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Hello NHLGamers, Welcome to another edition of "Who's Hot and Who's Not". A format first introduced this summer during the ECL Summer Cup, the "Hot or Not"-column was a source of much emotion and debate during its first tour of duty... so naturally we decided to bring it back! This time around the lists will be a bit shorter (we have atleast five times more teams and three different divisions to cover) but hopefully just as accurate and prone to create debates. I have enlisted @nylanderi to help out with the list for Elite while I myself will handle Pro & Lite. As always, we have the great @OxtreeLAT providing some terrific art for both the cover and the different sections within the article. The column will be a weekly occurence just like before so look for it on Sundays during the season. Before we begin I'd just like to direct a few short words to those of you who are struggling with our new match reporting system, the EA API. We are tracking your error reports (keep producing as detailed reports as possible) and those on the staff with technical skills are also working towards improving the systems functionality. What you can do meanwhile is this; - Have patience. Sometimes a game will not appear in the API system for a few hours (we've had reports of delays up to 5-6 hours) so games might have to be reported the day after. If the game hasn't showed up for you the next day efter playing, please contact us to see how we can be of assistance. - Do not report games in the old tool unless absolutely neccessary. If your games were completed without disconnects, wait for the game to show up in the API instead of reverting back to the old tool. We understand everyone wants the games reported as soon as possible (hell, we do too!) but for now we ask for your patience. - Be careful. Before completing your game report - check your input one extra time. The system isn't working at 100% yet, but just by being extra careful when reporting you are helping us all out alot. Thank you. - Home team reports their game so 1 report each. Now, let us get to the lists! by nylanderi WHO’S HOT - ELITE Forward: Vilupoika, SKY What a start it has been for Written in The Stars. They have won 11/12 of their games, and Vilupoika has 15+15=30 in those 12 games. Written has been a really good defensive team as well, so we know that Vilu has been really important in the defensive aspect of the game also. Runner-ups: Kingofapes_, SKY - Just barely edged out by Vilupoika, both these forward and their teammates have been big contributors in SKYs torrid start. Ape actually has 31 points but one goal less than Vilu. I_Eki_I, MUK - The total points leader with 32 points, however two more games played than Ape and Vilu. Defender: Totalii, SKY - Written has conceded the least goals in the league, so Writtens defense lead by their captain has been rock solid! Totalii has also contributed with 8 points in the 1st week, and leads dmen’s scoring race. Runner-up: vSilenttio, SIK - Goal scoring leader for all defenders in Elite (5), hats off to SIKAs captain and catalyst. Goalie: Danielcadabra and s_w1ld_RUS, SKY - These goaltenders are both in the Top-5 for Wins while maintaining Save Percentages over 80% and combining for 5 shutouts. Nuff said. Runner-up: Ranta83, WHO - The goalie leader for Wins in Elite. WHO'S NOT - ELITE Forward: ReDMisTi, RTL - Refuse To Lose' start to the season has been real tough. They have had lots of problems in the offense and Misti has only scored 2+8=10 in 10 games, with a massive -22. Defender: puke85, GRR - Aapon Taikasauva was ranked as one of the best defensive teams in the league by me, so it was a suprise for me to see puke85 with -4 after 8 games. Aapons defense has to step it up if they wanna succeed. Goalie: juha96, RV - RV has had a real rocky start. You should never blame your goalie but we all know that Juha could do a little better after his great performances in previous tournaments... (Editors Note: was written before juha96s departure from RV) by The_Alpha_Furyan WHO’S HOT - PRO Forward: Stefan_397, ICE - This accurate sniper from Inter Iceland has certainly lived up to his title of a "Player to watch", having celebrated 30 goals in just 16 games so far. Even more impressive then that he not only leads the goal category but also the points category by a margin of 7 points with 46 points in 16 games. Runner-ups: jm__98___, UB - Second in goals (26) and points (39) - a no-brainer pick. IbjonoI, 112 - Third in points (39) and with the most GWGs in Pro (4). Defender: entii112, SSG - 15 points in 6 games seems like an impossible feat at this level but this defender has done it so far! Warms my OFD-heart to see defenders scoring points. Well done enti! Runner-up: Tanski87, RB - Tied to be goal scoring leader for all defenders in Pro (5), this monstrous defender also leads the Pro division for hits by a defenseman with 81. Look out for this double threat on the blueline, pro teams. Goalie: LastMandalorian, 112 - The goaltending leader for Wins with 14 Ws (13 regulation, 1 OT) in 18 games played also has 4 shutouts (nobody else has more than 1) and a GAA at 1.77 with a save % close to 80. A solid foundation for 112 to build on. Runner-up: hoigga, CAT - This goalie has not yet lost a game (14 wins in 14 games - 10 regulation, 4 OT) while maintaining a save % over 80% and a GAA under 2. If he can keep this up, CAT looks set for a long playoff run in Pro. WHO'S NOT - PRO Forward: friskaviljor, SHO - With just 5+5=10 in 9 games as a forward, friskaviljors production is certainly OK. That -18 is a bit tougher to ignore though. Defender: Duran93-, KNS - Bare Knuckles needs a little bit more than 1+4=5 and a -11 in 10 games from one of its top defenders. Goalie: Siickan, TBB - Sporting an 0-6-0 record and some tough statistical numbers, The Beagle Boyz is in need of Siickan to channel his inner Hasek for the rest of the season to bounce back. by The_Alpha_Furyan WHO’S HOT - LITE Forward: moilanenC, JPT - 31+21 for 52 points in 12 games are some completely insane numbers. The whole line for JPT has been unreal (currently sitting at 1-2-3 in the scoring race) but moilanen gets the nod for #1 due to his goal scoring prowess. Runner-ups: makeee76, JPT - Point scoring leader with 25+28=53 in 12 games. mikihoo, JPT - With 16+24=40 in 12 games, one would have to imagine mikihoo is the defensive catalyst on the JPT line. Defender: jonezki26, JPT - The JPT dominance continues here with jonezki delivering 3+21 for 24 points in 12 games. A points per game average at 2 for a defender, combined with a +42, commands respect. Runner-up: Zuominen, PAP - On that notion the top defender for Papat, Zuominen, is no slouch himself with 18 points in 8 games, including 4 goals and 60 hits. Goalie: jjuhao, JPT - Finishing the sweep for JPT is goaltender jjuhao with his 11-1-0 record, 2 shutouts and solid personal statistics. Runner-up: Nebelparder55555, HHC - This goalie would probably have had a great shot at being #1 for this edition of the column (his numbers with save % almost at 90, GAA at 1 and 3 shutouts certainly raises eyebrows) but sadly misses out due to just competing in 8 games so far. Look out for Nebel on next weeks edition though! WHO'S NOT - LITE Forward: Reaper-80, 666 - Once again, the +/- is a leading statistic when putting together this column and A Dream Valhalla is another team that is struggling. Reaper-80 is putting up some numbers, 6+4=10 in 13 games as a winger, but needs to up his +/- and pot a few more points for 666 to stay afloat. Defender: xsakux99, BHC - Blues HC have had a real tough season so far, hopefully saku and friends can turn it around but for now he finds himself on this list with 4 points and a -36 in 11 games. Goalie: Hujunake, VEM - While I have no doubt this goaltender with the great name, Pablo Escobar, is trying to smuggle out as many wins as he can, a few more than 3 in 13 is needed. See you next week - later skaters/ The_Alpha_Furyan & nylanderi for NHLGamer.com

