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The first McSavid Goalie School is over and I would like to thank everyone that applied to it. There were applications ranging from ECL Elite to Neo and some North American applicants as well, but in order to not overwhelm myself, I set the first school to focus on only three goalies - one from ECL Pro, one from ECL Lite, and one from ECL Core. That leads me to congratulate @TheSpeedo, @Bystrom_33, and @wobfighter and also thank them for trying out this adventure. Also, a big thank you to @MyLittleRevvy for volunteering to assist me in this - he has been a big help! Our main focus in our communication was to try and raise the bar, individually, for the participants. Since they were experienced already we didn't need to go into the basics, we could focus on how to make a play in certain situations instead. Whether that may be 1v1, 2v1, or what to focus on, in a faceoff. We created some video tutorials that the guys could watch and ask about the thought process. We had them clip goals that they conceded and had a discussion on how that situation could have been handled differently. In the end, all three goalies contributed to taking their respective teams to the playoffs with Speedo ending up being one of the best goalies in all of the ECL Pro division. All three goalies felt an improvement in their game and it will be interesting to see their stats (hopefully) improve even more from ECL '24: Winter to ECL '24: Spring season. Here's what the goalies themself had to say about their experience and how their stats measured up vs the previous season: TheSpeedo: "From my own experience at the goalie school. From the first day, I felt welcome and also felt how McDavid really wanted to help goalies develop, learn new things, and take that famous next step. I have gained a lot of new tools and a new perspective in my own game. The experience was unique and I recommend it to every goalie if you are open to new information and training. A very big thank you to McDavid and Revv who made this possible." Bystrom_33: "I feel very lucky to be one of the 3 goalies that were given this opportunity. The things that I learned most and will take with me in the future are that you need to have a big portion of patience, and also learned much from McSavid in 1vs1 situations on breakaways, and don't trust too much on your own defensive players which I did a little too much before resulting that I was a little too aggressive on the puck holder " shooter". This was a great experience and I want to give big thanks to you all guys, and also I want to send big luck to the other goalkeepers from the school to and I wish you all the best in the future with your career as a goalie. wobfighter: "After a 2-year break coming back to a different NHL title, I applied for the goalie school and got accepted. McSavid and Reev both worked individually with you and your goalie play, sharing their experiences and how they dealt with certain situations on the ice. With small adjustments, my play improved a lot over a short time. All participants and coaches are supportive throughout the process. I can recommend the goalie school to everyone - here you get a lot of experience from a competitive standpoint: you can work on the fundamentals, how to improve your game, how to set a good routine and practice habits. Thank you Mcsavid and Reev for the opportunity to work with you, you guys are awesome." For the ECL '24: Spring season I have joined The Black Jacks in ECL Elite, but the goalie school will hopefully return during the summer break if any more goalies are interested. I would also like to thank SportsGamer for letting me host this goalie school, it has been a fun and educating experience!

