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Last week we saw six teams battling it out for three spots in the Elite division for the ECL '25: Spring season. Blackbirds already secured their spot by winning the Pro Championship,  but the teams placed 2nd-4th had to battle for promotion against the Elite teams seeded 13th-15th. In the end, SSK ESPORTS and NOVA were able to claim their spot in Elite, while Renascor was able to hold on to their spot in the highest division.      SSK ESPORTS rebound from the Pro Finals and will play in Elite, Falun Coal Miners relegated  After a disappointing result in the Pro Finals against Blackbirds, SSK ESPORTS were able to bounce back in the relegation series against Falun Coal Miners. The series, which was played in one night, ended 4-1 in favor of SSK after a mostly tight series. FCM were forced to play the series with their backup defender, LastMandalorian, who hadn't played tournament games in almost two years. They were able to win the first game 4-3 after a late winner but from there it was all downhill. Their offensive struggles from the regular season continued as they were able to score only seven goals in the remaining games. Zuppe_29 stayed in hot form and led SSK with 12 points. PSchibra scored three game-winners in the series and Janikka- had a very strong showing with 3 goals and 10 points from the left defender spot. For Falun, it is a tough loss as they were able to stay in Elite for only one season since their rebuild. After a good first week of the season truly nothing went their way and they will see themselves back in Pro for the Spring season. SSK ESPORTS vs Falun Coal Miners | 4-1 (3-4 OT, 2-1, 7-3, 2-1 OT, 3-2)    Renascor survive - Heartbreak for Otukset  After losing game seven in overtime against SSK in the semifinals, Otukset went into the relegation series with high hopes. Renascor was able to win the first game in double overtime with a game-winner from Virusactive. After that, Otukset took control of the series both on ice and on the scoreboard. They won three games straight, all by a one goal margin, and were just one step away from Elite. In game five Renascor got two quick goals but Otukset managed to tie it in the second period. Otukset were controlling the game but were unable to take advantage of their scoring chances and powerplays while Renascor used theirs and stayed alive in the series. Game six was the same story all over again, Otukset controlled but Renascor was the one on the scoreboard. A 21-save shutout from Gresu__ took the series into game seven. In game seven Otukset seemed to crumble under the pressure after giving up an early goal in the first. After surrendering a second goal, Miguli36 was able to bring some hope for them but that was all they got. Renascor shut the door and scored two more goals in the third, securing their spot in Elite. Fire_cats88 scored 8 goals and 12 points in the series but the MVP for the series has to be Gresu__ with his 88.14% save percentage and 2 GAA. For Otukset, miguli36 finished with 11 points but they would've needed more scoring, especially from Pursuitti who finished the series with 3 goals, 6 points, and a shooting percentage below 10. Otukset vs Renascor | 3-4 (3-4 OT, 3-2 OT, 3-2, 2-1, 2-3, 0-2, 1-4)   NOVA steamroll through Roots Gaming - End of an Era  Roots had been in this position many times before but this time it just wasn't meant to be. NOVA won the series straight in four games and we will see them in Elite for the first time. For Roots, games 1 and 3 were definitely something that could've turned the series the other way around. They were leading game one 2-1 heading into the third period, but 22 seconds before the end of regulation time NOVA was able to find the tying goal and eventually the winning goal in overtime. In game three Roots lost a two-goal lead in the last period and NOVA again found the winner at the end of the first overtime. That seemed to be the last straw for Roots as they looked very lost in game four and NOVA got to start their celebrations. NOVA will have to get straight back to work though as they announced that two of their star players in Nester_43 and KingOfApes will not continue with the team. It will be an interesting off-season for the team and we're left to wait what kind of lineup they will bring to the Spring season in Elite. This series loss also marks the end of an era for Roots after seven straight seasons in Elite. Roots Gaming announced that they will be stepping away from the scene with a few of their players hanging up the skates and the rest looking for a new home. NOVA vs Roots Gaming | 4-0 (3-2 OT, 4-1, 3-2 OT, 3-1)

