NHLGamers,

We asked ten team captains or alternates to tell us about their roster and ambitions for this second iteration of ECL Neo. In order to guarantee maximum objectivity we specify that these ten teams were chosen randomly, even Cancun Pirates, it’s promised ;). In a Neo division of 84 teams spread across 9 groups, we wanted to give the word to the teams in order to present themselves. This very succinct presentation will be followed, in a few weeks, to a more in-depth approach once the first games have delivered their verdict.

 Varissuon Toverit with @Kimiz1993

How did you compose your team?

“We have known each other for a long time and have played a lot of games together - now we are here.”

What is your game philosophy?

“Just play and don’t complain.”

What is your main strength?

“Our main strength is MO-DO - Gema Tanzen, it’s a song”

What is your main weakness?

“Our mental strength after losing a game.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“We want to proceed to the playoffs.”

 Redlight Jokers with @Steve

How did you compose your team?

“After the GCL season, we had a little break. Some guys decided to join other teams, so we had to look for new members. At first, it wasn't easy but at least we can say that we found some great players with a good personality and who can play more positions. We first thought that we didn’t have enough defensemen, but managed to sort out the situation. Our goalie @Christoph Kugler decided to go to Puck Panthers, but luckily he returned to us before the season. We think that we can be competitive for the new season.”

What is your game philosophy?

“We are Jokers, we want to have fun on the ice and to break some bones by laying heavy hits, LOL. Well seriously, attack wins games but defense wins championships, so we will stay good at D, take our chances on attack in different ways, not only with the same scheme. We are good for some strange and crazy action on the ice. We are not afraid to play against great opponents, because we want to develop our game, step by step. We just want fair games and to have fun.””

What is your main strength?

“Our team spirit, we will never give up even if there is a big difference on the scoreboard. We have some talented players who can make a difference, goalscorers, playmakers and some weapons on the ice. All of us have a good mentality, that can push the other player in case of a bad situation. We are so glad that Kuglach is back in the net, because he performed incredibly during the GCL season. One Joker for all, all for one Joker!”

What is your main weakness?

“If we get a powerplay situation, we are too hectic and we do not play enough to move the opponent in the slot to find the free spaces. On breakaways we look for nice goals too often. A simple goal is too easy for a Joker LOL. In some situations, we play too slow or have too much of a big space between the attacker and defender. But mistakes are a part of the game and we will fight us back. If we have a big lead, our concentration can be lost.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“First of all, we want to have a good start for the season, with great games and no troubles. Our goal is to qualify for the playoffs. We have a good team and we think we have a good chance to punch that ticket. We must fight/play as a team. Our second goal is staying tight on defense, which was our big problem in the past. Finally, we wish all teams good and fair games, but as Jokers we have always a trick in our pocket, LOL.”

 Cancun Pirates with @IsaaDePo

How did you compose your team?

“To be honest, it started as a joke because we were not supposed to join this ECL and finally with the quarantine, it became something serious. Our team is mainly composed of guys that played for Cancun Pirates during ECL 6 and we added some new faces, two of them will play their very first ECL.”

What is your game philosophy?

“Tripping penalties and shooting straight on the opponents goalie, mainly. To be serious, we only focus on having fun together, between a bunch of good and long time friends.”

What is your main strength?

“Having a member of NHLGamer’s staff on our team… And also the great atmosphere that prevails in our group. We really don’t care about winning or losing, except @Steve Yzerman, our captain…”

What is your main weakness?

“We have so many weaknesses, if not we would play in Elite like our good friends GHETTO FIREBIRDS who were in the same group as us during ECL 6. Well, to be honest we can lose our concentration very fast and very often.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“Nothing but having fun, about the results and standings - we don’t care at all. And we will cheer for our buddies Hawks Olympique HC and Grenoble BDL Esport, the two other French teams in ECL 10.”

 Masiina with @joujami

How did you compose your team?

“We are all friends IRL.”

What is your game philosophy?

“We focus on icing a good defense and striking hard on offense.”

What is your main strength?

“Our defense, definitely.”

What is your main weakness?

“We need to be better at converting on our scoring opportunities.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“We want to qualify for the playoffs.”

 Black Ice Guards with @miitu87

How did you compose your team?

“Voiko nää kysymykset saada suomeksi LOL”

What is your game philosophy?

“We try to make the guys better players for solo and team play, while having fun, keeping a good atmosphere and helping those of us who never played in the ECL.”

What is your main strength?

“Our team as group, mainly. I’m so proud of all the guys in my team.”

What is your main fault?

“Well, my weakness is that I have no idea of what I have to do as a team captain and to handle the whole tournament things, LOL.” (check out this post for advice!)

What are your ambitions for this season?

“Making my team a friendly and lovely family, and if possible, join the playoffs.”

 Good Fellas with @Nemli-SVK

How did you compose your team?

“I had problems with my previous team so I decided to put some good guys together and I’m happy with this new team.”

What is your game philosophy?                       

“Be smarter than our opponent.”

What is your main strength?

“We always try our best to have fun together.”

What is your main weakness?

“Mainly letting out focus slip and also some bad days sometimes.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“We want to be smart and win against rival teams.”

 Maximum Effect with @feertiiga

How did you compose your team?

“I just decided to create a team and a lot of my friends wanted to join in.”

What is your game philosophy?

“To just have fun while playing and keeping a good mood.”

What is your main asset?

“We have fun while playing and we also have fun while losing.”

What is your main weakness?

“We are not good at keeping a good overview of the game.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“We wan’t to be as high as possible in the standings.”

 Bauer Rangers GmbH with @SirScheissa1ot

How did you compose your team?

“We wanted to rebuild something with some good friends.”

What is your game philosophy?

“Stay strong at defense and work hard at the offense, LOL”

What is your main strength?

“As a new team, we had very successful times, we reached the playoffs in the ECL9 Neo and the GCL5 Div2. We‘re working hard, playing a lot together and trying to keep improving.”

What is your main weakness?

“When we are challenged like what happened for us in the GCL, we‘re sometimes playing low-skill hockey.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“Our ambitions should be to reach the maximum of ourselves. But the ECL can be very tricky because of the new teams joining. We are one of them, but we‘re thinking the playoffs can be possible.”

 Fearless Knights with @CzE Toni & @Zimowski95

How did you compose your team?

“We have carefully considered and put our team together. So that our boys personalities mesh well in the locker room, but we also need to be a team where you can play at a very high level.”

What is your game philosophy?

“Forcing our opponents on our playing style and then punishing their mistakes mercilessly.”

What is your main strength?

"Our team is extremely strong in character and fights to the end. Therefore, it is possible for us to overturn even a high goal differential."

What is your main weakness?

“Our main weakness is that we don't have one.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“Take it game by game and get into the playoffs. From the playoffs everything is possible.”

 NHL4You Gaming with @Hohner

How did you compose your team?

“When @Tornado.hr and me met one evening at the party to play we had the idea to build a team together. The name was also quickly found "NHL4you Gaming" NHL4you is our 1vs1 league and under their name we will start our journey. We asked some players from our old clubs as well as some friends and so we put our team together.”

What is your game philosophy?

“Never give up and keep on fighting.”

What is your main strength?

“Our main strength is that nobody knows us.”

What is your main fault?

“We are a new team and not yet so well established - it will take some time.”

What are your ambitions for this season?

“We want to reach the semi-finals of ECL Neo with this squad of experienced Lite and Pro players.”


There you go! We wanted to give the reigns of this article to the captains themselves and hopefully you have now become a bit more acquainted with some of the teams that are battling through our Neo division this season. Remember guys, play hard - have fun!

NHLGamers,

The first few gamedays of ECL 10 Elite are in the rearview and boy, have we been treated to some exciting action already! There's lots more to come and the same goes for out preview series, in which we overviewed "Contenders, Swedes and Newcomers" last time around. In the third and last part, we'll discuss the remaining teams, which consist of:
 

Brayce Phantoms and Almost Famous both saw disappointing results in ECL 9 by finishing 15th and 14th – both relegation spots. To make matters worse, both teams were defeated by hungry Pro teams in the promotion/relegation series; Brayce by Vesa as mentioned in our previous article and Almost Famous by Gotham Knights. 

But these teams weren’t going down without a fight. 

With the situation unclear for a number of teams going into ECL 10 Elite, two eventually decided they wouldn’t participate in the season due to disbandment: PARRU and Butterfly Effect. This led to a scramble to fill the two spots – resulting in the ECL 10 Elite Qualification Series. Brayce Phantoms, Almost Famous, TIKI TALK, Leksand IF, Växjö Lakers, Reality Check, Black Horse and Kaupallinen Yhteistyo were all given another chance to prove they belonged in Elite. 

Brayce, Almost Famous, Kaupallinen Yhteistyo and Reality Check qualified from the group stage which led to the matchups: Brayce vs. Kaupallinen, and Almost vs. Reality. Here the former Elite teams really stepped up and won their series 4-1 and 4-0, respectively – displaying an impressive amount of psychological strength after being “down and out” for such a long time. 

As for the teams’ rosters, much of Brayces gameplay still revolves around playmaking genius Simon @PlaymakerSJ Junker at center, but the recent addition of Stephan @Krinke Krinke at LW could prove to be an interesting one as the man has proven to be a dependable goal-scorer in recent times.

For Almost Famous, the players behind its revival are primarily assistant captains Janne @jahajaha93 Tarvonen and Joni @Tzon93 Tuovila whereas captain Aaro @Ikavalko Ikävalko will be spending the rest of the year serving in the Finnish military. Not only are they both skilled and capable players on the ice, their contributions off the ice should not be underestimated. Jahajaha93 brought the team back from death’s door through sheer force of will after a turbulent offseason. The team with new recruits tzon93, Samu @Ojamoska Ojamo, Eemil @Sokkelo__ Soikkeli and Lassi @Lazzio Hirvonen battled through the ECL 10 Elite Qualification Series with the energetic winger tzon93 instantly taking a supportive leadership role and bringing additional fire to the team. Brayce Phantoms and Almost Famous have been in playoff mode for the past months already – could that help them in ECL 10?

It wasn’t just hReds and JYP Jyvaskyla who entered the NHL 6v6 scene ahead of ECL 10 Elite. ECL 9 teams Miracle and POGGERS each secured contracts with Finnish esports organizations; Miracle became KOVA Esports and POGGERS turned into SJ Gaming – both well-known and respected franchises in the Finnish esports scene.

For KOVA, the team will look to build on their playoff finish last season while captain Kimi @Zip player Nordberg will be eager to prove that the mid-season additions of Mattias @iSvamp Björck and Amadeus @amadee21 Carlsson in ECL 9 wasn’t the driving factor behind the teams resurgence in the back half of that season. Miracle represented another esport organization, Swedish SHL club Djurgården Hockey, during eSHL but when a split occurred between the Finnish and the Swedish parts of the roster – eSvamp and amadee21 took on the Djurgården name whereas ZipPlayer quickly got to work securing a deal with the prestigious KOVA organization.

SJ Gaming finished 12th last season in Elite but missed the playoffs by a mere two points, suggesting they are close to being a playoff contender. Captain Tero @Terodee Dahlström had a very impressive run in ECL 9 Elite, scoring 26 points in 26 games and finishing third overall among defenders in total points. This season he will look to build on that performance and lead his team to the playoffs.

Unlucky Boys HC, Roots and Checkmate are returning to Elite after all performing well last season. Roots made the playoffs as the 4th seed, Unlucky Boys as the 6th and Checkmate just barely missed the playoffs, finishing 9th with the same point total as 8th seed Symphony. Being teams of supremely high ambitions, all three have made key changes to their rosters to take the next step in their evolution.

Unlucky Boys have made two significant changes to their roster from ECL 9. Goaltenders Rami @ramseyy2 Rissanen and Janne @Jann3_67_ Saari were brought in to replace Ville @Viltzup Poutiainen, while Brayce Phantoms forward Tim @Timasy Hess joined as the primary RW with Veeti @Wenger Paloneva moving down to assume the RD position.

For Roots, goalscoring legend Lauri @Lamsa Lämsä left the team and Timi @Rimpe Rimpeläinen joined. Jim @SadaPoika Leskinen was placed on “inactive status” due to joining the Finnish military services, leading Miko @Migo_boo Nurmi (who just came back after fulfilling that very same commitment) to assume the role of main center after acting as the teams backup for more than a year. The loss of Lamsa is a significant one as he had been the team’s leading goal scorer every single season Roots (Rusty Blades) has participated in ECL competition, but with captain Juhani @Tanski87 Tanskanen leading the team in a more balanced direction – having every player contribute equally on the offense – the team looks just as strong as last season, where they finished an impressive 4th during the regular season.

Finally, Checkmate also made some key additions as “the Nikkinen brothers” (captain Jonne @TackleControl Nikkinen and assistant captain Juuso @Juizki Nikkinen) signed Markus @Makeaxl Lahti from Symphony and Ville-Petteri @vviljo Särmä from Butterfly Effect, both highly sought after, to act as the teams main defensive pairing. As 1v1 star Roni @MrNipsuli Kajan continues to ascend the rankings of “Elite 6v6 forwards”, Checkmate looks poised to build on last season and make the Elite playoffs.


With this final preview part, we've taken a look at all 16 of the ECL 10 Elite teams to some extent - some more than others. The intent of this preview has not been to rank the teams in any way, but to create an understanding for the various situations that each of these teams are in. As we've stated numerous times before, we're extremely excited to get this season started!

ECL 10 Elite continues tomorrow, Monday 13th of April with two matchups at www.twitch.tv/nhlgamer. SJ Gaming will go up against Almost Famous and Checkmate in our featured matchups.

NHLGamers,

We'll make short work of the intro on this one and let you get down to the nitty gritty - ECL 10 Elite is rolling on and we've never been this excited about a season! Last time we checked out "The Big Two", which have been ruling the scene for quite some time already. Now it's time to move on to new subjects, which are the following:

You’ve heard their names before. Odds are you’ve faced them. In fact, they were both mentioned in part I of this preview. If any teams are to challenge favorites HAVU Gaming or Linköping HC for the title in ECL 10 Elite, odds are it’ll be either ECL 9 Pro Champions and IS Cup 4 silver medalists hReds (formerly “Delusion”) or JYP Jyvaskyla (formerly “Symphony”).

hReds has had quite the journey on their way to being considered an Elite title contender. Originally established ahead of early NHL 20-tournament IS Cup 4 under the team name “Delusion”, skilled forward trio Joakim @Joukki Nyholm, Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen and Tuukka @Tuukka.R Röpelinen took the tournament by storm and led the team all the way to the finals where they were eventually defeated by HAVU. As there are no shortcuts to ECL Elite, next up for this team was ECL 9 Pro – a tournament they made short work of by finishing as the #1 overall seed during the regular season. It wasn’t until they came across Vesa Pompa HC – another new Elite team – in the playoff finals that they were finally challenged. 

Even so, Delusion took the series and were crowned ECL 9 Pro Champions – ensuring a spot in Elite for ECL 10. With Casper @ICappeI Lundgren having been the team’s “loan” goaltender in IS Cup, gifted up-and-comer Niklas @uhNikke Nieminen manned the pipes for ECL 9 and performed outstandingly in his first Pro season. Chances are he’ll turn quite a few heads come the start of the Elite season so if you’re looking for a #HiddenGem, this guy is one to consider. On defense, veteran LD Janne @Janzuh Nyquist has been with the team since its inception and acts as the defensive fail-safe for the teams’ offense-first play style. ECL 10 will be Janzuhs fifth Elite season. On RD, the transfer of gifted offensive defender Ilmari @iilmarii Töyrylä from hReds to JYP after ECL 9 opened a hole that was filled by Teemu @Xteemuz Polttila. While a talented defender in his own right, xteemuzz would objectively be considered the wildcard on this roster. Finally, the team made another change as it was time for KingOfApes_ to fulfill his duty to the motherland and enlist in the Finnish military services for a time. To compensate for Apes assuming “inactive” status, the team brought in dangling wunderkid Niklas @NikkeDangles Tukiainen from the since-then folded team Butterfly Effect. 