Hallo GCLGamer, es ist angerichtet! Die 11. Spielzeit der German Championship League startete zu Beginn dieser Woche. Nach einer furiosen Saison des HC Lugano eSports und dem sechsten Meistertitel der Deadly Phantoms, ist das Teilnehmerfeld - ebenfalls aufgrund der Reduzierung auf 12 Teams - so eng besetzt wie selten zuvor! The Black Jacks wollen nach einer enttäuschenden GCL 10 zurück auf den Thron, die Luganesi ihre starke Saison bestätigen, die Deadly Phantoms die erneute Titelverteidigung. Viele Teams lauern auf den perfekten Moment und wollen nach der vergangenen ECL'24 Winter den nächsten Schritt in ihrer Entwicklung gehen. Folgende sechs Teams sind aus unserer Sicht aus den kommenden Playoffs nicht wegzudenken 👇 The Deadly Phantoms: Die Deadly Phantoms, amtierender und sechsfacher GCL Champion, stehen vor einer spannenden neuen Saison. Trotz des Abgangs von Paul @Pauner08 Weingart in der Offensive haben sie mit der Verpflichtung von Fynn @willywonkaaa Willer einen altbekannten und starken Verteidiger hinzugewonnen. Wie bereits aus den letzten Jahren gewohnt setzt DPH auf Konstanz. Ein ansonsten nahezu unveränderter Kader mit sehr routinierten Spielern sollen die Phantome zur erneuten Titelverteidigung führen. Patrick @RPH_31 Braun und Ron @xEispiratx bilden das Duo zwischen den Pfosten des ECL Pro Squads. Nach einer eher enttäuschenden Saison in der ECL'24 Winter Pro in denen das Team um Legende Frank @Franky__2768 Münch erstmals die Playoffs verpasste, wird man gespannt sein dürfen wie das Team in die Saison startet. Insbesondere auf den Scoring Touch von Felix @ProfaneKiss Kiss und Stefan @Rayman Mieth wird man angewiesen sein! Krefelds Defensivkünstler Niklas @xXPsykoSkillsXx Schmitz ist dabei oftmals Fäden- und Strippenzieher im Spielaufbau des sechsfachen deutschen Meisters. Besonders im Fokus steht Denis @CCBow-501 Roethele, der in der letzten Saison beeindruckende Leistungen zeigte. Mit 27 erzielten Toren und 34 Assists in 20 Spielen sorgte er für insgesamt 61 Punkte. Seine Fähigkeiten machen ihn zu einem Schlüsselspieler und einer zuverlässigen Offensivkraft für die Deadly Phantoms. Die Titelverteidiger gehen mit einem starken Kader und der Erfahrung aus dem Vorjahr in die neue Saison, bereit, erneut um den begehrten GCL-Titel zu kämpfen. Prediction: Contender The Black Jacks: The Black Jacks, das einzige Elite Team in der German Championship League, stehen vor einer vielversprechenden Saison voller Herausforderungen und Hoffnungen. Mit dem Neuzugang Paul @Pauner08 Weingart, der per Leihe vom russischen ECL Pro Team Nova hinzustößt und dem alteingesessenen schwedischen Routinier Johan @McSavid Rundqvist haben sie ihre Reihen verstärkt und sind bereit, in der GCL erneut um den begehrten Titel zu kämpfen. Obwohl ihre überzeugende ECL'24 Winter Elite Saison mit einer Niederlage in Spiel 6 des Viertelfinals gegen den zweifachen Europameister Tunnel Vision endete, haben die Eidgenossen bewiesen, dass sie zu den besten Teams der Liga gehören. Nun sind sie entschlossen in der GCL zu glänzen und ihren vierten Titel einzufahren. Der Kader der Black Jacks bleibt stark und eingespielt: angeführt von Spielern wie dem neuen Capitano Max @Toneee9 Tonitz, Tim @Timasy Hess, Kevin @Keuschemisch Berg und Christian @GERxVillain Ungeheuer sind TBJ heiß auf ein Abschiedsgeschenk an ihren Kapitän Sven @Original-SnuS Julmi. Die Nummer 21 der Schweizer kündigte an seine letzte Saison in seinem Trikot zu spielen. Der junge finnische Schlussmann Simeon @Simbanho Vorselmann wird als Starter in die Saison gehen während Vereinslegende Reto @afc_Tschitsch Ulrich dem Lizenztorwartduo den Rücken freihält. Prediction: Contender Nürnberg IceTigers eSport: Die fränkischen IceTigers erlebten eine glänzende abgelaufene Spielzeit in der ECL'24 Winter Pro, die jedoch in der ersten Playoff Runde endete. Trotzdem markierte sie den bisherigen Höhepunkt des Vereins, der zuvor bereits auf Lite Ebene vollends überzeugte. Folgt nun der nächste Step in der GCL? Die jüngste Verstärkung des finnischen Lizenzspielers Axel @Allupekkaz Buntsel bringt als einer der Top 10 ECL'24 Winter Lite Scorer frischen Wind ins Team, das von Kapitän Luca @cpt_dirtyDangler Knoll und Assistent Lennart @Lennart Hansen (TooEzXx) Hansen geführt wird. Community Legende Akin @DaMan (Akin_Penta) Isik