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At the completion of this report approaching the halfway point of the season, the number of games played by each team was still very unequal. However, we were already able to distinguish a trend at the top of the table. At the bottom also even if it remained to qualify. We've made the decision to divide this retail review into three groups: contenders, challengers and chasers. Given that this ranking will certainly still change a lot teams involved in this report will still have a chance to right their course. Please note that the statistics quoted here were recorded on December 30, 2022. Thank you to the teams who took care to answer our questions. Contenders: 1.4pts per game and more Group 1 HC Korobka : 1.72pts/g North Sawo Lions : 1.5 EHC Olten eSports : 1.5 Hannover Indians eSports : 1.5 Warheads : 1.4 Group 2 Cheeky Grinders : 1.79pts/g Predators : 1.44 Black Hurricanes : 1.43 It is reasonable to estimate that the future ECL 23 champion Winter Core is among one of these eight teams. It took fourteen games for Korobka to be beaten after a perfect start. The same goes for Cheeky Grinders who had only lost twice, including one in overtime. As we often say, matches are won in attack but championships are won in defense, the Swiss formation of Olten eSports was then the one who in this register came out best with a defensive coefficient of 1.5 goals conceded per game. Let's have a look at what players from those can release so far. @Steve SteVeKoeck (EHC Olten eSports) "It is an interesting group, with great players. All games are tough and we need a big fight every time to win or lose. We have to remain focused during every game." @Yaredhagos (Cheeky Grinders) "So far the games have been good even if playing on another server that the northern one is bad. For now not many teams have been really impressive except maybe Black Hurricanes who plays in unorthodox style." @Narkkitehti (North Sawo Lions) "Everything is working flawlessly! SportsGamer website is always working and if we face a problem, help arrives super fast. Keep up the great work! HC Korobka and Hannover Indians Esports from our group have been great and the biggest surprise so far. Honourable mention goes to our team, we are playing our first season in ECL and points are coming in from doors and windows." @Mestar93 (Black Hurricanes) "We have tried to play according to the match schedule, but it was found to be impossible. Few teams have had a game day/time according to the match schedule. In any case, we have been able to agree on new days/times relatively easily, with the exception of Turku. Block two Cheeky Grinders stood out from the crowd, and played a good game." Challengers: 1.3 to 1pts per game Group 1 MoDo Hockey : 1.29 pts/g KohKae Esports : 1.25 Fenris Wolves : 1.14 Eliel Kings : 1.07 Group 2 Pirates eSports : 1.25pts/g Deggendorfer SC Esports : 1.2 Mighty Stixxx / Force Majeure : 1 We have previously seen the teams that will undoubtedly play the outposts during the final stages, now here are the ones that could come to play the role of underdog. Honestly, two of them, MoDo Hockey and Mighty Stixxx, could even climb into the top group by the end of the season. There is a surprise in this list and it comes from France. Pirates eSports, which is the first appearance in Core, had a rather advantageous start to the season. We will have to see if this team can maintain its pace during the rest of the championship. Another honorable mention, it is credited to KohKae Esports, which had until then been the only team to have beaten Korobka twice. Let's go to the interview area to get the feelings of the players in this group of underdogs. @khallekha (Fenris Wolves) "It’s a sad thing that we have to pay to join Core. Everyone is ok with paying the license but it’s a bit too much to take more money than that. Another thing that's not good is teams like Korobka in our group. They are playing with 5 ex-pro players and 1 ex-lite player. We think that this team should play at least in Lite, but we understand that they want to play in Core to receive the prize money. Also a very sad thing about so many team drops from core. We should have around 90 teams participating instes of 26. We think you know why so many teams dropped! We are pretty happy with ourselves so far. We are playing with 5 players that have never ever played ECL. And we have a circulating schedule for all players so everyone will play equally. That’s for the future progress skills of the new players! I don't think that many captains resonate the way we do!" @Sebban Chilidoodle (MoDo Hockey) "We had to face a tough schedule but a decent run to begin. We can be dangerous in the playoffs with a tighter defence. We have a tight group that has been playing together for some seasons. Impressed that we have such a good run so far." @Mickebdl (Pirates eSports) "The start of the championship is well beyond our expectations. We are coming out of a satisfactory first block with five wins in eight games and while we were in Neo again last season without ever having been able to go very far in the playoffs. However we have several players who evolved in Core and that helps us a lot. We are now expected and we will have to face teams very well grouped in defense, we are preparing for it. We haven't set ourselves any goals but we will fight to reach the playoffs, which would be a very good performance for our first season in Core." @Fisk33n (Mighty Stixxx) "It has been a fun tournament so far, one of the best tournaments in our team's history. Both when it