The Butterfly boys were on the verge of greatness in both IS Cup 4 and ECL 9 Elite but fell short on both occasions, leading its players to migrate to other teams. 

JYP Jyvaskyla has had an equally interesting path to becoming ECL 10 pre-season favorites. Bursting onto the scene as Symphony in IS Cup 3 (eSM 2018), former Aapon Taikasauva captain Santeri @indi969 Pendolin led a star-studded roster to a bronze medal in their first tournament together. For ECL 7 Elite, Aapon became Symphony and indi969 recruited what would become a cornerstone of the team: center and puck-possession wizard Antti @tbnantti Kuittinen. Right away in their first Elite season as Symphony, the team made it all the way to the finals. After losing a tough battle against FILADELPHIA, the team lost a key piece as Ilmari @Buantso Lehkonen left to join Written In The Stars for ECL 8. The team failed to replicate their success in ECL 8, falling to Rusty Blades in the Quarterfinals and once ECL 9 rolled around, the only player left from the ECL 7 finals run was indi969 himself and backup goaltender, since promoted to starter, Lauri @Lauri Piipponen. Another first-round exit in ECL 9 lit a fire within indi969 and together with tbnantti, the center having now played five tournaments with the team, they set out to re-build the team and return it to its former glory. 

Bringing RD iilmarii back after two seasons with Delusion, adding 1v1 virtuoso (and Finnish Champion) Kristian @kriketski17 Veijola to be their LW, Oskari @SIbeIius Grönroos as their starting goaltender and the highest scoring defender in ECL 9 Elite, Aaro @xDoumi Ruuhinen, to act as their LD certainly has given them the tools to once again compete for a title. To add to what has been a very successful off-season for the team between ECL:s 9 and 10; just days before ECL 10 Elite opened its doors the team signed a deal with professional hockey team JYP Jyväskälä of Finnish Liiga to act as their esports representatives. How about that?

You won’t ever see HAVU or Linköping shaking in their boots. It’s just not what they do. But if they ever did, it’d be because of either hReds or JYP Jyvaskyla.

Outside of Linköping, ECL 10 Elite features an additional two SHL teams: Färjestad BK and Luleå Hockey. Or, as the ECL historians would call them; Bucketeers and Northern Ascendancy.

Färjestad finished outside the playoffs in ECL 9 Elite but bounced back with a respectable top-4 finish in recent tournament eSHL – helped in part by the recruitment of HAVU defensive pairing Kristian-Mikael @Nassustelija Katajisto and Wille @willekunq Juntunen. The adjusted roster displayed a renewed sense of focus and energy, with cerebral center Christoffer @I-Maise-I Berntsson continually creating space for his teammates while allowing the HAVU defenders to attack at will. On the wings, Mattias @Tacterz Hjelm and Robin @Rubituss Söderqvist dodged, dipped, ducked, and slipped their way through opposing defenders and racked up respectable point totals between the two of them. 

As expected, the HAVU defenders returned to their former team upon the completion of eSHL – leaving FBK with a problem on their hands. Who would replace such a skilled defensive duo? The answer was a creative one. The team moved gifted RW Rubituss to slot in at LD and recruited Harri @Totalii Joona from Checkmate to act as the teams RD – the Finnish defenders’ 7th straight season in ECL Elite. On forward, Rubituss’ RW spot was filled by none other than Sebastian @eBasstian Nagel, recruited from ECL Pro team (and fellow eSHL participant) Växjö Lakers. At LW, Tacterz decided to take a step back and act as more of a reserve. This problem was quickly solved by adding another Växjö player, goalscoring machine and reigning SCL champion Andreas @affelj96 Ljungberg. 

With all the changes made to the FBK roster, predicting how they will finish in ECL 10 is no easy task. But judging by the gameplay they have shown when this writer has faced them in regular EASHL, they could very well surprise quite a few people and end up a playoff team. 

For Luleå, not much has changed in the roster since their disappointing quarterfinal exit in eSHL against Leksand. The team looked poised to build on their impressive, yet somewhat surprising, top-4 finish in ECL 9 but instead took a step backwards during eSHL while never finding the team chemistry necessary to move forward. Since eSHL, Luleå has focused on re-establishing their basics in practice – “walk before you can run again”, as one player put it – and are entering the tournament with the hopes of re-discovering their ECL 9 magic. Left wing Ville @hpkfani Luukkonen is still to be considered the teams primary scoring threat, yet persistent rumors suggest the team still has one big, final piece of the puzzle to add. 

Stay tuned for more. 

Vesa Pompa HC, Gotham Knights and Ghetto Firebirds joined Delusion in advancing from Pro – all of them defeating “their” Elite opponent in the relegation/promotion battle. 

Gotham Knights make their long-awaited return to Elite after spending ECL:s 8 and 9 in Pro as a top team and title contender. The team, led by captain and center Joni @ReDMisTi Kaikkonen, has been together for a long time and is one of the precious few teams in the community that have been around ever since ECL 1. The re-branding to “Gotham Knights” took place in ECL 5, whereas before that the team was known as “Refuse To Lose”. Other key players for the team include dangerous wingers Emil @Hanssonni Hansson and Joni @selänne8 Kurtti. Expect Gotham Knights to be hungry for success and with enough steps forward from the teams’ defense and goaltending, they very well might achieve it. 

Ghetto Firebirds is another one of those teams that have been around for a long, long time – battling their way all the way from Lite in ECL 4 to finally reach the coveted Elite division in ECL 10. What a journey it has been for the team and what an experience for captain Keka @KepakkoFIN Muyima and players Joonas @Taettonov Siira and Ville @Vilze Systä, who have been around ever since the team first saw the light of day, to finally see the proud Firebird with an ECL Elite logo next to it. Stories like Ghetto Firebirds’ is really what the ECL divisional system is all about. With a healthy portion of skill, a powerful dedication to teamwork and an uncompromising attitude towards putting in the necessary work, advancement through the system is within your grasp. Look for the Firebirds to come out swinging with their stingy defense and hard-working offense – eager to prove they belong at the pinnacle of European 6v6 hockey. 

Vesa Pompa HC was an expected addition to Elite, if you can ever really say something like that. If Delusion was the clear favorite in ECL 9 Pro, Vesa was definitely the second team on that ranking. And wouldn’t you know it – those are the exact teams that ended up in the finals. After giving Delusion a solid fight but failing to retrieve the Pro title, captain Johan @Lehmannens Lehmann and his team faced off with Brayce Phantoms in the relegation/promotion battle. The reigning SCL champions Vesa managed to defeat the four-time German champions Brayce in OT of Game 7 after coming back to tie the deciding game up in the final minute. With a core built around Lehmannens, fellow defender Anton @antoniomannen004 Svensander, star winger Henrik @Eken45jr Eklund and lightning-quick goaltender Edvin @Thunborg5 Thunborg, the team guest starred as Malmö Redhawks in the eSHL. A tournament in which they, with the help of HAVU forwards Tuukka @FlyerKungen Kuha and Risto @Dominointi Järvi, made it all the way to the finals against Linköping where they gave the eventual champions a good battle before securing a silver medal. Replacing two such prestigious forwards was no easy task but Vesa quickly found a solution by retaining their Finnish forwards Mikke @Nampa77 Nampajärvi and Olof @Spearzz_ Forsbacka, while adding Butterfly Effects former captain Jere @jergelii Jortama as the teams’ centerpiece. With a winning attitude and success in many of their previous tournaments, Vesa is a prime candidate to challenge the top teams for a solid playoff spot.

That'll be it for this time, we still have a handful of teams to go, which we'll take a closer look at tomorrow!

Next up; the final part of the ECL 10 Elite preview where we break down the remaining handful of teams. Some who took the hard way, some new organisations and finally, some familiar faces making a return. Stay tuned!

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NHLGamers,

For the tenth season of our beloved ECL we truly want to bring you something special. We're stepping up our game and aim to deliver on that promise. It's customary for us to release a preview before the season and this one is no exception, but for a special season we feel that it's only right to bring in some special talent - that's why your very own Hampus @l-Furyan-l Duvefelt will be delivering this seasons ECL Elite Preview. l-Furyan-l is a name you know very well from the virtual ice as the man possesses the merit of being one of the most prolific offensive defensemen of the scene for quite some time already. Off the ice, Hampus has made a name for himself as a talented writer both on the traditional- and virtual hockey side of things. We've got a lot of action to look ahead to - let this be the start of yet another great season!

The arrival of the global pandemic known as COVID-19 has brought about quite a few changes to life as we know it. While these changes – the arrival of the phenomenon “social distancing”, for example – won’t be permanent, they have certainly had an impact on most of us, if not all of us. 

Perhaps you have a friend or relative that has fallen ill. Perhaps you yourself have been battling the virus. Perhaps you’ve lost your job as a consequence of the radical changes in consumer behavior around the globe. Perhaps you’ve even lost someone close to you.

In short, things aren’t great. And what’s worse is that no one can accurately predict how long we’ll be in this predicament.

Still. As Harvey Dent of The Dark Knight (2008) would say – you know, before he turned all evil and homicidal – “The night is darkest just before the dawn. And I promise you: the dawn is coming”. 

As we wait for the sun to come up and illuminate our path forward, we could all use a distraction. Something to take our minds off headlines of pain and suffering. So, with every sport from Formula 1 to curling canceled or put on indefinite hold – not to mention our favorite sport of ice hockey – and guidelines in most countries suggesting that we stay at home as much as possible, what could be better than some competitive esports? 

I mean, not to make light of the current situation but… as gamers, we’re kind of used to staying inside and maintaining distance to people. 

No?

All kidding aside, with the whole world essentially put on pause we can and should consider ourselves lucky that we are still able to do what we love on a daily basis: play and compete in NHL 20. And who knows – while we are busy battling our rivals for supremacy in the four separate divisions of the European Championship League, we might even be able to offer a sliver of happiness to someone who is going through a tough time; be it a spectator or a player.

If you ask me, that’s not "nothing".

The competitive aspect should of course not be forgotten. After all, this is NHLGamer and 6v6 EASHL hockey is what we do. So, let’s talk competition. For the purposes of this article, that means taking a long, hard look at the 16 teams set to participate in the premier division of European 6v6 gaming, ECL Elite. For the seventh edition of this ultra-tough division – the first three seasons of ECL did not feature divisional separation – we begin by taking a look at two teams that are no strangers to winning. Teams many would say stand the best chance of claiming the coveted title of ECL Grand Champion.

And so, without further ado, what better way to start than by focusing on…

THE BIG TWO

Their dominant run as we know it began in November of 2018, in IS Cup 3 (eSM 2018). That’s when the team known as FILADELPHIA secured their first championship title. They did so by defeating a team known at the time as Written In The Stars. 

Make a mental note of that because the rivalry of these two teams had only just gotten started. 

Mere weeks after winning the IS Cup 3 title, “FILA” added another trophy to their collection – none other than the ECL 7 Elite title: their first championship win in Elite. Only this time their opponent wasn’t Written In The Stars, it was newly established team Symphony.

However, as the calendar year of 2018 ended and 2019 began, the balance of power shifted. 

ECL 8 Elite saw FILA face off in the finals against Written In The Stars; a re-match of the IS Cup 3 finals. Only this time it was “SKY” who brought home the championship. SKY proceeded to win the “just for fun”-tournament Spring League and followed that up by signing a contract with professional esports organization HAVU Gaming. 

Next up was the last event of EA SPORTS NHL 19; the summer tournament of FCL (eSM 2019). Once again, we were treated to a matchup in the finals between FILA and HAVU. The now green-and-black HAVU continued their dominant end to NHL 19 by defeating FILA and bringing home their third straight tournament win.

Picture: HAVU Gaming celebrating FCL Championship 2019. Photo credit: SEUL / Arttu Kokkonen

Along came the fall and EA SPORTS NHL 20 – but HAVU weren’t done winning. 

The first tournament of NHL 20, IS Cup 4, saw HAVU bring home their fourth (!) straight title – defeating newly created team Delusion in the finals. FILA finished a (for them) disappointing third and with that decided changes needed to be made. Delusion goaltender Casper @ICappeI Lundgren was brought in to replace previous net-minding stalwarts Oskari @sibeelius Grönroos and Mika @FinKonna Paasikontu.

With that, it was time for the balance of power to shift once more.

With the arrival of ICappeI, FILA proceeded to sign an esports deal with Swedish hockey organization Linköping HC of the SHL – the highest tier of professional hockey in Sweden. Switching from the orange stag of FILA to the White Lion of Linköping, LHC dove head-first into ECL 9 and decisively mopped the floor with most opponents. Sporting an ECL Elite-record 27-2-1 (tied with SKY from ECL 6), LHC claimed the #1 overall seed in the regular season and worked their way through Symphony and Luleå Hockey in the playoffs to reach the finals… where none other than, you guessed it, HAVU awaited them. With HAVU up 3-1 in the best of-7 series, LHC dug deep and found another gear – turning the series around and winning their first title since ECL 7.

Linköping surfed their new-found wave of success all the way to winning the inaugural eSHL championship – including a win in the finals against a Malmö Redhawks team that featured HAVU players Tuukka @FlyerKungen Kuha (RW), Risto @Dominointi Järvi (C), Hannes @Hansulinho Kettunen (G, reserve) and Ilmari @Buantso Lehkonen (LW, reserve) on loan. 

Picture: Linköping HC celebrating eSHL Championship 2020. Photo credit: Elias Gammelgård

To summarize: in the last eight tournaments organized by NHLGamer (not including the differently formatted Summer Cup or the inaugural edition of the SCL where neither team had a chance to participate), FILADELPHIA/Linköping HC have won four and Written In The Stars/HAVU Gaming four – including four finals where they’ve been pitted directly against each other. That’s a near unprecedented dominance not seen on the NHL esports scene since Swedish teams Northern Stars and Unknown were lining up tournament wins in the previous gen (pre-NHL 16) of the game. 

The way Linköping and HAVU have made competitive NHL 6v6 gaming a two-horse race in the past 18 months (or NHLs 19 and 20, for those keeping track) almost defies explanation – bringing about comparisons to the famous rivalry in Spanish football league La Liga between standout clubs FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. 

And wouldn’t you know it? 

Whenever these two behemoths of NHL gaming get matched up against each other, especially in the playoffs, you will usually find at least 5-10 comments in the NHLGamer Twitch stream – because let’s face it, their matchups should never not be broadcasted – calling the matchup the “El Clasico of NHL gaming”.

It does have a nice ring to it. And the rivalry is just as fierce. 

I’m talking about the battle between bearded beasts ICappeI and Hansulinho in net, the two-way talent in two of the strongest defender pairings of all time (Kristian-Mikael @Nassustelija Katajisto & Wille @willekunq Juntunen for HAVU; Aleksi @loimmu Loimuvirta & Joel @jtorro1233 Tourunen for LHC) and the matchup of six of the best forwards NHL esports have to offer: the above mentioned trio of FlyerKungen, Dominointi and Puantso facing off against Erik @Eki Tammenpää, Paul @PleeMaker Arontie and Joonas @Juunas Paatiala.

With ECL 10 fast approaching and both teams looking as strong as ever, can anyone really be blamed for predicting another matchup in the ECL Elite finals between HAVU and LHC?

I certainly wouldn’t put it past them.

Next up; the second half of the ECL 10 Elite preview where we break down the remaining 14 teams. The challengers, the new arrivals and which teams and players to keep an extra eye out for.

NHLGamers

It's time for our season preview of the ECL 10 Pro division. A bit over two months has passed since we saw Delusion crowned as the champions of ECL 9 Pro when they managed to beat Vesa Pompa HC in a final series that included an enormous amount of individual talent and two teams that both eventually paved their way into the top tier. Top tier play is on the list of requirements yet again for the champions as the game and our growing community makes the 6v6 scene more competitive season after season. To cap off last season we saw all top 4 Pro teams fight their way to Elite and also really tight games in the Elite Qualification Series which proves that the quality of play in Pro division is at a really high level right now. 

