Kenu

Playing in the pre-season tournament does not force a player/goalie to play in the actual ECL, so it is possible to use it as a try-out opportunity.

We recommend buying the licenses early to avoid any issues, but it is NOT a requirement to play in the Pre-Season tournament.

Hey everyone, As we gear up for the upcoming NHL 24 season, it's time to revisit the topic of player ability bans that we implemented for NHL 23. In the previous season, we took action based on community feedback and decided to ban several player abilities that were considered overpowered. However, as we transition into NHL 24, we find ourselves in a different scenario. The game dynamics and balance have evolved, and we don't yet have a clear understanding of how these player abilities will impact gameplay. Given this uncertainty, our initial thought is to refrain from imposing any ability bans for the first season of NHL 24. We believe it's crucial to gauge the new game's balance and understand how these abilities function in the current context before making any decisions. Therefore, the idea is that the upcoming season will serve as a testing ground. We'll closely monitor gameplay, gather feedback from all of you, and assess whether any Abilities are causing issues or significantly skewing the competitive landscape. This forum thread is the perfect place to share your thoughts, observations, and experiences from the ECL '23: Winter (and eHSM, SCL, GCL etc.) season, during which we played without these banned traits. Did you notice any significant changes in gameplay? Did the absence of these abilities make the game more balanced and enjoyable for you? We value your input and encourage you to contribute to this discussion. Ultimately, we want to make informed decisions that enhance the competitive experience while preserving the integrity of the game. So, let's have an open and constructive dialogue about our approach for the first season of NHL 24. Your feedback will play a vital role in shaping our league's future. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts! PS: If you want a true deep-dive, check out this amazing thread by @rapitzin:

Hey Gamers, I hope you're all gearing up for an exciting season ahead! As we prepare for another year of thrilling action on the eHockey ice, there's a question keeps popping up from time to time: should the ECL stick with the traditional 2-point system, or should we consider switching to the 3-point system that has gained popularity in recent years? Technically it's also possible to define this at a divisional level, but I'm not convinced that wouldn't cause a whole lot of confusion. This topic has not only sparked heated debates among hockey fans worldwide, but also here on the forums (exhibit 1, exhibit 2), and it would be good for us as a community, to weigh in on the matter. While some examples have been presented and I personally also believe the point system won't make that big of a difference in the outcome of a season, the point distribution system can still make impact on the dynamics of our league, the perceived competitiveness of teams, and the overall fan experience. If you're completely unaware of the details, here's a recap: In the 2-point system, a win earns a team two points, a tie (or overtime/shootout loss) grants one point, and a loss results in zero points. It's straightforward and has been the standard for a long time. On the other hand, the 3-point system introduces an extra point for teams that win in regulation, while still awarding one point for ties and losses in overtime or shootouts. Proponents argue that this system promotes more aggressive play and reduces the frequency of games going to shootouts, making the outcomes more decisive. But which system do you think suits our league best? Are there benefits to one over the other that we might be overlooking? Let's dive into this discussion, share our insights, and ultimately decide which point system we believe will enhance our league's competitiveness and excitement. I'm eager to hear your thoughts and engage in a constructive conversation about this matter. A poll may take place later on, but let's start with a good ol' discussion. So, what's your take? The puck is in your zone – let's discuss!

Thanks for bringing this up @FoxGoalie - it is indeed a problem that we need to look into. Simply put, there is so much data nowadays that the old method of calculating it has proved to be inefficient and it ends up timing out instead of providing you with what you want. We will look into it, thank you.

Welcome to the community @saaggssy! 👋

FYI: There is currently a known issue where pre-existing teams doesn't work as intended (you're unable to click the register button). Registering new teams works. Don't worry, this will be fixed. This should be fixed now. (Also, I'm on my honeymoon, so please write Support if there's anything - I won't be available until April 4. 😎)

Voting "Yes. None. None." should be possible now!

Thanks for raising this. Will close the poll temporarily to fix the issue.

Too many time zones to worry about - the correct start time in CET is 18:30, and has now been corrected in the article.

Hey, these will be public before Christmas and games officially start on the 27th. Players can flexibly schedule the games as long as it fits both players.

Gigantti was just advertising that they have some quantities available, so I would recommend asking them as well. The waiting time should be significantly lower than some time ago.