comes to our own playstyle and results in the games. And the communication with our opponents. Great talk and the few times we needed help from admins, they have been quick and helpful! This might seem egoistic, but our team has impressed me the most so far. Looking at our history it has been an impressive tournament so far from Mighty Stixxx. But if not us, then I have to say that when we played against Cheeky Grinders, we got impressed by their play. They were stronger in every position and had a great tactic. We had no chance at all, and I won't be surprised if they play in the final this season!" Chasers: 0.99pts per game and less Group 1 Remparts de Tours Esport : 0.8pt/g Old Dirty Primates : 0.57 Vasteras IK : 0.4 EHC Basel eSports 0.07 Group 2 Turkunummi : 0.92pt/g HC Pustertal eSports : 0.9 Karhukissat : 0.83 Iserlohn Roosters eSports : 0.7 Ambri eSports 0.6 For each of the teams mentioned in this last group, anything can still happen. Particularly on the side of the Remparts de Tours, whose experience should lead the French team to experience a better continuation of the season. Turkunummi too are undoubtedly a team capable of more accomplished results and January should help them get back on track. The same goes for Iserlohn who knew how to beat Black Hurricanes, thus proving that his current ranking is probably biased. Ditto for the Primates who knew how to beat MoDo, Olten and KohKae, these are encouraging results. As before, let's see what comes out of it on the players' side. @Geoffrey2point0 (Remparts de Tours Esports) "After a nice placement during the previous ECL we really hoped for better from this start to the season. We have not yet been able to raise our level of individual and collective play. There is still a long way to go! We will see what effect the winter break had. We have to give the best of ourselves, especially since the IRL Remparts de Tours team is having a very good season. We must take an example and rise to the occasion!" @Jay Hunter jAY-HUNTER87 (Iserlohn Roosters eSports) "The first games were very close. The league is very balanced and we're slowly getting points. It's going to be an exciting season. As always, the Finnish teams are very strong, so it's even nicer that we've often been able to annoy them on the North server. MoDo Hockey is of course a strong team to keep an eye on." @JPBROO (Ambri eSports) "In the first games we didn't play well enough in the 60 minutes, we had problems both defending and scoring. In the next matches we managed to take a few points with a defensively solid performance. What we miss to get more points is being able to keep the level high in both games against the same opponent. We are trying to increase our level game after game and we will try to reach the goal of the playoffs till the end. In general, I find our group balanced, I saw all well organised teams ready to fight until the end to win. No one gave us points for free. Merit should be given to those who are at the head of the group right now." @hcpfan (HC Pustertal eSports) "From our point of view our group is really strong. Every team can beat any other opponent, so it will be a tight race for the playoffs. We as a team expected some more points from the start for us, but we'll push hard to bounce back and we'll fight for our spot in the playoffs! If we have to name one we'd say Black Hurricanes, but overall most of them were about as strong as expected. We haven't faced every team yet and we're looking forward to impressing some opponents as well!"

With last week being full of extra festivities and due to that being shortened in terms of available gamedays, it was a slower week also for ECL Elite action. Most teams took an extended holiday break, but one team really rose to the occasion when called upon. We highlighted JANO lagging behind a bit in our latest weekly report, and now they've managed to pretty much catch up with he rest of the pack over the course of the holidays. In an exciting turn of events also rookie winger Waltteri @Wpaanane Paananen has managed to climb his way to the top of the scoring charts with 16+16=32 points in his first 12 games.  In our only ECL Elite broadcast last week, we got to see Reality Check take on Frölunda HC and Växjö Lakers take on Nordic Stars and these teams didn't disappoint! Two out of four games extended into overtime and none of the teams had to leave without points. The most exciting event of the evening, however, was Växjö's push to tie it up in the dying seconds of their second game against Nordic Stars. They had goaltender Erik @MrAllsvenskan Rotsenius out as a sixth skater with over 30 seconds to go in the third period and managed to score a goal, which was disallowed. It would take a second effort and throwing it all on net in order for the Swedes to tie it up and eventually win the game in overtime.  Standings - Week 3 1.  Frölunda HC (+1) 10-2-2 2.  hREDS (-1) 10-1-1 3.  Tunnel Vision (+4) 8-0-2 4.  Roots Gaming (-) 7-2-3 5.  Nordic Stars (+3) 7-5-2 6.  Reality Check (+4) 7-5-2 7.  Unlucky Boys HC (-4) 7-3-2 8.  ISO Esports (-3) 5-4-5 9.  JYP Jyvaskyla (-3) 7-3-0 10.  JANO (+6) 6-4-2 11.  ZSC Esports (-2) 6-8-0 12.  GOONS (-) 4-6-2 13.  Färjestad BK (-2) 3-4-3 14.  Växjö Lakers (-1) 3-7-2 15.  Falun Coal Miners (-1) 2-6-2 16.  Luleå Hockey (-1) 2-3-1 Tonight, ECL '23 Winter Elite returns for a new year with new opportunities. JYP Jyväskylä takes on Roots Gaming, whereas hREDS are taken on by the high-flying JANO in their biggest challenge yet. Join us for all the action at 19:45 CET as usual. See you at www.twitch.tv/SportsGamerGG!

