the honor of playing an FCL tournament with him and he made an impression as a very nice person with a passion and fire for the game. 6. What was your dream job growing up and what do you currently do? As a kid I always wanted to be a police officer, but later on I've dreamt about a job in sports. A marketing job for a hockey team could be very cool. Right now I'm working at the fresh meat counter of a supermarket. 7. Do you play or have you played hockey? I've never played for a team although I wanted to do so as a kid. 8. What’s your best hockey memory? The best memory is from 2015 and it's not even close. That's when my hometown team Mikkelin Jukurit secured the Mestis championship, which sealed the deal for them to advance to playing at the highest level in Liiga. 9. What do you like to do in your spare time besides playing NHL? I like playing other games too, especially FIFA and Call of Duty. I'm also an avid sports fan and I can be found in the stands cheering on local football and hockey teams throughout the winter and summer. Nothing beats having a few beers in a group of friends after a tough week of work, though. 10. Pizza with three toppings, what are your choices? Pepperoni, blue cheese and paprika mayonnaise to top it off. 11. You're the locker room DJ and get one song to hype up your team. What do you play? Motörhead – The Game. 12. How did you come up with your PSN ID? My name is Santeri, and most of my friends call me Sane, which eventually transformed into Sanezh, when all other options for my PSN ID were taken. 13. Who’s the best player in the ECL according to you? @Beniittto. He's the captain and centerman for the best team in Europe. If anyone, he makes the game look easy. 14. Describe your ideal holiday! On a beach somewhere warm with good friends. 15. Now it's up to you to suggest who we should interview next. Who do you want to hear from and why? I'm gonna call out @Rytze_. I think this gentleman could provide a great interview for you! Feel free to also suggest who you'd want to see in the Player Spotlight-series. Also, if there are any questions you'd like us to add to the arsenal, let us know!

It's time to drop the puck also for the Elite playoffs! We're in for a multitude of exciting series and as last time, hREDS have the opportunity to extend their historical run even further. Everyone else is here to spoil their party, and to get their own shot at glory. Structure & Prize Pool Schedule The previews were written in cooperation by @jahajaha93 & @ose16. (1) hREDS vs Conquer Gaming (8) TOP SCORER (Regular season) Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen 29 GP, 28+35=63 vs Valtteri @Vire30 Vireaho 30 GP, 17+23=40 GOALTENDER (Regular season) Filip @Faze91- Azri 25 GP, 22 W, 87,86 SV%, 1.00 GAA, 10 SO vs Axel @MonkeyHeadAF Falck 30 GP, 15 W, 80,79 SV%, 2.27 GAA, 6 SO REGULAR SEASON RECORD 26-2-2 vs 15-12-3 REGULAR SEASON SERIES 1-2 OT, 0-1 OT We'll be the first ones to admit we were dead wrong about Conquer Gaming, as our season preview ranked them at 15th in a relegation battle spot. Now we're all glad to see them fighting in the playoffs in a very interesting battle against the back-to-back champions hREDS, who as expected, had a great run throughout the regular season gaining them the top seed. The reigning champions are on a run unlike anything else ever seen before in the ECL, with a chance of extending their streak even further, cementing themselves as the sole dynasty above anyone else in European virtual hockey history, but this is just the beginning of the journey and as everyone else at this point, they're still 12 wins away from ultimate glory. We've raved on for what seems like years about how good of a team hREDS are and the fact has hardly escaped anyone at this point - the stats speak for themselves, but one thing above everything else is their special teams excellence. hREDS' combined special teams is by far the best in the leagueand their 97.44% penalty kill leaves no room for the opposing power play to succeed. Despite the dominant performance throughout by hREDS, quite surprisingly, Conquer Gaming really had their number in the regular season managing to win both of the matchups between the two in overtime. In those games, Conquer goaltender Axel @MonkeyHeadAF Falck stood on his head