NHLGamer member "Dominointi" signs contract with eSports team

Hello NHLGamers,

For the second week in a row we bring you a very special kind of news story here on NHLGamer.com.

It is a deal that has been in the works for quite some time but we can finally say - with great pride - that we have confirmation that another one of our fellow NHLGamer members has signed a deal to play NHL professionally. We are of course referring to previous ECL championship winner, champion of the last NHL 17 10k$ Worldgaming Faceoff tournament and captain of Laser HT... Risto "Dominointi" Järvi!

What team was lucky enough to snag this top-ranked player? Look no further than the eSports section of professional Finnish football club SJK (SJK eSports), currently playing in the top Finnish division.

Just like with Hansulinho, The_Alpha_Furyan managed to get a hold of Dominointi for a few minutes to pick his brain on this recent development

NHLG: Congratulations Dominointi - I'm sure you must be thrilled to sign this deal!
Dominointi: Haha, thanks. Yes, of course I am! To be honest, I actually had a couple really good options to consider... but for me this was the best offer. I was truly happy that a team like SJK would like me to play in their eSports section. I feel like this team has enormous potential overall and I hope - and also believe - we are going to do some great stuff together in the near future.

Tell us a bit more about SJK - I am sure a lot of people (especially non-Finns) aren't entirely familiar with them
SJK is actually a finnish football club from Seinäjoki! They play in what is known as the "Veikkausliiga" - which is the highest football league in Finland. SJK eSports is their video game team... I really can't explain it any better, haha. At the moment I am their NHL eSports player and "Koppinen" is their FIFA eSports player - meaning they have a total of two players in their eSports team at the moment, but they are expanding. For example, they actually have another connection to this website (NHLGamer.com) because they also have Rynnäkköviikset as their "minor" team.

What do you mostly hope to achieve while playing for SJK eSports?
Of course I want to continue playing good and win some tournaments as a SJK member. Personally, I also hope that these kind of contracts help our NHL community here to grow even bigger so that maybe in the future we might see some 6v6 team contracts too!

I feel like most people know "Dominointi the NHL player" - people certainly know after they have played you in Versus, HUT or EASHL - but when did this whole journey start for you? When did you realize you were actually really good and one of the top players to play the game?
Well, I have been playing the NHL Series since I think... NHL 07 and a few years after that (NHL 09) started playing online games and competing for real. I guess it was in that same game - NHL 09 - when I first started experiencing success with my NHL playing. If I remember correctly, I think I was ranked 4th Overall for Versus at the end of that game. I didn't lose that many games and eventually a lot of players were wondering who I was - that is when I would say I started to realize I was pretty good at this.

"Pretty good"... I'd say that is being humble. What would you consider are some of your biggest achievements and greatest memories playing this game?
Haha, thanks. Ah, that is a tough question. Well, I won the Finnish Moneyleague once in NHL 16 and also a 2v2 Finnish Championship with Hansulinho in NHL 14. My most recent win at the Worldgaming $10K Faceoff Tournament in NHL 17 is of course special. I am very proud over having been in Top 5 in Versus rankings ever since NHL 09. I would consider winning ECL 1 with Nordic Blizzard a great memory.

Playing NHL professionally - will your view of the game change? Is it now more of a job than a hobby?
It hasn't really changed that much, atleast not yet. I mean, after I won the Worldgaming tournament the support has been insane. Of course, there has been a lot of "roasting" too... but I like it. I think it is great because I love reading those messages. Honestly, in my opinion this is still a hobby even though I will now get paid

So - with these news in mind - where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Ah, man... that question is so damn hard. It is really tough to say but I of course hope I am able to keep playing NHL professionally. I mean, then again I could be doing so many different things. To be honest with you, things happen so fast nowadays that it is sometimes unreal - almost hard to keep up. Just take a look at whats going on with eSports - so many people streaming, many teams have social media accounts. But it is great - I love it - and again, I hope that with these kind of contracts we give a lot of hope for others to achieve similar things.

Certainly. So, when you think of the future of NHL eSports - what do you see?
The future of NHL eSports is bright in my opinion, I believe that. We just need more of these kind of contracts and we will continue to be noticed more and more.

On a more personal note, what are your hopes for NHLGamer.com and this community moving forward?
NHLGamer and the entire NHL community in general are really important for me. I see a lot of potential in NHLGamer. The site already features the best 1v1 players and 6v6 teams in Europe, for example. In the future, I hope we could play against NA teams/players more in the future. Also, some form of a live 6v6 tournament would be really cool.

Got any tips for players who want to improve their NHL gaming?
I will actually be streaming in SJK eSports twitch channel in future. So, if you want to challenge me and get some tips you are free to join! As a tip if you want to get better in game you have to play against the best players and teams, that is truly how you improve your skills.

I might take you up on that! Lastly, what is the secret to beating our very own NHLGamer co-owner, @Kenu, in Versus?
You should! Tough question again. How do I beat Kenu? Well, he is a really good player.... but I guess I know a few secret tactics that could give him a hard time if we would matchup, hehe.

Dominointi Fact Box [Player profile]

Winner of Worldgaming.com NHL 17 $10k Tournament
Finished Top 5 at the Versus rankings in all iterations of NHL since 09
Participated in all 3 ECL tournaments, twice for Nordic Blizzard (champions of ECL 1) and now Laser HT
185 ECL regular season points in 58 games and 121 playoff points in 45 games
Favors the C position in EASHL

Read the full announcement article at: http://www.sjk2007.fi/w/sjk-esports-kiinnitti-risto--dominointi--jarven

On behalf of the NHLGamer staff,

The_Alpha_Furyan