This report is written in the afternoon of 28.12.2022 and reflects the situation at that time. Almost every team has now played about half of their regular season games so it is about the time to start with our mid-season report. We'll have some bold predictions, a little insight, stats, a bit of everything. But first of all, happy new years to everyone! So let's take a look at the regular season standings and what's going on there. Breaking things down group by group we’ll start off from group 1. Technical Disaster and Bad to the Bone are tied up for first place at the time of writing. Same amount of games, same record and also similarities in opponents played, both teams look solid and I think they're going to continue their streak and could be fighting for that number one spot at the end of the season. Also, it looks like Resurrection has found their game. They are in a great spot to fight for a good seed for the Playoffs. The first ever Xbox team xBOTS is looking solid too at fourth in their group and fighting for a higher Playoff seed. They have some defensive issues that they'll need to iron out, but should be able to get it done soon enough. Gunners HC have only played eight games thus far so there is more to come from this strong lineup in the upcoming weeks. Lions Academy (academy of ZCS eSports) also started the season well with five wins and only one loss in overtime so they might be one of the higher seeded teams at the end of the regular season. When looking at group 2 there is one team that has dominated and went under the radar before season started. Six Sticks Misfits is the real contender to go far in this Winter season. Their two goal scoring machines @Lamsa and @el_tacobag and some solid defence has shown what good players can do together. In second place in the group is Pirati Chomutov Esports, who is also one of the favorites to battle for that first seed in this group. Only one overtime loss so far and it was against another top team in Six Sticks Misfits. This Czech team is strong and they have a long campaign ahead of them if they can keep their form throughout the season. The long standing Finnish Hockey Legends are also on the right course to a good seed for the playoffs. On the flipside, Sawolanche hasn’t quite found their game yet and is surprisingly struggling this season. Group three is one where two teams rise above the rest. Hunters and EHC Kloten eSports seem to be battling for first place between the two of them, whereas the mid-table finishes are going to come down to the fight between three or four other squads. Both Hunters and Kloten are high-scoring teams that will be able to outmuscle their opponents offensively, and we still have their head-to-head battle to look forward to in the latter part of the season. Prestige is a team with only eight games thus far, and they're lagging a bit behind the others, so they could end up making a push for top seeds still. NOSTREETSPORTS have been a pleasant surprise, even sporting some Elite experience in the form of @selänne8 (BiggestEight) in their ranks. One of the letdowns in this group has definitely been Armada Hockey, who are struggling to slot into the playoffs at the moment and could eventually end up on the outside looking in. Group 4 has been the show for mistakes. Big Mistake have came and shown they are a really offensive powered team that also has the ability to defend well when under pressure. Young star @Allupekkaz has shown great potential for a couple seasons now and is finally showing that all his hard work comes into fruition. Also Södertälje SK have had a good start to their season and they have had good poise in their games. Timrå IK also had a great start to the campaign but let' see how far they can fly. Stone Age has been struggling and has suffered a little bit of fluctuating form, but they could find that calmness and draw from their experience to eventually reach a Playoff spot. STATS TOP 5 Forwards @Lamsa, Six Sticks Misfits , 14GP 25G 29A @el_tacobag, Six Sticks Misfits , 14GP 26G 24A @punt1la98, Hunters , 12GP 26G 19A @Adri1_SCP, Pirati Chomutov Esports , 10GP 18G 27A @kibenibe, Six Sticks Misfits , 14GP 15G 25A Defensemen @SelanneFIN, Six Sticks Misfits , 14GP 2G 17A @SirLateksi, Hunters , 12GP 2G 15A @Laama777, Hunters , 12GP 1G 16A @Da1m0n, EHC Kloten eSports , 12GP 0G 17A @kiwison, EHC Kloten eSports , 12GP 1G 16A Goalies @RaNtA, Six Sticks Misfits , 14GP 83,92SV% GAA 1.64 @Miettinen14, Hunters , 12GP 88,51SV% GAA 1.42 @jjamboj, BIG Mistake , 12GP 86,86SV% GAA 1.5 @Kussan82, Södertälje SK , 12GP 81.45SV% GAA 1.92 @Deathstrokeris, Pirati Chomutov Esports , 10GP 80SV% GAA 2.5