At the moment we are living in especially hard times globally. The COVID-19 pandemic will most probably have some influence on ECL competition in this starting season in terms of rescheduling and also if teams are forced to use back-ups in cases of sickness (which we pray does not happen). This might be a factor that sways the power ranking between teams one way or another. That is an interesting topic and the consequences of COVID-19 remain to be seen. We're definitely hoping not to see too much effect on the ECL this season, it's a prevalent topic that needs to be addressed in these times. ECL isn´t the “island away from the rest of the world” so this is a point we should not ignore ahead of this starting season.



To sum it all up:

Teams that were relegated from ECL 9 Elite and weren’t able to fight their way back in the Elite Qualification Series are Leksands IF and TIKI TALK.

Teams that proved their worth in ECL 9 Lite and earned the promotion to ECL 10 Pro are Lite champions Sulkavan Sudet, runner-up Riven Johdolla, Clumsy Penguins and MOCKBA. 

To fill the missing teams in the division, NHLGamer staff have accepted applications from teams Rookie Mistakes, Kouvola Screaming Eagles, Company of Geeks, HanaaHC, Djurgarden Hockey and Team Frosty for the open spots in ECL 10 Pro. 

ECL 10 Pro has a total of 32 teams divided into two groups. We took a closer look at some of the most interesting teams at this point in the season and decided to bring you basic information about them and highlight some key players to follow. We are also predicting their success in the regular season during the forthcoming season.
 

Group 1

 Leksands IF

After a disappointing season in ECL 9 Elite, Leksands IF was able to put up quite a show in the first eSHL season and the playoffs, where they first won ECL 9 Elite semifinalist Lulea Hockey and fought bravely against Linköping HC in a semifinal series that ended 3-1 (BO5) in the favor of the eSHL (and ECL 9) champion. Success in eSHL must have brought some confidence back but it didn’t show in the Elite Qualification Series, where the team saw another bottom of the table finish and was thereby relegated. Despite the recent setbacks the team has faced, Leksands IF is still seen as the favorite eSHL team to succeed this season in ECL 10 Pro (Challenge accepted Vaxjo Lakers HC, Orebro eHockey and Djurgarden Hockey?). There is no doubt that if Leksands IF can find their stride again, they will be fighting for the cup this season. Captain @Mumsi- is once again expected to lead the team to a promotion battle as he did back in their Synergy Hockey days in ECL 7 Pro, with familiar faces by his side. A notable player is missing from the roster, as it appears that long-time defender @Egyptologen (J-Foppa) has left the team.

Placement after regular season: 1-2

Player to watch: Experienced defender and club icon @Supremski is the backbone for the whole team. With so many good attacking teams it is one of the main requirements for success to have good defenders that can do well in the own zone and Supremski represents the cream of the crop in this sector at this level. 

 Enigma

This team that was named Sandstorm last season has made a brand change and is now called Enigma. Last season, Sandstorm suffered a loss in the first round of the playoffs against GHETTO FIREBIRDS in a tight series that ended 4-3. The name isn’t the only thing that has changed from last season, though. Only captain @MozjaTG (Mozja-) remains from last seasons roster. However, compared to their roster in ECL 9 Pro the quality hasn’t dropped at all. For example, the team lost their best scorer @yrjoo but in exchange former Symphony player @Nieppii returns to Pro hockey after a couple of seasons in Elite. Also former team captain @Crisu_rottis returns to strengthen the defensive line after a season with Almost Famous. It is really interesting to see how the fresh squad will blend as a team and find chemistry. The roster of Enigma has the potential to do great things this season but in the end it is all about teamwork which we will see more in depth when the season starts. If the team can get their motors running the way they want to, it's likely that Enigma will do way better than they did last season and be a real threat to any team in the later stages of the season. 

Placement after regular season: 1-2

Player to watch: @Nieppiiis probably the most reputable player signed by a Pro division this season and possesses great offensive upside. He is expected to help Enigma with his experience, personal talent and points. 

 Kaupallinen Yhteistyo
Some eyebrows were raised when relatively unknown Kaupallinen Yhteistyo was promoted to ECL Pro 9 last season through their Pro application but after proving all doubters wrong, there's no question they are a force to be reckoned with this season. In their first ECL season ever, Kaupallinen Yhteistyo managed to finish in 3rd place in their group and fought their way to the second round of the playoffs where they lost to Elite promoted GHETTO FIREBIRDS. As the team roster remains almost unchanged from the ECL 9 Pro season with the addition of @Frilanderfrom Unlucky Boys HC, it is expected that Kaupallinen Yhteistyo will take the next step forward this time. Last seasons success also gave the team a chance to play in the Elite Qualification Series where they won their group but finally lost to BRAYCE Phantoms in the decisive final series. Signs from the previous season and the Elite Qualification Series tell that forwards @Jooonasaurus, @Limbe65 and @Katuhessu (KrisutusB) have found that special chemistry that could make them the most effective attacking trio this season. With the recent form the team is showing, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise anymore to see Kaupallinen Yhteistyo fighting for Elite promotion at the end of the season. 

Placement after regular season: 1-2

Player to watch: @Jooonasaurus is a player whose reputation precedes him. After a very good run in the Qualification Series, he is expecting to be one of the leading forwards both performance-wise and statistically this season. 

 RPEAT Esports

Former Nightmare/Supernatural now skates under the banner of Finnish eSports organization RPEAT esports. Nightmare had a disappointing season in ECL 9 Pro as they were left out of the playoffs by a small margin. After the season, team captain @Kozek77(Kozeehh) and the new alternate captains @illbiocandyand @Aze (l-AZE-l) started reforming the team to redeem themselves. Only three players from last seasons Nightmare squad will continue the journey with RPEAT esports. When taking a closer look at the new faces arriving, it’s obvious that RPEAT esports aims high this season but also looks towards the future. Former Dynasty defender @DieCutterMC will bring experience to the defense while young gun @Timez (Timoccio) and ‘’hidden gem’’ (quote from RPEAT NHL twitter) @vJokkee- are determined to make the breakthrough at the Pro level. Is it going to happen in this season already? This team has the hunger for success and the potential to surprise many strong teams this season. It may be too early to talk about a team that is chasing a promotion for real, but the season will show us what's to come.

Placement after regular season: 4-6

Player to watch: Center @Timez(Timoccio) was the key player for ECL 9 Lite runner-up Riven Johdolla last season. He is the most interesting prospect to follow in his first Pro season in a team that can help him become star player in the future. 
 

 Alliance HT
If BRAYCE Phantoms has the highest reputation of German teams, then Alliance HT is the legend of the Russian EASHL scene. Last season in ECL 9 Pro was really tough for them as they were one of the teams that fell to the relegation series. Alliance HT managed to keep their spot in Pro by sweeping Resurrection in the series. A couple of weeks ago it was still unsure if Alliance HT was going to participate ECL this season and for example ECL 9 captain @MAYZIIX was part of the TIKI TALK roster in the Elite Qualification Series before the registrations. It seems the worries have been left behind and they have made a flying start in RCL 6 Div 1. However it is expected that Alliance HT will have another hard season ahead. Longtime player and former captain @Denisovl17l (Denisov_D_l17l) who represented the team back in ECL 6 Pro returns to help the team in these hard times. But is it enough to avoid relegation this season?

Placement after regular season: 13-16

Player to watch: Goalkeeper @crooks(Crooks_Tc) will play a big role for his team. He will have to play at his top level every night to help Alliance HT in a season that is expected to be difficult for them. Not an easy task for a keeper that is heading into his first ECL season ever. 

Group 2

 Reality Check

It is believed that many have marked Reality Check as the favorites for the title race this season. Last season in ECL 9 Pro, Reality Check had a decent regular season finishing 5th in the standings. They started the playoffs strong by beating Children of Ice in the first round and gave a good fight against eventual runner-up Vesa Pompa HC in the second round, losing the series 2-4. During the offseason, the squads roster saw a couple of changes when center @valta15, defender @Ninjawiq (Hakkapeiiitta) and goalie @Jann3_67_ , who all played a big role in last seasons team decided to leave. To fill these boots team saw the arrivals of @Hüüli(huulihoelkka44) and @jimboslizer from Rakish, @Talonmies69 from Children of Ice and @vokial2(SolidElli) from HC Wildcard. Reality Check was one of the teams that took part in the Elite Qualification Series. With the current roster they managed to be the best team in the group stage but in the end they couldn’t find the way to win Almost Famous in the final series. However Reality Check showed that roster changes haven’t hurt the team and proved to their competitors that they are ready for the new season and chase for the cup.

Placement after regular season: 1-2

Player to watch: The preseason indicates that @James (Jamssonii) will replace Valta15 at the center position and the game looked promising in the Elite Qualification Series. Wingers are also expected to benefit from the playmaking skills of Jamssonii.
 

 Nordic Stars

Nordic Stars had an excellent regular season in ECL 9 Pro where they finished third in their group. Everything seemed to go the way the team wanted until the first round of the playoffs where they faced Black Horse and lost the series 0-4. Actually one of the Black Horse players that ended up ruining their season was @Iltapeli (apetttaja) who is now part of the Nordic Stars roster. Nordic Stars are a team that likes to play a lot of NHL20. With around 1400 club games played they are certainly one of the most active teams in ECL currently and it shows on the ice. Players like @Vire30 and @Jerax13 do incredible things with the puck on the ice and the way Nordic Stars sometimes plays is really entertaining to watch. It is expected that Nordic Stars will do very well in the regular season this time as well but the question is - have they found a way to play winning playoff hockey? If the answer is yes, then there are not many teams in the league that can stand in their way. This could very well be the season for Nordic Stars that will make them forget last seasons disappointment. 

Placement after regular season: 1-2

Player to watch: @Iltapeli (apetttaja) scored 49 goals in 38 games last season in Black Horse. Nordic Stars' style of fast attacking hockey will suit him well and he could break his own personal goal record this season.
 

 TIKI TALK

Legendary TIKI TALK were close to avoiding the relegation battle in Elite last season. They were tied in points with POGGERS but with fewer wins TIKI TALK headed to the relegation series where they lost to GHETTO FIREBIRDS. The team had a second chance to return to the top division in the Elite Qualification Series but they couldn’t find their game when it was needed and ended up losing all of the games in the group stage. If TIKI TALK can get through the hard times and find their best form and chemistry with their fresh squad, ‘’ESA’’ can be one of the best teams in the regular season, favorites for the promotion battle and challengers for the cup. Talking about legendary, team captain and scoring machine @itspardytime is once again one of the most interesting players to follow during the season. Last time TIKI TALK played Pro in ECL 8, itspardytime scored a league leading 150 points in 48 games and led his team to the finals where they eventually lost to POGGERS but later managed to get promoted to Elite. 

Placement after regular season: 3-4

Player to watch: It seems that @Sagee95 will start the season on defense. It is interesting to see how this talented player who is more known for his attacking abilities will convert to defense and how it will affect TIKI TALKs way of play.  
 

 Shooting Stars

There seems to be a really interesting rivalry building up between German Championship League powerhouses Shooting Stars (previously EV Fussen Esports) and ZSC Lions Esports (previously The Black Jacks). In ECL Pro 9, ZSC Lions Esports managed to get to the playoffs while Shooting Stars were left just below the playoff line. However in GCL 5 Div 1 playoff semifinals Shooting Stars defeated the Lions with a series score of 4-1. So it is maybe fair to say that the Shooting Stars have the upper hand at the moment. For some time ‘’The pride of Germany’’ BRAYCE Phantoms have waited for a worthy opponent at their own soil and Shooting Stars have shown that they are slowly building up to up to the task. After a very good GCL season, Shooting Stars are expected to improve from ECL 9 and even though many will not expect miracles from this team, we could see a real surprise from them at the end of the regular season. GCL 5 Div 1 runner-ups may be one of the most underrated teams at the start of the season.

Placement after regular season: 4-6

Player to watch: It seems that defender @x Holtbeast (xReuTschNer98x) step into the boots of @Krinke this season in the center position. Results from GCL 5 Div 1 show that he fits well into the teams attacking trio and with interest we follow how it will turn out in the ECL rink.  
 

 Sulkavan Sudet

Looking back at the ECL 9 Lite seasonm Sulkavan Sudet made an almost perfect run to be the division champions. Attacking trio @Oxdoggi, @Kemppane_and @Luokkala_with the help of backup forward @Stapletonetore apart opposing defenses from start to finish. With such an impressive display someone could think that these guys played in the wrong division but it is actually going to be their first season in the higher divisions. The only players that have previous experience from Pro are defender @Pirkkalope and new signing @Okke40(hifk_FANI). Sulkavan Sudet also added some depth to their defense by signing @Maestroffi from Hokurit who also had a good season in ECL 9 Lite. Obviously Pro is going to be a harder challenge for the talented wolfpack but it is interesting to see how well the team can adapt their style in Pro and how far it will take them. However, just like with the other teams that got promoted from Lite, expectations are at a moderate level.

Placement after regular season: 6-8 

Player to watch: The teams style of attacking hockey can sometimes leave room for really promising counter-attacks and that is when goalkeeper @TeikDaun can steal the show. The keeper faced some critic last season because of his relatively low save percentage but we are talking about one of the best goaltenders this season.

 Prowlers Esports

Prowlers Esports was one of the teams that got promoted to ECL 9 Pro through their application at the registration stage. The team had really hard last season where they were the bottom of their group. However Prowlers gathered their ranks and beat Horror Hockey in the relegation battle. After the season most of the players in the team left and captains @eKvaarn and @Forsberg__21 (Lawner_) had to make complete rebuild. Scouting through the new signings it seems most of the new faces will play their first Pro games this season. With an inexperienced squad, the expectations are low, but the squads real potential is still hidden and they have a long season ahead to glue as a team and improve their game. However it is expected that Prowlers Esports will once again be facing relegation to end the season.  

Placement after regular season: 13-16

Player to watch: @Forsberg__21(Lawner_) has had good seasons at the Lite level. Last season was hard for the whole team but now with the experience of some Pro hockey in his pocket it is probable that Lawner_ will lead his teams points stats at the end of the regular season.  

Well there you have it! We hope that yo enjoyed our small preview and similarly will enjoy the starting ECL 10 Pro season. Remember to follow all the teams on their respective social media channels including Twitch and/or Youtube. NHLGamer will keep you up to date on the progress of the season and more articles about the division will follow as the standings start to take shape. Play hard - have fun!

Pro writers,
@Oliverigood & @JakePlay77

NHLGamers, 

We know you've got that competitive itch and it's time to get the action started! The total of 196 teams signed up shows that we are growing at a rapid pace. The tenth iteration of our longest-running league will be bringing you that high-level competition you've been longing for, but this time we wanted to up the ante - in bringing you a historical 6s prize pool of 15 000 €! This is made possible because of the several steps forward that we've taken in the past few months, but first and foremost due to our cherished partners Ilta-Sanomat Esports & Prisma Gaming. 

We'll also be seeing an unprecedented number of professional teams present in our league, with the Elite division alone featuring a total of ten teams representing esports organizations as well as traditional sporting associations. Among the newest additions, we have recently welcomed JYP Jyväskylä, SJ Gaming, hREDS, and KOVA Esports, whereas teams such as HAVU Gaming and Farjestad BK have already been sporting their colors for an extended period of time (and done so in successful fashion!). These organizations joining in brings an added level of interest and some existing rivalries to the scene, where for example the Finnish organizations are battling between themselves and our Swedish eSHL teams surely want to be able to call themselves kings of the hill in their own neighborhood.

Continuing the tradition that began in ECL 8 when NHLGamer introduced NHL 18 World Champion Erik "I_Eki_I" Tammenpää as the first-ever cover gamer in the NHL 6v6 scene, a torch that was carried further by HAVU Gaming's star goaltender Hannes "Hansulinho" Kettunen in ECL 9, we are proud to present our ECL 10 cover gamer.

None other than two-time ECL Elite champion and Linköping HC goaltender, Casper "ICappeI" Lundgren!
 

