Keuschemisch

SportsGamers, The 8th season of the German Championship League is just around the corner and we want to take a closer look at the most exciting teams this upcoming season. Who are the favourites for the title? Which teams could prove themselves as "David" against the expected "Goliaths" in the league? We will see many exciting teams and tight matchups in the upcoming GCL8 but we decided to take a litter closer look on the following teams. Make sure to let us know in the comments down below which teams you are most excited to see! Previews written by @Keuschemisch and @Francoconte ZSC Esports: The reigning GCL Champion seems to be the biggest favourite in the 8th season of the German Championship League! The Swiss outfit managed to add Kevin @Keuschemisch Berg and Christian @Fightlocke3 Schubert before last ECL '22 Spring to their already strong roster. Both players played a big role in their Elite debut season which eventually lead to rank 10 and missing the playoffs just by a small margin. Christian @GERxVillain Ungeheuer followed the path of his former "noRex Gaming" teammates and will reinforce the Lions after playing one season in ECL '22 Spring Pro for the Deadly Phantoms. Captain Sven @Original-SnuS Julmi, Max @Toneee9 Tonitz and Mike @burban26 Müller were able to reinforce the team once again and the roster looks stronger than ever. To secure more depth to the offensive and defensive end, Finnish loan players Joonas @Patzlaf Paatiala (Frölunda HC) and Niklas @NikkeDangles Tukiainen (hREDS) join the blue and red for the upcoming GCL. While Reto @afc_Tschitsch (eTschitsch) Ulrich will take the role as a backup goalie, we can expect Alex @IDangledYouOutWagner to show off his scoring abilities once again, after finishing as the teams top scorer in ECL '22 Spring Elite (17G + 24A - 28GP). The only Elite participant from the DACH-Community will be in favour of securing their first back-to-back GCL title. Anything else than another final appearance would be a big disappointment. Prediction: Title favourite Deadly Phantoms: The German juggernaut will be keen on getting back the title after getting swept by ZSC Esports in the finals of GCL7. Frank @Franky__2768 Münch, Niklas @xXPsykoSkillsXx Schmitz, Felix @ProfaneKiss Kiss and Patrick @RPH_31 Braun are still the foundation of the ECL Pro participant. It will be interesting to see if the two veterans Simon @PlaymakerSJ Junker and Tim @Timasy Hess will be part of the Phantoms starting six or if freshly added winger Nico @Nicoli2311 Schubert will find his place in the offense of the German outfit. After the departure of Florian @Flo_goes_grazy(flgr93) Griechbaum it will be very important to find their rhythm right from the start of the season. In our opinion it is highly possible to see the Phantoms back in the finals! Prediction: Title challenger Geekz Energy Esports: Another Pro Team of the DACH-Community is set to make it far in the playoffs! After a rather disappointing season in GCL7 (Seed #7; 0:4 in the Quarterfinals against former Team LEISURE; now Deadly Phantoms again) Captain Joshua @Hasek100 Plattner added high quality to his roster! Stephan @Krinke Krinke joined the former Inter Iceland from PENTA and had a big impact in the last ECL '22 Spring Pro but eventually fell short to Växjo Lakers (1:4) in the first round of the playoffs. Geekz Energy Esports is well-known for their quick and dangerous counter attacks. Especially Stefan @Stefan_397 Hämmerle is a nightmare for every goalie in the league. Both forwards will be glad about the arrival of the Swiss veteran Claudio @Freeman7187 Salamoni who joins on loan from ZSC Esports. It will be interesting to see what starting six we are going to see at the beginning of the regular season! As good as Geekz's offense has been in the past, the defense has been the teams weakness - especially in tight matchups and long playoff series. Nevertheless we can expect to see Geekz Energy Esports making the semifinals! Prediction: Top 4 Hyperion: Another possible semifinalist could be Hyperion! The team around the SportsGamer veterans Stefan @Rayman Mieth and Maximilian @gzell60 Käsmaier has improved a lot and seemed to have taken the next step in last ECL'22 Spring Lite. Young gun Paul @Xx__PaulZz__xX (Pauner08) Weingart matured a lot - his skillset and silky hands can be dangerous to any team in the upcoming season. Dominik @CashAllGreen Bellersheim organizes the defense and is surely one of the main reasons for the success of Hyperion! The "Gladiators" have a good mixture of