Quest for the Cup: hREDS

16 became eight. Eight has become four. Four is about to become two. Ahead of the ECL ’24: Winter – Elite Semifinals, SportsGamer Guest Writer Hampus @l-Furyan-l Duvefelt goes in-depth with each of the Final Four teams in their Quest for the Cup…

A DIFFERENT TEAM

It is said that you never read the same book twice. At face value, it is an inane statement. 

“Surely, I have read my favorite book more than one time, and you can’t tell me I haven’t.”

That’s not the point, though. The point is that each and every time you read a book, you are inherently a different person. The things you experience in life – good and bad – continuously shape you into something different from what you once were.
Maybe not from one day to another, but certainly from one year to another.

And so, the Lord of the Rings you read when you were 12 years old is not the same Lord of the Rings you read 20 years later. You are a vastly different person, connecting with different themes in the text, making it a different reading experience. 

For all intents and purposes: a different book.

The hREDS of 2024 is not the same hREDS that nipped at the heels of FILA in ECL Elite for several tournaments before dethroning them. Nor is it the same hREDS that reigned supreme in Elite in for what felt like – and probably was – literal years, before finally being forced to bow down.

The players are mostly the same, the game style is similar to what it always has been. But the players that make up the team are inherently different. The things they’ve experienced in the ECL – euphoria as well as heartbreak – have shaped them into something different.
For all intents and purposes: a different team.

So, what is hREDS in 2024? Leave it to left defenseman Aaro @xDoumi Ruuhinen to explain things.

“hREDS in 2024 is a hungry team”, the former ECL Defender of the Year-recipient says. “Our goal every season is to win the title. When we don’t, we consider the season a disappointment. It’s been a while since we won our last title though, so now… we want to win as much as possible. There is a hunger there.”

“I don't see any reason why we can't win the championship this season”, Ruuhinen adds. “We are playing really well at the moment.”

Indeed, they are.

hREDS won 23 out of 30 games in the regular season yet finished fourth in the standings – a testament to the quality of play in the Elite division. But also a testament to the fact that hREDS went through some changes in the off-season. 

Forward Niklas @NikkeDangles Tukiainen missed two thirds of the regular season due to his commitment to the Finnish military service and two-time champion center Aleksi @MozjaTG Kähkönen, formerly of Tunnel Vision, was brought in to play at a position fairly new to him: right wing. 

At the same time, hREDS brought in a new goaltender in Sebastian @FINSeRe Remes. 

“‘Mozja’ was a really big help for the team when we needed a replacement for ‘Nikke’”, says Ruuhinen. “I remember how he stepped up to secure a couple of regular season games for us this season with his goals. He played well the whole season. The team didn’t always play up to its capabilities, but that wasn’t on him.”

“At the same time, you can’t overstate how important ‘Nikke’ is to hREDS. He is a long-term member of the team and in my opinion the most skilled and mechanically gifted player in Europe.”

With his military service now over, Tukiainen has returned to man the RW spot for the team.

As for goaltending, Ruuhinen says the team has been more than happy with Remes

“’Sere’ has played really well, we have no criticisms there. He currently has the second-highest save percentage in the playoffs, so, we can just let the statistics speak for themselves.”

When it came time for the playoffs, hREDS didn’t waste any time in setting up their Semifinal appearance, dispatching Radical – featuring friend-turned-foe @Tuukka.R (KingOfApes_) – in a swift five-game series (4-1) in the Quarterfinals.

And after all, it is not all that surprising that hREDS seems to have raised their level going into the playoffs. This is a team that was, is and probably always will be, built for the postseason. A team that has experienced everything the Elite division has had to throw at them through the years – and more often than not has come out on top. 

Image: The Tunnel Vision roster, from left to right: NikkeDangles, Beniittto, FINSeRe, Vilupoika, Teemuyy, xdoumi & Mozjayh

“I don’t think the regular season matters all that much in the end”, says Ruuhinen. “All the teams that reach the semifinal stage are there for a reason. You should always have the mindset that it doesn't matter who you face. To be the best, you must beat the best.”

Leading the way for the team in both regular season – winning the scoring title by a 13-point margin with 90 points (43+47) in 30 games – and the playoffs, has been superstar center Perttu @Beniittto Kemppainen.

“Perttu has always been a great player”, says Ruuhinen. “He is our captain and leader – and he really picked up the squad and carried it in his backpack during the regular season. I hope the same momentum continues for him in the playoffs.”

So, what’s the secret?

“Perttu said he quit energy drinks and replaced them with water, maybe that's it?”

As for his own regular season, where he scored an impressive 42 points (4+38) in 30 games, Ruuhinen places the emphasis on his partnership with equally gifted defender Teemu @Teemuyy Polttila:

“I think I played quite well throughout the season. My role has changed a bit, though. I feel like I don't have to focus as much on the offensive side of the game when I have Teemu playing next to me. He enjoys carrying the puck just as much as I do.”

Now, the time has come to face off with a familiar, yet inherently different, opponent in Straikers. And while hREDS is still made up of the mostly the same exact members that they’ve always been, they too are a different team. 

United in their hunger for another title win.

“What makes this team special, outside of the players’ skill, is of course the fact that we have played together for such a long time and become good friends”, says Ruuhinen. “That bond is something special.”
 

Watch the ECL Elite Semifinals at twitch.tv/SportsGamerGG