Good evening NHLGamers, Me - The_Alpha_Furyan - and the rest of the NHLGamer staff bid you welcome to another installment of our ECL Season Preview. To get an idea of what we will be doing in these previews, you can check out our previous one for Season 3. While that preview focused more on listing all the participating teams and predicting which ones would come out on top from the regular season, this one will try to dig a little deeper and supply a more in-depth look at each and every division - something the community has been vocal about in their feedback to our writing staff. After looking at both the Lite and Pro divisions, we've now reached the final 16 teams of ECL 4, the Elite Division. Just like during the Pro preview I have @nylanderi, our newest content creator here at NHLGamer.com, and his excellent eye for team- and player scouting by my side for this one. Let us get to it, shall we? Main text, scouting and predictions by nylanderi Text editing and additional reporting by The_Alpha_Furyan Art by OxtreeLAT Prediction for the Regular Season Top - 5 1. Unknown WHO is a team that rely on solid team defense and counter attacking to win games. Unknowns defense, lead by isvamp, has been really good every time I have played against them in regular EASHL lately. Foppatofflan and MartindalexC on the wings have the skill to create a bunch of great scoring chances in every game. If they can play at their highest level during the entire regular season, they will definitely finish high - possibly even first in the regular season. Their goalie situation is probably their biggest weakness since they are currently still searching for a starting goalie as far as I know. I am aware that Ranta83 is really good between the pipes, but if he's not able to play that much they will need to find a reliable goalie. 2. Limitless Last seasons champions X Factor, with a new name and some new roster aquisitions from Finnish Roosters. The offense - on paper at least - is truly something to behold with all three starting forwards finishing in top 10 for scoring during ECL 3. One of the biggest transfers this offseason was Limitless' acquisition of Haldeem from Dynasty. The plan is for Haldeem to form a defender partnership with myself (nylanderi). If the defense clicks and FinKonna puts up the good performances he is capable of it should be really hard to score against Limitless in ECL 4. If this team is able to string together solid performances they will most likely be one of the powerhouses this season. 3. Aapon Taikasauva Last seasons offensive powerhouse team has changed a lot. They lost Joukki13 and Puantso, but acquired some new forwards. Bugimir, Nampa77 and Chafak are all really good additions to the team, and I believe they will go far this season as well. Bugimir and Indi are both great two-way forwards, and I believe that Aapon will be one of the best defensive teams this season because of it. 4. Laser HT After last seasons disappointing finish, Laser has changed quite a lot. They made some big moves during the offseason and you can be sure they will be one of the top teams once again. Their team might not be as good on paper as last seasons squad but if Dominointi gets his team going you can expect great things. 5. Written in The Stars Kinda like Limitless, Writtens lineup has changed a lot. They have acquired KingOfApes_ and Vilupoika from X Facto with both players expected to bring a lot to their offense. Totalii leads their defense but they also got a new LD, Defmaxou, from Alliance HT so it will really interesting how he will do for SKY. If everything works out as planned, these guys can challenge for the ECL Elite championship. Championship favorite I would say Limitless, but I dont really want to have a big target on my back from the rest of the Elite division... so I will pick Aapon Taikasauva. Aapons roster this season fits playoff hockey perfectly. They can shut it down and they have some really tricky players up front. Aapons starting goalie is still a mystery to me so that could potentially be something that messes up their season. However, if they have an active goalie who can hold his own in net you better watch out for this team. Players to watch 1. Norpee, Synergy, LW/C Talk about a player who can do it all, Norpee will continue to do wonders for SYN this season. He scored a whopping 152 points during the ECL 3 regular season but I still feel that he is actually quite underrated. Terrific two-way skills combined with top hockey-IQ, I think he will continue to cause all sorts of problems for Elite opponents. 2. Anrh17, Unknown, C/RW iSvamp let us know in the Unknown thread that Anrh17 is quite busy with his IRL hockey, but whenever he has time to play you can expect big things. Unknowns #1 center often flies under the radar because of their skilled wingers, but this guy has been excellent every time Limitless has matched up against them and should continue to be a difference maker during ECL 4. 3. Gendlik, SIKA, C SIKA truly aquired a great player from Nordic Blizzard this offseason. Gendlik is known for his silky smooth hands and he should be a great fit for SIKA. Watching them last season I felt that they really needed one more pure skill forward. Gendlik can quarterback SIKAs offensive game and take that team to another level. 4. s_w1ld_RUS, Written In The Stars, G In my opinion a Top-3 goalie in the game and he really proved it last season in Alliance and recently whenever I have matched up against him in EASHL. With this goalie, Written has a chance to be one of the better defensive teams in the ECL Elite division. 5. Puantso, Dynasty, LD/C I was quite surprised when I heard about this signing. Puantso has been a wonderful player for Aapon the past few seasons. Now he plays for Dynasty but I am not sure about which position he will occupy. I feel like he could be an offensive juggernaut for Dynasty as a C, but I have heard rumours that he might play LD. That’s not bad either since Haldeem left and I know for a fact that Puantso is really good at defense. If he does play D, he will for sure form one of the better defensive partnerships in the game with Snapu and Dynasty will most likely continue the tradition of being one of the top defensive teams. Teams to watch 1. Nordic Lightning “New” NL is a really interesting team. They are back in ECL 4 without their captain JaromirSniper68 but in EASHL games their defense has been really good and their fast counter attacks have caused all sorts of problems. Tactical_Face is a great goalie as well so I think these guys can really surprise a lot of people this season. 2. Dynasty They really impressed me last season, but I think Dynasty will be even better this season. They're a team who truly plays great in every area of the ice and will be a tough assignment for every opponent to break down. Dynasty, lead by Snapu, is looking for a long playoff run at this point and their recent EASHL performances show that they have a good chance to achieve just that. 3. Northern Stars During an off-season where it felt like everyone and their mother changed teams, NOS made the bold choice to stand pat - only mixing up their lineup internally with some possible position changes. This could prove to be a wise choice as many other Elite teams will be scrambling to find chemistry in their lineups while NOS will have many years of experience to lean on. Lets see how this decision works out. This was our full 3-part preview for ECL 4 and we hope that you enjoyed it. As always, feel free to leave to leave your thoughts in the comment section. Now, let's get back on the virtual ice and play some hockey! Later skaters, The_Alpha_Furyan & nylanderi for NHLGamer.com

