Oliverigood

NHLGamers, Another successful ECL Pro season is now behind and what a season it was for the top teams of the division as every one of the top four teams managed to earn the promotion to the Elite division for next season. On behalf of NHLGamer I want to congratulate Enigma, GOONS, Tunnel Vision and ZSC Esports for your success and good luck for next season in the highest division in Europe! It’s clear that the Pro division is heading in the right direction and with help of former Elite players, top teams in the league have found a way to close the gap between the two highest divisions. I like to believe this trend will continue in the future as well, especially now when so many Elite teams were relegated from the highest tier. Enigma was crowned champions after a tight 3-4 series win in the finals against GOONS. Before that we saw great team and individual achievements and to recap it all over we decided to make a little review of the season and award some teams and players for their success in the season. Regular season At the beginning of the season we already had some vision of the favorites and playoff candidates of both groups. Especially Enigma, Tunnel Vision, Frosty Kiekko-Vantaa and Leksands IF were touted to be favorites and tough to beat in their respective groups. Teams such as GOONS, Pata Hellalla and Herlev Eagles were expected to be stronger which turned out to be a correct prediction. The beginning of the season was really hard for two of the biggest favourites of the competition, Enigma and Tunnel Vision both faced several losses in the first rounds and were in light trouble early on. A couple of teams such as Djurgarden Hockey and Inter Iceland started the season really strong while teams like Alliance HT, We Kings and TIKI TALK had some serious troubles from the very beginning of the season and couldn’t really find a way out of the mud at any point. While the regular season was moving toward its end, the competition favorites were able to turn the tides and started beating their opponents night after night. It was also great to see that none of the teams that were promoted from Lite division had any major difficulties playing at the Pro level and especially Sack Brothers managed to overcome their somewhat low expectations and turn that into a playoff spot! Other teams that were able to complete a massive upgrade from last season were Inter Iceland, Djurgarden Hockey, Pata Hellalla, Rookie Mistakes, Herlev Eagles and Company of Geeks and they were all rewarded with a spot in the playoffs. On the other side especially TIKI TALK, Kaupallinen Yhteistyo, RPEAT Esports and Leksands IF had a really disappointing seasons and they need to work some things out to find their way back to glory. GOONS won group 2 and was the best team of the regular season with an impressive 25-4-1 record. Tunnel Vision was first in group 1 with a 20-5-5 record and was seeded as the second team for the playoffs. Inter Iceland and Djurgarden Hockey were able to finish their great regular season in 2nd spot of their groups while future champions Enigma and one of the most improved teams in Herlev Eagles were the 3rd placing teams of their groups. As always in the last rounds of the regular season, the best battles are found near the playoff line where especially Nordic Stars in group 2 were able to secure the playoff spot with only a points differential to Finnish Roosters. In group 1, Sack Brothers did an excellent job taking the last playoff spot just above strong teams such as Leksands IF and Kiekko-Espoo Esports. Best teams of the ECL 11 Pro regular season: GOONS (25-4-1) Tunnel Vision (20-5-5) Inter Iceland (21-7-2) The most positive surprises of the ECL 11 Pro regular season: Inter Iceland (21-7-2) Djurgården Hockey (20-7-3) Herlev Eagles (20-7-3) Biggest disappointments of the ECL 11 Pro regular season: TIKI TALK (8-14-8) We Kings (8-18-4) Alliance HT (6-18-6) Best powerplay of the ECL 11 Pro regular season: Vaxjo Lakers, 46,34 % Rookie Mistakes, 35,59 % Djurgården Hockey 34,21 % Best penalty kill of the ECL 11 Pro regular season: Tunnel Vision 91,3 % HV71, 90,63 % Blackdawgs, 89,36 % Top player stats of the ECL 11 Pro regular season (Attackers): @Kattenj, (33+41=74) in 30 games, Vaxjo Lakers @Stefan_397, (35+36=71) in 30 games, Inter Iceland @vibholm10, (44+26=70) in 30 games, Herlev Eagles Top player stats of the ECL 11 Pro regular season (Defenders): @Supremski, (7+33=40) in 30 games, Leksands