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SportsGamer and the Finnish Ice Hockey Association have launched an all new extensive partnership during the spring of 2022. The first fruition of the partnership will be seen already at the end of June, when the Finnish eNational Team is going for the triple gold in the 2022 IIHF eWorld Championships. The new partnership combines the vast knowledge and experience of the Ice Hockey Association with the similar attributes that SportsGamer have been able to achieve in the world of esports. Especially the passionate and dedicated community built around the EA Sports NHL-series played a big part and is an excellent building block. "We thought that now would be a great time to enter the quickly growing esports world. The IIHF are taking their first big steps on the virtual hockey front this year, and we want to be right there among the pioneers developing the product both domestically and internationally. SportsGamer were the perfect partner for us due to their expertise and market leadership. We're confident about building and growing this partnership in the future and are very happy about bringing SportsGamer on board", says Lassi Rönkkönen, sales and marketing director for the Finnish Ice Hockey Association.  "Our partnership with the Finnish Ice Hockey Association will develop our operations at the grass roots level in Finland, but also help build a better path for players aiming for professionalism. There's a long road still ahead, but we're building a great foundation for future success", Kenneth Lehtinen, COO at SportsGamer. A clear objective for the partnership is creating opportunities at the grass roots level, but also for players at the brink of professionalism. Together with the Ice Hockey Association, SportsGamer also aims to generate a clearer path to represent the National Team and reach the international top. Finland is currently leading the development of this fast growing sport, and the objective is to stay ahead in the future.  Also the recent European NHLGWC Champion Erik @Eki Tammenpää chimed in: "From a players standpoint I think this sounds great. SportsGamer has for a long time hosted top tier tournaments and leagues, and I think the Ice Hockey Association will continue elevating that level. More tournaments, leagues and players are always welcome!" As mentioned, the first fruition of the partnership can be seen in the form of the 2022 IIHF eWorld Championships and the qualifiers, but already in July we'll be able to release more details about more upcoming events. You'll be able to see the SportsGamer team in action this weekend at Narinkkatori in Helsinki, where it's time for a true hockey fiesta. This weekend's event combines the St Hockey Tour opening tournament, the ECL '22 Spring Elite Finals and the Wilhelm eHockey Tour Finals, so make sure to show up and cheer your favorite team to victory! 

After six months of unforgettable moments we have finally arrived at the big Final. The ECL '22 Spring journey really couldn't get a better ending. This weekend, we will crown an ECL '22 Spring Champion and our first ECL Elite Grand Champion. Will it be hREDS who have dominated the league for a couple seasons or will it be the young hungry SAWO ESPORTS who will play in their first ECL Finals. (1) hREDS vs SAWO ESPORTS (3) TOP SCORER (Playoffs) Vili @Vilupoika Häkkinen 9 GP, 12+9=21 vs Jere @jxrska Laukka 13 GP, 11+6=17 GOALTENDER (Playoffs) Filip @Faze91- Azri 9 GP, 8 W, 86,9 SV%, 1.22 GAA, 3 SO vs Niklas @uhNikke Nieminen 13 GP,8 W, 77,78%, 2.00 GAA, 1 SO REGULAR SEASON RECORD 26-2-2 vs 21-7-2 REGULAR SEASON SERIES 3-0, 3-2OT Once again, we get to watch hREDS in the ECL Elite Finals. By winning the ECL 22 Winter season they already punched their ticket to the Grand Finals but now they practically have two opportunities to win the ECL Grand Finals. In the Semifinals, hREDS didn’t get the start they wanted as the first game went 4-0 for GOONS but like we have seen before, the back-to-back champions won't let it get to them when things don’t go in their favor. They bounced back by winning four straight on their way to the 4th consecutive Finals for them. The upcoming finals are the first time for the predators were they aren't playing against Frölunda HC. Right now it feels like it's impossible to stop these guys as they have so much power and skill all around the ice. Once again many different guys have been stepping up whenever needed and there is no reason why that wouldn't continue when we arrive at the biggest games of the season. All three of their forwards can be found in the top 5, Vili @Vilupoika Häkkinen keeping the number one spot. This club really has shown no weaknesses. If you have to choose