Meet the ECL 10 cover gamer - Casper @ICappeI Lundgren

You're the third ECL cover gamer and in good company at that, what are your thoughts about your selection?
I'm proud to have been selected obviously and it's even more special to be the first Swede having the honor. I have tremendous respect for both @Eki and @Hansulinho and think they are the embodiment of sportsmanship, being in this club with those guys feels humbling. 

Your team Linkoping HC had a rather perfect run over the winter months and you walked away with two trophies to stack your shelf with. How motivated are you to defend that top spot and how does it feel to be the team everyone is gunning for?
Yeah, it seemed like everything clicked and we really got our game going so there definitely was no stopping us. We're all competitive people and having established that winning culture makes us want to keep that momentum going, rest assured we will do everything in our power to keep that top spot. I know a lot of teams are out to get us and especially HAVU Gaming must be looking for a rematch after last season's finals. I also see hREDS as a prime candidate in the championship battle and Symphony has looked stronger than ever during the preseason.

The COVID-19 pandemic has put the world on halt, but with the absence of traditional sports, that has opened up the opportunity for esports to shine. What are your thoughts on that and what do you think we can do to best utilize that opportunity?
It's a shame to not have traditional sports, especially in a time where a majority of leagues would have been in the decisive times and the biggest games of the season would have been starting. 

With all of these esports orgs and traditional sports clubs joining, this is our chance to develop the NHL gaming scene and the interest around our league. I think the best we as players can do is to stay active on social media, get your Twitter, Twitch or Instagram going and support all the teams and people putting content out there! Check in on each other's broadcasts to get those viewer numbers up. It is up to us as a community to take care of this opportunity and growing the scene. Now is our chance to show all other sports fans how exciting esports really is!

ECL Elite Finals and prize pool

Due to the COVID-19 situation, the ECL 10 season is currently planned to be played online. The semifinals are played May 25th-28th and the finals on June 4th-5th. More details about the playoffs will be shared closer to the playoffs.

The Elite division of the prize pool will be as follows:

#1. ECL 10 Elite Champion: 10 000 €
#2. ECL 10 Elite Runner-Up: 3 000 €
#3.-4. ECL 10 Elite Semifinal losers: 1 000 €

*Prizes are subject to tax as per Finnish law and the tax is withheld before payment. Prizes will be paid out within 90 days of the ECL 10 Finals.
 

When?
ECL 10 Elite kicks off on Wednesday, April 8th at 20:00 CEST. Our broadcast of the night features heated battles between Unlucky Boys vs JYP Jyväskylä, followed by JYP Jyväskylä and GHETTO FIREBIRDS. 

Where/how to follow?

ECL 10 Elite will see a whole new level of coverage and with traditional sports out of the picture for the time being this is our time to shine. The top division will feature two weekly broadcasts on Mondays and Thursdays at 20:00 CEST with our very own Cody @Tougie24 Tougas and Paul @CynAnderson being the prevalent voices over the course of the season and for those of you that have tuned in for some of our NACL broadcasts, you know that we've been working on the production a lot over the last few months, so you can expect us to have a few tricks up our sleeve. All broadcasts can be seen live at our Twitch-channel, but due to our fresh partnership also now on IS TV and Ruutu.fi. To clarify - while our regular scheduled broadcasts are on Mondays and Thursdays, the season will kick off with a Wednesday broadcast tomorrow, on April 8th at 20:00 CEST!

About our main partners

Ilta-Sanomat 
Ilta-Sanomat is Finland's largest digital media measured by unique daily readers. The tabloid is distributed in traditional form, but thrives online, prevailing as one of the main daily news outlets for Finns alike.

Prisma Gaming 

Prisma Gaming is a carefully picked assortment of consoles, computers, and other gaming gear. The selection has been built together with the professionals at HAVU Gaming and can be found in all Prisma locations and online at Prisma.fi. Prisma Gaming wants to support Finnish esports and through the ECL, now also supports esports internationally.

About our partners

HockeySverige.se 

Hockeysverige.se is the biggest independent hockey site in Sweden, covering everything from the NHL to women's hockey and E-sport

NHLGamers,

Welcome to our season preview for the ECL 10 Lite division. A little over two months ago we saw Sulkavan Sudet crowned as the champions of ECL 9 Lite, which also earned them a direct promotion to the Pro division. Additional teams that got promoted to Pro were runner-up Riven Johdolla, MOCKBA and Clumsy Penguins. To all of these teams, NHLGamer extends warm congratulations and wishes good luck with the upcoming season!

The offseason is now over and excitement in the dressing rooms is rising. Great individual skills, seamless teamwork and winning goaltender stole the cup for the ’’Wolfpack’’ last season and those are the requirements yet again as the level of Lite hockey gets better and better every season. After hundreds of games and countless hours of NHL20 many teams feel this could be ’’the season’’. We have also seen some interesting movement in the transfer market as teams are searching for the final piece to their respective puzzles.

This season, ECL 10 Lite has four groups with 16 teams each. We took a closer look at the groups and decided to highlight some of the teams and players to keep an eye on this upcoming season. Keep in mind that this is not a listing of the best teams in the division, but a collection of teams that I've deemed worthy of a closer look going into the season. Let's begin:

 

 Elamam Kiekko

’’Kikko’’ performed below expectations in ECL 9 Lite when they had a tough time getting to the playoffs and finally were beaten in the first round against Syntax Error with the series score 4-2. Even though underperforming in the latest season, Elamam Kiekko still has the quality to be one of the challengers for the cup this season. They added some quality to their roster by recruiting @kApollo from Pro team Freddie Mercury Institute and @Johtava from Kaukosen Luistin. If the team can find their best form during the competition, we will see Elamam Kiekko going far.
 

 Fysical

Previously called Farminaattori, this team now carries the name Fysical that was presented for the first time in IS Cup 4. Most of their players in the current roster played for team Kesaloma in ECL 9. Kesaloma managed to get to the playoffs where they lost to runner-up Riven Johdolla in the first round with series 4-1. Fysical made an addition to their roster by signing ex-Black Horse player @Ollizhki, who had a fine season in ECL 9 Pro and possesses leadership quality stemming from a long run with former team Shameful Knights. 

 Hokurit

Hokurit had a good season in ECL 9 Lite. Especially in the playoffs they showed real character by beating Hundred Acre Wood and Huippupassi. Their journey ended in the third round of playoffs where they lost to MOCKBA with series 4-1. During the offseason their best scorer @Jondeezz and top defender @Maestroffi decided to leave the team which begs the question - can Hokurit repeat their success and take a small step forward to achieve a promotion. The club saw the arrival of @haaga and @pinppikeisari, who now have a chance to prove their value for the team that has the potential to be in the top 4 this season.
 

 NOVA

New club NOVA is an interesting Russian based team that is built of players from Russian teams such as Virtuoso and Nearbird Fighters. Their captain  SPB_AlexZver_22 has described NOVA as a team that plays fast and attacking hockey and he believes that the team is currently at the level of best Lite teams. Even though NOVA hasn’t played any official matches yet, many of the teams that have faced them in the club games can agree that the potential is definitely there.
 

 Old Farts

The legendary Old Farts have been in the scene from the very start of ECL history. Last season in ECL 9 Lite ended in a minor disappointment as they lost to Kaukosen Luistin in the first round of playoffs with the score being 4-1. Farts had one of the most interesting player roulettes during the offseason when many of their former ECL players left and five new faces came in. Captain @Ankkalasvegas brought in @Tuuski_36 and @Nixa_da_fck from Jortikan Tossut and experienced @vilperi90 who represented Angry Cats and HC Wildcard last season. Also @Jauho from Savo Bears will get the honor of wearing the legendary shirt this season. These signings will definitely bring more aspects to the way the Farts can play. This could very well be the season when we see Old Farts playing for the promotion.  
 

 Poston Fruits

Last time Poston Fruits were playing in ECL 8 Lite. They managed to get to the third round of the playoffs where they lost to Prowlers who were the #1 ranked team after regular season. When the season ended the team separated but now after a year, Fruits are back in the game. Many players from their ECL 8 roster are now playing for different teams but Captain @Jobeyz now has some Pro experience with Freddie Mercury Institute on his resume and has built a promising squad by adding @Jaks_10 from Kaukosen Luistin, @Peksi22 from Bellizzi and @kkostiiii from Saucer Hockey. If they manage to find chemistry, they could surprise many top teams this season.
 

 Sack Brothers

Sack Brothers were presented for the first time in ECL 9 Lite where they managed to get to the second round of playoffs where they lost to Pro promoted Clumsy Penguins with a series score of 4-1. Despite the early exit, this team proved that with the right formation of ’’Sacks’’, they will be battling for the Pro spot in the future. They made a very interesting signing during the offseason as former Jortikan Tossut defender @luosttin joined their ranks. Luosttin gathered most points as a defender in regular season of ECL 9 Lite and scored an unbelievable 19 goals in 19 games from the D spot. With firepower already existing in Sack Brothers roster it is expected that they will be one of the deadliest teams in the offensive zone.
 

 Suomen Sonnit

After pausing for the ECL 9 Lite season Suomen Sonnit decided to make a comeback. In ECL 8 Sonnit lost to Pro promoted Cheers Hockey in playoff round 2 with series 4-1. The core group is pretty much the same as in ECL 8 but with the additions of @Thounimeister from Oton Letkutemppu and @Jusa from MOCKBA. Suomen Sonnit is now seen as a real threat to the teams that are planning to succeed this season. There is always that one team that is a little bit underrated when the group winners are predicted and I believe that this season that team is Suomen Sonnit.  
 

 The UnderRated

A newly formed team that was previously named UnderRated Lekstuga. In ECL 8 Lite UnderRated Lekstuga was beaten in the first round against Me Carvoset. Since then the team roster has changed a lot. Captain @Psych0 has recruited the whole squad in a short time including four players from Pro team Prowlers eSports who had a difficult season in ECL 9 Pro but managed to win the relegation battle. With Pro experience in their core group The UnderRated will be a real threat to any team in the competition.

Below you can also see the groups in which these teams have been put for the upcoming season. We want to wish all teams an exciting season and will be following your progress closely. Play hard - have fun!

Group 1

Group 2

Group 3

Group 4

NHLGamers,

To all the teams joining on their first ECL adventure through the Neo and Lite Divisions, thank you. More and more of you are entering the competitions organized by NHLGamer and your enthusiasm is heartwarming.

Here we are going to provide a guide for those of you new here and who may need a little help. First and foremost, your best advisor is the Rulebook (Updated ECL 11 Rulebook to be released 17th of November), which brings together all of the useful information. Each captain (and their alternates) are warmly advised to read it. If you have any questions, the NHLGamer's Staff is at your disposal, and the forum can also help you find answers to your questions.

1- How to enter my team into our assigned division?

You don't have to, it's the NHLGamer Staff who does it. In the case that your logo has not been assigned to your team yet, a little patience, it will come. In the case of you wanting to add a new logo or change your existing one, please send a new logo to our support team (.PNG, minimum 500x500) for it to be assigned. Once your team has been assigned to its division, you will then be able to invite your players to join via the home page of our site and your personal tab. If one of your players does not appear in the list of free agency, a probable cause is that they have not yet created their account, instruct them to do so. As such, it is advisable to give your player a name identical to that of your avatar on NHL 21. Once everyone has joined you can appoint yourself as captain and appoint your alternates (if not already correct).

2- Your role as captain and alternate

As captain and alternates, you are the representatives of your team towards your opponents and towards the NHLGamer community, so bear your assigned role with pride and act accordingly. You are in charge of organizing matches and monitoring the calendar. You are also responsible for your players' compliance with the rules, in particular the ethics and code of conduct towards members of the community.
 

3- How to contact the support or your opponents?

For any need to reschedule a game, you are required to refer to the rulebook which specifies all the conditions, and above all, you are first required to contact your opponents. It is strongly recommended not only to contact the opposing captain but also their two alternates. It is possible by clicking the Message all captains button on the opponent's team page.

You can also contact our support in case of a question, any statistical problem or a disagreement with an opponent, by using the support tab. 

4- Your match has been interrupted, what to do?

The first thing to remember is that quitting a game is formally prohibited and that it can lead to disciplinary action, up to and including exclusion from the league. In the case of a game that does not come to an end because of a disconnection, here again, the rulebook gives precise instructions. In short, you must first record the stats of the match before you leave (preferably by taking a few pictures), then contact the opposite team. A new match must be restarted to bring the game to a conclusion. Note: in case of a serious network issue, you are allowed to quit the game during the first minute of play, keep in mind that communicating any problems to your opponent is mandatory.

5- How to report a match on the site?

You will need to take photos of the individual and collective stats as well as the three stars of the game. The API tool (available through the captain's account tab on the home page) will allow you to report the games. As an agreement, the winning team captain reports his game. The API tool is a great help and does almost everything on its own, you will only need to add the goals and penalties as well as the three stars of the game and some elements. If the API does not work you will have to go through the so-called old tool, which isn't more complicated but a bit longer of a process. Again the Rulebook is a valuable tool. We advise you to take some pictures of every game played even if it is not your turn to report it, just in case your opponent would have forgotten or if any problems arise.
 

As a conclusion, we thank you again for joining our competition. This was only a scratch of the surface and we - as well as the members of our community - are at your disposal for any questions. Do your best, have fun and remember that, even if everyone takes this very seriously, it's just a game. Get ready for the faceoff!

NHLGamers,

Today we’re the bringer of good news in the form that one of the most prevalent Finnish esports organizations - hREDS are diving back into NHL esports after a hiatus on that front. The organization based in our nation's capital has signed the roster of former Delusion, who will be assuming their new name from this point onward. 

You might associate hREDS with being one of the first organizations to take on NHL esports when they announced the signing of Erik @Eki Tammenpää back in the summer of 2018. The cooperation was short-lived but successful, as Eki won the first-ever NHL GWC representing hREDS, after which he was allowed to move on to bigger things with Sampi whereas hREDS shifted focus into other games with success especially in Fortnite by Lassi “BELAEU” Kallio. 

“Ever since our contract with Eki ended, we’ve been thinking about getting back into NHL esports. When we got word that Delusion was looking for an org, it seemed like the opportunity we were waiting for. The players sold the cooperation very well and Kenneth from NHLGamer was a big help along the way too.” - hREDS GM Christer Kasurinen about their new signing.

“It’s important for us that our ambitions align with the ones of the roster and I feel that we have been on the same path right from the get-go. The team is very talented and made some excellent additions, so we’re going to battle for those top spots for sure.”, Kasurinen continues.

"It's great to have the opportunity to represent the high class organisation that is hREDS. Our goals for the future are unchanged but
the fact that the org is backing us will give us a massive boost going forward." - Team captain Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen about being signed to hREDS.
 

The ECL 10 Elite season is currently set to start on April 6th and hREDS will be diving right into action in battling for the championship title and their share of the prize pool. Convincing performances in both of their previous tournaments indicates the same trend to continue!

Follow hREDS on their social media channels here:

Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
 

NHLGamers,

The French Ligue Magnus team Grenoble Brûleurs de Loups has launched their own e-sport team and will be the first French traditional sports team to join the ECL in its 10th iteration. The birth of Grenoble BDL Esport is the result of a common desire to create an esports movement in France on the fringes of the the country's main league. Grenoble will thus be engaged in ECL for the next three editions. The French team Illusion migrates to the all new Grenoble BDL Esport roster.



Here's the roster of Grenoble Brûleurs de Loups for ECL 10:
Goaltender
Matthieu @Trollstivegen Péan - Trollstivegen

Skaters
Maximilien @Tromi13 Tromeur - Tromi13
Raphaël @Raphalsky69 Merle - Raphalsky69
Thomas @Thomas Cosnier Crosnier - ThomC15 (C)
Alexandre @Coco Lavigne - x--CoCo76--x
Julien @julien-meudon Peltier - Julien-peltier
Adrien Frinkelin - @Adri1_SCP - Adri1_SCP

Jacques Reboh, chairman of Grenoble Brûleurs de Loups
“The Brûleurs de Loups club is an enterprising club that wanted to seek new initiative. This is a new modern, innovative project in which I have a lot of faith and in which we want to bring the whole BDL Nation family together. It’s an opportunity to showcase our club internationally. We will work hard to be able to perform on the esports scene. I hope that other French hockey clubs will join us in this new adventure.”