SportsGamers, With the new ECL season at the doorstep, we are happy to announce the first-ever 1v1 ECL. In true ECL fashion, this league is for all the best European gamers to test their skills against their peers, and ultimately compete for a great prize pool and the European Championship League title. We have now launched the registration for ECL '23 Winter 1v1. This article will feature all the information you need about participating. If you haven’t read our general information yet, we suggest you head over to our ECL ’23 Winter information article. Description ECL 1v1 is for players who want to test their skills against the best of the best in competitive play. The ECL 1v1 Winter season features four qualifiers, leading to group play with the top 128 players of these qualifiers involved. The top 64 of the group stage will continue to determine the best of the best in the best-of-three playoffs with a prize pool totaling 2500€. Taking part in the ECL 1v1 seasons requires the purchase of the ECL '23 Player License. ECL ‘23 Player License Playing in the ECL '23 Winter 1v1 requires a player license. The ECL ‘23 Player License allows for participation in both the ECL 6v6 and 1v1 leagues for the full ECL ‘23 year including both the ECL ‘23 Winter and Spring leagues. This license will grant you access to compete in the most prestigious and biggest competitive NHL esports league in Europe. An ECL season spans over the course of two to three months and guarantees a minimum of roughly 20 games of competition on the 6v6 side*, whereas the 1v1 league adds - at the very least - the opportunity to participate in four single-elimination qualifier events that are used to qualify the top 128 players that move forward to the group stage. *Based on the minimum amount of games played in a starting role in the ECL '22 Spring: Core regular season. On the 6v6 side, ECL Neo will continue being available at no team license fee for teams wishing to get a taste of competitive virtual hockey, whereas all other divisions are subject to a team license fee. The license is exponentially higher at higher levels of competition, given the increased spotlight and additional content around the divisions in question. License fees will be allocated to fund prize pools and developing operations, such as our broadcasts, live productions and promoting the league. ECL '23 Winter: 1v1 Schedule Qualifier 1 Sign up period 15.-25.11.2022 Qualifiers (BO1) Saturday 26.11. RO512: 16:00CET RO256: 17:00CET RO128: 18:00CET RO64: 18:30CET RO32: 19:00CET Sunday 27.11. RO16: 15:00CET RO8: 15:30CET RO4: 16:00CET RO2: 16:30CET Qualifier 2 Sign up period 15.- 2.12.2022 Qualifiers (BO1) Saturday 3.12. RO512: 16:00CET RO256: 17:00CET RO128: 18:00CET RO64: 18:30CET RO32: 19:00CET Sunday 4.12. RO16: 15:00CET RO8: 15:30CET RO4: 16:00CET RO2: 16:30CET Qualifier 3 Sign up period 15.-9.12.2022 Qualifiers (BO1) Saturday 10.12. RO512: 16:00CET RO256: 17:00CET RO128: 18:00CET RO64: 18:30CET RO32: 19:00CET Sunday 11.12 RO16: 15:00CET Quarterfinals: 15:30CET Semifinals: 16:00CET Finals: 27.11. 16:30CET Qualifier 4 Sign up period 15.11-16.12.2022 Qualifiers (BO1) Saturday 17.12 RO512: 16:00CET RO256: 17:00CET RO128: 18:00CET RO64: 18:30CET RO32: 19:00CET Sunday 18.12 RO16: 15:00CET Quarterfinals: 15:30CET Semifinals: 16:00CET Finals: 16:30CET TOP 128 Group Play (BO1) Tuesday 27.12. R1: 18:00 R2: 18:30 R3: 19:00 R4: 19:30 Thursday 29.12. R5: 18:00 R6: 18:30 R7: 19:00 R8: 19:30 Friday 30.12. R9: 18:00 R10: 18:30 R11: 19:00 R12: 19:30 Tuesday 3.1. R13: 18:00 R14: 18:30 R15: 19:00 Playoffs (BO3) Friday 6.1. RO64: 18:00CET RO32: 19:30CET Sunday 8.1. RO16: 15:00CET Quarterfinals: 16:30CET Friday 13.1. Semifinals: 18:00CET Finals: 20:00CET

We made several changes based on the community feedback, but not all requests are viable to accommodate. I appreciate your feedback. I understand what you value most might not completely align with our vision for the ECL.

In my opinion Elite, Pro, or even most Lite teams don't belong in Neo crushing teams, skewing the standings, stats and most importantly, ruining the experience of players who we want to give a pleasant entry into the ECL ecosystem. To clarify on the choice of the word try previously, it was indeed a vague choice of words. The try wording was used because previously we've made efforts to broadcast all finals and some of the teams haven't been able to adhere to the schedule that we were able to offer. What we can do better - if teams are dedicated to broadcasting - is to lock in and communicate the exact finals dates and requirements earlier.