Good evening NHLGamers, Me - The_Alpha_Furyan - and the rest of the NHLGamer staff bid you welcome to another installment of our ECL Season Preview. To get an idea of what we will be doing in these previews, you can check out our previous one for Season 3. While that preview focused more on listing all the participating teams and predicting which ones would come out on top from the regular season, this one will try to dig a little deeper and supply a more in-depth look at each and every division - something the community has been vocal about in their feedback to our writing staff. After giving you the preview for the ECL 4 Lite division yesterday, we now move on to the ECL 4 Pro division. To assist me with this preview I have enlisted the help of a community member who needs no introduction (but will still get one). After finishing up the previous ECL tournament as the captain of the championship winning team Limitless, this Finn wanted to contribute more to the community in the form of reporting. Therefore, it is with great joy we here at NHLGamer.com - through this article - introduce our newest content creator and Staff member, @nylanderi. So without further ado, I now turn the mic over to nylanderi for this preview. The predictions and words are his, my contribution is solely some editing and additional thoughts. Let's go! Main text, scouting and predictions by nylanderi Text editing and additional reporting by The_Alpha_Furyan Art by OxtreeLAT Prediction for the Regular Season Top- 5. 1. Carlsberg Carslberg HC is a team who would quite possibly be my pick for even the ECL Elite Championship - so this choice was pretty much a no-brainer for me. I expect this reunited team to dominate the regular season, possibly even finishing their whole run without any losses. Carlsberg truly are amazing in every zone on the ice, with almost no weaknesses to their game. Especially look for joukki13 and Patzlaf to most likely finish #1 and 2 in scoring for the Pro division. 2. Sjukstugan I will say that Sjukstugan has made some really interesting moves in the offseason - acquiring Filariou, The_Alpha_Furyan and LastMandalorian. From what I have seen when recently playing against 112 in EASHL games they have really taken their game a step in the right direction. Honestly, if they can defend as a team in ECL they could challenge CAR for the ECL 4 Pro title. In my opinion their team offense is their biggest source of strength, but forwards will have to make sure to also defend if they want to find themselves in ECL Elite when NHL 18 shows up and ECL 5 kicks off. 3. Unlucky Boys HC One of the more underrated teams out there, I think UB is really going to impress a lot of people this season. They have great players upfront in Anhel_kuru and Ilmari30 but also share a weakness with many other Pro teams - their defense. In UBs case, especially defending together as a team. If this team wants to succeed they will have to be able to shut other teams down. Their offense can score goals against pretty much anyone, but it will not help them if they let in more than they score. 4. Kattiautomatti This is a team that I am quite familiar with, seeing as how we faced them in the ECL 3 playoffs. Overall I think Katti is a really good defensive team, but they are somewhat lacking in offensive power. If they can find a way to score a few extra goals per game, look for them to go real far this season but if not, it could be a tough season. Good luck guys and again - thanks for the playoff series! 5. Silver Sword Griffins To me, it was kind of a big suprise last season to see how good SSG did. Their defense and goaltending is usually their strength (it has always been their trademark) but how they are going to score their goals is usually the big mystery. SSGs goals often come from low point shots with deflections and that style of play definitely requires luck if they want to go far. A big responsibility will be on the shoulders of #1 center and top scorer, ProMinx24. Will also be interesting to see how OxtreeLAT handles going from goaltender to defender - from what I have seen it should work out really well. Championship favorite It is Carlsberg. For me, as I said in the regular season predicitions, this was never in doubt. Maybe one of the other teams pull off an upset and somehow sneak by Carlsberg... but if they do not win the Pro division (or at the very least make the finals) it would have to be considered a failure. Players to watch 1. Janzuh, Carlsberg, D I have heard many people state that Janzuh is one of the very best LDs in the competitive NHL gaming scene, and I totally agree with that notion. Janzuh is rock solid in his own end and with his amazing hockey IQ I am sure he is going to have a huge role in Carlsbergs offense as well. 2. Ilmari30, Unlucky Boys HC, Forward One of the better playmakers in the game for sure. He makes things easy for him and his teammates. His definitely gonna quarterback UBs game, and take them far this season. 3. Stefan_397, Inter Iceland, Forward Stefan, just like the rest of Inter Iceland, is some kind of mystery to me (and to the community I think). I dont really know that much about him to be honest, only that he can score a lot of goals. If he can keep that kind of scoring up (65 goals last regular season) we can expect great things from Inter Iceland this season. 4. Kaneyh, White Trash, Forward Kaneyh is one of the best Versus/HUT players to come out of Finland and based on his stats from last season, his talents has carried over to 6v6 as well. If WT is able to shut down their opponents and Kaneyh manages to continue his skillfull terror upfront - watch out for him and for this team. 5. Juizki, Checkmate, G Juizki is one of the most underrated goalies in the game and everytime I have faced him in EASHL, he has been really good, bordering on amazing. Checkmate as a team has acquired a whole bunch of new players and with Juziki backstopping them, this team is going to be really interesting to watch. Teams to watch 1. White Trash We faced them last season and from what I could tell then (and now) their offense is truly elite level. But again the same story as most of the Pro teams comes back - they really lack unity in their own zone. If they can sort that out, these guys are going to be scary good. 2. HC Checkmate Building on what was said above in "Players to watch" with Juizki, Checkmate is a team to look out for this season. While maybe not at the very top of the predicted Pro teams, they still feature a lot of skill and massive amounts of chemistry. Their offense, led by BiggestEight on LW, also features speedcell104 and TackleControl - forming a line whose speed and creative attacks is enough to send the opponents heads spinning. Couple that with Juizkis play in net and new signing IYouShallNotPass on defense and you have a real interesting team. 3. Nordic Stars This is a team filled up with some great players. However, I have not yet faced them in EASHL competition so I couldn't really put them in the top 5 prediction this time. This team has the potential to be really good in every zone though and actually dominate the pro division - possibly even challenging CAR and 112 for the championship. 4. Baltic Sea Eagles Don't forget about these veterans. BSE has been around since before Jesus (not talking about the Company of Geeks captain... or am I?) and has amassed a lot of experience. This will be their first entry into the ECL scene from what I understand and it will be interesting to see how they handle the tempo of ECL competition. That is it for Pro, leave your thoughts in the comment section and give nylanderis first contribution to the website the attention it deserves. See you all tomorrow for the ECL 4 Elite preview! Later skaters, The_Alpha_Furyan & nylanderi