Kenneth Lehtinen, NHLGamer founder
“We're incredibly excited to have our first French traditional sports team entering NHL esports. The sport has grown tremendously in the past year and months through some of the projects that we've been able to work with. We have appreciated our small but passionate community in France and we believe that the step taken by Grenoble BDL Esport  will be one of many towards growing the sport also in the French market.”

Thomas Crosnier, aka ThomC15, Grenoble BDL Esport team captain
“It is a real pride to be able to take up this challenge and achieve a great first in France. We will wear the colors of a great French club, it is up to us all to rise to the challenge by carrying the standard of the Brûleurs de Loups. The players are all very excited and ready for puck drop. We hope on the sidelines of this project to be able to initiate a movement throughout the country so that one day the eMagnus championship can be born as it already exists in Sweden in particular."

NHLGamers,

Welcome to the tenth iteration of the European Championship League!

It is with great pleasure we are once again able to open the registrations for the longest running and most prestigious competitive NHL league in Europe. The best players and the best teams gather to battle for the title that's long been reigned between the current champion Linköping HC and HAVU Gaming. There have been challengers before, but the rumour has it that this season we'll see something special with a great uprising of new talent in our community. The pinnacle of NHL gaming - our Elite division is running as smooth as ever and interestingly enough has received an influx of new teams through relegation matchups and will most likely also see an Elite Qualification Series. The Pro and Lite divisions are extremely well established too, and competition is ramping up through the introduction of ECL Neo that was done last season. The divisions framework will roll on in the same fashion and teams will further solidify their position at a suitable level of play.

If you don't know what we're on about by now, here's a briefing of what ECL is; ECL is a competitive EA Sports NHL League. Games are played in the EASHL game mode in a 6vs6 manner. Since ECL 4, we have implemented a division framework with Lite (and now also Neo) being entry-level, Pro being our mid-level and Elite holding the best 16 teams in Europe. A season in each division consists of a group stage/regular season and playoffs.  

Here is the planned divisions' structure for ECL 10:

• ECL Elite: 16 teams
  • Sign up: ECL Elite eligible teams
  • Gamedays:  Monday, Wednesday & Thursday
  • Regular season: One group
  • Playoffs:
    • 8 teams
    • Best-of-7
    • 7 days per round
       
• ECL Pro: 32 teams
  • Sign up: ECL Pro eligible teams
  • Gamedays: Monday, Tuesday & Thursday
  • Regular season: Two groups
  • Playoffs:
    • 16 teams
    • Best-of-7
    • 8 days per round
       
• ECL Lite: 64 teams
  • Sign up: Anyone can apply for ECL Lite
    • Teams will be decided by Franchise history, Roster composition, and EASHL record
    • ECL Lite registrants are also allowed to apply for a spot in ECL Pro
    • Teams signing up for ECL Lite that don't make it into ECL Pro or ECL Lite will be automatically placed in ECL Neo
  • Gamedays: Tuesday, Wednesday & Sunday
  • Regular season: Four groups
  • Playoffs:
    • 32 teams
    • Best-of-7
    • 8 days per round
       
• ECL Neo: 32+ teams
  • Sign up: Without restrictions
  • Gamedays: Wednesday & Sunday
  • Regular season: Four groups
  • Playoffs:
    • 16 teams
    • Best-of-5
    • 7 days per round

Basic information/requirements of ECL:

• Regional restrictions: ECL is a European tournament format, however, we do not necessarily exclude North American or Russian players. North American players are not allowed to host matches / be captain in the lineup, which means all games need to take place on European servers. This also applies to Russian players - please evaluate your previous connection experience against some of the teams participating in the ECL, especially if you live in eastern parts of your country (which likely connects you to US West servers). In case of severe connection issues, we reserve the right to exclude teams or players.
• 6v6 tournament: ECL is played 6 vs. 6 only, using the EASHL Challenge Club game mode in NHL 20.
• Individual requirements: Each player needs to have an account at NHLGamer.com and create their personal player card.
• Roster requirements: Teams in ECL Elite need to have at least 7 players to sign up. Teams in ECL Pro, ECL Lite and ECL Neo need to have at least 8 players to sign up. The roster cap is 14 players.
• ECL Elite license: Teams in ECL Elite will be required to pay for an ECL Elite license in order to play (more details to follow).
• Rules: The ECL 10 ruleset will follow the same foundation as in season 9. 

Broadcasts

ECL 10 Elite will be regularly broadcasted on the NHLGamer Twitch channel. Broadcasts will feature our favorite casters @Tougie24 and @Cyn, but also other familiar faces throughout the season. Be sure to follow our channel at twitch.tv/NHLGamer.

ECL Elite Finals and prize pool

The ECL Elite Finals information and prize pool will be confirmed close to season start. NHLGamer will continue to follow the COVID-19 situation and regulations and talk to the teams before making final decisions on how the ECL Elite finals will be played. 

When?

ECL Elite is planned to kick off first, while the other divisions will have some more time to sign up for this season:

• ECL 10 Elite will kick off on Monday, 6th of April, signups end on Thursday 19th of March 23:59 CET
• ECL 10 Pro will kick off on Monday, 6th of April, signups end on Thursday 2nd of April 23:59 CET
  • Pro teams that play for potentially open Elite spots will need to be signed up by Thursday 19th of March.
• ECL 10 Lite will kick off on Tuesday, 7th of April, signups end on Thursday 2nd of April 23:59 CET
• ECL 10 Neo will kick off on Wednesday, 8th of April, signups end Thursday on 2nd of April 23:59 CET

Elite Qualification Series

If all 16 Elite teams don't sign up for the ECL 10 season, we will have an Elite Qualification Series among the teams that are qualified to take part. In this case the teams eligible for a possible Elite Qualification Series are:

• TIKI TALK (Elite Relegate #13)
• Almost Famous (Elite Relegate #14)
• BRAYCE Phantoms(Elite Relegate #15)
• Leksands IF (Elite Relegate #16)
• Vaxjo Lakers (Pro Quarterfinalist #5)
• Reality Check (Pro Quarterfinalis #6)
• Kaupallinen Yhteistyo (Pro Quarterfinalis #7)
• Black Horse (Pro Quarterfinalis #8)

The Elite Qualification Series exact format will be determined based on the available spots and the teams that want to play for the spot in Elite, but the dates for the games are 22nd-26th of March, with potential gamedays on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday in order to ensure a fair competition for the spot. More details will be given to the eligible teams on Friday, March 20th.

Where to sign up?

• Sign up for ECL 10 Elite here
• Sign up for ECL 10 Pro here
• Sign up for ECL 10 Lite here
• Sign up for ECL 10 Neo here

Please note: If you are currently in negotiations with an organization and have plans to change your team name, but are uncertain if you will make it until the start of the season, please contact @Kenu with this information as soon as possible.

If you are a free agent looking to be picked up, please head over here.

If you are representing a team looking for players, please head over here.

Support

While it's totally ok to ask for help on Discord and you might get a quicker reply from fellow community members to some of the simpler questions, when you actually want to get help with an issue from our staff, please contact support. While sending PM's to staff members may be tempting, using our ticketing system is the best way to go.

Discord

You can join the NHLGamer Discord server by clicking here. In the NHLGamer Discord, add the appropriate ECL role as well as the role for your team to help with league communication.  This can be done in the #role-commands-entry channel (see #role-commands-guide for instructions).

What can I do to help out?

If you feel like you want to do more for the project, head over to this article for some examples of what sort of staff we are looking for and where to get in touch.

As for the small things everyone can do, follow our different channels and spread the positive word of our community and your fellow players and teams - together we can make a difference!

NHLGamer on Facebook
NHLGamer on Twitch
NHLGamer on Instagram
NHLGamer on Twitter
NHLGamer on Discord

Hopefully, that covers most of the questions you might have. Without further ado: Welcome to the ECL!

Finally, a short word about COVID-19

As mentioned above, we will continue to monitor the situation with COVID-19 (also known as the coronavirus) when determining whether or not to have a live on-location element to the ECL 10 Elite season or not. We at NHLGamer love to get together with the community and celebrate the game and the players, but we must also be responsible in stopping the spread of the virus. We will communicate with the Elite teams internally about this before the start of the season.

In addition to the considerations of a live event, we must of course keep the health and safety of our community in mind and reserve the right to pause or cancel the season, in addition to altering the details of it.

If you've somehow managed to miss what the COVID-19 is all about and what actions you should take, we definitely recommend you read about it.

UPDATE: We have made the call to postpone the start of ECL 10 Elite by one week, until Wednesday the 8th of April.
There are several underlying reasons and without going into great detail we want to ensure the best quality output possible.

NHLGamers,

We've at this point already turned our looks towards coming things and put the past ECL 9 season in our rearview mirror, but let me just hold you up for a second for this recap at how great the ninth iteration of the most prestigious division in Europe actually was. First and foremost, let me extend a thank you to all of our gamers who once again, as before - have proven their skill and passion to make all of this possible. 

We kicked off in mid-November, shortly after an exciting IS Cup 4 had started the competitive season for us NHL gamers. It was an interesting season in the sense that we saw some new blood and old acquaintances at the top level, whereas a number of teams also changed colours even mid-season as the result of contract negotiations with various organisations coming to a close. Some of the new teams we were able to welcome were eSHL participants Linkoping HC, Farjestad BK, Lulea Hockey and Leksands IF but we also saw other organisations such as Roots and HAVU Gaming taking their first strides on the ECL ice. 

Regular season

Indications before the season were that the usual suspects, HAVU Gaming and Linkoping HC (previously FILADELPHIA) would be the duo to keep an eye on for another iteration of virtual hockey. Based on recent showings in the IS Cup 4, also Butterfly Effect was in great form ahead of ECL 9 and were expected to show up to play come puck drop. Well, as the season progressed it quickly became rather clear as these three juggernauts quickly set sail for an excursion of their own and gathered point after point in a pace of their own. Especially Linkoping and HAVU Gaming set themselves apart from the competition with a suffocating offensive pressure that leaves no space for the opposition to generate viable offense of their own. Both teams finished the regular season with impressive goal differentials and extremely low goals against averages. Butterfly Effect carried on their strong performances to the ECL and proved that they were serious contenders this season, as a result they followed close behind the power duo of LHC and HAVU.

Apart from the three top teams, Roots, Lulea Hockey and Unlucky Boys HC managed to crack the playoffs with some margin to the teams behind. These teams performed somewhere along the lines of what was expected from them, putting forth some very balanced efforts throughout the season and in that way justifying a playoff spot for themselves - a feat that must feel especially good for Unlucky Boys, who have been competing at the highest level for quite some time, but missed the playoffs narrowly for the past two seasons. 

Moving on to the middle of the pack, we see some of the tightest competition within the division is quite some time. Positions 7-13 are all within a four point range of each other meaning that just a win or loss in any direction could have drastically changed the outlook of the playoff picture. Consistent performer Symphony had a surprisingly hard time and making the playoffs was actually out of their hands - losing five straight wasn't the ideal way to cap off the regular season. Luckily for them, the Notes had some help along the way and their competition didn't manage to overtake them. The final two playoff teams by an extremely narrow margin were Miracle and Symphony. 

The bottom three teams held some surprises to be fair and managed to amass the biggest point totals for bottom teams since the introduction of the divisions framework. The final order was Almost Famous at 14th with a point total of 26, the previous seasons surprise playoff team BRAYCE Phantoms at 15th with 23 points and finally Leksands IF, who managed to avoid relegation in ECL 8, at 19 points. Eventually all teams in the relegation zone lost their relegation matchups, which infuses the division with a great amount of fresh skill for ECL 10.

Playoffs

As usual, the playoff contention in the ECL consists out of the eight best teams in the European scene - no exceptions on that part this season either. Going into the quarterfinals, some rather clear favourites existed for most of the series, barring the one between 4th seed Roots and 5th seed Lulea Hockey. This series finally ended up being the only one in which the lower seeded team managed to grab the win, with that also the only series of such variety for the duration of the playoffs. Roots did not play up to their potential and have since addressed their underlying issues with some personnel changes in the offseason.
 

 Linköping HC 4
 Symphony 2

 HAVU Gaming 4
 Miracle 0

 Butterfly Effect 4
 Unlucky Boys HC 1

 Roots 2
 Lulea Hockey 4

Moving on to the semifinal stages, we were left with the absolute elite - three teams who have been very familiar with each other, battling at this stage of the tournament against one another in a bunch of various tournaments. Then we had Lulea, who managed to overpower Roots in their quarterfinal matchup and were looking to possibly cause an upset against heavy favourite Linkoping HC. The series finally didn't go Luleas way, as the score was kept close in some games, but there was really no doubt about the better team. Linkoping put forth an impressive effort and punched their ticket to the finals. The other series between dear rivals HAVU Gaming and Butterfly Effect was an exciting one indeed. Some time earlier, these two had went at it in the IS Cup 4 semifinals for the entire seven game series and this was going to be the one in which FLY comes back for redemption. Well, game seven it was once again, but no change in the end result as Butterfly Effect suffered a heartbreaking loss in the semifinals for the third time in the past year - all of these losses against HAVU. The tragedy has put captain @jergelii's faith to a test and the future of the team is currently unknown.
 

 Linköping HC 4
 Lulea Hockey 0
 

 HAVU Gaming 4
 Butterfly Effect 3

Eventually there can be only one, and that's what we're determining each iteration in the finals. For the second time straight on ECL ice, the matchup was between the two giants Linkoping HC and HAVU Gaming. A great battle was expected and that was surely what these two teams provided. The finals were divided into two gamedays, where the first three games were played on the first day and the rest would be played on the second gameday. HAVU quickly took control by winning the first two games in the series, but luckily for Linkoping, they manage to snag a victory to end the first gameday, putting the series at 2-1 for the pause. One of the turning points of the series was seen with a mere 2 seconds left in game 3, where LHC was ahead by a goal and HAVU managed to generate an almost certain scoring chance, but @ICappeI in net shuts them down with potentially the biggest save of the season. 

See the save and games 1-3 of the finals below: (save sequence starts at around 1:45:00)

As the series continue on the second gameday, HAVU is the more eager team to win as they grab the win in game 4, putting the series at a stranglehold. However, Linkoping quickly shows that they simply do not recognise the concept of giving up. The white lions mount a comeback for the ages consisting of three straight one goal games, including an overtime victory in game 6. All in all, it can be stated with certainty that this series solidifies this matchup as a definite classic within NHL gaming. Linkoping secures the championship and regains the title!

 Linköping HC 4
 HAVU Gaming 3

 
🏆
AWARDS

Playoff MVP: @Eki, Linkoping HC

Most Points: @Eki, Linkoping HC, 44 Goals, 71 Assists, 115 Points in 47 games
Most Goals: @Vilupoika, Butterfly Effect, 58 Goals, 29 Assists, 87 Points in 42 games
Most Assists: @Eki, Linkoping HC, 44 Goals, 71 Assists, 115 Points in 47 games
Most Hits by a Forward: @hpkfani, Lulea Hockey, 243 Hits in 40 games
Best +/-: @PleeMaker , Linkoping HC, +75 in 47 games

Most Points by a Defenseman: @xDoumi, Butterfly Effect, 2 Goals, 45 Assists, 47 Points in 42 games
Most Goals by a Defenseman: @willekunq, HAVU Gaming, 10 Goals, 32 Assists, 42 Points in 46 games
Most Assists by a Defenseman: @xDoumi, Butterfly Effect, 2 Goals, 45 Assists, 47 Points in 42 games
Most Hits by a Defenseman: @FakiiR1, Miracle, 278 Hits in 34 games

Best goaltender (SV%): @Hansulinho, HAVU Gaming, 247 saves on 288 shots, SV% 85.76% in 34 games

Thank you all for yet another successful ECL season, we'll be back with more in the near future! In the mean time you can keep up with one of the ongoing leagues, such as eSHL, RCL or GCL. 

See you on the ice!