one team which really has bumped up their game it would definitely be SAWO ESPORTS. Their ECL '22 Winter playoffs disappointment has really been forgotten for these guys and they have made their way to the Finals for the first time ever. In the Quarterfinals they were able to close the series against HAVU Gaming nicely but in the Semifinals they got the next level. SAWO was able to beat Frölunda HC in a thrilling game 7 overtime. If you talk about this season's biggest surprises that was one the biggest ones because it also ended Frölunda's magical streak of consecutive Finals appearances. Before the Semifinals, we speculated about SAWO's firepower and how that nearly always comes from the wingers. That thing changed as when the goal was needed we saw both Teemu @Teemuyy Polttila and Tomi @tombo_02(tomboo-_-) Laitinen taking a big role. @tombo_02 scored the overtime game winning goal in game 6 as his defensive pair did the same in the legendary game 7. Winning his old team in the Semifinals made it extra tasty for @Teemuyy and with that goal he continued his own Finals appearance stream. His battles against old clubs won't end there for him as he started his streak in the hREDS jersey. Many doors are closing with this Final series. For the first time in ages there are no HAVU or Frölunda in the final two and we are witnessing the back-to-back Champion going against the young hungry talents for the European Championship. SAWO has now gained that much needed experience from being able to seal the deal in a tough spot. Winning Frölunda was already an amazing performance but is there enough hunger left to climb an even bigger hill than their Semifinal opponent was. The goaltending battle will once again play a huge part. We saw how Niklas @uhNikke Nieminen was able to keep up his level in the overtime games against Frölunda but in the finals he is facing Filip @Faze91- Azri, who has so far in his career always played even better in the Finals than in normal games. If we imagine that SAWO would win the ECL '22 Spring Championship they would have momentum going to the Grand Finals because there is only one day to reset in between. The Grand Finals would be incredible to see but hREDS is looking as strong as ever right now and there should be no challengers able to stand up to them. The predators will win their third ECL title in a row and become first Grand Champion in ECL history in 5 games. When? Friday, June 17th 19:30 CEST (Games 1-2) Saturday, June 18th 18:45 CEST (Games 3-7) Sunday, June 19th 20:30 CEST (ECL '22 Grand Finals)* Where? Helsinki, Finland - Narinkkatori www.twitch.tv/SportsGamerGG You'll find us at the SportsGamer truck parked at Narinkkatori, the event is hosted in cooperation with St Hockey and besides their St Hockey Tour opening weekend event. Entry is free.

With the upcoming ECL '22 Spring Finals, we thought it would be suitable to take a look at what has gone down throughout ECL history before. Join us for a short recap of some monumental ECL events. So, this show has been running for 14 seasons now and we've gone from 50 teams signed up in ECL 1 to almost 250 at this point. The first ever ECL season on this platform started in mid-December of 2015 and at the end of the inaugural season, we crowned Nordic Blizzard the Champions. A lot of players who were on that first ever championship team are still around and competing at a high level today, and while we appreciate to an endless extent all the hard work they've put in over the years, we're also glad to have all of you newer players join us over the course of the years. As we're counting down the days to the ECL '22 Spring Elite Finals, we thought it'd only be right to take a trip down memory lane and go through some of the monumental events in ECL history. List of ECL Champions ECL 1: Nordic Blizzard 🏆 ECL 2: MUKIMIEHET 🏆 ECL 3: X Factor 🏆 ---DIVISIONS FRAMEWORK APPLIED--- ECL 4: Laser HT 🏆 ECL 5: Aapon Taikasauva 🏆 ECL 6: Carlsberg HC 🏆 ECL 7: FILADELPHIA 🏆 ECL 8: Written In The Stars 🏆 ECL 9: Linköping HC 🏆🏆 ECL 10: HAVU Gaming 🏆🏆 ECL 11: FILADELPHIA 🏆🏆🏆 ECL 12: hREDS 🏆 ECL '22 Winter: hREDS 🏆🏆 ECL '22 Spring: - As signified in the list above, Frölunda HC (formerly known as FILADELPHIA or Linköping HC) are the winningest team in ECL history, but none other than hREDS have been able to pull off the historical feat of a back-to-back. Obviously one of the turning points for the entire league was when the divisions framework was introduced in early December of 2016. The introduction of the divisions framework was certainly a hot topic back then and while everyone wasn't on the same page about things, we worked out in the end and partially as a result of that, we've been able to grow as a community to the point we are at today.  