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If you're a member of the NHLGamer community, you've played against Rusty Blades. I considered writing "chances are" at first, but really - if you've been around the community for more than a few months you will have come across Rusty Blades in the matchup screen. Since the teams inception sometime before ECL 3, RB has been known - among other things - for its high level of activity. Annually at the top of the EASHL 6v6 leaderboards for games played, the Blades gradually started to climb those same leaderboards in the "Win" column as well. Practice makes perfect, they say, and it is my firm belief that no team - North American or European - played more games of EASHL 6v6 than Rusty Blades between their debut season in ECL 3 (18-25-3) and their next season; ECL 4 Pro. That season, they surprised many in the community by finishing third in their conference behind eventual Elite promotees Sjukstugan and Carlsberg HC. By also earning their promotion to Elite that season, RB proved that they were for real and that they were here to stay. Throughout their six-season run, the team has been led by the same man; @Tanski87 . For those of you who don't know Tanski, he's the hard-hitting, fast-passing #13 RD (and occasional C) you quickly learn to hate if you try to skate up the left wing against RB. A builder by trade, Tanski took his passion for constructing things and applied it to the construction of what eventually became a 6v6 EASHL team. Tanski87 aggressively barking orders as he skates up the ice, with a terrified MartindalexC looking on. With him for the duration of RB's ECL journey, Tanski has had his two lieutenants @Lamsa and @Supreex. Both known today to be top players at their respective positions RW and G, back when they started out they were just a group of guys trying to have fun by playing some EASHL. "Well, I have always believed that there should be no drama in a team", says Tanski as he returns from one of his customary smoke breaks between EASHL games. On this particular night - a few days before the start of ECL 8 - a disconnected matchup has paved the way for a longer break, allowing Tanski to answer some of my questions. "We have had success in this and I do believe we have made everyone feel comfortable playing in Rusty. Much of that is due to Lamsa and Supreex." I ask the RB captain to tell me a bit more about his two longest-tenured players. "Lamsa I have actually known each other since 7th grade in school. So my friendship with him reaches deeper than just this game we are playing together. As a player, Lamsa loves to score those goals. And he does have some unreal talent to score. It seems like he has no space and then boom - it's a goal." Long-time friends Lamsa and Tanski "comparing sticks" "He is also a fun guy in voice chat while playing. I do believe everyone who has played with him can agree with that." What about the man selected by all four Rusty Blade players interviewed so far to be the teams MVP? "Well, when talking about Supreex it would be foolish not to mention his skills as a goalie. One of the best, if not the best in this game. It seems like many agree with this. He was actually recruited from a Finnish gaming forum without having any 6v6 experience beforehand. He learned really quickly as he was not happy allowing goals." A man who does not like to allow goals. "Also, Supreex is a really competitive guy who hates to lose. Hates it. He has that in common with me. But his passion for the game is unmatched. I still vividly remember the ECL4 playoffs. We had just lost game 7 in overtime and Supi said that he would be out at least a week... but there he was the next day between the pipes of the Rusty net. That's passion, that's Supreex and that's Rusty Blades." At once, we are joined by a third player. With a voice deeper than the mariana trench, Lamsa announces his arrival. "Hello", he gravels. I ask the high-scoring RW some questions about previous seasons and his expectations for ECL 8. By utilizing a surprisingly effective mix of English, Finnish and profanity - with some translation help from his captain - Lamsa digs into the questions. The time spent playing EASHL has given Lamsa plenty of grey hairs. "Last season was quite a disappointment. The expectations were big after quite a good eSM tournament. Start of last season was really awkward for us. We didn't play as good as a team as we were able to and it kinda destroyed our chances that season. My own game was slow to get going and felt like a ride on a rollercoaster. Sometimes it felt like it was my first time on the ice and everything was new and difficult. What about this season? "I hope we can play a good season without too many bad phases. Expectations are high and I believe that we will be a playoff team. Even with so many roster changes? "Yeah. The changes have felt good. And big changes they are. I, of course, miss my old teammates but this new Rusty has been lots of fun to play with." Tanski chimes in. "I had a really good time with the old Rusty roster. Great guys and great times. But I am really thrilled about this new roster and change. And also really motivated off and on the ice. Only negative is that with this really short offseason we are still getting to really know each others on the ice. But still I have positive vibes." Just like @Foppatofflan and @MartindalexC, Lamsa is asked which ECL defenders he considers difficult to play against. After mentioning @DieCutterMC, @jtorro1233, @vatalisti, @Janzuh and @FakiiR1 he admits he's probably leaving a lot of skilled defenders out. "I'm really bad at remembering names, I can barely even remember the names of my own teammates." ***** Suddenly, the rest of the team is back. It is time to return to the EASHL grind - the same grind that has turned Rusty Blades and its longest-tenured members Tanski87, Lamsa and Supreex into forces to be reckoned with in the ECL community. The same grind that gives the trio hope that the sixth chapter in the Book of Rusty Blades will be the most successful one yet.