Good afternoon NHLGamers, Me - The_Alpha_Furyan - and the rest of the NHLGamer staff bid you welcome to another installment of our ECL Season Preview. To get an idea of what we will be doing in these previews, you can check out our previous one for Season 3. While that preview focused more on listing all the participating teams and simply predicting which ones would come out on top from the regular season, this one will try to dig a little deeper and supply a more in-depth look at each and every division - something the community has been vocal about in their feedback to our writing staff. Text, scouting and predictions by The_Alpha_Furyan Art by OxtreeLAT We kick off our 3-part installment by looking at the Lite division, where we find a total 32 teams (one more team was allowed late entry to even out the amount of Lite teams) - lots of them new to the community and to myself personally. This preview might be a bit biased towards the teams I know and have seen before but that should also provide some great motivation for all other teams to prove me wrong and fight for those top seeds. Prediction for the Regular Season Top- 5. 1. HC Ancient Warriors This team is on par with most Pro teams out there and should without a doubt be a contender to win the Lite title. If not the champions, they are likely to gain a top seed in the regular season and make their way through the playoffs to secure one of the promotion spots. 2. Bone Breakers I will admit to not knowing the full story of this team outside of their appearance in ECL 3 where their participation didn't extend all the way through the season. From what I've been told by multiple sources though, they were quite the force to be reckoned with back in the Consolehockey days and could be one of the top contenders for the ECL 4 Lite title. 3. DEAD END KINGS Featuring quite a few former players from Elite division team Synergy, DEAD END KINGS will be looking to establish their own legacy with this new team. Keep an eye out for this team right from the start as I predict they will come out of the gates hungry to prove that they belong in the Pro divison. 4. iNF4M0US Any team that is good enough to beat Laser HT under any conditions has my respect and that is just what this team did. No idea what the circumstances were for that game but like I said, beating LHT certainly establishes some credibility. 5. EN HUND Able to keep most of their roster together after a disappointing end to the ECL 3 season, EN HUND should be rejuvenated playing in the Lite division. Featuring many former members of Elite division team SIKA, EN HUND has both the experience and chemistry neccessary for both a strong regular season and a long playoff run. Championship favorite Going with my top pick for the regular season here as I predict HC Ancient Warriors to win the Lite championship. They're one of the best Lite teams I have personally played against and have been practicing hard ever since ECL 3, trying to get themselves ready for ECL 4. Getting past some of the other more experienced teams won't be a walk in the park though and who knows - we might see a complete upset coming out of Lite. Players to watch 1. esdor15, Lavetten, Forward One of the very best HUT players NHL 17 has to offer makes his ECL debut for team Lavetten and it should be an interesting one. With the right mindset, willingness to improve and translation of his Versus/HUT skill to EASHL - esdor15 could easily be one of the breakout players from ECL 4 Lite. At this point I am not sure what position he will occupy in the lineup but my guess is forward to maximize his offensive skill. 2. Stylez-Hadez, HC Ancient Warriors, C/RW/LW The captain and leader of my predicted ECL Lite championship team, HC Ancient Warriors, deserves a mention here. Stylez is originally from the Versus side of NHL 17 where he has been a Top-100 player for quite a while while only getting his first taste of ECL last season with Sjukstugan. When playing against Ancient Warriors in EASHL lately they've been very competitive and I have to believe that is largely due to their captain. 3. Nephenzy, DEAD END KINGS, C/LW Another captain on this list, Nephenzy is an experienced ECLer with two seasons in Synergy and one season in Northern Ascendancy under his belt. While capable of playing everywhere (as evidenced from last season where he played every position in the lineup for NOR), we will most likely see Nephenzy lead his team to a top seed in Lite from the center position. 4. PatzyDrake, Falun Coal Miners, LW One of the more experienced ECLers in the entire ECL Lite division, PatzyDrake has amassed exactly 60 goals and over 100 points through 3 ECL seasons thus far. A constant presence on the FCM left wing, this sniping powerforward is just as effective ripping a one-timer as he is dangling his way to the net. Will try to juggle his IRL career as a semi-professional handball player with his responsibilites as the go-to guy for FCM - remains to be seen how many games he will be able to play for ECL 4. 5. TEAMSEILA, EN HUND, D TEAMSEILA, the hardest hitting defender in ECL, barely missed out on winning the "Most Hits" trophy for ECL 3. While his strenghts lie in his physical game and defensive awareness, this ex-SIKA defender is also a capable leader with the ability to chip in offensively when needed. Will try to lead his team EN HUND to ECL Lite glory this season. But seriously, what is with the capital letters - both username and team name?! Teams to watch 1. Lavetten This team will feature many experienced Versus and HUT players with parts of the squad getting their EASHL feet wet in ECL 3 for team HC Solhem. While that adventure didn't turn out the way the team had hoped, look for the members of that squad to want revenge while playing this time for Lavetten. With the signings of esdor and dallinhoo, Captain (and winner of the Swedish Versus championships) juniorzalaz has put together a strong team. 2. Falun Coal Miners Got to give a shoutout to my old team here as well. With brothers and FCM owners/captains The_Alpha_Furyan & LastMandalorian both leaving for Sjukstugan - this team of real-life friends will be looking to prove themselves in ECL 4 Lite. Led by ECL veterans Meeertz (D), onecorner95 (G), PatzyDrake (LW) and iscojr94 (C), Falun will first be looking to establish a new team identity without the ever-constant crack of the whip from their previous captains. Look for this team to take a while to gel before taking off in the back half of the season. 3. Elämäm Kiekko The sweetheart team of ECL 3, these happy-go-lucky Finns certainly displayed a tremendous attitude during their first season. Despite losing more games than they won, they kept their spirits high and made sure to entertain the community as much as they could. Lets see what their sophomore season brings in terms of success on the ice! That is all for Lite. Look for our second part of the ECL 4 Season preview, Pro Division, tomorrow. For that installment (and for the Elite preview on Sunday) I will be enlisting the help of a new mystery Staff member-in-training... Keep an eye out! Later skaters, The_Alpha_Furyan for NHLGamer.com

Hello NHLGamers, Well, that was quite an intense experience wasn't it? Several months of competitive virtual hockey in the bag with more than a few highlight reel goals, slick saucer passes and bone crushing hits along the way. If you are anything like me, the time between ECLs is spent recovering from the emotional rollercoaster of the previous tournament while at the same time anticipating the next one. Judging by the activity in the NHLGamer forums, the amount of new members and teams registered plus the crazy Free Agent season we've seen so far - ECL 4 looks to surpass all previous tournaments in terms of participation and activity. Almost 80 teams registered, that is insane! Thank you all for making this community what it is and making sure we stay on course in building the ultimate gathering place for competitive NHL gamers. Keep up the great activity and know that the next step on the NHLGamer journey, ECL Divisions, is right around the corner. Here is all the information that is available right now concerning ECL 4 and the format it will feature: ECL Divisions FAQ. With 45 teams registered for the Pro division and 15 for Elite, the NHLGamer staff does have some work to do in balancing the divisions and making sure the numbers stay even in terms