experienced veterans and upcoming talents that could make it very far in the postseason! Prediction: Battle for Top 4 Team NGU: The former PENTA has seen quite a radical change in its squad! Captain Akin @DaMan (Akin71) Isik and Dominik @Domi_PENTA Rühl who have been teammates for several seasons now, managed to add big experience from Switzerland. After adding Bryan @CuteTerminator7 Bolliger before last ECL'22 Spring Lite to the team, we can expect to see eNLA 1v1 Back-To-Back Champion Mirco@Tron1x90 (Komir_90) Salvi and Kyle @KG12PK88 Grossen opening up the play from behind! A well balanced roster can give Team NGU the edge in tight matchups and secure a good seed for the playoffs! It will be exciting to see how NGU performs in a long playoff series and how they will position themselves in the league. Will they be able to maintain their status as a top 6 team and maybe even beat favoured teams on their postseason journey? Prediction: Battle for Top 4 Herforder Ice Dragons: After getting relegated in the last GCL7, the Herforder Ice Dragons bounced back in ECL'22 Spring Core. Tobias @Hohner Hohner drew the right conclusions and managed to form a very competetive and strong squad! After falling short in the Core Quarterfinals to Finnish Outfit Etelan Vetelat, Nico @Nicoli2311 Schubert decided to part ways and join the Deadly Phantoms. They found the perfect substitute in Jürgen @DangledYouOut (TIUINIA) Kloster who brings the experience of several seasons at the Pro level and the combination with Center Christoph @IiVAPOR100iI Stotz should cause a stir offensively! One more addition made right before the start of the regular season is Arttu @laitineen64 Laiitinen, who joins on loan from ECL'22 Spring Elite semifinalist GOONS. The Finnish winger had an incredible season, scoring 56 points in 30 games. If Laiitinen will take the role as a backup player or find himself in the starting six of Herford could be a decisive factor for their game. One player the whole league should watch is Tim @LeMalkin71 Strompf who looks like one of the most exciting upcoming defenders in the German community. If the Ice Dragons can continue on their good momentum, a good seed for the postseason should be their main goal! Prediction: Top 8 DEG Esports: The Esports team of the Düsseldorfer EG has become an institution in the DACH-Community. Steffen @Seibertus94 (Leucht-T) Leuchtenberger and Daniel @DangerBrooklyn Goepfert are very important pillars and the foundation of DEG Esports! After experiencing many changes to the squad in the last couple of seasons, the DEG always managed to set their roster right in time! The red and yellow outfit is well-known for simple hockey and will surely find themselves in the postseason. Prediction: Top 16 Central Hockey Canucks: The Canucks are also one of the teams that experienced big changes within their roster. Once again the former "Niederrhein Canucks" managed to retrieve many familiar faces! Daniel @Daniel Thenextone Reinhardt, Dominik @xDurchf4ll_- Mosser, Much @Much1979 Ramu, Jamie @Da1m0n Fischer and Dean @daen Zimmermann are all back at their former domain. On top of that the squad is reinforced by Michael @devilfish333 Herold and Peter @Peter Zelko (Zelkovci) Zelko between the pipes! For the Canucks it will be about building chemistry and finding their rhythm. @HerzogMagnus and @Baby Thornton (xxICEFORCERxx) can play decisive roles in the attack of the team. Qualifying for the playoffs has to be priority number one! Prediction: Top 16 Gleumes Hockey Krefeld: Surely one of the teams that took one of the biggest steps in the GCL. Gleumes Hockey Krefeld is slowly but steadily taking the steps in the right direction and improving the squad on every position on the virtual ice. The team profits from continuity and a calm environment within the roster. Captain Manuel @ManU287 Engels brought Patrick @Pathen-21- Hendrix and Oliver @Red09Dragon08 Knapp to Krefeld who already proved themselves in the playoffs of GCL Division 1 aswell as in ECL Pro and Lite! We expect to see Gleumes in the playoffs. Where will their journey end? Prediction: Top 16 Thunder United: After missing the last ECL '22 Spring season, the Thunder is back for GCL action. A very well-balanced team that has the potential to grab a good seed in the regular season which could pave their way to a succesful playoff run? Sandro @SanDeRolino Ryman brought familiar faces back together such as Jan @Janstetze Stetze and Kevin @Gregson91 Householder. On top of that Thunder United added a bit of Elite experience in