NHLGamers,

The ECL 9 Pro season is in the books with the last games in the finals having been played at the end of January. At the end of the line we got to see arguably the most talent packed final series ever on our second highest tier of competition. Both Delusion and Vesa Pompa HC consists players possessing tremendous personal skill. Both teams have also seen previous success, as Vesa Pompa are the reigning SCL champions and Delusion recently paved their way into the finals (and almost won!) of IS Cup 4. We've decided to take a closer look back at the final series between these two teams.

Here's the road to the finals for both teams:

  Delusion 🏆                 Vesa Pompa HC 🥈

Group stage record: 29-0-1 (1st)          Group stage record: 26-2-2 (2nd)
Round 1: vs Pata Hellalla (8) 4-0          Round 1: vs ZSC Lions (8) 4-0
Quarterfinals: vs Black Horse (8) 4-0          Quarterfinals: vs Reality Check (7) 4-2
Semifinals: vs GHETTO FIREBIRDS (4) 4-1          Semifinals: vs Gotham Knights (3) 4-3

 

Vesa Pompa HC had two tough series against both Reality Check and Gotham Knights. On the other side of the finals, Delusion had easier series in the first two rounds but somewhat tougher in the semifinals against the ever so strong GHETTO FIREBIRDS. The main question before the finals was which one of these teams were in better form, since Vesa Pompa had truly been battle tested whereas Delusion has been able to cruise through the season quite casually - granted this might be due to their overpowering skill compared to their competition. 

Games 1 & 2 - Tuesday, 28th of January, 2020

Game 1 - 4-1 Delusion W

The first period was a rather tight ordeal but eventually Delusion led 1-0. In the second period Delusion was the more dominant part and with that widened their lead to 1-3 even though Vesa Pompa HC managed to score a lone goal. Throughout the remainder of the game, we did not see a comeback from the Swedes and Delusion takes game 1 in a convincing fashion.

Game 2 - 3-4 Vesa Pompa HC W

The second game of the series was certainly an outstanding bounce back by Vesa Pompa after getting embarrassed a bit to start the series. They were determined to even up the score and did so in a shootout. Delusion took a quick lead but the skilled Swedes countered with two of their own. All in all, the first night was a great indicator of the kind of action we were to see throughout the rest of the series.

Games 3-6 - Wednesday, 29th of January, 2020

Game 3 - 5-1 Delusion W

In game three, Delusion scores two nearly identical goals at the end of the first period - @Beniittto finds a breakaway opportunity twice and tickles twine with a great backhand shot on both chances. The second period was no different, but Delusion only netted one goal. We finish with an equally dominant third and chalk up another victory for the Finnish team. Delusion was simply the more efficient team and took advantage of the momentum in the game. 

Game 4 - 3-4 OT Vesa Pompa HC W

We see a very similar storyline to the second game in the series, where Delusion opens the scoring, but Vesa Pompa quickly manages to gather themselves and get back in the game, this time with three quick unanswered markers. Once again, Delusion mounted a comeback and we entered overtime, in which Vesa Pompa's Finnish star @Nampa77 steps up and becomes the hero that ties up the series.

Game 5 - 2-0 Delusion W

To our surprise, the fifth game of the series was the one game where strict defensive play and patience finally was the key. The score was kept low due to the high stakes of the game - the winner would be merely one win away from the title. Delusion is the only team to get some scoring going, as they manage to net two whereas Vesa Pompa isn't as effective and gets shut down completely by a stellar defensive effort and strong play by @uhNikke in net for Delusion.

Game 6 - 4-2 Delusion W

Delusion had the series in a stranglehold and therefore Vesa Pompa needed their best game of the series in order to keep the games going. It has definitely not been a matter of playing bad for the Swedes, but Delusion is simply such a difficult team to beat. The major difference between the two teams has been capitalising on scoring opportunities.Once again, fans are treated to a defensive battle in which Delusion finds the back of the net twice until Vesa Pompa got their first marker. We saw some drama as Delusion had an opportunity to close out the series with a penalty shot by @Joukki at the end of the second period, but @Thunborg5 in net for Vesa Pompa draws the longer straw this time. Eventually, Delusion finds a way to stay ahead and finishes the game with a victory - we're ready to crown a new champion!



The entire series was a very exciting bout between two tremendously skilled teams. Personally, I thought the play was very tight at even strength and the series could have gone either way was it not for the deadly efficiency that Delusion had in their scoring chances. Vesa Pompa put forth a great challenge to the eventual champions, but in the later games of the series a difference was evident and Delusion is a rightful champion of ECL 9 Pro. 

Congratulations!

NHLGamers,

The next championship to be crowned in the 9th iteration of ECL is the most prestigious of them all - Elite. Two teams entered. And once the dust had settled, only one was left standing. We present to you the ECL 9 Elite champions in Linkoping HC. This marks the third title for this franchise, and the second in three seasons - no doubt solidifying them as one of Europe's finest. 

 Linkoping HC 🏆

Group stage record: 27-2-1 (1st)
Round 1: vs Symphony (8) 4-2
Semifinals: vs Lulea Hockey (5) 4-0
Finals: vs HAVU Gaming (2) 4-3

GOALIES

#72 C. Lundgren @ICappeI

DEFENSEMEN

#27 A. Loimuvirta @loimmu

#40 J. Torro @jtorro1233

#88 J. Virta @SUPERVIRTA

FORWARDS

#25 E. Tammenpaa @Eki

#44 P. Arontie @PleeMaker

#86 J. Paatiala @Juunas

The finals between HAVU Gaming and Linkoping were 7 incredible games, that no doubt treated the viewers to what NHL EASHL 6s looks like at the highest level. All games were broadcast on the NHLGamer Twitch-channel. @Tougie24 and @Cyn once again blessed us with their presence and put forth a great effort in the commentator booth. If you missed that action, you can watch it again here:

Games 1-3:

Games 4-7:

NHLGamers,

Tonight we've reached the pinnacle of what European NHL gaming is all about, two of the very best teams will be going head to head in determining who gets to raise the cup and take home a hefty amount of cash. The European Championship League is one of the longest running competitive leagues and is certainly the one to win in Europe. 

HAVU Gaming vs Linköping HC

HAVU shows their efficient scoring in game one

4-1 Win for HAVU Gaming

The two dear rivals have gone at it for three games already during Tuesday night. The night started off with a dominant game one effort by HAVU in which Ilmari @Buantso Lehkonen was the man to watch, recording two goals and two helpers to get the series started. Overall, the game was very even with not too many chances opening up. HAVU was just the way more effective team on the opportunities given.

Dominointi provides overtime heroics in game two

2-3 OT win for HAVU Gaming 

As the night progressed, the results also started trending in another direction - game two was a tight battle, where once again the flow of play wasn't really controlled by either team, but chances were evenly distributed and both teams got their say on both sides of the puck. A vast majority of action in the game revolved around wingers Tuukka @FlyerKungen Kuha and Paul @PleeMaker Arontie, who are going head-to-head on the same wing. The two stars are not only great scorers and difference makers in both ends of the ice, but enjoy puck possession and can do great things when their confidence is high. Eventually game two was extended into overtime, where Risto @Dominointi Järvi provided the overtime heroics, grabbing the second win in the series for HAVU Gaming.

Cappe with the biggest save of the night in game three

1-2 Win for Linköping HC

Game three was something of a HAVU clinic, where the team looked to control the flow of the game and was the more dominant party but could not find a way to overcome Casper @ICappeI Lundgren in net for Linköping more than once. It's also due to an astonishing defensive team effort by LHC. The result was 1-2 for Linköping after 60 minutes with @ICappeI making a save glove to remember with just 2,5 seconds left in the game. Three tough bouts put the series standing at 2-1 in favor of the reigning champion HAVU Gaming.


The series continue tonight with games 4-7 at 20:45 CET at twitch.tv/nhlgamer.

 NHLGamers,

Starting tonight, we've reached the culmination point of the ECL 9 season. It's when the best of the best go at it in a best-of-seven series and eventually we crown a new European Champion. We've got an interesting setup for this one, as quite some time has passed since both HAVU Gaming and Linköping HC qualified for the finals, but due to time constraints and a number of various tournaments clashing for both the players and our NHLGamer staff, it was decided that postponing the finals would make for the best competitive setting and in that way highest possible level of play. That is something we're extremely eager to witness tonight when the puck drops at 20:00 CET.

It's been a long time since the last playoff games in ECL 9 Elite were played (6th of January for HAVU, 5th of January for Linköping), so you can definitely not put too much weight on the teams performances earlier during the season. In general the postponing of the finals gives a bit of an extra twist to this matchup whereas it's unusual to see these long breaks in between tournaments. Although neither team might be in that ECL grind mindset anymore, the incentive here is certainly the biggest share of that 5000€ prize pool. 

 Linköping HC
Group stage record: 27-2-1 (1st)
Quarterfinals: vs Symphony (8) 4-2
Semifinals: vs Luleå Hockey (5) 4-0

The strongest European team based on form across all tournaments recently. Apart from their opponents, LHC has been participating in the eSHL with the exact same roster that will take on HAVU in the ECL Finals starting tonight. Recent performances bode well for Linköping, as they've gone 9-1-0 in their last ten games and are currently at the top of the table by a three point margin. On the ECL side of things, the team also finished strong by sweeping fellow eSHL team Luleå Hockey. However, some questions have been raised whether this team is playing with the passion that we've seen before. Despite pushing from victory to another, the times of supreme reign are gone and this talent packed roster has proved to be human after all. It's not a statement based on poor performance, but based on the somewhat difficult games they've had where the offense hasn't been showing their usual flow and quick wits. Starting tonight, they'll be taking on a dear rival which in their last few meetings has proven to be the better team. Can we se a return to the throne?

 HAVU Gaming
Group stage record: 26-2-2 (2nd)
Quarterfinals: vs Miracle (7) 4-0
Semifinals: vs Butterfly Effect (3) 4-3

HAVU Gaming isn't a team that's been in the headlines of the community too much lately and that's simply for the reason that the team has been on a hiatus for the purpose of representing various teams in the eSHL. The forward line has been representing Malmö Redhawks and have absolutely obliterated the opposition in their last two matchups against Växjö Lakers HC and Färjestad BK - as expected. Defensemen @willekunq and @Nassustelija have been the backstops for Färjestad BK, which has been a strong and consistent performer throughout the season and to some extent have the two HAVU players to thank for that. A small cause for worry is the fact that these guys haven't played together too much as of late and goaltender @Hansulinho hasn't strapped on the pads for a good few weeks. These are the true elite of the NHL gaming scene, will they overcome the challenge and return to the ice in their old winning ways?

Last 10 head-to-head games:
ECL 9 Elite: 8.12.2019 Linköping HC - HAVU Gaming 2-1 OT
ECL 9 Elite: 8.12.2019 HAVU Gaming - Linköping HC 2-1 OT
FCL Finals: 3.8.2019 HAVU GAMING - FILADELPHIA 2-0
FCL Finals: 3.8.2019 FILADELPHIA - HAVU Gaming 1-2
FCL Finals: 3.8.2019 HAVU Gaming - FILADELPHIA 1-0
ECL 8 Finals: 3.1.2019 FILADELPHIA - Written In The Stars 2-0
ECL 8 Finals: 3.1.2019 Written In The Stars - FILADELPHIA 4-0
ECL 8 Finals: 3.1.2019 FILADELPHIA - Written In The Stars 0-1
ECL 8 Finals: 3.1.2019 Written In The Stars - FILADELPHIA 2-0
ECL 8 Finals: 3.1.2019 FILADELPHIA - Written In The Stars 0-1 OT

*Written In The Stars is the previous name of HAVU Gaming, whereas FILADELPHIA is the previous name of Linköping HC.

Regardless the outcome, this matchup  has certainly become the grand rivalry of the NHL gaming scene. As seen from the list above, these classics don't come around all too often, but most of them have been in the finals, starting with the first ever European 6vs6 LAN at IS Cup 3, which was one for the ages as the teams battled long into the night and FILADELPHIA (now Linköping HC) eventually came out on top. 

When/where to watch?

All of the games will be streamed on the NHLGamer Twitch channel. The beloved @Tougie24 and @Cyn will be providing commentary.

Tuesday, February 4th
Games 1-3 starting 20:00 CET

Thursday, February 6th
Games 4-7 starting 20:45 CET

 NHLGamers,

The third championship of the ECL 9 season was crowned on Sunday when the two title contenders Sulkavan Sudet and Riven Johdolla clashed for games 4-7 of their final series. Going into the games, we were in an interesting position, where Sudet had the chance to complete a sweep and with that go undefeated through the playoffs, but luckily for the viewers - Riven Johdolla had different thoughts as they held off the eventual defeat for two very exciting games. After a tough series culminating in a convincing 7-2 win for Sudet, we were finally able to crown a champion!

 Sulkavan Sudet 🏆

Group stage record: 16-3-1 (7th)
Round 1: vs DEG eSports (26) 4-0
Round 2: vs WEREWOLVES HC (15) 4-0
Quarterfinals: vs Rookie Mistakes (6) 4-0
Semifinals: vs Mockba (2) 4-0
Finals: vs Riven Johdolla (3) 4-2

GOALIES

#44 P. Juurikkala @TeikDaun

DEFENSEMEN

#27 -. Ipana @Ipana27

#77 J. Sepalus @Jusaagi

#92 -. Lope @Pirkkalope

FORWARDS

#13 U. Erkkilä @urkk1

#29 -. Luokkala @Luokkala_

#41 M. Aaltonen @Kemppane_

#55 N. Kyllikki @Oxdoggi

#93 J. Musselwhite @Stapletone
 

All in all, the Lite season once again provided some very exciting action and surely showed the amount of skill that runs deep throughout the divisions framework. Next season, both of these finalist teams will be seen at the Pro level - congratulations!

The decisive games of the finals were broadcasted at the NHLGamer Twitch-channel. @Tougie24 and @Cyn once again blessed us with their presence and put forth a great effort in the commentator booth. If you missed that action, you can watch it again below:

NHLGamers,

The next championship to be crowned in the 9th iteration of ECL is the second highest tier in our divisional system - Pro. Two magnificent teams faced off in the finals, but only one could call themselves champions at the final buzzer of game 6. We present to you, the ECL 9 Pro champions - Delusion, who had an unstoppable campaign and were only defeated an astounding four times! Delusion will certainly be looking forward to the next season of ECL, as because of their win Delusion are now promoted into the highest division - Elite. Vesa Pompa HC will continue their season with one more matchup - perhaps the most important one of their season, as they will face off against BRAYCE Phantoms in a battle for promotion to Elite.

 Delusion 🏆

Group stage record: 29-0-1 (1st)
Round 1: vs Pata Hellalla (8) 4-0
Quarterfinals: vs Black Horse (8) 4-0
Semifinals: vs GHETTO FIREBIRDS (4) 4-1
Finals: vs Vesa Pompa HC (2) 4-2

GOALIES

#98 J. Nobes - @uhNikke

DEFENSEMEN

#63 Ilmari Töyrylä @iilmarii

#82 Janne Nyqvist @Janzuh

#93 'N. Svetsjenko' @Prom99

FORWARDS

#92 Joakim Nyholm @Joukki

#94 Tuukka Röpelinen @Tuukka.R

#96 Perttu Kemppainen @Beniittto

#97 Santeri Niemi @sannteri

The finals between Delusion and Vesa Pompa HC were 6 games of exciting play and a great showcase of the new influx of skill that Elite will surely see in ECL 10. All games were broadcasted at the NHLGamer Twitch-channel. @Tougie24 and @Cyn once again blessed us with their presence and put forth a great effort in the commentator booth. If you missed that action, you can watch it again below:

 NHLGamers,

The time has come to crown a champion in our Pro division and with that also determine the team that will gain a direct promotion to compete at the highest level in ECL 10. As usual, we kicked off the season with 32 total teams that were divided into two groups and to not that much of a surprise, the two we see in the finals were the eventual winners of both groups - Delusion and Vesa Pompa HC.