The divisions framework was proven in practice as in ECL 4, Carlsberg HC were able to gain promotion by winning the Pro division, followed by Evolution in ECL 5. Both of these squads performed well in their inaugural Elite campaigns and Carlsberg HC managed to hoist the cup at the end of ECL 6 Elite, becoming the first promoted team ever to work their way to a championship, a feat that only hREDS has managed to repeat.  ECL 7 marked the start of an era in ECL competition where two teams seemed to be far above the rest. The battle raged hard between FILADELPHIA (Linköping HC/Frölunda HC) and Written In The Stars (HAVU Gaming), as the two seemed to go head-to-head in almost any finals we were hosting, be it the ECL, FCL or the IS CUP. The two also clashed at the first ever live ECL Finals, that were hosted at the end of the ECL 8 season at LanTrek '19 in Tampere, Finland. ECL 8 was a big season in general as the European Championship had a major partner joining the Championship as sponsor and the Finals were available for betting.  (Photo from the ECL 8 Elite Finals at LanTrek '19 in Tampere, Finland - taken by Samuli Seila) The reign of FILADELPHIA and HAVU Gaming would continue for quite some time and ECL 9 was no different. The season itself was one of the more eventful we've seen from an organizers standpoint and we also introduced a new division to the mix with the entry level ECL Neo. The season started in late 2019 and carried over to the next year. This was also a time where several leagues were running side-by-side and while some of these may have been in direct competition with our product, SportsGamer has always strived towards bringing the best possible experience for the gamers. Scheduling and the start of the pandemic not only postponed the Finals, but also led to the Finals event being taken off the table, reverting us to the online experience. As you'd have it, also these finals were a clash between the big two of this era.  The big two, they continued their dominance for quite some time. You guessed it - also the ECL 10 Elite Finals featured HAVU Gaming and the team then known as Linköping HC! As stated, these two teams seemed unbeatable at the time and they really proved it any chance they got. The pandemic was still running rampant and while it seemed like no Finals event was going to happen, HAVU Gaming had taken things into their own hands, gathering their players at Game Cave in Espoo for the finals - a move which seemed to pay off for them!   ECL 12 saw the addition of ECL Core as the largest division in our competitive divisions framework and also a very controversial new qualifier system due to the transition period. While the change was difficult to accept, it was inevitable in order to continue growing the community and the competitiveness of the game. As we've seen now a few seasons later, the few added divisions and the expanded qualifier system has allowed teams like Stargazing this past season to test their wings at the highest level despite not having a lot of history behind the team.  The ECL 12 Elite Finals were the time for hREDS to pull through and shine. The young guns were stepping up against FILADELPHIA, who had won almost everything you could imagine at that point. In late July of 2021, hREDS hoisted the cup for the first time with the lead of captain Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen and started what would become a new kind of dynasty in ECL history. (From left to right Tuukka @Tuukka.R (KingOfApes_) Röpelinen, Niklas @NikkeDangles (NikkeNHL) Tukiainen, Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen, Vili @Vilupoika Häkkinen and Aaro @xDoumi Ruuhinen. Missing from the picture is goaltender Filip @Faze91- Azri) To start the '22 Winter season, we announced the new two part season system with the all new Grand Finals and a Grand Champion to be crowned. hREDS have already made history by clinching the back-to-back when taking home the Winter season championship, but now could be their time to go both for the triple and becoming the first ever ECL Grand Champions, etching their names into the history books forever. Will that happen though, we'll have to wait until the weekend to find out! What? The ECL '22 Spring Finals and The ECL '22 Grand Finals (If needed) #3  SAWO ESPORTS vs hREDS  #1 When? Friday, June 17th 19:30 CEST (Games 1-2) Saturday, June 18th 18:45 CEST (Games 3-7) Sunday, June 19th 20:30 CEST (ECL '22 Grand Finals)* Where? Helsinki, Finland - Narinkkatori www.twitch.tv/SportsGamerGG You'll find us at the SportsGamer truck parked at Narinkkatori, the event is hosted in cooperation with St Hockey and besides their St Hockey Tour opening weekend event. Entry is free.