vervollständigt die gefährliche Angriffslinie. In der Verteidigung setzen sie auf Max @maqareal Kattinger, Eric @AveRxDallas Polk und dem frankophonen Eidgenossen Mirco @Tron1x90 (Komir_90) Salvi. Daniel @DanMull87 Müller wird als geplanter Starter in die Saison gehen und kriegt hier die notwendige Auslastung durch Organisationstalent Marco @Drobele Drobek. Die IceTigers versprechen erneut fesselndes Eishockey und wollen ihren Erfolg, nach zuletzt zwei eher enttäuschenden GCL Saisons, in der kommenden Saison ausbauen. Prediction: Playoffs HC Lugano eSports: Die Bianconeri gehen mit einer beeindruckenden Bilanz in die GCL 11, nachdem man im letzten Jahr den Pokal in überzeugender Manier errungen hat und der Aufstieg in der ECL in die zweitklassige Pro gelungen war! Trotz eines knappen Scheiterns am Einzug in die Playoffs der ECL'24 Winter Pro, haben sie nahezu alle Fähigkeiten auf höchstem Niveau spielen zu können. Angeführt von Kapitän Reto @Swiss Moger Dubacher, verfügt das Team über ein starkes Goalie Tandem mit dem Berliner Matteo @DiMatteo70 Günther und dem erfahrenen Hessen Sandro @I-THE_EAGLE-I Wüller. In der Verteidigung setzen sie auf die Erfahrung von Dubacher sowie auf die Zuverlässigkeit von Marco @Nr-0847 Reza und Rico @x Holtbeast Reutschner. Diese Formation verspricht eine solide Rückendeckung und Stabilität in der eigenen Zone. Die Offensive der Luganesi ist eine starke Symbiose aus explosiver Torgefahr und Erfahrung. Spieler wie Alex @I_Alex28_I Wagner und Roland @jasomnajlepsi Szvetko sind wahre Scoring-Maschinen, während Stephan @Krinke Krinke die Fäden in der Schaltzentrale zieht. Abgerundet wird der Kader durch Luganos Own Claudio @Freeman7187 Salamoni der jederzeit den Unterschied ausmachen kann. Wie weit geht die Reise des HCL in dieser Saison? Prediction: Playoffs RB Munich eSports: Die roten Bullen stehen vor einer extrem großen Herausforderung nachdem das Team einen harten Umbruch während der vergangenen ECL'24 Winter Pro durchgemacht hat. Durch den Abgang einiger Leistungsträger endete die Saison unüberraschenderweise mit dem zweiten Abstieg in Folge. Nun soll das Ruder umgerissen werden! Mit dem Ziel, in der GCL 11 wieder voll durchzustarten, führt Tobias @Hohner Hohner das Team weiterhin an! Im Tor vertrauen sie auf die Erfahrung und Trigger Discipline von Marcel @Capitano_82 (Houddel_RBM) Houdelet und seinem Backup Pascal @MrKaahee Hain. Die Verteidigung wird von einer Mischung aus Bewährtem und Neuem gebildet: darunter Tim @LeMalkin71Strompf der nach einer Saison zurückkehrt, sowie weiteren Neuzugängen. Insbesondere erwähnenswert der Neuzugang des belarussischen Lizenzspielers Dzmitry @Belarus_monster (letsgoat-_-) Nikolayenya. In der Offensive setzt RBM auf eine vielseitige Aufstellung, angeführt von Dominik @Domi_PENTA Rühl und Lucas @iamprtty Frenkel, der sich in seiner ersten 6s Saison beweisen möchte. Mit Nico @SuperMeean Fikus als Neuzugang aus Lugano und einem der wohl aufregendsten Talenten Europas Artis @artusjo Upitis komplettieren sie eine Angriffslinie, die auf Torgefahr und Kreativität setzt. Mit diesem erneuerten Kader und dem Ehrgeiz, an vergangene Erfolge anzuknüpfen, sind die RedBulls bereit wieder für Furore zu sorgen. Prediction: Playoffs SCB eSports: Die Berner Bären, zuletzt einer durchaus enttäuschende Saison in der ECL'24 Winter Lite absolviert, sind bereit sich in der kommenden GCL 11 zu rehabilitieren. Unter der Führung von Adrian @adu83 Siegenthaler hat das Team nach einem kleinen Umbruch eine vielversprechende Aufstellung zusammengestellt. Im Tor verlassen sie sich auf die Zuverlässigkeit von Neuzugang und Altroutinier Michael @devilfish333 Herold und dem sehr talentierten Timo @killerashrom1994 Reyher. In der defensiven Schaltzentrale setzen sie auf erfahrene Spieler wie den Rückkehrer Stefano @fano1898 Burkhard in Kombination mit dem eingespielten Defensivkünstler Kyle @KG12PK88 Grossen. Die Offensive des SCB verspricht mit einer Mischung aus erfahrenen Spielern und neuen Talenten viel Potenzial. Bekannte