Hey Gamers, It's been great to see the active discussion around the ECL, and that really goes to show that our community is passionate about this matter. We're thankful for all the feedback we've gotten through comments and private messages, and your feedback is truly appreciated. We have been running the ECL since December 2015. I’ve personally been involved with the NHL community since I was 12 years old, creating (popular & free) mods for the PC version of the game 2000-2009 and later moving on to creating leagues and tournaments. In other words, I’ve been heavily involved with the NHL series for 25 years now. As my wife would tell me “all I want in life from you is to pay as much attention to me as you do your community”. That perhaps says something about my devotion to the game and what we do (and that I should schedule more date nights). It’s understandable that players and teams have gotten used to a certain standard during the past few years and it is easy to take something for granted that you’ve “always” had access to. For years we’ve - together as a community - pushed through some of the naysayers regarding what can be achieved with the competitive scene in this game. “Nobody wants to play on a lower level” was said before the introduction of divisions in the ECL. “Nobody will ever make money playing this game” has been thrown around for as long as I can remember. Sure - not many can fully support themselves playing NHL, but our goal has always been to support that dream, as well as develop a friendly environment where players of all skill levels can join to hone their skills. Some will play just for fun and others will make it their goal to reach the highest trophies and rewards. We’ve come a long way to enable both professionals and amateurs to reach their goals. This remains our mission. As we've stated before, monetizing SportsGamer operations has been a long time coming already. With the increased workload and growing ambitions, running an operation with the only source of income being outside investment is not sustainable. Furthermore, while we would very much like for SportsGamer to be a profitable operation, the truth is that we have been losing money for a long while now. For many years we have compensated what the ECL loses by working on other projects - while sometimes criticized for not only focusing on the ECL - to generate enough money to cover the losses, while not pocketing any of the cash ourselves. As the league and our ambitions grow (not to mention our skillsets and families), so does the risk involved with taking on these projects. How many are prepared to risk 50k on a free tournament? As for some of the calculations surrounding the ECL ’23 Winter season that have been going around, they fail to take into account a few key factors. Firstly, we are expecting a lower team amount for ECL '23 Winter, mainly due to migration to next-generation consoles. Secondly, none of the costs related to website upkeep and development, admin work, writing, broadcasting or hosting live events have been included in the calculations. This makes the bottom line look drastically different from what we are seeing at the end of the ECL year. We want to be transparent with our plans to grow and develop the ECL both on the ultra-competitive side, and the hobbyist side. We are committed to using 100% of the license fees into the ECL, including but not limited to prize pools, operations, broadcasts, live productions and promoting the league. Out of respect for the privacy of our creators, and because of several business reasons, I won’t be sharing the numbers for each category, but I have listed some of the main categories of costs of running the ECL. There are many other costs in running a business, but below I’ve focused purely on the direct costs of the ECL. Website and data hosting Equipment Software licenses Broadcasts Art Social media & YouTube Administrative work Prize Pool Trophies Live finals Web development Taxes Advertising Based on your feedback, we have decided to take the following measures: Each team can name up to 3 backup players (outside of the primary 6) that can help the team out and play up to 10 games without having to own the player license. The ECL ‘23 Player License can be purchased during the season if a backup wants to play more games than expected. ECL Neo will remain free to play, with no player license required to compete, however To uphold the integrity of ECL Neo as the beginner level, we reserve the right to deny teams to participate in cases where they are clearly above the amateur level, as it could significantly impact the experience of what ECL Neo is intended for. The ECL ‘23 Player License can be purchased by an ECL Neo player if they want to participate in ECL 1v1, benefit from the additional advantages that come with the license (more on this later), or simply as a form of supporting the league. An additional tier of prizing has been added to the ECL Core division to extend the number of prize winning teams from 8 to 16. Wishes to add better content for the ECL Lite and Core divisions will be addressed by improving the quality of articles and coverage. We will be following all licensed divisions closely in our channels and sharing coverage on our social media. If you would like to contribute to creating content for these divisions, please contact @jahajaha93. We have heard your concerns regarding the response time and efficiency regarding support and League Administrative (LA) cases. Therefore we are committing to the following for all paid levels of ECL: 24 hour response time for general support items and added coverage during gamedays between 17-22 CET to help address quick questions in a more efficient way. LA cases are handled within 2 business days. The suspension and verdict policy has been reworked to make quick decisions and in the case of suspensions, we will be handing out shorter suspensions quicker and longer suspensions are reserved to repeat offenders, which also can be handled quickly through this new policy. Finally, a brief comment on any outstanding prize payments that were mentioned in the discussion: We’ve previously reached out to all recipients of price payments per email from [email protected], and anyone who has taken the actions requested in this email has been paid. Please check your spam folder if you haven’t seen our email. If you can’t find the email and there is still something unresolved, please reach out to me by private message here on the forums, or Discord (Kenu#0001). On behalf of SportsGamer, Kenneth “Kenu” Lehtinen

Together with our community, we want to continue developing the ECL and this platform as a whole. The league has been active since 2015 and ran without profit every season. Since the start, we’ve grown from a 50 team single division into a five division league with around 300 active teams, which has led to the requirements of the team increasing. These changes allow us to focus on core operations and develop even further. This year, we have decided to make one of our community dreams come true with the World Finals. This is a substantial investment from our side, but we feel like now is the time to make that happen. It's understandable how it may appear on surface level like all of the costs are related to prize money. What is less apparent is the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes. When speaking about pure administrative work, the lower divisions take exponentially more effort to run, while Pro and Elite tend to operate more smoothly due to the experience of the teams and players in these divisions, and the lower number of teams involved.

Absolutely agree. Can you reach out to me on Discord (Kenu#0001) or a private message here and we’ll see what went wrong. The teams that provided the requested information should have been paid by now.