Jim @SadaPoika Leskinen and Juhani @Tanski87 Tanskanen (both Falun Coal Miners) to give them the edge in tight matchups. Especially in group 3 many outcomes are possible. Where will Thunder United see themselves after the season? Prediction: Top 16 Deggendorfer SC Esports: Much alike Thunder United, the Esports Team from Deggendorf missed out on the last ECL '22 Spring to reset for GCL8. After winning the Divison 2 title of last years GCL7, the Bavarians are keen on proving themselves among the best teams from Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Since most of the squad knows each other on and off the virtual ice we can expect a great team spirit within DSC Esports. Player to watch: Johannes @Johannes.Helmbrecht Helmbrecht. The talented defender made it to the finals of the eDEL (German 1v1 Championship) and determines the pace of Deggendorfs game. Prediction: Top 32 Eisbären Lauf Gaming: Talking about teams from Bavaria: The ECL Core outfit of Eisbären Lauf is also one of the most improved teams in the community. After falling short in the second round of the ECL playoffs, Max @theburner18 Spachmüller and Thomas @newman_2909 Neumann added Marko @Nr-0847 Reza to give their team a bit more defensive calmness and experience. To decide tight matchups veteran Stefan @Toews19(BarriosLucas18) Schoierer and @Linkku60 should always be able to make the difference - especially against teams on the same level as the polar bears! Playoffs are more than feasible. Prediction: Top 32 Nürnberg Ice Tigers eSports: The official Esports squad for the DEL Club from Nuremberg could prove themselves as a stumbling block for many perceived top teams of the league. Luca @cpt_dirtyDangler Knoll and Eric @AveRxDallas Polk proved themselves among the best German 1v1 players in the eDEL and steadily improved during the last ECL seasons. 1v1 eSpengler Cup 2021 champion Kevin @Kevinator-373 Würterle joined from Team NGU and is able to accompany the Ice Tigers to the next level. Prediction: Top 32 With that, we're now ready to get the action started! Perhaps some of these teams will prove us wrong as the season progresses, and we're happy to watch that unfold! Play hard, and have fun!

NHLGamers, More than two months ago we started into the 12th iteration of the European Championship League. 31 teams competed in ECL Pro to fight for their spot in the playoffs, prevent relegation or gaining promotion into the European Top 16 in Elite. We saw tight matchups, beautiful goals as well as many surprises on our way to the finals of ECL 12 Pro. It is fair to say that two of the most dominant teams of the second half of the regular season and playoffs have paved their way to the finals. 5th seed Djurgarden Hockey will battle 12th seed Team LEISURE on Tuesday and Wednesday to determine who will hoist the cup in the Pro division this season. (5) Djurgarden Hockey - Team LEISURE (12) The Swedish Djurgarden Hockey and German Team LEISURE will combine to host the ECL 12 Pro finals - only one team will gain direct promotion, whereas the other is in for a hard fought battle against KOVA Esports in the upcoming relegation battle. First, however, we'll focus on the finals ahead! Over the past couple of seasons, Stockholm's pride Djurgarden have solidified their position as a true contender in the Pro division, but after a disappointing end to their ECL 11 campaign, they are surely determined to cap this one off a bit better. Captain @Jungledonk has surrounded himself with a tight knit group of players that are equally passionate about developing the team game, and it shows - the Swedes have plowed through opposition with relative ease throughout the season in it's entirety so far, with only Team LEISURE remaining in their way. Djurgarden's strength is their team play and adaptability, which will definitely come in handy in this series, but at times the group can end up on scoring dry spells. That is when goaltender @Sorsa103 bails them out with stellar play. In fact, Sorsa is WAY ahead of the competition statistically with a whopping 89,87 SV% to go with an equally great 1.07 GAA - keep an eye on this guy! @Strumpan87 is their leading scorer, but by no means do they solely ride on his success. While some guys will be hotter than others from time to time, Djurgarden is the definition of a squad with a team first-mentality. Road to finals: Regular Season: 3rd in Group 1 (18-7-5) Playoffs Round 1: 4-0 vs. Hotbox Quarterfinals: 4-2 vs. Kiekko-Espoo Esports Semifinals: 4-1 vs. BoxinElite Playoffs Top scorer: @Strumpan8715GP: 