Gesichter werden von finnischen Neuzugänge Mikko @Miklu19 Pajala und James @Elmageo Potkukelkka ergänzt, welche Torgefahr und Kreativität ins Spiel mitbringen. Mit dieser ausgewogenen Aufstellung und dem klaren Ziel, in der GCL erfolgreich zu sein, sind die Erwartungen hoch. Der SCB eSports ist bereit, sich auf dem Eis zu behaupten und dürfte ein großer Favorit auf die direkte Playoffteilnahme sein! Prediction: Playoffs Was denkt ihr? Welche Teams werden uns in der kommenden Saison überraschen? Wer wird entgegen aller Erwartungen außerhalb der Playoff Ränge landen? Wir sind gespannt auf eine actionreiche elfte Spielzeit mit einer Menge Toren, aufregenden Spielszenen und krachenden Hits! In diesem Sinne: Play hard and smart und wir sehen uns mit der Playoffs Preview nach der Hauptrunde. Max @maqareal Kattinger Kevin @Keuschemisch Berg

Gamers, As the ECL '24: Winter - Pro season comes to an end, we got to see some incredible storylines and some fierce newcomers. We saw an epic championship series with Gotham Knights taking Renascor to 7 games, and to make an incredible final series even more incredible, we got to enjoy a Game 7 overtime where both teams had their chances to win it all. In the end, @Borjendahlen scored a backdoor goal from a good setup. With their Championship, not only does Gotham Knights secure the largest share of the 5500€ prize pool, but also manage to gain promotion to the European Top 16 for their ECL '24 Winter campaign. The Gotham Knights displayed exceptional skill and teamwork throughout the season, securing their championship victory, their strategic plays and individual performances were commendable, showcasing their dominance in the second-best tier of ECL, now taking them to the highest level. The team’s dedication and coordination were key factors in their success, solidifying their position as a force to be reckoned with even next season in Elite. Hopefully, all other teams can take a look at how Gotham Knights got to where they are and take notes for next season! We asked the captain of the newly crowned champions, @ReDMisTi, a few questions - check out what he had to say! What was the feeling like in the party when you scored that G7 overtime goal? “The group absolutely blew up! We had a feeling we were going to win the game so when we finally did score we all had a lot to cheer for” How are you going to prepare for next season in Elite? “By the looks of it, we’ll play FCL (=eHockey SM 2024) and a few planned friendlies against some Elite teams, but before we start anything we’ll take a hard-earned break from playing” How can other teams prepare for their season to have a shot at gaining promotion to Elite like you did? “Well you must have good team spirit and build from that, play against similar skilled and better opponents, play casual games, and see what works and what doesn’t, a good example is Gifu, who made it to the semifinals.” Who surprised you the most during the season? “This is an easy one, @Sundstroom from GIFU Hockey and @Nester4343 from Nova, Sundstrom stood on his head against us and stole some wins for them in the playoffs, Elite talent no doubt. Nester was really difficult to contain, they took 2 wins from us in the regular season, and almost upset Purification in the playoffs. Special mention goes to @riegel29 from GIFU Hockey and @antonlule from Björklöven.” Gotham Knights road to the championship: #1 seed from Group 2 with the record 21-3-2-4 Round 1: vs VALCO (16) 4-0 Quarterfinals: vs Herlev Eagles (11) 4-0 Semifinals: vs GIFU Hockey (7) 4-2 Finals: vs Renascor (4) 4-3 The winning roster: GOALTENDERS 🇫🇮 #22 Juha @jubex0r Kettunen 🇸🇪 #27 Philip @Discokryckan Johansson DEFENSEMEN 🇫🇮 #63 Ilmari @iilmarii Töyrylä 🇫🇮 #85 Toni @Borjendahlen Karjaluoto FORWARDS 🇫🇮 #15 Joni @ReDMisTi Kaikkonen (C) 🇫🇮 #37 Timi @Rimpe Rimpeläinen (A) 🇫🇮 #64 Mikko @Ristimaki12 Ristimäki 🇫🇮 #88 Jere @keranee Keränen (A) On behalf of the entire SportsGamer community, we congratulate the Champions and extend a warm thank you to all participants!