but perhaps even more impressively, Conquer managed to defend as a unit, keeping hREDS away from the high danger zones. Winning two regular season games is very different from taking home an entire seven game series though, and we'll eagerly be waiting to see what new tricks Conquer might have up their sleeve. One could imagine that Conquer will need to try securing a bit more possession play, which starts by winning faceoffs - this puts centerman Rony @rGinnu Kinnunen in a crucial role against his counterpart Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen. Although Conquer managed to secure two wins in the regular season, we don't expect hREDS to be rattled by those mishaps and they'll make life very difficult for their opposition in this series. It's hard to imagine Conquer sneaking away with any more than one win in the series. hREDS advances, 4-1. (2) Frölunda HC vs Roots Gaming (7) TOP SCORER (Regular season) Paul @PleeMaker Arontie 29 GP, 33+36=69 vs Linus @Limu95 Christiansson 30 GP, 20+25=45 GOALTENDER (Regular season) Casper @ICappeI Lundgren 29 GP, 22 W, 82,8 SV%, 1.48 GAA, 6 SO vs Tomas @Mehiiss Laitinen 16 GP, 9 W, 80.3 SV%, 2.44 GAA, 3 SO REGULAR SEASON RECORD 23-4-3 vs 15-9-6 REGULAR SEASON SERIES 1-2, 4-2 Before the season there were speculation about how the new Frölunda HC lineup would work but now it is safe to say it was a good change for them. Now it's time to see how their game will work in the playoffs. It was great to see Joonas @Patzlaf Paatiala getting his game going in the defensive position after playing as a center for this team before. Their newcomer Tuukka @FlyerKungen Kuha brought good things to their offense as Frölunda scored 94 goals in the regular season which was most in the league by any team. That was probably one of the reasons why Paul @PleeMaker Arontie was on fire with 33 goals and 69 points making him the best goal scorer and point producer. We will see how Frölunda's playoff journey will go but for sure Indians have only one thing in their mind and it's winning the ECL Elite title after a couple of disappointing seasons. Roots Gaming finished their first season in 9th place but this season which was their second in the Elite division, they managed to catch the second last playoff spot. Roots have taken great and steady steps forward so it is interesting to see where this team is heading in the future. Their scoring power is well balanced and every player is able to take a leading role when it is needed. Defense is a really big part of the offense as you can see from Niko @vVoDee Vottonen's and Joonas @LE1PAKONE(NordZman_) Nordman's combined 21 goals. The first one won the leagues defense goal scoring title with 14 goals. One of the biggest keys in Roots' development is that their offensive trio has played together from the start. This series will be a good first test for the new Frölunda HC. One of the key factors will be the goaltending game like always in the playoffs. Tomas @Mehiiss Laitinen will face one the best goalies this league has had with Casper @ICappeI Lundgren between the pipes. Roots' defense have to maybe get a little bit away from their offensive interests when they are protecting the net against Frölunda. Winning one game in the regular season will bring confidence to Roots' game but there is just too many factors against them. Frölunda will start their playoff journey with 4-1 series win. (3) SAWO ESPORTS vs HAVU Gaming (6) TOP SCORER (Regular season) Valtteri @Vattuyy Virtanen 30 GP, 32+28=60 vs Wille @willekunq Juntunen 30 GP, 25+14=39 GOALTENDER (Regular season) Niklas @uhNikke Nieminen 30 GP, 21 W, 83,33 SV%, 1.8 GAA, 4 SO vs Hannes @Hansulinho Kettunen 30 GP, 15 W, 80,00 SV%, 1.83 GAA, 3 SO REGULAR SEASON RECORD 21-7-2 vs 15-9-6 REGULAR SEASON SERIES 1-0 OT, 4-0 SAWO ESPORTS had a second great regular season in a row. This season, their young group is looking for success in the playoffs too. Last season SAWO was sent out of the playoffs in 6 games in the first round. That boosted their hunger even more coming to this season and they are now a more experienced team. Their new player for this season Teemu @Teemuyy Polttila has been a great fit for their game style. Like last season, dynamic duo Jere @jxrska Laukka and Valtteri @Vattuyy Virtanen has been really powerful