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The first round of the ECL' 25: Spring - Core Playoffs has now been completed, and as in every season, there were surprises in this round. Going into the first round, the clear favorites were the teams that won their own regular season groups: HC Purijat, Armeijan Kuri, Harhapassi, and Dynamo HC. Of these, the only one who managed to get a sweep was Purijat. When it comes to surprises, third-placed Harhapassi struggled when they faced a team called Mieskissat. Mieskissat, which barely made it to the playoffs in their own group as the last qualifier, did not let the preconceptions affect their performance, but focused on bringing their best to the series despite being clear underdogs, and they managed to shock the Harhapassi team. Some other surprising results were seen, for example, in the series Sopranos vs. Nordic Knights, where Sopranos were also expected to advance directly, but the opposite happened. Let's go through some of the first round results and successful players. HC Purijat - TeNo (4 - 0) Purijat was a clear favorite going into this series, and the first-placed team in the entire regular season did not disappoint. The first two games ended with a goal difference of 10-3, as the team secured clear wins on the first match day with results 5-2 and 5-1, and on the second match da,y the advancement was secured with results 5-1 and 7-3. Successful players: @nuariatte 10+5 @Tuhoaja542 9+3 @Japemode 86.79% 1.75 GAA Armeijan Kuri - Zamboni Zorros (4 - 1) Armeijan Kuri showed excellent team play in the regular season, scoring just over 4 goals per game and conceding only 2.17 goals per game. The same continued in the first round of the playoffs. 25 goals scored and only 10 conceded indicated a huge difference in team play between the teams, and Zamboni Zorros simply could not match this. An easy 4-1 series win and Armeija marches on to the second round. Successful players: @hefezuk85 6+12 @MutainenMalik 10+7 @WIRTAAZKIN47 6+10 @kasuri1 88.1% 2 GAA Harhapassi - Mieskissat (2 - 4) As mentioned earlier, the favorite to advance from this series was Harhapassi. The team won their group while Mieskissat barely made it to the playoffs, yet they were able to give full resistance. The series surprisingly started with two straight wins by the underdog, though the games were close (5-3, 2-4). Harhapassi managed to open their win count only in the third game by beating Mieskissat in overtime 4-3. Mieskissat then immediately returned to the winning track with a high-scoring game 6-3, and Harhapassi narrowly won the next one 1-0. In the last encounter, many goals were scored as Mieskissat secured the upset with a 7-5 win. Successful players: @majavanaama50 10+7 @karhuperuna 5+10 @Muro (Murotkulhoss) 6+8 @Timo Silakka (SilakanTimo) 8+5 Dynamo HC - Siniviiva Snipers (4 - 1) Dynamo HC, placed fourth in the regular season, faced Siniviiva Snipers. Contrary to expectations, the games were surprisingly close. Three games ended 2-1 and two ended 3-1, with Dynamo HC winning the series 4-1. This series was entirely a goaltender battle, with keepers keeping the games tight until the end. For this reason, both goalies had to be included among the successful players. Successful players: @grontti88 86.64% 2 GAA @Calxm41 91.67% 1.4 GAA @Harten7 4+4 Conexion - Backcheck Boys (4 - 1) Conexion, which finished second in their group with the same points as the group winner, faced the worst-ranked seventh team. Conexion advanced convincingly to a 3-0 series lead, until Backcheck Boys managed to turn Game 4 in their favor 6-4. This was a very rare result since Conexion had only conceded 1.58 goals per game in the regular season. Somewhat angered by this, Conexion scored 7 goals in the final match and advanced to the second round. Successful players: @Jaks_10 (Jaksii_) 8+10 @Sweden2233 (SwedenFtW99) 8+9 @Jon LoL (itsWalsy) 7+5 Skyfall - HC Korobka (4 - 2) Skyfall, which was very strong in the regular season, scoring the second most goals of all teams, had to fight until the sixth game against HC Korobka. The key factors for Skyfall’s series win were Mikse94 and stu_rulez. In 6 games, these gentlemen scored a total of 20 goals and 25 assists against Korobka, sealing Skyfall's advancement. Successful players: @Mikse94 12+11 @stu_rulez 8+14 @lordkomar91 13+6 Nordic Nosebleed - Wildcats esports I (4 - 0) Looking at Nordic Nosebleed's roster, highlighting players like Eliekamel_ (who has previously played at Elite and Pro levels), Jean-Claes (a goalie with 85% save percentage at ECL 24 Winter and ECL 25 Winter Core levels), and cherrykicks (experienced at Lite level), the 4-0 series win was not surprising. Nordic Nosebleed, which has played nearly 700 ECL games, took an easy 4-0 series win and can confidently await their next opponent. A surprise was that the experienced Eliekamel did not play any games in the first round; only the team knows why. Successful players: @Lidaas79 8+7 @Sayatu14 5+5 @Jean-Claes 83.67% 2 GAA VBO Stars - Pulp Odyssey (4 - 2) The VBO and Odyssey series was predicted in favor of VBO mainly due to VBO’s scoring efficiency and defensive play. This was confirmed during the series where VBO conceded only three or more goals in two games, while their regular season GAA was 2.6. Odyssey managed to keep their GAA under the regular season average only once. VBO scored 20 goals in six games against Odyssey, which