If this happens I need to change my real name to EVGENI BULJUJÄRVI..

Tournament that im waiting is cup mode. Just like FA cup. Lite teams could fight against pro and elite teams, maybe GCL and RCL and OEHL teams too. Making good price to winner with sponsors. Its would be so cool to see some lovable lite teams fightning against some big bad elite teams and making some beautifully stories! RCL teams starts from bottom with GCL, then comes lite teams, then pro and some elite and finally best elite teams would join. And just 2games and goal difference in series,so it wont disturb ECL seasons. And maybe someday we get some Nation competion here. But first step is cup! SRY that you need to read shit like this, but this is just my opinion.

I would just enforce players to use their real names or something related to your psn id so the commentators would know who scored, assisted the goal etc.

Yeah, this is where I am at. It helps broadcasters (Finnish or International) to quickly identify who scored and assisted by the names that show up next to the scoreboard right after a goal. My in-game name right now says "Riddick" and has for years and, sure, most people (in the community) can connect that to "The_Alpha_Furyan" because I've been around for a long time, but for a broadcaster coming in with no knowledge and just "The_Alpha_Furyan, LD #77" written down in his note - he's gonna wonder who the hell "Riddick" is. It's really just to simplify.

Those who know me probably could have guessed I voted No. I have two questions: Why & How? The latter probably needs some clarification. Would NHLGamer require all the players to send a copy of their passport? How would this data be handled and secured?

I view real names would 'look' more professional then random nickname for example 'Kuukerin Nelli'.

Old Farts In: imosi1 from SIKA

This really comes down to the divergence between hockey and "(e)-Sports" ( @MartindalexC), in my opinion. If you want to embrace the hockey aspect of EASHL and 6v6 gaming, you enforce player names. If you want to lean NHLGamer more towards esports, you have the players skate with their PSN-IDs on their backs. Personally, I don't care either way (and voted as such) but it is an interesting discussion. Good topic @gzell60

Best solution would imo be "- Kimbo_Slice", just have the PSN-ID as a surname and leave first name empty

I have to question this. Name me one actual esport that have this rule, please. Some, like CS GO, showcase the name of the players sometimes, along with theit GTs,, but nobody (I dare say) calls Get_Right Christopher Alesund during streams. There's a difference between esports and "real" sports, and esport should, from a marketing perspective, keep the differences between the two forms of competition to differentiate themselves from the other. I do agree regarding the more obscene gamertags, though. They dont help any scene that wants to be taken seriously..

Every esports games I have watched with commentary they have always been using the usernames.

Dynasty IN - s_a_k_i_s95 aka jeppiz18 aka V. Savela

The biggest broadcast in esport must be League of Legends, whereas they refer to every player with the online-ID, in our case PSN-ID. I’m pretty sure they have some rule set about the ID, or part of the ID, to somewhat be able to pronounce for the english casters and followers (as even the korean pros play by this standard). I think this should be the way to go. I am as much for real names but well.. All in all, Riot Games cast and broadcast is second to none and anyone who have watched EU LCS or Worlds knows it. Worth taking notes from IMO.