It's been a long road for both teams in the Finals and now it's finally time to determine the champion once and for all. Valco is coming into the Finals after an incredible run, taking down some of the top seeds along the way, whereas Synergy Hockey has been on a dominant path throughout the season. Who will hoist the cup? Structure & Prize Pool A long season sees its end once again and the only games left are the Finals. These teams have all certainly earned their right to direct promotion for next season. Synergy Hockey has been a solid team throughout the season and is a less surprising team at this point, whereas Valco has trodden a more rocky path, finding their form at the best of times. Many predictions I have put them to the losing side but the experience and the whole team playing together has shown their strength. The third direct promotion spot was decided this week between IK Oskarshamn and Spirit in the Bronze games and Oskarshamn walked away with a sweep in that series. (10) Synergy Hockey vs Valco (26) Synergy came through the Lite qualifiers for the Spring season, most likely as no surprise to anyone. Synergy Hockey continued their good form throughout regular season and maintained their level in the playoffs. Winning their first two series with a clean sweep and only losing one game to Destiny is a real show of power. However, their semifinals against IK Oskarshamn was another story. IK Oskarshamn defended firmly and used their scoring chances clinically. It ended up being a seven game saga where Synergy Hockey were down for the count 3-1 and were able to “reverse sweep” to the series victory with a game seven OT winner from @J-Foppa. A seeing-eye wrister from the point with a little luck clinched the victory for Synergy Hockey. Then we've got Valco. In the mid-season report, the writer (me) didn’t believe this team could even make it to the playoffs and the doubting and naysaying continued in the playoffs. However, here they are and no one can take that away from this team. Probably one of the hardest routes to the final. Facing TTK in the first round, Arkham Asylum in the second and TadPole in the third. Even Spirit couldn’t break the tight defence and goal scorer, by god’s grace @itspardytime, pushed his forces through to the finals. Look for an exciting battle where two different game styles will clash. You can follow the entire series through Valco's Twitch-channel at www.twitch.tv/Samila87 starting on Thursday, June 16th at 20:30 CEST. On Thursday, we will see at least three games of action, stay tuned for more information through the social media channels of the teams. Socials Here's an update to the social media instructions. Our sponsors this season are Kouvolan Lakritsi, St Hockey & Wilhelm. Twitter: When posting tweets of your lineups, matchups, recaps, clips, articles - or any other content you might want to create - please make sure to tag the following accounts and hashtag: @SportsGamerGG #ECL22Spring #NHL22 #esports #kouvolanlakritsi #MukanaWilhelm Instagram: When posting on Instagram, please make sure to tag the following accounts and hashtag: @SportsGamerGG #ECL22Spring #NHL22 #esports #kouvolanlakritsi #MukanaWilhelm Note: It is very helpful and critical for us to succeed in getting our partners tagged, so they get the necessary mentions and interaction to validate their participation in the future. That being said, it is understandable that there may be circumstances due to your other partners where you are unable to tag competition etc. Your support is appreciated. As there are quite a few hashtags by now, especially from a Twitter perspective with limited characters, we recommend using at least #ECL22Spring in the text part of the tweet and leave the sponsor tags for the end. If you need to cut out tags, remove #esports and #NHL22. For Instagram this shouldn't be an issue.