and both finished in the top 5 among point producers. Sawo's game hasn’t had any weak points as they scored the third most goals in the league but also let in the third least goals. This lineup has a huge amount of potential but now they have the chance to take that next step and show their best game in the big games also. HAVU Gaming's start for the season was a little difficult. They were below the playoff line for a long time and also tried different combinations in the lineup. At the end of the day they got their game going with their longtime goalie Oskari @SibeIius Grönroos being in defense and defender Wille @willekunq Juntunen stepping up to offense. Their comeback player from JYP Jyvaskyla, Ilmari @Buantso(Puantso) Lehkonen didn’t have the best season in terms of scoring and hasn't really brught what we're used to seeing from him - yet. Only 11 goals in the regular season is a new low for him and he has played since the first ECL. That and many other things can be turned around here in the playoffs by HAVU. One of the most or maybe the most experienced playoff teams needs to find a way to succeed in the playoffs as old every season finalist has had couple of tougher seasons in last years. This series is going to be a battle of young hungry talents going against experienced many time champions who are looking to get back to the top 4. Havu was only 9th when it comes to goal scoring and that will not get easier in this series as they are facing Niklas @uhNikke Nieminen who once again had a great season being 2nd in the league on saving percentage. Fact is that these two has played 4 games against each other in the last two seasons Sawo winning them all and Havu only scoring 2 goals total in those games including 3 shoutouts for Sawo. Havu´s experience will make this series tough for Sawo but at the end of the day karelian´s goal scoring power will be too much for the old champions new defense and Sawo will make to the second round in 6 games. (4) Örebro Hockey vs GOONS (5) TOP SCORER (Regular season) Jussi @JaKurrii Koivuniemi 30 GP, 20+27=47 vs Arttu @laitineen64 Laitinen 30 GP, 27+29=56 GOALTENDER (Regular season) Elie @eliekamel87 Kamel 30 GP, 20 W, 81,65 SV%, 2.00 GAA, 6 SO vs Ville @Supreex Korhonen 18 GP, 11 W, 79.61 SV%, 2.33 GAA, 2 SO REGULAR SEASON RECORD 20-8-2 vs 18-9-3 REGULAR SEASON SERIES 1-5, 4-3 OT These two opened the season against each other back in early April, and that is quite a while ago. Even some changes have happened since then on the GOONS side, as the team elected to bring in Veeti @Wenger (re_Wenger) Paloneva from FILADELPHIA ACADEMY as they chose to sit high profile defenseman Joel @jtorro-_- Tourunen after a somewhat troubling start to the season. If GOONS were expected to finally have a breakout season, Örebro were one of those teams that had some clouds on the horizon to start the season, at least in the minds of several doubters including us. The outfit lead by defenseman Tero @Terodee Dahlström had acquired Väinö @Pikkardz Pikkarainen to center their squad and whereas they seemed like a potential roster, no one could have expected them to perform in the way they did. While both of these squads are already rather experienced teams, they hold some of the games most exciting talent in their rosters and they're known for flashing some of that top end skill from time to time. However, they can equally have an off game and fluctuate in form quite heavily, which could indicate some high scoring games ahead for us. One thing that is certain is that the goaltenders will have their work cut out form them, and Örebro will be icing Elie @eliekamel87 Kamel, who has solidified himself among the best in the league and can earn his team a win on any given day. GOONS, on the other hand, have an interesting choice to make. They have two very experienced goalies to pick from in Mika @FinKonna Paasikontu and Ville @Supreex Korhonen. They can't go wrong with either one and most likely the choice could come down to availability or a predetermined 50/50 split. In this series, the winner will be the team that can string together the most consistent performances and do that at their highest level. Örebro is coming into the playoffs in excellent form and in my books, have a slight edge which is why they're my pick in six games.