Both teams have come a long way and are rather young both in terms of average age on their roster and in terms of the history of the team. Vesa Pompa has come a longer way as a group, the team first surfaced at NHLGamer when they participated in ECL 7 Lite under their previous name Lehmannens Badboyz. However, ECL 8 was their real breakout season as they finished their Lite division campaign as runner-ups and continued on that run into the SCL later that spring - you might know how that ended 🏆. Delusion is the ones we see on the other side of this battle, also an incredibly talented team that first surfaced in late 2019 before IS Cup 4. Some eyebrows were raised and there were a fair amount of doubters, but this group had set out on a mission to prove all those naysayers wrong. An impressive silver medal finish in IS Cup 4 launched the success story that is Delusion. Both teams are hungry for the direct promotion spot, as the runner-up will have to qualify against the German powerhouse BRAYCE Phantoms HC.

  Delusion

The argument could certainly be made that Delusion is competing in the wrong division, but due to rules and all that the team did not qualify for competition at the Elite level for their inaugural season despite their skill. It surely goes to show that they are a force to be reckoned with even on a higher level when competition has been destroyed convincingly throughout this season. The top three in scoring for the regular season consists of three Delusion players, which would be the case in the playoffs too if the games played column would show equal amounts. There's one massive exception though - Delusion has lost their right winger @Tuukka.R for the playoffs as he is serving his military duties. In his place we can see @sannteri who has had some big boots to fill, but has done so in a sufficient way. There's still a difference compared to the original lineup, but having marched through the playoffs with only one loss, Delusion will be a favourite going into the final matchup.

 Vesa Pompa HC

Vesa Pompa HC is experiencing somewhat turbulent times as the group is currently competing in the eSHL in the colour of Malmö Redhawks and doing so with a rather different roster. Trying to juggle between the two clubs must entail some challenges and has certainly had an effect on the level of play. Most recently Vesa Pompa clashed with Gotham Knights in the semifinals and played a series for the ages, where they ended up being down in the series but Gotham didn't manage to take the advantage. We ended up in a game seven in which Vesa Pompa came out on top in a scoring duel. The finals will be a hard challenge for the Swedes, who will need to find their prime form and execute at an Elite level in order to overcome Delusion. Much of the offense relies on @Nampa77 and @Eken45jr, who almost entirely by themselves have carried the team in that regard. Defensively the team will have to be on their toes constantly and @Thunborg5 in net will have his work cut out for him.

Where/when to watch?

The best-of-seven series will be starting tonight, Tuesday 28th of January at 21:30 CET and finished on Wednesday, 29th of January, 21:00 CET. 

All games will be broadcasted live at the NHLGamer Twitch-channel. In the booth: @Tougie24 and @Cyn!

NHLGamers,

The first championship of the 9th iteration of ECL was crowned last week and how suitable it is that this was done in our newest division - Neo. ECL 9 Neo is aimed to be a great stepping stone into competitive virtual hockey and we believe that it has served its purpose well during the inaugural season. The eventual champion ended up being Olympia, who had an outstanding campaign and remained one of the strongest teams of the division throughout the season. 

 Olympia 🏆
Group stage record: 11-3-2 (8th)
Round 1: vs KulmalaHengaus (9) 3-1
Quarterfinals: vs Eliel Kings (3) 3-1
Semifinals: vs Kuutamokiekko (1) 3-0
Finals: vs TanssiiTuhtienKansa (4) 3-1

GOALIES
#66 B. Mess - @Bloodymess_666

DEFENSEMEN
#6 P. Chantres - @Hendrixxxx (Gettoblaster80)
#83 J. Tähti - @Teamplayer (BlazingKnight83)

FORWARDS
#2 S. Tjulin - @sonny (sonnys2profil)
#4 P. Hägerström - @Hagerstrom_99
#18 C. Macaroni - @BeastBenn14
#21 A. Hags - alleftw
#91 C. Karlsson - @SWE_KARLSSON16

The finals between Olympia and TanssiiTuhtienKansa were outstanding and hard fought games, which were broadcasted at the NHLGamer Twitch-channel. @Tougie24 and @Cyn blessed us with their presence and put forth a great effort in the commentator booth. If you missed that action, you can watch it again here:
 

NHLGamer would like to extend a warm thank you to all participants and viewers, congratulations to Olympia on the first ever ECL Neo title!

NHLGamers,

We've come as far as to having only four teams left to compete for the championship title in our ECL 9 Pro division. The Pro championship is not just a title to hold, but it also signifies punching your ticket of participation in the ECL Elite division for the leagues next iteration. All of these semifinalists have earned an opportunity to play for a promotion in one way or another, now all that remains is determining the marching order.

Here are the matchups for the Semifinals of the ECL 9 Pro Playoffs:

(1)   Delusion vs GHETTO FIREBIRDS  (4)
TOP SCORER (PLAYOFFS)
@Beniittto - 8GP, 10+8=18 vs @Valluxet - 11GP, 15+18=33

GOALTENDING (PLAYOFFS)
@uhNikke - 8GP, 8W, 89.23SV%, 0,88GAA, 3SO vs @Jeresti - 11GP, 8W, 84.8SV%, 1,73GAA, 1SO

In this semifinal matchup we are seeing the clash of two very different types of teams. We all know the caliber of players that Delusions lineup holds - just imagine that all three of their forwards slot within the top 20 scorers at NHLGamer, of ALL TIME. Centerman @Beniittto even holds the top position on that list. Granted, these guys put up somewhere in the ballpark of 100 points plus each this season which might have inflated the statistics a bit, but it is a powerful statement regardless. GHETTO FIREBIRDS will have their work cut out for them as this is a challenge they are not used to facing. Don't get me wrong - the FIREBIRDS are a solid team that is built on a strong foundation with outstanding chemistry acquired over an extended period of time, but I think it's safe to say that this is going to be the biggest challenge of their careers yet.

Bottom line: The ball here is with Delusion. They should be able to run over GHETTO with their offensive prowess alone. GHETTO will need to bring their very best in this challenge of a lifetime.

(2)   Vesa Pompa HC vs Gotham Knights  (3)
TOP SCORER (PLAYOFFS
@Nampa77 - 9GP, 9+11=20 vs @Jimisebastian - 10GP, 11+5=16

GOALTENDING (PLAYOFFS)
@Thunborg5 - 5GP, 4W, 82.61SV%, 1,6GAA, 0SO vs @PeeloJombb - 10GP, 8W, 90.51SV%, 1,3GAA, 4SO

In advance, this should be the tighter semifinal matchup. Vesa Pompa HC is a tremendously strong team when they are in their zone, but with the eSHL going on and the fact that these guys are playing with a totally different roster on a nightly basis - that might throw things off. The eSHL started on January 13th and since then, we've seen some troubles in the horizon for Vesa Pompa. They played a difficult six game series in the quarterfinals against Reality Check but found a way to advance and will now be in for a challenge, when facing Gotham Knights, who are eager to get back to the highest tier of competition after spending their second consecutive season in Pro now. Statistically, both of these teams look very similar with the only major difference being Vesa Pompas scoring ability which is a category they have an advantage in. Over the course of the season, both teams have dropped points in matchups where they should have been favourites in advance, it shouldn't be too bold of a statement that the more consistent team will win this series.

Bottom line: This should be en exciting and very even series, an eventual game 7 would not be a surprise.

Where/when to watch?

The series between Delusion and GHETTO FIREBIRDS will be starting today at 20:00 CET. The first three games will be played tonight and the series will continue on wednesday at 20:00 CET, follow the games at www.twitch.tv/sakkem95.

Vesa Pompa and Gotham haven't scheduled their games yet, but according to latest comments, the series will start on Wednesday.

As always, have fun and play hard!
Who do you think will win?

NHLGamers,

First they were 32 on the starting line, now remains only two that are about to face each other in the first ever ECL Neo Finals, played on Tuesday January 21st, in a best-of-5 final series.

NHLGamer will be hosting a live broadcast of the entire series on Twitch. The broadcast will be starting at 19:00 CET and @Tougie24 together with @Cyn will be our casters that night, this is one you will not want to miss!

Both teams are coming from Group 1 of the Neo division. TanssiiTuhtienKansa finished first with a record of 11-2-3 and Olympia came in just behind with a record of 11-3-2. Points in the groupstage were distributed evenly: 5-2 TanssiiTuhtienKansa then 3-0 Olympia for two points each. We decided to ask some questions from the team Captains ahead of the matchup:

Can you shortly present your team and its history?

@Hagerstrom_99, Olympia: "Olympia was founded just a couple of weeks before ECL 9 started. I've been playing the game since forever, but never played ECL before because of lack of time. I've been on the leaderboards in HUT, I've been undefeated 50-0-0 and it was time to actually do something serious. I guess I wanted to prove myself that I can. Instead of going to a higher tier division I wanted to start in Neo with my own team for the first time. I recruited @SWE_KARLSSON16 and @Bloodymess at an early stage and from there we created what we have now."

@Unrealhave, TanssiiTuhtienKansa: "We have a great group of close friends in TanssiiTuhtienKansa. We created the team in NHL19 but we mostly played without a goalkeeper and 3's. There has been some roster changes along time but the core hasn't changed. We started playing competitive games in IS Cup 4 and we all love it despite the fact that we played terrible. We started to develop after really creating our game system. There is still a lot of work to do but we are eager to learn new and our goal is to play Pro in ECL 11.  We are not the typical six persons team which always plays with the same roster. There are nine important pieces in our team at the moment. We will for sure change things around for the finals as well."

What about the group phase, was it close?

@Hagerstrom_99, Olympia: "We never played together before, all of us are new to each other. @BeastBenn14 (C) and @Teamplayer (LD) came in later. So as a group i think we definitely grew closer. I think I grew a lot as person by leading a team as a Captain although I'm familiar with that from real life already. Hating to lose sometimes shifted focus to negative, which could be improved. I think the groupstage was just the start for us. Now we have adapted to a playstyle that works and made a lot of progress."

@Unrealhave, TanssiiTuhtienKansa: "As you can see both finalists are from the same group, that was definitely not the easiest one. It was a close group and I think there were many good teams left out of the playoffs. After all I think it was great for us because the tight games are the ones which improve you the most."

Same for the playoffs phase, how do you see your run so far?

@Hagerstrom_99, Olympia: "Playoffs have really been a turning point, being seeded eighth into the playoffs we met in my opinion some of the toughest opponents. I think we only lost two games and I thought they were pretty ridiculous losses to be honest. Our goal was to reach the playoffs, we did. Then we took one step at a time and really wanted to play in the semifinals. Against Kuutamokiekko we knew it was going to be tough,  @Tsikago is a skilled and a good guy, they have a lot of good players. We really played our best hockey and swept them 3-0 and here we are, in the finals in our first ever run."

@Unrealhave, TanssiiTuhtienKansa: "The playoff phase is always tight because everyone who has gone that far has already shown their skill. We have had some bad games along the playoffs but we have proven that we can play great when it's our life on the line."

What kind of games are you expecting during the finals?

@Hagerstrom_99, Olympia: "Against TanssiiTuhtienKansa I expect a skilful round, to be honest some games I've just wished for the game to end so it's nice to get this challenge. Some play styles are just really weary to play against. TanssiiTuhtienKansa is a good team, they have skilful players, but so do we. I hope to see good offense, good defense and some nice goals scored from us of course!"

@Unrealhave, TanssiiTuhtienKansa: "Olympia is a great team. They play pretty tight, they are skilled in the offensive zone on the ice and they also read game situations really good. We need to be ready for the game before the puck hits the ice and I think we also need to play a bit simpler than usually. I'm expecting tight games which include fast hockey and lots of goals."

Explain why your team will be the first ECL Neo Champ?

@Hagerstrom_99, Olympia: "Olympia has the best goaltending and top tier players, we have players who really can change a game on their own. I know if we play the way we can, it's going to be tough beating us. We're proud to be here, but we won't stop until we are named Champions. Expect us."

@Unrealhave, TanssiiTuhtienKansa: "We are a team, not just a bunch of individuals and we all believe on our game system. I think the main reason for being in this position is that we are always willing to find solutions on problems. We always try to improve our play and never play games without thinking of what we can do better. Within the group of friends we have a great team spirit. We always have fun when we play and we stay in touch with each other on a daily basis so even though we take the game seriously it's always a great way to spend some time with friends, especially now when some of the guys have moved to different cities. We also have a great mix of different kind of players who bring different things to the table. We have always succeeded when we have needed it, so we are confident that will be the atmosphere in the finals as well."

The road to the finals

 Olympia
2^nd seed of Group 1 / 11-3-2 (8^th seed in total)
Biggest win: 13-1 (Varissuon Toverit)
Biggest loss: 2-5 (TanssiiTuhtienKansa)
67 GF / 34 GA / 40 % PP / 193 hits

1^st round
Kulmalahengaus: 3-1
2^nd round
Eliel Kings: 3-1
3^rd round
Kuutamokiekko: 3-0

Team leaders
1. @Hagerstrom_99 85 pts (46+39)
2. @SWE_KARLSSON16: 63 pts (39+24)
3. @BeastBenn14: 39 pts (8+31)
Goaltending
@Bloodymess: 85 % / 2.14 GAA / 1 SO (Playoffs 80.85 % / 2.25 GAA / 1 SO)

THE KEY POINT : A deadly powerplay with a 40% success rate.

TanssiiTuhtienKansa 
1^st seed of Group 1 / 11-2-3 (4^th seed in total)
Biggest win : 6-0 (Mustangs)
Biggest lost : 0-3 (Olympia)
62 GF / 44 GA / 17.65 % PP / 89 hits

1^st round
MAD Knogmackers: 3-0
2^nd round
EIS Force Hockey: 3-2
3^rd round
Seinajoki Noms: 3-2

Team leaders
1. @Unrealhave: 86 pts (35+51)
2. @Valtter1111 : 82 pts (45+37)
3. @Wilhooo13 : 36 pts (17+19)
Goaltending 
@Juhned32: 84.96 % / 2.13 GAA / 1 SO (playoffs : 88.37 % / 1.36 GAA / 2 SO)
@Häkä : 76.52 % / 3.38 GAA / 1 SO (playoffs : 86.49 % / 2.5 GAA)

THE KEY POINT : Four overtime victories since the start of the contest

A massive thanks to @Hagerstrom_99 and @Unrealhave for being available to answer all questions. Good luck in the finals!
Remember to tune in to the broadcast on Tuesday! Who do you think will win?

NHLGamers,

The ECL 9 Lite season has progressed all the way to the Semifinals in which we're seeing two very exciting matchups. All of the teams that are left have been storming through playoffs with just a few losses each so we can say that the competition is ramping up to a level where there will be no easy games. All of the teams that are left have secured promotions to ECL Pro for next season. Now all that remains is to determine the final marching order and crowning a champion. Without further ado, let's get into the details of our semi's.



The ECL 9 Lite Semifinals are to be played between Friday, January 17th and Sunday, January 26th.

Here are the matchups for the Semifinals of the ECL 9 Lite playoffs:

(2.)  Mockba  vs. Sulkavan Sudet  (7.)

Mockba has defeated teams that were ranked 31st, 32nd and 19th and now Sulkavan Sudet will be their first true challenge. They had no problems against GREED, Carolus Icemen and Hokurit even though many of their games have been decided by small goal differences. Sulkavan Sudet haven't lost a game in the playoffs. They destroyed DEG eSports in the first round of the playoffs with goal differential of +18 but after that, WEREWOLVES HC and offensively skilled Rookie Mistakes were more of a challenge to them even though both series ended in a sweep. Sulkavan Sudet have the top 2 regular season scorers @Oxdoggi (78 points) and @Kemppane_ (75 points) in their lineup. Mockba isn't as offensively skilled, but their team play and ''quarterback'' defenseman @riihimaenharski is a winning combination. Will the offense of Sulkavan Sudet overpower the fact that they have only seen average goaltending so far this season? Is Mockba ready for their first real challenge? Can Mockba frustrate their opponent with their chemistry and play style? Find out in the semifinals!

(3.)  Riven Johdolla vs. Clumsy Penguins  (4.)