SportsGamer hosts the ECL '22 Spring Elite Finals and possible Grand Finals in Helsinki this upcoming weekend and regardless of what transpires in the games, it will be a historical outcome. We've got two young and hungry teams clashing at an event unlike anything we've seen before, so we're happy to invite you to join us either live at the scene or in our stream! We've come a long way from the announcement of our reimagined ECL framework - "A Song of Winter and Spring" back in late 2021 and since then we've seen the likes of hREDS pulling off the historical back-to-back, the uprise of several interesting contenders such as SAWO ESPORTS and even the decline of some dynasties we once thought would never fade away. Now we're in for the finale of the ECL '22 season, as we'll first crown our Spring Champion and possibly even get to see a Grand Final on Sunday for the ECL '22 title. Both of the squads who have paved their way to the finals are hungry to get things going, but we'll need to hold them back for just a bit longer, as the Finals don't start until Friday evening. Until then, we'll be taking you through some details for the action packed weekend. What? The ECL '22 Spring Finals and The ECL '22 Grand Finals (If needed) #3 SAWO ESPORTS vs hREDS #1 When? Friday, June 17th 19:30 CEST (Games 1-2) Saturday, June 18th 18:45 CEST (Games 3-7) Sunday, June 19th 20:30 CEST (ECL '22 Grand Finals)* Where? Helsinki, Finland - Narinkkatori www.twitch.tv/SportsGamerGG You'll find us at the SportsGamer truck parked at Narinkkatori, the event is hosted in cooperation with St Hockey and besides their St Hockey Tour opening weekend event. Entry is free. "It's been a blast, however there's obviously so much work that goes into an event like this just behind the scenes. This time is going to be quite different from what we've ever done before with it being outside and all the challenges coming with that, but I think we've managed to tackle them well. Combining our event with both the St Hockey Tour and the Wilhelm eHockey Tour also adds to the experience of it all, it's definitely going to be a celebration of hockey in all forms", says SportsGamer COO Kenneth @Kenu Lehtinen. Stay tuned as the week progresses for more info about the Finals and everything we've got coming up! We'll also drop the extensive Finals preview later in the week.

For the first time since the inaugural IIHF Fan Challenge back in 2020, the IIHF is back with the all new 2022 IIHF eWorld Championship, where hockey fans all around the world will get the chance to qualify for their national team and go for gold in the final tournament between the best 22 teams in the world! In the 2022 IIHF eWorld Championship, the amount of participating nations has been expanded from 16 to 22, with even more to come in the future. The new championship is part of a new IIHF initiative to bring more opportunities for games to represent their country at the world stage in smaller and bigger competitions. “With the launch of the IIHF eWorld Championship, we are aiming for this to be the start of a new program of esports offerings in the future,“ comments IIHF President Luc Tardif. The 2022 IIHF eWorld Championship is played in three stages, out of which the first is the National Qualifiers. All participating nations will first host National Qualifiers, where both a PlayStation and Xbox champion will be determined, these 44 champions in total will make up the national teams for each country. After this, the final tournament starts with the Group Stage in early July, followed by the playoffs, that will finish with the Grand Final in mid-July. List of Qualifiers: Thursday, 16th of June Norway  Switzerland  Friday 17th of June Hungary  France  Saturday 18th of June Slovenia  Poland  Sunday 19th of June Korea  Germany  Monday 20th of June Ukraine  Slovakia  Tuesday 21st of June Kazakhstan  Czech Republic  Wednesday 22nd of June Japan  Austria  Thursday 23rd of June Denmark  Friday 24th of June USA  Italy  Saturday 25th of June Canada  Great Britain  Sunday 26th of June Latvia  Sweden Tuesday & Wednesday 28th & 29th of June Finland  Click your country in order to advance to the registration site, Finnish players are able to qualify right here at SportsGamer.GG. The signups are already open and anyone over 16 years of age from a participating country is available to sign up! To compete a player is required to have a stable internet connection and a console that is able to play the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One version of NHL 22, so sign up now in order to help your country go for glory in the 2022 IIHF eWorld Championship!