Fallen Rangers completed their perfect playoff run and are your ECL '25 Winter - Neo Champions. They dominated the division all season long and left nothing up to question. Salaseurue gave them a good fight but in the end, there was nothing stopping Sidney @Sebko99 Kiska and the Fallen Rangers squad. Congratulations to the Champions! Fallen Rangers finished at the top of Group 5 and went into the playoffs as the number one seed. After scoring 8.5 goals per game during the regular season they were the favorites for many to make it all the way. They continued their dominating performance in playoffs sweeping one opponent after another. Despite their defensive mishaps in some of the games, their offense was always able to come through finishing the playoffs with an average of 6.8 goals per game. Salaseurue was able to challenge them momentarily in the finals but they were unable to convert those good moments into wins. After a record-breaking regular season, Sebko99 continued to lead the offense and finished the playoffs with 85 points. PR3D4T0R6083 gave excellent support from the back end with 50 points and mildalempik posted a 80.5% save percentage and three shutouts in their 15 playoff games. We got a chance to interview Fallen Rangers Captain Peter @Kiso69 Kiska after the finals series. He talked about how the team got started and how it is to have teammates from the same family.       Road to the Championship Regular season: 12-0-0-2, 36 points, 1st in Group 5, 1st overall Round 1: 3-0 vs Davemiehet Round 2: 3-0 vs Hannover Indians Esports Quarterfinals: 3-0 vs Hawks HC Semifinals: 3-0 vs Viitapohja Vikings Finals: 3-0 vs Salaseurue Championship roster Peter @Kiso69 Kiska (C) Jan @Zaky111 Žák (A) Sidney @Sebko99 Kiska Kristián @PR3D4T0R Kiska Jane @Jane PhDr Wolf PhDr Wolf Milan @mildalempik93 Lempera Pavel @cangis01 Hoang (A) Martin @Hori68 Hořavson   Thank you to all the teams for an amazing season and we hope to see you in the Spring season! Congratulations to Fallen Rangers, your ECL '25 Winter - Neo Champions!

Sunne IK Esport were crowned your ECL '25 Winter - Lite Champions after managing to beat the Finnish side Setelikerho in overtime of game seven. After finishing first in their group, Sunne marched convincingly all the way to the finals and pulled off a comeback in the Finals after being down 1-3 in the series. With their Championship, they gain automatic promotion to the Pro division for the Spring season, where they'll be joined by the second-place finisher Setelikerho and the third-place Project X. Congratulations to Sunne IK Esports! Sunne IK finished on top of Group 3 after a tight race, putting them in a good position going into the postseason. Through the first four rounds of the playoffs, the team put on a clinic, losing only five games on their way to the finals. After the first night of the Finals they found themselves down 1-2 and the game 4 blowout loss the following day put them in a tough position down 1-3 in the series. In game 5 they were one minute away from defeat but thanks to Prolane's last-minute tying goal they headed into OT. The game went all the way to the third overtime before Forreberra found the winning goal and the series was back alive. Forreberra's hattrick in game 6 pushed the series into game seven despite a last-minute scare. Setelikerho got a quick start to the deciding game with a goal from tbnantti but Captain 03_Dafa tied the game in the dying seconds of the second period. After some big saves in each end of the ice the game headed into overtime where Svana_22 was the hero scoring the series winner from a partial breakaway. We got a chance to interview Mathias @Prolane Larsson after the series, where he shared his thoughts and told how believing in themselves played a big role in the comeback.     Road to the Championship Regular season: 13-4-0-5, 47 points, 1st in Group 3 and 4th overall. Round 1: 4-1 vs Technical Disaster Round 2: 4-2 vs HC VADELMA Quarterfinals: 4-1 vs Seinajoki Noms Semifinals: 4-1 vs Farmalaget Finals: 4-3 vs Setelikerho   Championship Roster David @DAFA_03 Halvorsen (C) Mathias @Prolane Larsson (A) Fredrik @Larzzon96 Larsson (A) Edvin @forreberra Bengtsson Andreas @Svana_22 Svanberg Benjamin @benjamint737 Tallgren Kalle @trikishash Sjoblom Kai-Remi @sneipmusic Berge Tobias @Pettersson18 Pettersson   Thank you for a great season and congratulations to your Champions Sunne IK Esport!