IF @JOHTAJAVIRTANEN (10+29=39) in 30 games, Pata Hellalla @Patsberg_ (13+24=37) in 30 games, Rookie Mistakes Best goalkeepers of the ECL 11 Pro regular season: @SanteriAK47, (240 svs, 83.33 save %, 1.6 GAA, 6 SO, 25 W) in 30 games, GOONS @PLA77NER, (280 svs, 80,23 save %, 2.3 GAA, 4 SO, 21 W) in 30 games, Inter Iceland @Vaporik, (196 svs, 82,7 save%, 1,86 GG, 3 SO 14 W) in 22 games, RCTIC Playoffs Personally I love the first round of the playoffs since it’s where the biggest surprises of the season usually happen. This time there weren't many, though. One of the few upsets was when Rookie Mistakes were able to beat Herlev Eagles in round one with the score 2-4 and the great strength that Vaxjo Lakers were able to show against Frosty Kiekko-Vantaa in the series that turned to Lakers favor with dominantly 4-1. RCTIC, who was playing their first season in Pro did an excellent job and won Inter Iceland 2-4. Other than those couple of pairs, there wasn’t much to out of the ordinary business. Teams that were destined for success advanced to the quarterfinals without any major troubles. Quarterfinals turned out to be anything other than tight. The top four teams of the season GOONS, Tunnel Vision, ZSC Esports and Enigma showed no mercy for their opponents and marched to the semifinals with series, 4-0, 4-0, 0-4 and 4-1. Especially ZSC Esports showed their true potential at this point and put forth a great performance against Djurgarden Hockey who were having almost a perfect season until they met the Swiss lions. It was now clear that all of these four teams were going to have a real shot in the Elite relegation series to be promoted to Elite division for the next season. It was the semifinals where GOONS faced their first losses of the playoffs, however it didn’t stop them advancing to the finals after a 4-2 series win against ZSC Esports. Even though GOONS had been perfect for the whole season, ZSC Esports put up a real fight and in the end the win didn’t come easily. In the other pair, Enigma and Tunnel Vision faced each other in a series that were expected to be super tight and there wasn't a clear favorite to win the series. Both teams had excellent quarterfinals series behind them but Enigma showed real character by beating Tunnel Vision with the score 2-4. This was the moment when the odds of Enigma winning the title increased enormously. Many thought GOONS were still unstoppable and they could win the finals in similar manner that they’ve won the previous series, but Enigma came well prepared and focused for the finals. GOONS were perhaps the better team at the beginning of the finals but in the end there was no question about the winners of the cup. Enigma was able to take advantage of their last season's experience and overcome their finals opponents this time. With a great team performance Enigma kept GOONS out of good scoring positions and converted on their chances with a high success rate. The season eventually ended in finals game seven and Enigma are now the champions of ECL 11 Pro. Season awards ECL 11 Pro Champions: Enigma Best left winger of ECL 11 Pro: @pikkuroger, GOONS @Nieppii, Enigma @BensaPoju, Tunnel Vision Best center of ECL 11 Pro: @laitineen64, Enigma @xKeskitalo, GOONS @Original-SnuS, ZSC Esports Best right winger of ECL 11 Pro: @kriketski17, GOONS @sannteri, Enigma @Sokkelo__ , Tunnel Vision Best left defender of ECL 11 Pro: @Makeaxl, Enigma @viba2008, GOONS @tombo_02, Tunnel Vision Best right defender of ECL 11 Pro: @zNico, Enigma @Miika, GOONS @Haldeem, ZSC Esports Best goalkeeper of ECL 11 Pro: @SanteriAK47, GOONS @Pirtsa89, Enigma @MrAllsvenskan, Vaxjo Lakers All-Stars lineup of ECL 11 Pro: @pikkuroger - @laitineen64 - @kriketski17 @Makeaxl - @zNico @SanteriAK47 Rookie of the year in ECL 11 Pro: @pikkuroger , GOONS @viba2008, GOONS @Pirtsa89, Enigma @tombo_02, Tunnel Vision @LordStanley46_, Djurgarden Hockey We want to thank everyone who took a part in ECL 11 Pro. Once again congratulations to the promoted teams and especially champions Enigma. Now it’s time for teams to start preparing for the new season. The bottom teams of Pro will also take part in the new qualification series which should make the competition even tighter and more exciting than ever before. We have already seen some big moves in the transfer market and can’t wait to see more hidden gems and big names doing great things in the next season. Enjoy your off-season, see you on the ice everyone!