of division size. Look for an update this week with the finalized division placements, the tournament start date plus the schedule for the season. With that said, before we get started with ECL 4 it is time to properly close the book on our previous tournament. What better way to do that than to celebrate the greatest individual achievements of ECL 3? As you've most likely guessed based on the news story title, it is time for the ECL 3 Regular Season Awards (featuring the Playoff MVP)! In total, there will be 9 individual trophys handed out (6 for skaters, 3 for goalies) for the regular season and 1 for the playoffs. Most of these you might have seen before in this story where we presented the trophys for ECL 1, 2 and Summer Cup. However, you will notice two new additions for this particular tournament. Enjoy! (If someone isn't tagged, it is because I did not know their forum name.) ECL 3 - Regular season: Most Points - @Joukki with 86 goals and 87 assists for 173 points in 42 games. This is joukkis second award for Most Points as he previously snagged the award in ECL 1. Most Goals - Joukki again with his 86 goals; featuring 13 PPG, 1 SHG and 16 GWGs. joukki won this award for ECL 1 as well, so this is his second goal scoring title and fourth individual trophy in total. Most Assists - Puantso, who breaches the 100-plateau with 106 assists in 39 games played. This is the second trophy for most assists by Puantso as he won the title for ECL 1. NEW Most hits - Tanski87 of Rusty Blades delivered a crushing 327 hits in 46 games played. He wins this new award by a margin of more than 70 hits. Most Points by a Defenseman - @Rullstolskalas with a total of 14+63 = 77 in 46 games played. The first defenseman scoring title for longtime Northern Stars defender "Rulle". Best Plus/Minus - This category was completely dominated by Aapon Taikasauva who had the Top 5 spots. Winning the award is @indi969 with +179 in 44 games. Best Save % - Just like before, the requirement to win this title is that the goaltender in question plays at the very least 50% of his teams games. Playing in 24 out of 46 games for Northern Stars, MZK-TrophyHunter qualifies and delivered a commanding 83.71 % in those games. Most Wins by a Goalie - By many considered to be one of the top EASHL goalies in the world, @FinKonna finally manages to snag an goaltending award with his spectacular 37-8-1 record for ECL 3. NEW Most shutouts - @SneakPeaker of X Factor and @SpiderRoyal of SIKA shares this new goaltending award with 9 shutouts each. ECL 3 - Playoffs: As is custom, we only award one individual trophy during the playoffs - the Playoff MVP. This one goes to championship winners X Factors #1 center, @Penatski. With 46 points in 24 playoff games (featuring an impressive 8 points in 4 games during the finals) he finished among the top point scorers for the playoffs and was judged to be the primary X Factor in his teams success. Yes, I know. Sorry. Jokes aside, congratulations to you Penatski - well deserved! To finish this one off, we once again hand the mic over to X Factor captain, @nylanderi, for some choice words about his top playoff producer; "What a player. Great two-way forward, with TOP hockey iq. In the regular season X Factor scored 199 goals... and Penatski had a point in 165 of them. He always found a way to create scoring chances without ever hurting our defense. Although he is really young, he plays a truly mature game. He came through for us in the playoffs with so many crucial OT goals. Penatski deserves this trophy without a doubt" That is all for now. Look for the ECL 4 update this week! Later skaters! NHLGamer.com

Evening NHLGamers, After a tremendous season and an even better playoff run it gives us here at NHLGamer.com great joy to present our new reigning champions: X FACTOR. Congratulations on winning the ultimate prize that competitive EASHL gaming in Europe has to offer! Well deserved. It feels like a lifetime ago when ECL 3 kicked off in mid-October but really it has only been 3 months. That being said, it has been our longest season yet and a learning experience to be sure. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the teams and players that participated - we know there are things to work on for future tournaments and we are excited to do so in combination with you, the community. Thanks once again! Now, without further ado, I will leave the floor to X Factor captain and leader, @nylanderi, who was gracious enough to take time out of his teams' celebrations to write a season recap. Take it away, sir. "OUR STORY When I created X Factor 3-4 days before ECL3 registrations closed, I never ever expected that this would happen. We played pretty good in EASHL before ECL start, but my biggest concern was our experience in big games. We had a team who could challenge every team, but I still was not sure about our chances to go far. I did not know - would we have what it takes to win best of 7 series against top teams? Regular Season Regular season started with big games against former champs Nordic Blizzard. I felt like we could have won both games, but they played really good and won one of the games. Northern Stars also gave us big problems, with their defensive playstyle and offensively just going for rebounds/deflections. We had most of our best opponents in the start of the season, and since we lost many games i dont think anyone believed in our chances. After Rynnäkköviikset games, something changed. We won 23 ECL games in a row, and I got excited. Maybe we could go far, and challenge for the title. Closer to end of season, something happened. We signed a player. F-B-I__A-N-D-Y_. And this signing was the point in the season, when I knew that we are gonna win the title. End of the season, big games against SKY and Dynasty. My personal least favourite opponent SKY. We won 1, lost 1 but still managed to put good performance. Playoffs Kattiautomaatti: Great defensive team, with top D-man pairing. We did not really expect too much, but they played really good. I felt like they just did not have goal scorers, that could challenge our defense. Well played and good luck to the future. Dynasty: First gameday (games 1-3), i felt like we are gonna sweep these guys. We played so good, and Dynasty struggled to create offense. Series was 2-1 after 3 games, although i felt like it should have been 3-0. Second gameday, they bring in Jageksi. I still felt confident, until i found out Penatski's alarm didnt go off and he slept during game 4. Series 2-2. I gotta say, i have never seen a team develop so much in couple of days. Gameday 2s Dynasty was of course so good defensively, but now super dangerous offensively aswell. But, then Mr. Danielcadabra stepped up. I never have seen such a dominant goalie, he was the reason we got trough Dynasty. (and of course my overtime shorthanded rebound goal ) We won Game 7, and Snapu was the first member of X Factor bandwagon. Lets go! Sika: Good defensive team, who are always dangerous in offensive zone. We did not play our best hockey this series, but Danielcadabra continued his great form. Series could have been lot closer, they got some good chances and were quite unlucky at times. 4-1 Factor, Lets go! Aapon Taikasauva: Super offense. Best offensive in the game, hands down. I knew that this is the time for me and Andy to step up. I think this series, was the time when people found out that maybe we are not all offense. During this we defended as a team, and i was really happy with our performance although it took us 7 games to go through. We did not score so many, but i felt like our defense was rock solid and they could not really get any good chances. Game 7 OT goal by yours truly, Lets go! Finnish Roosters: Well, team who swept Written and Laser. (Holy shit!). Team with 2 amazing players in offense PleeMaker and Tbnantti, and great team defense. I were still really confident, since i always felt we play really good vs. Roosters. Series were really tight, both teams played really good. Our team defense was on point, they did not really get any good chances, and we were really clinical. This series showed me that we had the best team defense in the whole tournament. Throughout the series one player stepped up the most, Penatski. He created almost our every offensive chance, and scored big goals (and for once defended ). 