Having your ID set as your player's surname is worth a thought as well. I like it. Adding it to the poll is kind of late now though. I'll redo the entire poll instead.

The way I see it, the players on the ice are more like artists with an alias, and people have never had difficulties distinguishing between "Eminem" and "50 cent". In fact, I think the room for creativity makes it easier, not more difficult, for identifying players. I probably wouldn't remember half the players or their play-styles that I do now if they used authentic names.

Is it really so, though? It's pretty much impossible to see the names on the jerseys during play. On some jerseys it's even hard to see the number. The only time they really pop up is after a goal. Before the puck drops the names that are visible are actually PSN usernames, so in a sense it would be more streamlined and less confusing if the player names matched the PSN usernames. Alright, well that solves the data security issue. On the other hand, you wouldn't believe what kind of names exist in reality. For example, Tarzan is a legit first name in Finland.. 😀

Suomen Sonnit looking for backup goalie. Guaranteed chance to play some games Contact @Koski or @Temetsuka

Just like in every other esports the commentators go with usernames. Follow the industry standard

Have you retired again or are you playing? 😘😘

Okey. it's time for me with some rally English do something on this site without trolling. This site had a dream about "franchise teams" when they added the divisions some tournaments ago - how's it going NHLgamer??? This site is today talking about making this to an eSport, adding more divisions etc, but no one is talking about the format with two tournaments every year with 3 divisions, something that makes it hard for new teams to stay together (hard to get new players, because every free player is searching for a spot in ELITE or a free ticket with a top PRO-team, cuz they only have 2 opportunities every year to get to the highest division), and also makes us play this game competitive for only 6 months every year instead of 10-12. I think everyone knows the feeling between Mar and sep when there is nothing to play for, and the next tournament is 5 months away -> NHL is dead. New teams get created, the lego-knights from Finland is jumping around in the top-teams trying to find the best new (old) mix, teams are dying and pops up again. There are only 3 "Franchise teams" out there (from old gen) - Synergy, Northern Stars and 112 that still is playing together (sorry Written/SjK and Dynasty). This franchise-dream isn't working at all. Why not change the format? and also make it even more competitive? More tournaments/small tournaments every year! Like "Majors" or, let's call them "Gamers" to make it even more cringe. ---------------------------------------------------------- Maybe something like this?? Gamer Autumn (cute name) Group stage - Oct Playoffs - November December - Low season Gamer Winter Group stage - Jan Playoffs - Febr Mar - Low season Gamer Spring Group - Apr Playoffs - May June - Low Season GAMER SUMMER Group - July Playoffs - August Sep - Low Season (new game incoming) European champ = most won "Gamers" from sept -> august. (we can call them "Svamps" as well) --------------- Elite - 16 teams PRO - "40" Lite - rest (really doesn't matters) + 1. More tournaments -> more games -> makes it even more competitive. (maybe even a "light eSport" doh) 2. Every team gets a chance to play against the best and with the best every year 3. NHL will not "die" after the 2nd tournament (as it is today) 4. You don't need to wait for 1 or even 2 new NHL-versions before you can play in ELITE. With a good run can you actually start in LITE in September and be in ELITE for the 3rd tournament - if you deserve it) 5. Every tournament will matter. 6. 4 weeks break between every tournament. 7. this will not make "free playes" scared to join a team in PRO if there is a chance to actually build something good and then take the step up - 1. it's hard to play 4 tournaments with a small roster 2. YOU NEED TO PLAY DURING SUMMER (a problem if you're having a small roster.) 3. NO LONG tournaments, only small ones. 4 weeks for group stage, and 4 weeks for playoffs. --------------------------------------- Low seasons - there for teams to get new players and also play qualification rounds if there is a team dropping from any of the divisons. the admins will solve this part. Expected comments "we can't play during summer, have no motivation for that" - YES, YOU CAN! everyone is playing some EASHL here and there, and also summer cup during summer. And we're talking about making this an "eSport", if your motivation is the problem, will it always be allowed to play in the lower divisions. the "hardcore teams that is talking about eSport and contract with organizations will play". "We can't handle 4 tournaments with our amount of players" - GET MORE PLAYERS! "Our team will die with this format" - probably if you can't handle a bigger core, and can't give everyone ice time "this will kill many teams" - yes, Team ranked 1, 2 and 3 will be in need of more players (maybe not the NERDS/wadamove teams like Written and pleemakers team) and will probably take players from team 5,6,7-16 - but it will just make more players involved. And there are teams dying today with the format of ECL we're having -> Rad, Nor, FCM. "it's not fair that you need to win 2 or 3 "gamers" every year before you can call yourself a "champ"." - More legit than playing 2 tournaments with 2 different winners every year and a summer cup without any prestige. If it's enough for you to only win one of them, do it then. "are you drunk svamp"? - pyttelite --------------------------------------------------------------- I don't know if this is a good Idea, but I know that this format we're having today isn't better. Teams in LITE is asking for more games. Teams in PRO having problems with getting new players and teams in ELITE is dying. ------ Any other ideas? I'm free to listen.