13G + 18A = 31P Team LEISURE is, as stated before, on a mission to regain their position as the strongest German team in the league. That means getting back their spot in the Elite division first and foremost. After a somewhat underwhelming regular season, this team has showed that their style of play is truly suitable for postseason battles and it is their suffocating defense and quick turnover attack that they most likely will live and die by in the end. After all, it is something that they do exceptionally well, an art they've perfected if you will. Especially if you take a look at the matchup of both teams during the regular season with Djurgarden Hockey getting the edge over Team LEISURE by gaining 3 out of 4 possible Points (4-1 Djurgarden & 3-4OT Team LEISURE) we can expect a very tight series. Since the Germans started to find their rhythm in the second half of the season with @Flo_goes_grazy(flgr93) becoming the starter on the left wing and @PlaymakerSJbeing the experienced and world class center the team needed for a long playoff run to return to ECL Elite. Team LEISUREs defense is what made the team go all the way to this seasons final. In their last two playoff rounds against Conquer Gaming (4-0) and HV71 (4-1) the German outfit only conceded 5 goals in 9 games, with @RPH_31 securing four shutouts and recording a whopping 1.5 GAA in this postseason. Just as mentioned in the first Playoffs preview: Offense wins games but defense wins championships. Road to finals: Regular Season: 7th in Group 1 (16-11-3) Playoffs Round 1: 4-3 vs. Sulkavan Sudet Quarterfinals: 4-0 vs. Conquer Gaming Semifinals: 4-1 vs. HV71 Playoffs Top scorer: @PlaymakerSJ 16GP: 14G + 20A = 34P @Keuschemisch's prediction: 4-2 Team LEISURE @Mikka's prediction: 4-2 Team LEISURE Tune in for the finals on Tuesday and Wednesday as broadcasts will be live at www.twitch.tv/NHLGamer!

NHLGamers, The quarterfinals of the playoffs are now behind and we know the semifinalists of ECL 12 Pro. The best four teams of the season have now already secured a chance to play for an Elite spot next season but the Pro title and instant promotion is what the four remaining teams are aiming for. We have seen tight matchups and big surprises. Team LEISURE managed to sweep Conquer Gaming - the best team of the regular season – in breathtaking fashion. HV71 and Blackdawgs fought until the end with the Swedish side getting the edge over the Russians in game 7. BoxinElite overcoming VISU Gaming by winning four straight after losing the series opening game and securing their spot among the top 4 of the league in their rookie season as well as Djurgarden Hockey taking the next step and beating the Finnish outfit from Kiekko-Espoo Esports in six games. In the following we will take a closer look at the two remaining matchups. Who will pave their way to the finals? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each team? We will know better in a few days! (2) HV71 - Team LEISURE (12) After playing against Inter Iceland in round 1, HV71 is now facing a German team for the second time in this playoffs already. The Swedish outfit around captain @Demski13 managed to beat Inter Iceland in six games and secure their place among the top 8 in the league. The esports team from Jönköping had a tough time in the quarterfinals against Blackdawgs. After being down 2-1 after the first evening in the series and losing game 3 in astonishing fashion with 0-6, the blue and yellow outfit seem to have drawn the right conclusions and fought back on the second evening of the series. By winning 3 games and securing a 7-1 victory in the deciding game 7, HV71 put an exclamation mark on claiming their spot among the top 4 in ECL Pro. On the other side we find Team LEISURE. The German juggernauts might have found their form after the first half of the regular season only losing four games since including the playoffs. Being seeded at spot #7 the Germans were not able to secure home ice advantage which looks to suit them quite well. LEISURE did not lose a single game on the away server during their playoff run. Being able to beat Sulkavan Sudet in 7 games in round 1 the GCL record champion approached their biggest challenge so far in facing the #1 spot Conquer Gaming. The squad around captain @Franky__2768 looked as strong as never before and beating the former Finnish Elite outfit in crushing fashion. Team LEISURE secured their spot in the final four with a 4-0 sweep being able to shut down the strongest offense of the league three times and only conceding