3 games went to overtime, but we somehow managed to score big goals, thanks to our offense Vilu, Ape and Pena. Amazing series by us, 4-0 X Factor. VICTORY! Playoff lineup: Vilupoika: One of the best defensive forwards in this game, who scored lots of important goals. He always listened and learned. Truly a great team player, and i hope he finds a good team for ECL4. Penatski: Young boy, who does not really care about anything. But hey, he can play NHL! Our offensive leader, who is certainly my pick for our season MVP. Lots of good goals, assists and penalties. Kingofapes_: I have never argued with someone as much as i did with Ape. Ape scored lots of big goals, and defended like a beast in the finals. Ape listened to Nylanderi Hockey Philosophy, and instantly turned in to best RW in the game. Otahan siitä. Well done Fbiandy: Best RD in the game, no doubt. I felt really comfortable playing alongside him, we always had good chemistry. He was solid in defense, and great passer. Nylanderi [TEXT BY @vSilenttio]: X Factor's ultimate leader. Captain with big C for sure. The guy who some people were laughing at during the XF's streams when he told his players what to do and how to do. From my view it was Nylanderi who kept this insanely talented team moving forward, come hell or high water. And that's just how I see him off the ice. What he did on the ice, defensively and offensively, was that he kept his calmness and skill-set of his just like that in the most tightest games of the season. Amazing player, even better captain. Can't wait to see this guy to play with @plee999 as they will be the LW/LD combo in new Elite team, Limitless. Danielcadabra: Player who stepped up the most, during playoffs, Dynasty and Sika series MVP. Made all this possible. Amazing goalie. Huge thanks to staff for organizing this tournament. -nylanderi" Thank you nylanderi! X Factor has truly made a mark on the community on its way to becoming our third ECL champion, beating some terrific teams along the way to their first ever championship. Once again, congratulations! But now, let us look to the future. To all the teams that are eager to get back on the ice and follow in the footsteps of our champions Nordic Blizzard, Mukimiehet and X Factor - ECL 4 is just a couple of weeks away. Be sure to check out our news story concerning the next step in competitive EASHL gaming; divisions and once you are done reading that - go check out the registration news story here. The ECL Elite, Pro and Lite divisions await - let's play some hockey. See you soon, NHLGamer.com

Hello NHLGamers Today we bring you a preview of the ECL 3 Finals or as Gandalf would put it: "So, we come to it at last... The great battle of our time". The featured teams in this spectacular finish to our longest season yet will be Finnish Roosters and X-Factor - two teams that have lived up to their hype before the season and navigated their way through some of the toughest teams in the world to reach this point. But enough hype, let us move on to the show: [Research (statistics) and matchup analysis by Ranksu] [Additional text, player interviews and editing by The_Alpha_Furyan] [Art by OxtreeLAT] X- FACTOR Projected lineup Vilupoika - Penatski - KingOfApes_ nylanderi - F-B-I__A-N-D-Y_ Danielcadabra Statistics (Forwards): Vilupoika Regular season: 44 GP [55G + 55A] 110 P / +127 / 8 PPG / 2 SHG / 148 HITS Playoffs: 23 GP [17G + 17A] 34 P / +14 / 2 PPG / 0 SHG / 87 HITS Penatski Regular season: 46 GP [70G + 95A] 165 P / +134 / 9 PPG / 1 SHG / 129 HITS Playoffs: 20 GP [17G + 21A] 38 P / +18 / 3 PPG / 0 SHG / 49 HITS KingOfApes_ Regular season: 46 GP [48G + 63A] 111 P / +134 / 9 PPG / 0 SHG / 135 HITS Playoffs: 23 GP [13G + 17A] 30 P / +14 / 0 PPG / 0 SHG / 97 HITS Statistics (Defenders): nylanderi Regular season: 40 GP [14G + 38A] 53 P / +87 / 3 PPG / 1 SHG / 38 HITS Playoffs: 23 GP [3G + 12A] 15 P / +14 / 1 PPG / 1 SHG / 19 HITS F-B-I__A-N-D-Y_ Regular season: 8GP [4G + 10A] 14 P / +19 / 0 PPG / 0 SHG / 40 HITS Playoffs: 22GP [2G + 17A] 19 P / +14 / 0 PPG / 0 SHG / 59 HITS Statistics (Goaltender): Danielcadabra Regular season: 28GP / 18 W / 6 L / 4 OTL / 79.38% / 1.67 GAA / 5 SO Playoffs: 23GP / 16W / 5 L / 2 OTL / 78.67% / 1.95 GAA / 5 SO How did they get here? X-Factor reached to finals by defeating the top-notch team Aapon Taikasauva in Game 7 in the 3rd round. This is X-Factors first appearance in the ECL Finals. X-Factor and Finnish Rooster faced each other in the regular season with the following results: 1-3 to FR and 0-4 to XF. How will they win? X-Factor signed F-B-I__A-N-D-Y_ at the ECL Trade Deadline which was in my book easily the best acquire at TDL. "Andy" is well known for playoff performances and is considered a "big games player". He's going to face the FR top scoring forward PleeMaker, who had yet another outstanding regular season and an even better post-season. If "Andy" can win that match up, that would be huge for X-Factor. Finally, I believe they will win if Penatski can break down Finnish Roosters redline trap and find the holes for it. How will they lose? X-Factor can sometimes be too reckless offensively which will put their D pairing in awkward positions - knowing the fast break game Finnish Roosters will execute. We saw it in game 6 against Aapon Taikasauva (1-5 to Aapo). It will be hard for X-Factor if they don't keep up nylanderi's game philosophy and trust his gameplan. X-Factor will lose this series if they can't find a way to deal with FR's hard blueline trap and can't find a way to shut down PleeMaker. You could say this set-up is almost the same like against Aapo were they needed to shutdown Joukki13 and they did. However, this time they are facing more defensively oriented 5-man team who will heavily lean on offensive mistakes and lurk around for fast breakaways. * * * FINNISH ROOSTERS Projected lineup PleeMaker - tbnantti - johtaja699 JParola - ktewjh FinKonna Statistics (Forwards): PleeMaker Regular season: 46 GP [83G + 56A] 139 P / +137 / 10 PPG / 2 SHG / 251 HITS Playoffs: 19 GP [29G + 11A] 40 P / +24 / 8 PPG / 1 SHG / 125 HITS tbnantti Regular season: 46 GP [68G + 84A] 152 P / +137 / 7 PPG / 6 SHG / 11 HITS Playoffs: 19 GP [17G + 20A] 37 P / +24 / 4 PPG / 0 SHG / 22 HITS johtaja699 Regular season: 44 GP [39G + 42A] 81 P / +118 / 9 PPG / 0 SHG / 81 HITS Playoffs: 19 GP [5G + 13A] 18 P / +24 / 1 PPG / 0 SHG / 44 HITS Statistics (Defenders): JParola Regular season: 36 GP [5G + 60A] 65 P / +87 / 3 PPG / 0 SHG / 67 HITS Playoffs: 19 GP [1G + 23A] 24 P / +24 / 0 PPG / 0 SHG / 36 HITS ktewjh Regular season: 46 GP [8G + 40A] 48 P / +137 / 2 PPG / 1 SHG / 104 HITS Playoffs: 19 GP [2G + 11A] 13 P / +24 / 0 PPG / 1 SHG / 46 HITS Statistics (Goaltender): FinKonna Regular season: 52 GP / 43 W / 8 L / 1 OTL / 80.88% / 1.82 GAA / 10 SO Playoffs: 19 GP / 16 W / 2 L / 1 OTL / 83.78% / 1.57 GAA / 3 SO How did they get here? The Roosters reached the finals by first beating Alliance HT, only to enter a tough battle with Nordic Blizzard. After narrowly defeating the Blizzard in an entertaining Game 7 they moved on to Written In The Stars - a team many thought would go far in the playoffs. However, Written were missing some of their players and the Roosters played a great series to win 4-0. After such a morale booster, they went on to dethrone championship favorites Laser HT in 4 straight games. How will they win? The Roosters will win by unleashing their offense while maintaining their tight team defense. The key is for johtaja699 to keep doing the terrific two-way work he has been doing together with defenders JParola and ktewjh and for Plee and tbnantti to work their offensive