NHLGamers, After a sensational victory in the finals we witnessed captain @Nieppii lifting the cup over his shoulders as Enigma were crowned as the champions of ECL 11 Pro. Enigma was down in the series 2-1 after gameday one but the team showed real character on Wednesday in gameday two and completed the comeback with a 3-4 series win. The trophy will now join Enigma’s players in the sauna where the team can also leave last season’s disappointments behind and start the preparations for the next season in ECL Elite. Enigma's road to the championship: Group stage: 20-9-1 Round 1: Company of Geeks 4-0 Quarterfinals: Vaxjo Lakers 4-1 Semifinals: Tunnel Vision 4-2 Finals: GOONS 4-3 The winning roster: GOALTENDERS #32 @Jaakkomusta #89 @Pirtsa89 DEFENSEMEN #4 @Makeaxl #24 @Tappu A #85 @zNico FORWARDS #38 @Nieppii C #64 @laitineen64 #97 @sannteri A Playoff MVP: #97 @sannteri - Enigma (22 GP, 22+14=36) Congratulations to the champions on behalf of the entire community, and a warm thank you to all participants! If you missed the broadcast, you can rewatch it here:

NHLGamers, Two months ago we started the ECL 11 Pro season with 32 teams and over 260 players. Along the way we saw great games, beautiful goals and some surprises. In the end it’s fair to say that the favorites didn’t disappoint us this season. GOONS and Enigma are the best two teams of the season and they’ve deserved the spotlight of the ECL 11 Pro finals. One of these teams will win the cup and earn the direct promotion to the ECL Elite. Without further ado let’s take a look at our finalists. The ECL 11 Pro Finals will be played tonight, on Monday, 8th of February at 20:00 CET and on Wednesday, 10th of February at 19:45 CET. (1) GOONS Road to finals Regular season: 1st in Group 1 (25-4-1) Playoffs round 1: 4-0 vs Sack Brothers Quarterfinals: 4-0 vs RCTIC Semifinals: 4-2 vs ZSC Esports Predicted starting roster and playoffs stats LW: @pikkuroger: 14GP (23+34=57p) C: @xKeskitalo: 14GP (17+26=43p) RW: @kriketski17: 14GP (21+26=47p) LD: @viba2008: 14GP (3+8=11p) RD: @Miika: 14GP (1+14=15p) G: @SanteriAK47: 14GP (80,56%, 2 GAA, 1SO) Backup players: @McSEPPO @yolonaattori69 (profiilipakki) @Aitis GOONS have had an almost perfect run to the finals. They were the best team in the regular season and in the playoffs the team have crushed their opponents game after game. The team was still without a loss in the playoffs before the semifinal series against ZSC Esports, but the Swiss Lions fought bravely and managed to beat GOONS twice. Despite GOONS being clear winners of the series, ZSC Esports exposed the mortality of their opponents and proved there are some vulnerabilities in GOONS' playing as well. This sends an encouraging message to their final opponents but also helps GOONS to keep their feet grounded. (6) Enigma Road to finals Regular season: 3rd in Group 1 (20-9-1) Playoffs round 1: 4-0 vs Company of Geeks Quarterfinals: 4-1 vs Vaxjo Lakers Semifinals: 4-2 vs Tunnel Vision Predicted starting roster and playoffs stats LW: @Nieppii: 15GP (10+24=34p) C: @laitineen64: 15GP (14+20=34p) RW: @sannteri : 15GP (17+8=25p) LD: @Makeaxl: 15GP (2+11=13p) RD: @zNico: 15GP (1+9=10p) G: @Pirtsa89 : 15GP (79,28%, 1,53 GAA, 1SO) Backup players: @Tappu @Torpantienkovalchuk (JumalanTuhnu) @Jaakkomusta Enigma had a rough start for the season but they managed to improve the further the competition progressed. Especially the last two series wins against Vaxjo Lakers and Tunnel Vision proved that the team has left all their worries behind and are playing with their full potential. The team has been able to turn really close games to their favor and I like to believe they want to continue the same trend in the finals as well. This is the second time in a row that Enigma is playing in the Pro finals so the experience is on their side. However their opponent won’t get any easier than last time against Black Horse. NHLGamer decided to contact the captains of both teams for a short interview. Both teams answered the same questions and they haven’t seen their opponents answers: 1. Your team managed to secure the Pro finals spot in an impressive way. What do you think is the key factor behind the success? Were you convinced already at the start of the season that the finals and possible championship are realistic goals for your team? Before the season started, when I decided to establish GOONS, our aim was to become one of the top teams in the league and to make it even close to the realistic target we needed to sign top players. I introduced the project to @kriketski17 who