was too much for Pulp Odyssey. The series’ top scorer was nilsson04_, who scored half of VBO Stars’ goals. Successful players: @Nilsson04_ 10+4 @Valosaari92 9+4 @Liimp_92 84.47% 2.67 GAA Viitapohja Vikings - Beer Bears (3 - 4) Viitapohja Vikings met the already familiar Beer Bears, with both teams having played in the same group. The regular season game ended with points going to the Vikings, winning the first game clearly 6-3 and turning the second game in overtime 6-5. The playoff series provided entertainment all the way to the seventh game. Viitapohja started with two straight wins with a goal difference of 9-2, but Beer Bears responded with two wins of their own with a goal difference of 10-3. The series went to a decisive seventh game where defenses were forgotten and a scoring competition started, which Beer Bears won 9-6. Successful players: @Tolliikkii (Tolliikkii) 14+6 @Atte Mathlin (SpeedyMcQueen64) 9+9 @Liimiz 10+8 Fallen Rangers - Auramo Hockey Club (4 - 1) Fallen Rangers is a team made up of players from Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Despite limited ECL experience, the team showed strong performance already in the regular season, finishing third in their group and maintaining a very high goals scored average (GF/GP: 5.21), indicating a very strong offense, but with some defensive weaknesses as they conceded just over three goals per game. Fallen Rangers defeated Auramo Hockey Club 4-1 by being more efficient offensively. How their scoring stands out in the second round will be interesting to see. Successful Players: @Sebko99 4+4 @Kiso69 5+1 @X-STE3FANO-X 85.19% 3GAA Sopranos - Nordic Knights (2 - 4) Sopranos’ player roster compared to Nordic Knights was like night and day. With experience at all series levels, including Elite and Pro, combined with a very strong goalie, Sopranos were expected to dominate. Nordic Knights’ roster mainly consisted of players who have played at NEO, CORE, and LITE levels, so the expectations for this Swedish team were not high. Knights got into trouble early when Sopranos won the first two games to take a 2-0 lead. The third game (the turning point of the series) went into overtime, which Knights won in the final moments with less than 4 minutes left in the first overtime. The games continued tightly, but with four straight wins (2-3 OT, 3-2, 3-4, 3-2), Knights surprisingly advanced to the second round. Successful players: @Jjomppa (jjombbaa) 7+6 @Elis is real 5+7 @sk1y 4+6 Prowlers - Taifun Veterans (4 - 1) Prowlers is also a team with many PRO-level players, so the favorite status was unquestionable. The player quality was the biggest deciding factor here, as Prowlers sent Taifun Veterans home in five games with a goal difference of 29-15. mayX-swe’s excellent faceoff percentage (59.1) combined with the team’s cohesive offense secured an easy 4-1 series win. Successful players: @RHannu 9+15 @mayX-swe 8+14 @jokkz- 11+7 HC Lisko - Bare Knuckles Hockey (2 - 4) There was no clear favorite in this series, and this was reflected on the ice. Goals were scored by both teams, and the series could have gone either way. This time Bare Knuckles Hockey’s efficient duo Taikatomi and GoDe45 managed to turn the series in their favor. Especially prolific goal scorer Taikatomi scored 10 of the team’s 22 goals. Successful players: @taikatomi 10+7 @GoDe45 3+13 @Vertti91 5+7 HC Vilttimiehet - Nam3less (4 - 2) The Vilttimiehet - Nam3less series was the second goaltender battle of the first round, with few goals scored. Both teams played excellent defense, and with good goaltending as a lock, it was a very tight series. HC Vilttimiehet succeeded better in these close games and won the series 4-2. Successful players: @s-ultz-i 87.64% 1.83 GAA @Jiihooo86 91.25% 1.17 GAA @Deussi_ (DeusManiz) 6+2 @Jnmxxx (jimmiNOhands) 4+2 Kelagoldcard HC - Surte Sisu HC (4 - 0) The series was fairly balanced going in, and there was no clear favorite. However, Kelagoldcard HC showed themselves to be the team wanting the second-round spot more. Kelagoldcard HC advanced with results (2-4, 3-2, 2-3, 6-2). Successful players: @karjalainensamul 82.22% 2 GAA @Leevijopo01 6+5 @1mmu9 6+4 @SWE_KARLSSON16 4+3 Capetown Kings - Koppibuutti (4 - 1) My personal opinion was that this series would go to game 7. However, Capetown managed to turn a first-game loss into a four-game winning streak. The games were not clear except for the 4-1 win, as the other matches were relatively low scoring and ended with a one- or two-goal difference or went to overtime. Capetown Kings used two goalies in the series, with Randomjanne playing well, supported by good defense. The other goalie, Jorkka82, had a save percentage of 80.6% and conceded 6 goals in three games, while Janne had 85.71% and three goals against. Successful players: @Jonza1990 (Hatsigaboom) 5+8 @sambleri 4+7 @Randomjanne 85.71% 1.5 GAA Playoff round 2 matchups! All matches from the first round have now been played, and the teams are ready to fight for a spot in the top eight. Here are the upcoming matchups, and we await to see whether there will be surprises in this round as well, or if the teams who played excellently in the regular season will take the wins. HC Purijat vs Mieskissat Armeijan Kuri vs Beer Bears Dynamo HC vs Nordic Knights Conexion vs Bare Knuckles Hockey Skyfall vs Capetown Kings Nordic Nosebleed vs Kelagoldcard HC VBO Stars vs HC Vilttimiehet Fallen Rangers vs Prowlers