one goal in the whole series. Are the Germans on their way back to Elite? While HV71's offense is improving during their playoff run and looking very strong around their trio of @Demski13, @Rubituss and @Zupancic_King424 (Zuppe_29), Team LEISURE will be a very tough nut to crack defensively. Captain Franky__2768 and @xXPsykoSkillsXx found themselves as the top two scoring D-men in the regular season but seem to given up their scoring abilities to their forwards and focus on shutting down the opponents offense. @RPH_31 already secured three shutouts, which are the most in the playoffs of ECL 12 Pro so far. Both teams have found their qualities on both ends of the ice and always managed to find the right solutions to overcome their opponents in the playoffs. Especially the center matchup will be a decisive factor in this semifinal. Both players are top scorers of their teams and are extremely strong at the faceoff dot. @PlaymakerSJ contributed with 26 points (11G+15A) in 11 games to his teams success while also managing to win over 55% of his faceoffs giving his team the slight edge in tight games. Demski scored 25 points in 13 games and was always able to decide a matchup with contributing three game winning goals in their current run. Both teams are looking very strong which could make the series go either way. While HV71 played on a good and solid level for the whole season, the ex-Elite team of the former Deadly Phantoms HC found their form quite late in this years ECL. The winger duo of @ProfaneKiss and @Flo_goes_grazy (flgr93), who is playing his rookie season on Pro level, seem to harmonize even better with each game. After losing in the Elite relegation 4-2 against Tunnel Vision, LEISURE’s goal was clear: Instant promotion back to Europes Top 16. But will they be able to break down HV71 defense around @Terasniska, @Putteekiing and @Tiipponenii (Coffelainen)? The Swedish squad often enough proved this season that they took the next step in their development and are one of toughest teams to beat in ECL Pro. Since Team LEISURE already has the experience of four seasons on Elite level, as well as winning the Pro title back in ECL 7, the Germans could have the edge over their North European competitor. The away game disadvantage seems not to have any impact on their gameplan which makes it hard for any team in the league to beat Team LEISURE in their current form. @Keuschemisch's prediction: 2-4 Team LEISURE @Mikka's prediction: 1-4 Team LEISURE (4) BoxinElite - Djurgarden Hockey (5) Written by @Mikka If they struggled a bit surprisingly in the first round, the quarterfinals saw BoxinElite most definitely get back where they left off in the regular season. The high-flying Pro rookies took down VISU Gaming a lot easier than anticipated, only losing the opening game before winning the next four in a row. Getting their revenge on their playoff foes from last season is sure to give the Finns a nice boost when they look to take on the next challenge. The quarterfinals were not as easy for Djurgarden Hockey as they cleanly swept first round. That was expected though, and while they have had tight results for the whole season they have still ended up on top most of the time. Once again they did just that, narrowly avoiding a game seven by getting it done in six. The matchup went just about as expected as the Swedes continue onwards with their solid team play and routine, backstopped by amazing stats from netminder @Sorsa103 (10 GP, 88.78%, 1.1 GAA, 2 SO). As already stated, Djurgarden Hockey’s games have been quite tight. “How tight?”, one might ask. Well, their only loss with more than a one goal margin came with a 0-2 result. BoxinElite on the other hand have lost with a two plus goal margin six times out of the 13 in which they have fallen. Both teams have already secured a chance to play for an Elite spot, but avoiding that best of seven series altogether by grabbing the Pro title is at the top of their minds as they still have plenty of games left to play. BoxinElite has a relatively unproven squad, but @Prom99 and @Mehiiss have already been at this stage a few years ago with White Trash (now known as KOVA Esports). Although they lost to FILADELPHIA in the semifinals back then, they still managed to get promoted ahead of ECL 7. That experience is going to come in handy as they prepare to face off against a team that does not have any players with the same background. While BoxinElite might be the more offensive one of the teams, their defense has not had a bad performance either. Will