Speedy Bros Hockey TuomoP83 from Tiki Talk is in da house!

We Kings In: Teroe94 from FA Maggre from N0 Name Ernottii from FA

First I didn't really care which way this goes. I'm all for real names, but now that someone brought up the discussion with other esports using usernames for identification in broadcasts I think that's the way to go here. Simple and fair for everyone.

Yea that works to, as long as it is your psn-id. But i still think its a tad anonymous

Love your example.

I think most people are missunderstanding this. Orelse it might be me. We’re talking about in-game names here. A player name, that in addition with our psn id (that isnt going anywhere) gives us a complete name + nick. Viktor ”cHIIMEERa” Ghamari in my case. Right? Or does people still in all seriousness prefer Kimbo ”Kimbo_Slice” Slice?

Poll adjusted, please cast another vote if you did already

Same in NBA 2K** which is very big in USA.

Add PSN-ID as an option into the poll pls

Well with this mindset no one would ever learn who anyone is im afraid. idk, call me boring for being for proper labeling, organisation and unity. It just helps to add to the professionalism on this page, which is what we're after here.

Playtired. 🌚

Supernatural In: Jimisebastian from Speedy Bros Hockey Out: kibenibe to free agents

Rajatorpan Mafia In: Pro-m99

Hello Sailors, Virtual Horizons eSports, start ECL 8 Pro vs Horror Hockey at 20:30 CET (21:30 CEST) (22:30 Moscow). Check it out on Twitch: www.twitch.tv/jaiken86 Our line up for tonight: @Motya_1 - @Khemnos - @Pair4You @MAYZIIX - @JaikenK @s_w1ld_rus #VirtualHorizonsGG Preview made by @MAYZIIX Virtual Horizons eSports Logo made by @cyberg

Murohoki (PRO) Looking for a RW. PM me here.

Cowabunga Hockey In: lYoushallnotPass from FA

FINAL!!! Magic Mushrooms vs. Red Light Zone BO3 Mushrooms played game using Beast Hockey (BHC), because many players has moved there to play ECL8. But roster was same that was registered to this tournament, of corse. It was tight games till The end. Magic Mushrooms - Red Light Zone 4-2 Red Light Zone - Magic Mushrooms 3-2 Magic Mushrooms - Red Light Zone 2-1 I thank teams who did play in this tournament, it was lot of fun. Torille!!!

