ECL '24: Spring - Pro Semifinals Preview

Only four teams remain in the Spring edition of ECL '24 - which two will we see in the Finals? Read on to find out our predictions!

SERIES 1:

Falun Coal Miners (1) Mustaa Kultaa (10)

In the previous round, both teams took a different road to the semifinals, Mustaa Kultaa overcoming a 3-1 series deficit versus TIKI TALK winning 3 games in a row and showing some real grit in their game. Falun on the other hand did not choke, they took a convincing lead in the series against Golden Sticks, who really fought back and won 2 games in overtime, but in game 6 Falun ran away with it and closed out the series.

Falun who play a physical game, can really annoy their opponents with their style of play, with close to 300 hits in these playoffs their opponent should get some extra padding before they step on the ice for game 1 of the series. @Smayk99 taking the faceoff game seriously in these playoffs, with an impressive 56,1% faceoff percentage, @xHatsi being below the coveted 50% mark could be a dealbreaker. This team has a well-rounded roster and can fire on all cylinders if need be, and Mustaa Kultaa will be dealing with a whole different kind of team in this round.

When a team has momentum in this video game, it’s a force to be reckoned with, Mustaa Kultaa winning 3 straight shows that they really want to win, they’re loaded with confidence and will surely project that into this series. @Allupekkaz taking the biggest responsibility in offense for this team with his 19 points (9+10) in these playoffs shows that his start in Goons wasn’t a mistake, but that he can lead a team far. Mustaa Kultaa have been blessed with the new signing of @LatveX, the wonder goalie who is playing in only his second ECL season and has taken it upon himself to make Elite teams wonder if his services are needed in the highest division in the future, but for now he is stealing games for Mustaa Kultaa left and right, however, their Swedish foes are a well-organized team that can make goalies wish they never turned their consoles on.

We had a chance to talk with the assistant captain  @Buffy for Falun coal Miners before and the assistant captain for Mustaa Kultaa, @Allupekkaz before the series - here's what they had to say:

What do you know about your upcoming opponent, and who is the difference maker on their team?

BuffyXll: "Obviously they have loads of talent being one of the teams who were eligble for the preseason Elite Qualification rounds. They have plenty of firepower and proved that by knocking out a team like TikiTalk. Mustaa Kultaa's playoff seed doesn't really reflect the teams higher levels of play, if they put in that sixth gear., they're hard team to stop."

Allupekkaz: "Falun is an extremely dangerous team in the offensive zone, they can turn the puck quickly into offense and move the puck really well there with the help of their defenseman. Furyan is a player who can decide a series with his experience and hockey-iq."

How will you prepare for the series?

BuffyXll: "We've had a couple of days off coming out of a really fun playoff round vs Golden sticks. There is still some time for us to get some practice done and talk about the choices we've made in life."

Allupekkaz: "We'll practice one day, and then see how the opponent plays and make necessary changes."

What will it take for your team to advance to the finals?

BuffyXll: "We need to play our own game and trust our process. We shall keep pushing forward no matter what the costs may be. We shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in our play. We shall never surrender. "

Allupekkaz: "Tight defense and smart choices in the offensive zone, we'll try to minimize our mistakes and capitalize on theirs."

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI: 2-4 Mustaa Kultaa 

@Juhaniz-: 4-3 Falun Coal Miners 

@jubex0r: 4-3 Falun Coal Miners 

@Pensasmies: 4-3 Falun Coal Miners 

Player to watch: @LatveX

Watch the series live:  twitch.tv/CoalMinersTV, twitch.tv/allupekkaz

SERIES 2:

(7) RYHTIC vs Almost Famous (8)

Both teams took it to themselves to take down a higher-seeded opponent, RYHTIC in 6 games vs Poggers, and Almost Famous bested the German powerhouse Deadly Phantoms in 5 games. With the two teams facing off in the regular season, whereas Almost Famous drew the longer straw, taking 5 out of 6 possible points, will this turn out to be the edge they need to take their talent all the way to the Final?

RYHTIC comes in after a good quarterfinal matchup, where they blew out a good Poggers team 6-1 in the deciding game of the series. Now they take on a similar opponent in Almost Famous, who can take their game to their opponent. Can the likes of @MCH_98 & @Sagee95 stop the high octane offense that is Almost Famous? In offense RYHTIC showed they’re not just one of the best defensive teams in Pro, but can take out teams with their goalscoring, @Limbe65 with 14 goals so far this postseason ranks 3rd in that category in these playoffs so far, with his impressive goal scoring touch he’ll be looking to add a lot more, with all forwards on this team playing a 200-foot game, Almost Famous might just find out that scoring is harden then it was before.

When a team can play like Almost Famous can, it comes with certain expectations that results will follow, they can take on almost any team in ECL offensive wise, in 5 games against Deadly Phantoms they conceded 16 times, considering the opponent they have now, and their talents in their own zone, @grontti88 and his SV% of 74,56 needs to be better.

Whilst defense wins championships, this team has the ability to score, so if the defense isn’t there, they might just out-score their opponents anyway, creative forward @ikavalko and offensive defenceman @Jalkkin- who spearhead this offense, can make any team weak in the knees. It's the classic tale of offense vs defense, which will prevail?

We had a chance to talk with the RYHTIC captain @yrjoo and the Almost Famous captain @Ikavalko before the series - here's what they had to say:

What do you know about your upcoming opponent, and who is the difference maker on their team?

Yrjoo: "They are in great form, and played very well so far in these playoffs. They have a great player in every position, but have to pick out Rikardo, just a few seasons ago he played in Neo and now he's fighting for a spot in Pro Finals."

Ikavalko: "I haven't really followed RYHTIC this season, but I'd say they have a lot of "pass-first" kind of players, so their weakness would be their lack of players to make a difference in a series, with the exception of @MCH_98, he can really make a difference with his offense, however, we'll try to make him make mistakes and when we do, the game will turn around really quickly."
 

How will you prepare for the series?

Yrjoo: "The same way as any other series."

Ikavalko: No need to reinvent the wheel here, we'll do our thing and keep the flow going. Focus on our thing and only that is what got us this far."

What will it take for your team to advance to the finals?

Yrjoo: "If we just keep playing the way we have, we'll have a great chance to advance."

Ikavalko: "Smart defense and puck control is what we're focusing on, pressing in the right areas at the right time is how we'll take this series. I think our trickery, creativity, and puck control are better than RYHTIC. They are clearly the better team on defense so we won't take that battle."

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI: 4-2 Almost Famous 

@Juhaniz-: 4-3 RYHTIC 

@jubex0r: 4-3 RYHTIC 

@Pensasmies: 4-3 RYHTIC 

Player to watch: @JussinSisko

Watch the series live:  twitch.tv/yrjoo,  twitch.tv/mkine

FOLLOW THE ECL PRO PLAYOFFS LIVE

You can watch live coverage of the Pro Division Quarterfinals on Twitch, YouTube, and X on Tuesday, June 11th.

Additionally, you can follow the teams' own coverage using the links provided above.

Who do you think will win each series? Are there any key points or factors that we may have not covered? Let us know in the comments!