Riven Johdolla has been the biggest surprise this ECL Lite season as their fairly inexperienced lineup had a strong regular season and in the playoffs have battled their way into the semifinals. @Vattu__ is the purest goal scorer this season in Lite after coming second in regular season goals with 37 notches and leading playoff goal scoring with 27 goals to his name. He also leads playoff scoring with 40 points and has a shooting percentage of over 40% this season. Pro experienced Clumsy Penguins have lost only one game in the playoffs and have had no problems advancing to the semifinals beating Saucer Hockey, Sack Brothers and Company of Geeks. @Jugi9 is tied for most penalties (20min) in the playoffs with the rest of Clumsy Penguins getting only 12 penalty minutes combined, but penalties may not be a problem for Clumsy Penguins since Riven Johdolla has only scored 4 power play goals in the playoffs. Which will prevail - experience or confidence? Can @Vattu__ continue his scoring? Can @Jugi9 stay out of the box and find a way to help his team in other areas? Find out when the games start!

Who are you rooting for to win it all? Leave a comment down below!

NHLGamers,
 

After a longer break for christmas and new years we are back with another article in the Player Spotlight series. Before christmas we asked Antti @Anhel Kuru a bunch of questions. Today we are back with the next article in the series and this time we are featuring Oskari @sibeelius Grönroos. We asked him 19 questions and as you probably have noticed by now, some are the same as earlier, and some are new. Let's get to it:

1. What was your first experience with the EASHL mode in NHL like?

- My first experience in EASHL was probably a random drop-in game in NHL 17. It was horrible but we've come a long way from that.

2. During this season you switched teams from Filadelphia to Butterfly Effect, has it been any different playing in Butterfly than in Filadelphia?

- Yes for sure. Defense has been maybe the biggest difference between these two teams as FILA had really good discipline and a more passive style of defense while Butterfly is more active in the forecheck. Penalties have also been a big difference.

3. Who is the best hockey player in the world according to you?

- McDavid is in a league of his own at the moment, there is no question about that.

4. Describe your perfect breakfast!

- I rarely eat breakfast, but coffee is a must and maybe some kind of croissant with some ham, cheese and lettuce in it.

5. If you would be a manager for a day and had to pick one defender, one forward and a goalie to build a new ECL Elite team around. Which players would you choose? You can only choose one from your own team.

- I would probably pick young players, so as a defender I would pick @xDoumi from Butterfly Effect. The forward choice is much harder but I think I would take @Beniittto because he is a center and already experienced and young. As a goalie I would probably go with @Hansulinho even tho he isn't as young anymore but he is the most consistent goalie at the moment.

6. What would you rather be, an average player in the real-life Finnish Liiga or the worlds best EA Sports NHL-player in both 1v1 and 6v6?

- If I could be an average real life player in NHL I would choose that any day but in the Finnish league... I will go with being the best EA Sports NHL-player.

7.  Do you play or have you played hockey?

- I have only played hockey with friends at outdoor rinks.

8. What’s your best hockey memory?

- My best hockey memory would be seeing my first NHL game live. It was Flyers vs Lightning. 6-5 overtime ending made it very enjoyable to watch. It was also my first time in America so that made it even more cool  

9. What’s your favourite team? 

- My favourite team is the Chicago Blackhawks.

10. What do you do on a day off?

- I don't have a job at the moment as I'm trying to get into law school, but on a day off I would probably just chill at home or see friends.

11. If you would have to spend one day playing NHL and had to listen to one song only, during the whole day, what song would you pick?

- My favourite at the moment is probably Legends from Juice Wrld so I will go with that.

12. How did you come up with your PSN ID?

- When I was younger and played soccer, my soccer coach gave me a nickname and that was Sibelius. People in real life also call me Sibbe as a shoter version of Sibelius.

13. Who’s the best player in ECL according to you?

- I must say @Buantso is the best player in ECL at the moment for sure.

14. What is the first thing you are going to do when you retire? (from work) 

- When I retire from work I will just travel as much as I can. I love travelling.

15. What are your top 3 places or countries you want to visit? 

- That is a tough one. Probably 1. Bahamas 2. Australia 3. Hawaii

16. Which team will win ECL 9 Elite?

- I hope Linköping wins it so HAVU won't get a second ECL title in a row. However I still think that HAVU will win it because they are more effective at scoring even though Linköping has scored more goals this season. HAVU has a better goalie and their forecheck will give a hard time to any team who they face at the moment. 

17. The eSHL just started and a lot of players and some teams have been signed by SHL-clubs, what are your thoughts on the league and players going there?

- I think the eSHL will be a great league with great players and teams and I hope it gets a lot of attention so it could maybe wake interest in other leagues to also create the same kind of tournaments or leagues. Hopefully this league will show the potential of this esport and help it grow. I'm also happy that it wasn't strictly for Swedish players so the league will be more competitive

18. Would you have liked to play in the eSHL?

- Yes I'm kinda sad that I'm not participating in this league as it would have been a cool experience but sadly no one needed my services.

19. Last question, Sauna or hot tub?

- Hot tub  

The stats of Oskari "Sibelius" Grönroos

We thank @sibeelius for taking the time to sit down with us for this interview. Next weeks player has already been chosen but as we plan to release more of these articles, please let us know which player you would like to hear more from!

NHLGamers,

Playoffs in all our divisions are rolling on nicely and we're only starting to get into the really exciting games where the best of the best match up against each other. The Pro division this season has been as exciting as ever and as usual, we've seen some real powerhouses among the group. Without further ado, let's get into some previews about the upcoming series:

Here's how the playoffs of ECL 9 Pro will be played from this point on:

• Quarterfinals: 9.1 - 15.1
• Semifinals: 17.1 - 24.1
• Finals: 26.1 - 2.2

All series are played in best-of-7 manner, meaning that the first team to amass four victories advances to the next round.

Here are the matchups for the Quarterfinals of the ECL 9 Pro Playoffs:

(1)  Delusion vs Black Horse  (8)

To no surprise, Delusion had no difficulties in their first round series against Pata Hellalla. Advancing 4-0 and now meeting a slightly tougher opponent is not going to faze them either and their true test will come in the later stages of this tournament. Black Horse has a mountain to climb if they want to advance against a major favorite in this matchup.

(2)  Vesa Pompa HC vs Reality Check  (7)

Vesa Pompa HC played well in IS Cup 4 some months back and advanced with a comfortable 4-0 win over ZSC Lions in the first round of the ECL 9 playoffs. The team is expected to continue their good form, but beating a very skilled opponent in Reality Check won't be easy. Reality Check might challenge Vesa Pompa HC well and I would not be surprised if Game 7 is needed in this series.

(3)  Gotham Knights vs Vaxjo Lakers HC  (6)

This might be the one to watch in the quarterfinal round. Gotham might very well be the most long lived team in the NHLGamer era and they have eexperienced their fair share of ups and downs. After a fairly successful regular season campaign, they are looking to build on that foundation and overcome any obstacle they might face. Captain @ReDMisTi for Gotham is the biggest individual player in this series due to the x-factor that he possesses. Vaxjo on the other hand, I have some mixed feeling about. They are just about ready to get into their eSHL campaign which surely must be exciting but there is a risk that it takes away from their focus on this series. They are a solid team every step of the way and their performance will be determined by their level of focus.

(4)  GHETTO FIREBIRDS vs Kaupallinen Yhteistyo  (5)

I see GHETTO FIREBIRDS advancing from the first round as a minor surprise. They faced Sandstorm, who are a team stacked with talent, but this time it seems like the experience and teamplay of the FIREBIRDS prevailed. Kaupallinen Yhteistyo has a skilled roster lead by their high-powered offensive trio @Jooonasaurus, @Katuhessu (KrisutusB) and @Limbe65, who need to be shut down in the series. Overall I expect this matchup to be a tight one. The games ere expected to be rather low scoring and in the end the more disciplined team will come out on top.
 

Good luck out there, as always - play hard and have fun!

NHLGamers,

We are few weeks in to year 2020 and the ECL 9 Lite Playoffs Quarterfinals are about to start. We've had the opportunity to watch a bunch of exciting games in the first two rounds and now games are going to get a bit harder as the best eight teams start to fight for a place in top four.

The quarterfinals of the ECL 9 Lite playoffs is to be played between  Thursday, January 9th and Thursday, January 16th.

Every series is played in a best of seven-manner, meaning that the first team to amass four victories will advance.

Here are the matchups for the Quarterfinals of the ECL 9 Lite playoffs:

(2.)  Mockba vs. Hokurit  (19.)

(3.)  Riven Johdolla vs. Kouvola Screaming Eagles  (10.)

(4.)  Clumsy Penguins vs. Company of Geeks  (8.)

(6.)  Rookie Mistakes vs. Sulkavan Sudet  (7.)

Good luck out there, as always - play hard and have fun!

NHLGamers!

The ECL 9 Neo Playoffs are nearing the end, but before we reach that point we still have a pair of very interesting semifinal matchups to be played. The semifinals will start on Thursday the 9th of January 2020 and end on Wednesday the 15th of January 2019.

For the relevant rules regarding these playoffs, please find extracts from section 5.7 and 10.7.2 of the ECL 9 Rulebook below. Essentially, each series will be a best-of-five and the higher seeded team will play 'at home' first, then alternate back and forth with the lower seeded team. 

Lainaa

5.7 ECL Neo Playoffs
In ECL Neo, 16 teams will make the playoffs. These 16 teams will be made up of the top 4 from each of the 4 groups. As is the case with the ECL Lite, the teams will be seeded based on finishing position within their group, as well as the tiebreakers mentioned in 11.3.

10.7.2 Playoffs
All playoff-style games in Elite, Pro, and Lite will take place as a best-of-7 series, with Neo being-best-of 5. In which the higher seeded team will play at home first. Afterwards, the right to play at home will alternate.

Without further ado, here are the matchups for the semifinals of the ECL 9 Neo Playoffs:

(1)  Kuutamokiekko vs. Olympia  (8) 

(2)  Seinajoki Noms vs. TanssiiTuhtienKansa  (4)
 

As always, NHLGamer would like to wish good luck to all remaining teams! 

NHLGamers,

It’s a great day as we have the pleasure of announcing the eSHL roster of Djurgårdens IF, historically the most successful hockey club in the Swedish national league. The club hailing from Stockholm has today announced a contract with the former Miracle roster.

Miracle, alike Djurgårdens IF is a team with a long history of playing at the top competitive level. in the past couple years, they’ve been playing under several different names, but the teams core and captain has remained the same as long-time community member Kimi @Zip player Nordberg has been the man in charge ever since the club was founded as White Trash in 2016 for ECL 3. The team saw decent success in the Pro division for a few seasons, but managed to have a breakout in ECL 6, where they reached the semifinals and finally ended up in a relegation faceoff against Nordic Stars. After a wild series, a promotion was reality and the team would compete at the Elite level from that point onward. ECL 9 was fairly good for the team, who struggled in the beginning but after a few timely acquisitions found their stride. Some minor changes will happen in the roster: 

“We’re making some changes to the lineup and will be playing with a tighter roster than before. The main change is that we’re bringing in Nico @nylanderi Laitinen on the starting spot at LD.” - Captain @Zip playeron roster changes for the eSHL

One of the other leading forces behind the team is another pioneer and personality in our community - Mattias @iSvamp Björck, whom we reached for some comments about their new eSHL endeavor.

Do you have any DIF fans in your ranks or past connections to the team?
“@amadee21 has been working as a game reporter for Djurgården Hockey and has ever since  he was a kid been a big fan. I know he always dreamed about playing for Djurgården in SHL, and now he gets that opportunity opportunity on the virtual ice, which I’m really happy about."

"My own connection to DIF started back in 1997 I think. I'm a guy who watches a lot of live hockey, and I saw my first Djurgården game in 1997 against Färjestad. Since then, I’ve seen them both in playoff games in SHL, in the relegation series which earlier were called "Kvalserien". I think by now I’ve seen them play against every SHL team except Luleå and Oskarshamn.“

How does it feel to finally ink this deal and in that being solidified as eSHL participants?
“It feels really good! This league has been a big topic in the community lately. I'm one of the guys that have rallied behind the statement that two ECL tournaments per year isn't enough for this game, and this community needs more competitive tournaments to actually become a valid Esport. To now have signed a deal with Djurgården Hockey and to get the chance to play in eSHL, with our own roster from Miracle representing this big Swedish club feels really good. We are also one of the teams that isn't using any loan players from other top clubs, which will make it interesting to see how far it can take us in this league, and also how much it will help us for the upcoming ECL 10 which still is the big thing. It will also be interesting to see how it will go for the clubs that have done local tryouts now when we have so many Elite teams like Linköping, Färjestad, Luleå and us."

Who are the teams to beat this upcoming season?

“Linköping without a doubt. They signed a complete roster from FILA, a club that has solidified their spot in the European top 3 for quite some time already. Behind them, I believe it’ll be really tight. Luleå had a great season in this ECL, they also showed some lineup depth and good management when they changed their lineup in the series against Roots, which took them to the semis. Färjestad has boosted their lineup with a defenseman from HAVU, and Vesa Pompa (Malmö) from PRO has loan-deals with maybe two of the best forwards in the world right now (Dominointi and Flyerkungen), which will make them a better team for sure. I also think that Växjö will be a team that can win games against every team in the league, their signing of eBasse is a good one and I really think he will fit their style. Linköping will probably get a perfect record, and the key games will be against the teams I mentioned above.”

Djurgårdens IF Hockey

Djurgårdens IF is one of the largest sports clubs in Sweden and with that one of the most recognizable ones too. Hailing from the nations capital Stockholm, they are currently the hockey pride of their city as dear rival AIK is struggling and not currently competing at the top level. Djurgården is the team with the most championships in the history of the Swedish national league (16), out of which the latest was won in 2001.

The start date of the eSHL is closing in on us, so expect even more news coming up soon! Please also read Djurgårdens own press release here.

NHLGamers,

Tonight we'll be broadcasting some prime ECL 9 Elite action as the well known rivalry between HAVU Gaming and Butterfly Effect returns for the decisive games of their semifinal series. So far, four games have been played in this best of seven series and wins are split at two each. Let's remember that these teams have met at some point of the playoffs in a vast majority of tournaments they have ever participated in simultaneously, which surely brings heat to the matchup in itself. So far, HAVU has been a dominant force winning all of the played series between these two teams (despite regular season matches), but as we remember, IS Cup 4 was a close one. That series was one for the ages, so our hopes are high for the remaining games of this one too.

To recap what we've seen in games 1-4, we could state that close doesn't quite cut it when it comes to these two. As stated, we're now even at 2-2 where the two teams have traded wins on two separate game nights. In game 1, Butterfly Effect scored early and managed to stay in the drivers seat for a majority of the game, before @Buantso showed his offensive prowess, netting two goals in quick succession and sending his team to a victory to start off the series. The second game was a HAVU nightmare. A seemingly tight battle just didn't go their way at all, as Butterfly Effect once again took the lead but this time didn't let up, outscoring the reigning champions 5-1. The series is tied. Games 3 & 4 followed a similar pattern to the first two. HAVU won game 3 in a game that Butterfly Effect made especially difficult for themselves bu taking two penalties really early on. 2-0 HAVU puts them ahead in the series only to see Butterfly Effect come back in the fourth game. 

In tonights broadcast, we'll have you favourite dynamic duo Arttu @OLVARI Hämäläinen and Joonas @SUPERVIRTA Virta back in the booth. Tune in at 21:00 CET over at www.twitch.tv/nhlgamer for all the action.

Hey NHLGamers! We hope you've had the chance to wind down with some nice holidays among family and friends - perhaps even briefly shifting to some other games outside of NHL!

We have heard your feedback around the ECL schedule being a bit hectic, especially now around the holidays. Thus, we have  agreed to add some time to finish the current rounds as follows:

• ECL Neo: January 7th 23:59 CET
• ECL Lite: January 7th 23:59 CET
• ECL Pro:
  • Playoffs - January 7th 23:59 CET
  • Relegation Battles - January 9th 23:59 CET
• ECL Elite: January 6th 23:59 CET

There will be a one day administrative day before the following round.

Good luck to all teams!