ECL '25: Winter - Pro | Playoffs: Round 1 Preview - ECL

It's time for the Pro playoffs. Here we'll be taking a short look at each matchup and how their regular season went. The first round will be featured on the SportsGamer broadcast on Tuesday, January 7th, where we'll have Gotham Knights and RYHTIC finishing their series (games 3-7).

Pro Division Playoff schedule (BO7)

Round of 16: January 6th – 9th
Quarterfinals: January 13th – 16th
Semifinals: January 20th – 23rd
Finals: January 29th – 30th

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DILAC (1) DILAC (19-3-2-6) - (8) Herlev Eagles (11-4-5-10)

DILAC managed to top Group 1 after a strong finish to the season. They seem to have found a very good balance within the team with each and every player contributing and the statistics are showing that. Their offense was led @punt1la98 with 39 goals. Another key for their success was their ability to turn tight games in their favor: Out of the 15 games decided by one goal they won 10. Herlev Eagles made their season interesting with a losing streak at the halfway of the season but just managed to get the wins needed to get to the playoffs. They picked up @MartindalexC mid season and he's been a crucial part of their offense and they will need him to produce in this series. DILAC definitely has the edge defensively in this series so Herlev defense and goaltending have to be on top of their game.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-0 DILAC

@Vamoux 4-2 DILAC

@Pekedipeks 4-1 DILAC

@Pensasmies 4-1 DILAC

(1) NOSTREETSPORTS (23-4-1-2) - (8) SSK ESPORTS (12-3-3-12)

NOSTREETSPORTS as the number 1 seed going into the playoffs was not something we had in our cards but after dominating their group here we are. @Toivone_ led the whole league in points and @Tumuttaja (xxHise) scored 50 goals to top the league. There are though some big question marks around this team and the lineup going into the playoffs. With @Bot_hene starting his military service @Tappu will be taking the center spot and @Gaabrielii will play his first games of the season in defense. This means an even bigger role for the league leading defenseman @Azzez_88 (8+51=59). Whether they can overcome these changes will be seen but it will be a tough challenge. Against them will be stepping up the best defensive team in the league in SSK Esports. Their offense is lead by @Rubituss and @zuppe_29 who both bring lot of experience to the table. SSKs keys for the series will be to limit the scoring chances of NOSTREETSPORTS, attacking effectively and capitalizing on the mistakes that the roster changes of their opponent will eventually bring.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-1 NOSTREETSPORTS

@Vamoux 4-2 NOSTREETSPORTS

@Pekedipeks 4-3 SSK ESPORTS

@Pensasmies 4-2 NOSTREETSPORTS

(2) Zenegeim (21-0-2-7) - (7) Ismon Valinta (10-6-5-9)

Zenegeim core group of players have been together for a quite a while now and they played a great regular season. They got a balanced offensive output from all their players and got solid defense and goaltending. @rakkauspakkaus- was leading the way with 68 points and @MCH_98 continued his impressive scoring numbers as defenseman. And we all know never to bet against @imosi as he scored 41 goals leading the team. Their goalies split the games this season but I'm expecting @jubex0r to get the starting role heading into playoffs. Ismon Valinta was one of the teams I was hoping a bit more from in the regular season. They were tied for the most overtime games with 11 and won 6 out of those. Playing quite low scoring hockey their leading scorer was @Jusu121 with 52 points. Their lineup shuffled quite a bit during the season and if their best players are available they could make a surprise run in the playoffs.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-0 Zenegeim

@Vamoux 4-2 Zenegeim

@Pekedipeks 4-2 Zenegeim

@Pensasmies 4-3 Zenegeim

POGGERS (2) POGGERS (17-2-4-7) - (7) The Oldtimers (14-2-0-14)

Poggers played very high scoring hockey finishing the season second in goals but also letting in the most goals out of any playoff teams, and by a large margin. @JaKurrii (47+47=94) and @Migo_boona (34+48=82) were their top scorers and @Terodee (LaurinHaavi) supported from defense with 51 points. There should be no question that this team will be able to adjust to the playoff style hockey with their experience. With the adjustment they'll be hoping also to bring the goalie numbers up a bit. The Oldtimers were leading their group at the start but slowed down towards the end of the season having won only 4 out of their last 12 games. Lot of their offense has gone through @Werppi with @japi_kuittaa being the main goal scorer. They've been strong defensively, tied for league best GAA, but they will need to step up for this new challenge. @TiSuLiNo had a good regular season in goal and will need to have a very strong series if they want to compete against POGGERS.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-0 Poggers