magic on a somtimes reckless X Factor squad. FinKonna also needs to be his usual talented self. How will they lose? The Roosters will lose if they can't get that offense going and also if they underestimate the X Factor offense which at times can be really dangerous. If FinKonna should falter or have a bad series, this could also spell doom for the Roosters because even if they have a truly impressive offense, their defense and goaltending is what has gotten them this far. * * * 5 things to look for, in general: 1. Both teams have 1-2 punch, Penatski - Ape and tbnantti - Plee. 2. Both teams have a guy who can change the series in Plee vs. Ape. 3. FinKonna vs. Danielcadabra - who will step up and who will melt down? 4. Finnish Rooster has the best powerplay % from regular season 35.4%, compared to X-Factors 21.6% 5. tbnantti has the most SHG in regular season by 6 goals - look out! * * * 5 Questions with X-Factor Captain nylanderi and Finnish Roosters Assistant Captain PleeMaker Give us a few words on your opponent! Nylanderi (X Factor): Roosters is a great team with good mixture of offense and defense. They got forwards who can score and defenders who work really well together. With FinKonna being one of the top goalies in the game, it is certainly going to be really hard to score against these guys. PleeMaker (Finnish Roosters): XF is a great defensive team with a lot of individual skill. They have two top quality defensemen and a great goalie. And they also have three really high skilled forwards - Penatski is a top center and the wingers Vilupoika and Kingofapes_ can score goals thanks to their great talent and stick handling. Who would you consider to be the toughest player to defend on the opposing squad? Nylanderi (X Factor): Tough question! PleeMaker and tbnantti are both really dangerous, and it is going to be really hard to keep that tag team from scoring. PleeMaker (Finnish Roosters): Penatski is, in my opinion, the best player of XF so I would consider him the toughest opponent to defend. I would say he is one of the best playmakers in this game with maybe the best hands out there. Tell us a little bit of your playoff run so far Nylanderi (X Factor): I did expect us to go pretty far, especially since our game has developed a lot throughout this tournament. We had our fair share of problems, but I am still really happy with our performance in this ECL. I feel like we could have maybe done even better (considering a couple of our series went to game7) but since we have made the Finals I can’t really complain, can I? Haha. PleeMaker (Finnish Roosters): Our goal was champion so it's not surprise to me that we are playing finals. Our first round opponent was Alliance HT and I think it was kind of a warm up round for us, but they are actually the best Russian team that I have ever seen so, well played. The 2nd round against NBz - that was close. I will tell you more about them in the next question! Then the 3rd round against Written In The Stars. That was… well, much easier than I was expecting before the games. After Adetikki and Flyerkungen left for the army, they have started to play with a "weird" style. Lot of shots and always trying to go for rebounds. But anyway, well played SKY. As for the semi-finals against Laser HT - 4 tight games against them. They have lot of skill but team defense was their weakness in that series. So 4 tight wins to us (I think it was 2 OT wins?) and we managed to get our spot in the finals. Which series gave you the most amount of trouble? Nylanderi (X Factor): I would have to say… either Aapon Taikasauva or Dynasty. To be honest, those were two totally different kind of teams and especially Dynastys defense was one of the best I have ever seen in this game. On the other hand, Aapos offense was really hard to defend. Really hard to decide actually, but in my opinion Dynasty was the tougher series. PleeMaker (Finnish Roosters): Nordic Blizzard was the toughest opponent for us in this tournament so far. Great team defense and truly a dangerous offense. If you have players like Gendlik and Hooneli, your opponent will always give you a hard series. It was actually close that NBz beat us, when the 3rd period of Game 7 started NBz was leading 1-3 but we managed to get momentum with a 2-3 goal and then it was our game after that… Well played NBz and it is a shame that it seems you can't get a team to next season. What key factors should the community be on the lookout for in this series? Nylanderi (X Factor): Both teams have rock solid defensive strategies, so I think that will certainly be one of the deciding factors in this series. Also, in my opinion, tbnantti and Penatski are both Top-3 centers overall in this game so it will be nice to see who can put on the greatest performance and lead their team to victory. PleeMaker (Finnish Roosters): I think the key factor in finals will be which team can break their opponents great team defense! I think the finals has the two best defensive teams in the ECL so I acutally think that we won’t see so many goals this series. Anyway, good luck in the finals XF and good luck to next season everyone! * * * The series goes live at 20 CET/21 FIN tonight so be sure to check it out! For NHLGamer.com, The_Alpha_Furyan

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

Hello NHLGamers, I want to start this post off right by giving credit to @OxtreeLAT for once again creating some spectacular art. Keep doing what you are doing sir, the staff (and the community) are all glad to have you onboard! Make sure to give Ox some love in the comment section if you appreciate the visuals. Anyway, getting back to the matter at hand: the ECL 3 playoffs. It's time for Round 4 - the Semi-Finals! I can't imagine anyone in the community has missed out on the great matchups that have been going on but on the off chance that you did, here is the quick recap; Laser HT beat Northern Ascendancy 4-2 Finnish Roosters beat Written In The Stars 4-0 Aapon Taikasauva beat MUKIMIEHET 4-3 X Factor beat SIKA 4-1 With Nordic Blizzard and MUKIMIEHET not part of the Final Four this means we will have a completely new champion for ECL 3. Anyway, without further delay, we present to you the playoff pairings for Round 4 (coupled with a preview/prediction from @vSilenttio and myself) - scheduled to be played 18/1 to 24/1; Laser HT - Finnish Roosters Preview, by vSilenttio Before I say anything specific on this series - I must say that this match-up feels like the Finals already. It's like the final showdown before the ultimate final super showdown - or something like that. LHT has been great since the beginning and you could say the same from FR as both teams have been dominating whole season three since day one. FR had little bit tougher regular season thanks to Group 1's teams being slightly more "Elite" if you could say so - oh wait, I can. What else we can predict than Game 7 finish? LHT has super offensive line-up which all starts from one of the best, if not the best, european center there is - Dominointi. Same goes for FR as tbnantti leads his squad from the center of the ice. What I'm saying is that one of the biggest factors in this series will be the battle between their centers. Both can do pretty much everything on the ice, Dominointi being maybe more defensive where Antti plays more offensively. Obviously they need help from their wingers to win this battle. Antti has one defensive winger in johtaja699, and one over-the-top offensive juggernaut wonder-kid in Plee. Dominointi then again has pretty much same kind of situation in LHT as Patzlaf in the left wing is their superman winger (originally center) and Hansulinho is literally the Patrick Kane of their team as his offensive awareness is just something out of this world. If FR can take Hansu out, LHT might think of replacing him with more defensive and disciplined but still super-skilled players like Leksa94 or Hittihermu. How about the defense or their goalies? I see FR's FinKonna being