Dear SportsGamers, another GCL Season is about to kick off. In GCL 10 we have seen the record champions of The Deadly Phantoms finishing on Top of the DACH area after an exciting final against HC Lugano Esports. Their Swiss counterpart managed to crown themselves GCL Cup Champion earlier that season after a quite surprising win against The Black Jacks (formerly ZSC Esports). While the Luganesi were quite a newcomer among the juggernauts in the German Community, DPH and TBJ battled for that top spot in the German Championship League almost since Day 1. An important part for their longevity and success are their respective Captains. Frank @Franky__2768 Münch and Sven @Original-SnuS Julmi who are our Cover Athletes for GCL 11! Both played many seasons on the highest level of virtual European Hockey and decided to take a step back from competitive Gaming. While Münch took a step back as a backup player two seasons ago, Julmi announced his retirement from competing on the highest level in ECL just after the season ended. Two Eras are ending but new beginnings are about to breakout this season. It is time to take a look back with two virtual legends of GCL Hockey and talk about their biggest victories, disappointments and surprises during their careers. If you have any questions or any interesting stories you made along the way with these two, make sure to drop a comment down below 👇 Dear Frank & Sven, thank you for finding some time to take a look back at your biggest accomplishments, regrets and sweetest moments in your respective SportsGamer careers in EASPORTS NHL! Obviously everybody wants to know what is your best memory from all those years on the virtual ice? Frank: Obviously in the ECL we had many great memories. Fighting all the way from ECL Lite up into the Elite Division and especially winning the Championship in ECL Pro was something I will never forget. If I had to pick a special memory I would had to pick our 4th Place and securing a spot in the Playoffs in our first season on Elite Level. Back then many players did not think that teams from Central Server were capable of doing so. That made it even sweeter! Sven: Our first GCL Title with ZSC Esports and Promotion to ECL Elite. After many losses in the GCL Finals it was such a relief to finally finish on top and exorcise our demons. After winning the Lite Championship in ECL 7 we paved our way to the Pro Division and just as Frank said many Teams did not put Central European teams on the map of virtual 6s hockey. That made it even better to beat Gotham Knights in the Elite relegation and arrive in the Top 16 of our continent. Which NHL title of the past years was your favourite? Frank: If I'm totally honest there has not been a title in the recent years that I really fell in love with. The main factor of grinding was the friendships you made over all those years and practicing for reaching the same goals as a team. Spending all these hours with my mates has made all of this very special and is worth more than playing the game itself. Sven: While I totally agree with what Frank said I have to pick NHL 18. The Gameplay overall was really smooth and nice especially for 6s. On top of that we secured our first title in ECL 7 that year. So that will obviously always stay in my mind. What has been your biggest motivation to lead a team on and off the virtual ice over all those years? Frank: Becoming a captain was actually some kind of coincidence. Back then when we gathered the band back together, Stefan @Rayman Mieth, Fynn @willywonkaaa Willer and me built the captains trio. Basically due to the fact that I was most fluent in English I got the "C" on my chest. Over all that time it just became natural and the most important factor of being a Captain is to always be honest. You need to find the right mixture for the chemistry on and off the ice. Some players might be better individually but if there is no personal chemistry it can become tough within the collective. The biggest goal was to put together a good group of guys and be as successful as we can in EASHL. Sven: In the beginning of my career I played for the PSHL Roadrunners and Coyotes. After some time I disagreed with certain decisions made by their former Captains and I thought to myself that I am able to be a better Captain and leader for my team. That's where it all started and I founded my own squad. What are the biggest difficulties to overcome when being a Captain? Frank: As mentioned earlier personally there are two important factors. First: Be honest. You need to be aware of yourself on what level you are playing on and may be able to reach someday. Also considering playing time for certain players it is important to communicate. In the end no one will be happy if someone is promised to play 80% of the games but ends up sitting on the bench. And secondly and even more important to me, build a team full of characters that fit to each other. Chemistry off the ice can be more clutch than the individual skill of certain teams. You will spend so much time together it is vital to build an environment that you like to be around. Sven: There are lots of problems you could face during your time as a Captain! To me it was always important to be proactive, talk to every player because even backup players are an important part of any squad in the