became excited and started working on gathering a competitive team for the season. I already knew the potential of @pikkuroger and @viba2008, and Kriketski signed the rest of the players to the team. The last piece in the puzzle was when Kriketsi and his team at that time JYP Jyvaskyla made an agreement of the player himself moving to our team. After adding Kriketsi I personally became certain that it would require a really great team to beat GOONS in a seven game series and since then our only goal has been winning the Pro championship. - @Aitis I would say the reasons are the same as in the previous season - individual talent, experience and trusting your own doing. Our team spirit is really good and we are constantly looking for ways to improve our game and willing to hear new advice from each other. As last seasons finalists we were hungry for winning the championship this time but we started the season really poorly. However after we decided to sign young prodigy @laitineen64 to our team, things started to work out and we have had a strong belief in our team again. The main goal was to reach the Elite relegation series but of course we are working towards championship and hopefully we will be able to win it. - @Nieppii 2. What do you think are your biggest strengths in the finals compared to your opponents? We will just play our own game and enjoy. It should be enough to win the cup. - @viba2008 Our strength is in teamplay. We have a great chemistry and everything new we plan to do seems to work out. For example in the Tunnel Vision series we managed to win one of the games following a faceoff set play that we were working on in practice mode. Above all we also have strength between the pipes. @Pirtsa89 has been playing very well and he has saved many almost certain goals. - @sannteri 3. How will the final series end? The final series will end 4-1 in GOONS' favor. Enigma has been able to improve their game during the season and the games will be really tight, but GOONS will bring the cup home. - @Aitis The final series will certainly be tight and small things will make a difference. I would say our sauna is ready for the cup after a 4-2 series win. - @Nieppii As you can see from the answers, both teams are very confident to see the cup in their own sauna after the finals. Especially GOONS are very certain that they don’t need to change a thing in their playing and that’s something we all can really agree on. Enigma has found the winning patterns during the season which they believe will lead them to become the champions. There is also a little mind games in the answers as Enigma would like to pile the pressure on GOONS side. However they are not settling for underdogs status and have a lot of faith in their changes. Interesting points to follow: Former JYP Jyvaskyla teammates right winger @kriketski17 and left defender @Makeaxl will go head to head in opposite teams. There are two players from last seasons champions Black Horse. Enigma center @laitineen64 and GOONS defender @Miika. Which of the players will be able to secure the back to back Pro championship? GOONS and Enigma played against each other in the regular season. GOONS was able to win both games (3-2 and 2-5) but this happened before Enigma signed their key player @laitineen64. Both centermen have pretty similar numbers in faceoff stats (49,7% vs 50,4%) so every faceoff will be decisive. GOONS forwards have over 40% average shooting percentage and they all have scored over 40 points each in the playoffs. Enigma needs to keep these numbers in check if they want to win. Prediction: It’s really hard to pick the favorites for the finals especially after Enigma’s great display against Tunnel Vision who plays with quite similar strengths as compared to GOONS. As captain Nieppi said in the interview, the playoff experience is on Enigma’s side but on the other hand inexperience on the GOONS side hasn't shown in any way this season. The series will be extremely tight and the games will end with minimal goal margins. I believe Enigma will benefit from their excellent form and previous seasons experience ultimately lifting the trophy after a game seven win. Enigma will win the series 4-3. What does the community think? Even though Enigma is now predicted to win the cup, I would still keep the sauna warm in the GOONS camp as well. GOONS has been absolutely outstanding this season but Enigma has once again plowed through adversity to the finals. As always we wish you enjoy the series and cheer for your favorite team. You don’t want to miss this!