After signing of @The_Alpha_Furyan and @pentsaa the search was still on. Rusty Blades wanted to get a player or players that would be a perfect match on how they like to play the game. There was several players trying in Rusty, none of them felt bad at all, it was not just the right time for them.  Season was getting closer, it was going to be a short off-season. Puzzle was almost ready but from where to get those couple missing pieces? Then it happened, like a lightning from the clear sky. Northern Ascendancy was no more. Opponent that was always(Cama Svamp, give some love.)enjoyable to play against, their players as a free agent. Could these be the missing puzzle pieces? Some nice pieces these would be. So @MartindalexC and @Foppatofflan was reached. These guys must have had so much offers, so many messages trying to recruit them. Tanski87: It was a real pleasure when I heard the news from both of these guys. There must have been many quality offers on the table, but they did choose us Rusty Blades. They are both really good players and I have been a keen fan of their passing game for a long time. We are still getting to know each other on the ice, but I have the most highest believes on how great we are able to perform as a team. Ode to the Joy shall be ringing in our opponents ears after everything clicks on their right places. MartindalexC #16 Another well known character in our community. He is from England. Worth to mention as it is not the most common country ECL players come from. MartindalexC is a force to be reckoned with his offensive skill set. Cunning forward who has his bag filled with tricks to surprise his opponents. Let´s give MartindalexC a chance to tell himself about how he found world of EASHL: MartindalexC: I’m not entirely sure what turned me towards EASHL in reality. My first experience of playing ‘NHL’ came through 2k10 I believe, then I played EAs NHL 10 offline for a bit, finally transitioning to NHL 11 EASHL sometime around Christmas 2010. As far as where I played before ECL, myself and @poliskontroll played 2s / 3s in 11. For 12 we moved up to 4s with @Juizki & his brother @TackleControl. Then, finally, we ‘graduated’ to 6s in 13 and joined up on consolehockey. After this came ECL and Northern Ascendancy participated in very first ECL. In ECL 2 MartindalexC played couple games in Sjukstugan, but after that it has been all about Northern Ascendancy/Unknown. MartindalexC has played 189 regular season games in ECL. He have scored 153 goals and has 210 assist. That is 363 points and it is 1,92PPG. In ECL5 He was the best goalscorer i elite and had the most points in regular season. Why Rusty Blades? A couple reasons. First and foremost, I wanted to keep playing with Foppa since I like getting in his way and trash talking his faceoffs, can’t put a price on teamplay and all that and what better way than to make someone question their life decisions? But nah, basically I’ve always liked how you guys try to focus on carrying out the simple stuff first, making sure that you have that down pat before attempting the complex. Additionally, I’ve wanted to play with Alpha for a few seasons now, plus I think that Supreex is one of the top 3 goalies in the game, in perpetuity, so you could say that helped. Hardest defenders to play against? Well, I wouldn’t go that far, most of what I do is get carried away with spins, curse out my passing, and get confused as to what I’m doing half the time. If I was forced to ‘name-drop’ however, well, in truth it’s somewhat difficult to really think of anyone since it’s tough to accurately gauge someone’s skill / ability from one off games for the most part. Of course, it could be hubris but in terms of defensive ability, I don’t think there is a lot separating most (if not all) defenders, offensive ability however is where the real difference is extremely apparent. How does the new Rusty roster feels after big changes? It feels pretty decent I suppose, there’s of course some kinks to be worked out but I don’t think we’re unique in that regard. Who has the most potential to be Rusty Blades MVP in coming season? With how this game is so incredibly slanted towards abysmal low scoring affairs, having a goalie who can make legit game saving plays is almost essential to win any game, so with that in mind my vote goes towards Supreex. Foppatofflan #44 This Swedish forward really knows what he is doing on the ice. Known from his absolutely great playmaking abilities but also as a sharp finisher. Foppatofflan is one the rare these days that started EASHL right when it was published in NHL09. Not too many know that Foppatofflan started his EASHL as a goalie and a defender. It was late of NHL10 when he tried out his wings as a forward, and those wings have out carried pretty well. He has 4 EHL wins in Unknown and one in The United Knights. ECL Elite victory is still to come, but it has been close with Northern Ascendancy. As stated before Foppatofflan is known to be a playmaker to watch out for and a finisher who can surprise his opponents with very limited space. He has an ability to see the ice and to make a fast decision, so even a hard pass looks like simple and easy. His defensive game might be a little underestimated, as he can make opponents life really hard with his positioning in neutral zone and in the defensive zone. One of the best attackers in the game. Foppatofflan has played 205 regular season games in ECL. representing Bombers Hockey in ECL1 and Northern Ascendancy aka Unknown after that. In these 205 regular season games he has scored 186 goals and has outstanding 243 assists. That is 2,1 points average in a game. In his 72 playoffs games the point scoring pace has not been slowed down much as it is 1,9 points in a game at playoffs. Foppatofflan was placed 3rd in points at ECL5 and 6. He won assists in ECL5 ans was second in ECL6. Why Rusty Blades? Activity, the chill mentality of everyone in the team and having a game plan that is close the what I am used too and that I enjoy playing. Hardest defenders to play against? On next gen its impossible to tell, it seems like defenders cant stand out as much defensively as they could a few years ago. There are a few insanely talented defenders now like @vatalisti but they are all great because of their insane offensive upside more than being able to shut down an entire wing defensively. Back then the defenders that f****d me up the most were probably @Supremski and especially @vSilenttio. Supremski was incredibly annoying and really good, but you could still get a few chances a game. Silenttio on the other hand was just impossible to play against, there was nothing you could do most of the time, his timings on pokes and hits were just stupid. It got so bad that whenever we ended up playing Sika I just told my Lw to switch wings with me in-game so I would not have to deal with him. How does the new Rusty roster feels after big changes? It looks pretty damn good on paper, have not had a chance to play with everyone yet, but people definitely knows what they are doing. We have had a bit of a rough start perhaps, but with so many new players its to be expected to take a while before we get everything working properly. I´m very optimistic for the season. Who has the most potential to be Rusty Blades MVP in coming season? Got to be @Supreex, he has the ability to just win us games single handedly. ________________________________________________ Thank you everyone for reading this, I do hope you enjoyed it. There is more to come! Remember to follow us on: https://twitch.tv/rustybladeseashl https://twitter.com/_RustyBlades_ https://facebook.com/RustyBladesEASHL

