AHJO Esports' new NHL roster aims high in the Pro division

AHJO Esports becomes the newest organization to enter NHL Esports, as they sign the former Dynastia roster just in time for the ECL ‘22 Spring season. The team had a great showing in the winter season earlier this year and is hungry for success moving forward.

Formed in 2021, AHJO is a rather young Finnish esports organization hailing from Helsinki, Finland. From before the organization holds a CS:GO roster, currently ranked at #276 by HLTV.org, and with their new signing, they are now looking to branch out and gain success on more fronts.

“The mission of AHJO Esports is to through sustainable and long-term commitment create the possibility for our players to grow towards not only the domestic elite, but also the international elite. NHL Esports is booming right now and we felt that this would be the right moment to expand for us. Priority number one in our first season is to make the playoffs.” - Peetro Aittola, General Manager at AHJO Esports.

The former Dynastia team itself is the brainchild of captain Eemil @Eeemill_ Törnvall, who started competitive NHL gaming back in early 2019 and decided to form his own team right from the get-go. The team started their current run in ECL 11’s Lite division, but there’s been a lot of roster turnover and in fact, the only remaining member since then is the captain himself. Despite the turnover, the team has seen incremental success and after a surprise Quarterfinals run in ECL ‘22 Winter and a close 4-3 series loss at the hands of eventual runner-ups Reality Check, they are now hungry for a real shot at promotion.

“After the first Lite season the team actually disbanded for a bit. However, after finding out about the chance to qualify for Pro through the wildcard spot, we started the rebuilding process. It ended up being very challenging but we managed to pave our way to Pro and eventually to the playoffs. After that we have made changes to our team to match our playstyle and for the last two tournaments our core has stayed intact, which is starting to pay dividends.” - Team captain @Eeemill_

After their great ECL ‘22 Winter campaign, the team lost standout performer Väinö @Pikkardz Pikkarainen, but managed to replace him Arttu @TheArska Aarnio, who joins the squad after a long stint with Reality Check. While the two players were almost identical in terms of production last season, Arska played on the center position, which is where he will play in the new AHJO roster. Captain @Eeemill_ speaks very highly of their new signing: “We’ve only had few weeks to practice with Arska and he has been a great fit for our team. He’s a great two-way player with a strong net front presence. I think he'll help us turn tight games in our favor when it really matters with his ability to read the game and be in the right place at the right time.”

@Eeemill_ is confident about the squads chances this season, and is very excited about continuing their journey representing new colors: “Our sights are strongly set towards gaining the spot in Elite. We have a strong group of players and after last seasons experience we have a better understanding what is really needed to take the big step. Our first focus will be reach the playoffs and the challenge the other top teams in Pro for the spot in Elite division.”

You’ll see the new AHJO roster in action for the very first time already on Monday, April 4th, as the puck drops for the new ECL ‘22 Spring Pro season.