the best goalie of this whole tournament and his effort will perhaps be the one thing that can take FR to the finals over LHT. I'm not saying LHT has bad goalie in Hiirulainen as he was one of the best goalies in NHL14 but still - FR has the edge in goalies. Defensively then again, LHT has more offensive D-men and that is the spot to hit for FR. Vatalisti and no matter who with him (either DieCutterMC or willekunq) will be the more offensive pairing here compared to FR's solid two-way machine ktwejh and JParola combined together. I need to say that of course no one plays as an individuals here but that is more than obvious when you play hockey on this level - just need to say it out loud here. Both side's D-men are capable of making that one play that decides the one goal game's result - will be interesting to see that which side is the better one to support their team offensively AND defensively. I want Game 7 - and I think that most of the community see LHT as "better" team here but after seeing both team in these playoffs and time before all this - I'm going to say that it's Finnish Roosters who advances to the finals beating Laser in Game 7. LHT-FR 3-4. Aapon Taikasauva - X Factor Preview, by The_Alpha_Furyan There is no shortage of star players in either series here and for this one, the regular season masters Aapon Taikasauva (fronted by joukki13, Puantso, indi969, jtorro123, puke85 and Zande95) faces an X Factor team (led by captain Nylanderi and his playoff squad Penatski, KingOfApes_, Vilupoika, F-B-I__A-N-D-Y_ and Danielcadabra) that has continually gotten better ever since the start of NHL 17. Having been eliminated by Aapon, I know first hand what they can bring to a playoff matchup. When needed, they can balance their offence to include their defensive players as well and take some pressure of their top line. This also creates difficulties for the opposing team in shutting them down as you can't just take away that joukki13 one-timer on the right side and call it a day. However, featuring both the top goal scorer and top assist maker this season, you can never underestimate Aapons forwards. This will be the big challenge for Nylanderi and FBI Andy on X Factors blueline. Speaking of X Factor, they continue to impress as a team. From being one of the "potential top teams" at the start of the season they have devoloped into a force to be reckoned with and a proven contender. As a team, they play a similarly creative offensive style as Aapon - meaning this series has the potential to blow up a bit and be somewhat higher scoring than what we've seen in the playoffs thus far. To me, this one will come down to goaltending with the matchup between Danielcadabra and Zande95. If either one falters and fails to live up to the expectations they've set through their terrific playoff runs so far, that could decide the entire series. Seeing as both teams forwards are like sharks - if they smell blood in the water they will attack again and again - I wouldn't want to be in either goalies shoes for this series. Ultimately, I got to give this tone to Aapon as their offense if just too overwhelming to shut down over a lengthy playoff series. 4-2 series win, Aapon Taikasauva. Both pairs start their games tonight - as XF-Aapo goes live on 20:00CET and LHT-FR start their games on 21:00CET. Find their streams on NHLGamer's front page or in the chatbox later tonight! That's all from us right now, dont forget to subscribe to our various social media channels to show your support; Twitter: https://twitter.com/nhlgamercom Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NHLGamer/ Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/nhlgamertwitch PS4: Search for community: "NHL Gamer" On behalf of the NHLGamer staff, The_Alpha_Furyan & vSilenttio

Hello NHLGamers, As some of you may have noticed, Round 3 of the ECL 3 playoffs kicked off last night with some great battles. For those of you who did miss it, here are the playoff pairings (the ECL 3 "Final Eight" teams) for Round 3 - scheduled to be played 11/1 to 17/1; Laser HT - Northern Ascendancy Written In The Stars - Finnish Roosters Aapon Taikasauva - MUKIMIEHET X Factor - SIKA I'm sure all of us in the community are looking forward to some great battles here and as evidenced by the teams respective Twitch streams yesterday - the quality of play is top notch! Also, be sure to be on the lookout for a lengthy ECL 3 Finals Preview produced by myself and new NHLGamer Staff member @vSilenttio - featuring game analysis, some quotes from the captains and a prediction for who will be our next ECL champion. Finally, if all goes well we are looking into the possibility of producing a game broadcast from the Official NHLGamer Twitch Channel during the ECL Finals. Is this something you would like to see? Perhaps with a preview show? Some cat videos from @Kenu? Let us know in the comment section! We want your feedback. As always, later skaters // The_Alpha_Furyan

Hello NHLGamers, Today we bring you a different kind of news story, albeit a very welcome one. We are very happy to announce we've received word that our fellow NHLGamer member, previous ECL championship winner and immensly talented NHL 17 player @Hansulinho has signed a contract with well-known e-Sports organization ENCE eSports. First of all, a big round of applause to Hansu for what we're sure is an insanely exciting opportunity. Second of all, this signals there is growing interest in creating an eSports scene using the NHL series as a platform. With trailblazers like Hansulinho and other profiles in the community leading the way, this could hopefully lead to some great opportunities in the future. We had a chance to talk to Hansu for a few minutes to find out his reaction to the new contract; NHLG: First off, congratulations Hansu! So, tell us about ENCE! Hansulinho: Thank you! Well, ENCE is basically a Finnish eSports organization. They have their own CS:GO & Overwatch teams and Starcraft and Heartsone players. Now they are expanding to console sports and want me to be their "NHL-player". So what does this mean, practically? Practically, they want me to improve mine and their visibility in the eSports scene. This also means representing them in upcoming tournaments and events! Quite an opportunity, huh? Honestly, this is a project full of opportunities! I believe this will bring my "career" quite a large boost and I can't wait to see what the future brings - exciting times. What are your thoughts on NHL and eSports in the future? In my opinion it's definitely growing. To be honest, so far it's been growing in baby steps, but there may be big changes in the future. I'm sure many of us would like to know, what made you so successfull in the Versus game mode? Basically, many years of experience and having played in so many important games. The tolerance of stress grows from the experience and it has given me the ability to win tight games consistently. The ECL quarter finals are under way - how is the atmosphere in the Laser HT locker room regarding your matchup with Northern Ascendancy? Feels great, getting to play against dear enemies and friends again. Hopefully we'll be able to win this one! (Editors note: After 3 games, the matchup is 2-1 Laser) Finally and most importantly, what is the secret to beating last years finalist in the Finnish Championships, @Kenu, in Versus? Well, it's not that hard really. Just score more goals than him... Hansulinho Fact Box [Player Profile] 4-time Finnish National Champion in Versus Participated in all 3 ECL tournaments, twice for Nordic Blizzard (champions of ECL 1) and now Laser HT 117 ECL regular season points in 29 games and 67 playoff points in 22 games Favors the RW position in EASHL Read the full announcement article at: http://www.ence.gg/article/welcome-hansulino/ Finnish speakers may appreciate this article: http://www.iltasanomat.fi/digitoday/esports/art-2000005041322.html On behalf of the NHLGamer staff - later skaters, The_Alpha_Furyan