@Vamoux 4-0 Poggers

@Pekedipeks 4-1 Poggers

@Pensasmies 4-1 Poggers

(3) Gotham Knights (15-5-2-8) - (6) RYHTIC (13-4-4-9) RYHTIC

It is somewhat surprising to see these team facing off already on the first round and it will be a very disappointing season for the team coming out on the losing side of this matchup. Gotham Knights were looking to secure group victory but lost their last 6 games and slipped to third place. They did play against some of the top teams in their group but the opponent isn't getting any easier now. If their record 3-5-2 from last 10 games tells anything from their form they'll be in for a tough matchup. @Rimpe (40+29=69) will be their main guy to look out for in offense and he led the team in shots by a very large margin. @Kussan82 had a strong season in goal and he's hoping to bring that form into his first Pro playoff games. RYHTIC was one game away from making it into Elite before the season and now find themselves placing sixth in Group 2 and having a tough bracket. @Limbe65 had a strong season for them scoring 40 goals and he needs to get support from his offensive partners. They will also need a strong showing from their goalie in @JussinSisko and he's proven to able to do that.

Tune in to this series and its decisive moments on Tuesday, January 7th on the SportsGamer broadcast.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-2 Gotham Knights

@Vamoux 3-4 RYHTIC

@Pekedipeks 4-2 Gotham Knights

@Pensasmies 4-1 Gotham Knights

(3) HC Lugano eSports (15-4-4-7) - (6) NOVA (15-4-0-11) NOVA

For a long time it looked like HC Lugano eSports would be battling for the last playoff spots but their amazing end to the season lifted them all the way to third in Group 2. A lot of that is thanks to @xEispiratx who could arguably be the best goalie of the regular season. @jasomnajlepsi led the team with 40 goals with @CMB-wf- doing lot of the playmaking. The biggest question for this team is their defense. @Yasu39x played most of the season but he has had three different defensive partners throughout the season. He hasn't been the strongest with the puck and that is something that NOVA could be trying to take advantage of. NOVA is to no ones surprise led by @KingOfApes_ who finished second in defenseman scoring and does most of the playmaking in the team with @Nester4343 being their main offensive guy to finish those chances. They'll be wanting to play with lot of pressure and if they manage that it could turn the series in their favor.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-1 NOVA

@Vamoux 4-3 HC Lugano eSports

@Pekedipeks 4-1 NOVA

@Pensasmies 4-2 NOVA

Otukset (4) Otukset (15-4-2-9) - (5) Bjorkloven Esport (13-5-5-7)

Otukset find themselves exactly where most people expected to find them. Playoff success has avoided them in the past and they'll be looking to turn that around. They had all around a solid season with every player performing well. @Roisto999 had a terrific season in goal with 82.5%, 2.27GAA and 5 shutouts. They also got great goalscoring numbers from all over the ice and that will be a key if they want to have a long playoff run. Bjorkloven Esport went into the season with high hopes but the reality of Pro division brought them down a little bit. @Alpha borje is a key player in their offense and he posted 40 goals and 73 points in the regular season. It looks like they haven't been able to find that last piece to the puzzle and that could hurt them down the way. They're though a team full of young and skilled players and if everything goes right they could find themselves far in the playoffs.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-3 Bjorkloven Esport

@Vamoux 4-2 Otukset

@Pekedipeks 4-3 Otukset

@Pensasmies 4-2 Bjorkloven Esport

Aspyre (4) Aspyre (16-3-0-11) - (5) Blackbirds (13-5-5-7)

Aspyre could be considered another surprise of the season and they were one of the best offensive teams in the league. @Tihizu (41+49=90) is the heart and soul of the team and the game mostly runs through him. His time with puck, 191.5 minutes, tops the league, and rest of the team being around 90 minutes tells you who to watch out for. @IJepuxI and @Jomppe78 gave strong support with 78 and 75 points. If they can take this offensive form to the playoffs they could be a dark horse to look out for. Blackbirds played lot of tight games during the regular season and managed to turn enough of them in their favor. @aomyo6195 scored 41 goals which was half of the teams goals. They will need to find some secondary goalscoring support if they want to take the next step. @Jeerik17 in goal is able to steal a game for them but they'll need strong defense to support him along with stronger special teams. This is definitely a team to look out for in the future but whether they're up to the task now, will be seen.

Predictions:

@hifk_FANI 4-0 Aspyre

@Vamoux 4-3 Aspyre

@Pekedipeks Plays for Aspyre

@Pensasmies 4-3 Aspyre

Follow the Playoff streams:

Please post dates, times and links for streams in the comments of this news story and social media, to help everyone find your team streams.

You can watch SportsGamer's live coverage of the first round matchup between RYHTIC and Gotham Knights on Twitch, YouTube, and X on Tuesday, January 7th.