league. Developing some kind of understanding to certain situations is also pretty important to keep the whole group confident. In the end we are spending a lot of time in the game and do not make - and if so not much - money with it. So sometimes family and job is obviously priority number one. What was the biggest disappointment in your 6s career? Frank: Probably when we did not reach our goal. If I had to pick one certain point of time in my career it was probably ending up losing Game 7 in the Quarterfinals of our first ECL Season against Dynastia. The disappointment was huge shortly after the game. But after some time you started to realize how big the accomplishment actually was. Sven: Definitely underperforming in ECL'23 Spring Elite. We started off very strong into the season but couldn't keep up with our own pace and ended up losing most of the games in the second half of the season. After managing to qualify for the Playoffs in the prior season it was a big disappointment to play the Relegation series. Luckily we remained focused and stayed up after winning the series in six games against Lulea Hockey. Have there been any funny stories stuck in your mind after all these years? Frank: There were A LOT of memories during that time. But one thing that always comes to my mind was a Matchday in ECL Elite. We should have played in the early slot of the SportsGamer Broadcast. But unfortunately our former Forward Tim @Timasy Hess was lost without trace. After some wrangling and organizing we managed to swap the Broadcast games so we were able to play in the later slot. 15 Minutes after our actual Gametime Tim joined the PS Party after a relaxing nap. Still to that point he did not realize that he was actually too late. But luckily we managed to turn that around and play our Games later that night. Sven: One of the best times we had as a team was actually off the virtual ice. We organized many events in Switzerland which ended up at Claudio @Freeman7187 Salamonis house. Apart from The Black Jacks and ZSC band a few members from former EHC Biel-Bienne Esports also joined. Just a lot of fun, good food and obviously some fresh beers! Are there any certain hopes and wishes you have for the EA NHL series aswell as the DACH-Community? Frank: The Game should go back to the basics. But do them right. Nobody in the competitive scene is interested in playing passes while falling down or scoring the 50th Michigan Goal by just pressing one button. Defenders should be able to pick up passes and make it more consistent. That's actually all that matters. To the community I hope that everyone works towards the same goal. Make the community bigger and improve the "product" GCL with its presentation, broadcasts as well as being respectful to each other! Sven: I really hope that the activity of players, organizations and also viewers on Twitch rise back to the Level that it was during the COVID pandemic. The number of players, teams and the general interest on the streaming platforms steadily declines. Obviously an important factor for that is the quality of the game itself. The game and its scene has a lot of potential and it would be great to see the community becoming bigger in the future! Once again thank you for your time! Are there any special words you would like to leave before the start of GCL 11? Frank: To my Deadly Phantoms. To almost every player who ever wore our virtual jersey I wanna say Thank you. You will always have a special place in my heart and with all the joy and disappointments we witnessed during the last couple of years I have to admit that I enjoyed every second of it. To the DACH-Community: I am leaving with a smile on my face and I hope that during my time in the LA I did more positive than negative things. To @Kenu: Thank you for being the person that you are. Thank you for trusting me, thank you for teaching me, thank you for all the time we spent together. Living legend. Sven: I want to thank all my companions and players. All the Guys who spend a lot of time with me in the last couple of seasons and spend many hours grinding this Game. Even though I probably was not the easiest person at all times I am glad that you took me as I am. Especially Mike @burban26 Müller and Reto @afc_Tschitsch Ulrich who made the project of ZSC Esports a big success for several seasons. The last one goes out to my current team The Black Jacks. I enjoyed every second of our successful ECL '24 Winter Elite campaign and I hope we can end on a good note in my last GCL. Last but not least to my fellow DACH-companions: I often got asked what to do to improve? Just keep it basic. Just play clean, quick and simple. Always try to play a quick pass, find the open man and go into the open spaces. Playing after this motto has brought us from Lite into ECL Elite. On behalf of SportsGamer and the whole Community we want to thank Frank @Franky__2768 Münch and Sven @Original-SnuS Julmi for all their effort over the last couple of years. As players as well as an important part of the ECL and GCL League administration. Both players finish on rank 3 among - respectively all skaters or defensemen -the SportsGamers All Time Stats (Julmi 672GP: 631G + 981A; Münch 479GP: 143G +505A). We are looking forward to another exciting GCL Season and will see you soon with the next episode of Player's Diary!