I'm actually impressed with the amount of thinking and composing you've done here Svamp. That's not bad at all. 👍 I agree to some extent here, and here's why. There's a core of 50 players who more or less circulate between around 10 or so teams. These are also the same players who talk about introducing money into the equation and the competetive side of the game. I don't blame them for doing so, but it sort of hurts the relationship between NHLGamer and the rest of the community. With a community as large as 5000+ players/accounts, you can't aim to please the 50. Now, if NHLGamer want's to become an eSport-platform, it has to have a much larger playerbase, smaller thresholds and less "binary"/generic gameplay. It has to be an including and welcoming community who adds value for the players who participate, regardless if they play in Elite, Pro, Lite or whatever. It doesn't neccessarily mean that it has to be money involved, it can and has to be other things. The vast majority of the players can't, don't want to or has no interest in becoming a full time pro NHL-player. They have other things to do. In my honest opinion, NHLGamer should be a community driven platform that appeals to the big masses. Lately I feel it has more and more shifted towards being elitist focused in order to please a few. I might be stepping on some toes for saying this, but the community will never be larger than the last player who decides to join it. I want to add that this criticism has nothing to do with anyone in particular. There's no one to blame here. I understand, know and appreciate all the hard work that all of the guys put into this everyday. You're doing this with your own free time and perhaps you feel that you want to take this to the next level. And if so, that's perfectly understandable.

Out : jimisebastian to Supernatural

kulmalahengaus out: seksileijona69

Poston Fruits In: Fuhrer Wuorio (Lw/Rw) from Tiki Talk