it be Djurgarden who makes the series a small margins one, or will the Finns’ offensive prowess prevail? It will be interesting to see who manages to turn the results their way and pave their road to the final. Seeing how the teams’ playing styles match up and how well gelled the Swedes are, it seems like BoxinElite will have to overcome the predicted results just like they did in the last round. It is close though, so once again do not be surprised no matter whose way this goes. As we saw in the quarterfinal series between Conquer Gaming and Team LEISURE, even a presumed seven game series can end in a sweep. @Mikka's prediction: 3-4 Djurgarden Hockey @Keuschemisch's prediction: 2-4 Djurgarden Hockey

NHLGamers, The regular season of ECL 12 Pro is finished and now crunch time begins! The race for the playoff spots and battles in the relegation zone were as tight as ever before. We have seen some surprises as well as favorites defending the top spots in their groups. In the following preview we want to take a closer look at the upcoming eight matchups in the first round. It is extremely hard to predict which teams will advance but we will give you our best try. We also appreciate your opinion: Which of these 16 teams will be able to pave their way into ECL Elite? Be sure to post your predictions in the comment section! (1) HV71 – Inter Iceland (8) With an important 4-2 victory over Rookie Mistakes on the last gameday, German side Inter Iceland managed to secure the last playoff spot in Group 2. The squad around goalie @PLA77NER(Hasek-39--) was not able to repeat their stunning regular season from ECL 11 Pro where they managed to secure a strong rank 2 behind Tunnel Vision but found an early exit in playoff round 1 against RCTIC (2-4). Forward @Stefan_397 once again leads the team in terms of scoring and will be one of their most decisive factors during this budding playoff run. On the flipside we find the Swedish side of HV71 who won Group 1 with a strong record of 22-8-0. The club from Jönköping manages to qualify for their first postseason on Pro level and will be one of the top contenders if they are able to continue their form. One of the best offenses combined with the third best defense in the whole league will be a tough nut to crack. While HV71 was the only team in the whole league to not lose a single match in overtime, Inter Iceland fell short four times. Keeping their calmness and staying cool in the right moments will be one of the most decisive factors in a tight series. Both goalies can play an important role. While Hasek-39-- is surely one of the most experienced goalies in the community, @Tiipponenii(coffelainen) finds himself among the top goalies in ECL 12 Pro and records 8 shutouts - the most of any goalie during the regular season. The offense around captain @Demski13has found the right balance between playmaking and goal scoring abilities. While Elite experienced @Rubituss finds himself on rank 3 with 64 points, while his winger partner @Zupancic_King424 (Zuppe_29) contributed with 24 goals for his team. It is worth mentioning that 11 out of his 24 goals were GWGs! While HV71's dominant playing style could suit Inter Iceland’s dangerous counter attacks it will be hard to beat the squad in blue and yellow. @Keuschemisch’s prediction: HV71 4-2 @Mikka's prediction: HV71 4-0 (2) BoxinElite – SPARTIATES X MCES (7) The promoted squad from BoxinElite managed to play a stunning regular season and finished on a more than convincing rank 2. They only fell one point short to group winners HV71 due to losing one game in OT against Sinister. Team captain @xleksa35leads by example. Being one of the top scorers in ECL 11 Lite the, right winger showed his individual class once again - 68 points in 30 games makes him the second best scorer in the league. SPARTIATES X MCES had a tough start to the season. With only two wins out of their first 13 games the French side was surely not paving their way to a possible playoff appearance but had an amazing second half of the season. Winning 13 out of their last 15 games secured them rank 7 and their first postseason in their first season at the Pro level. The French are the third team from the central server to qualify for the playoffs beside Team LEISURE and Inter Iceland from Germany. The Finnish BoxinElite is in clear favour of winning this series. Having one of the strongest offenses as well as a solid defense the stage is set for a long playoff run. While special teams could always make a difference – especially in a tight playoff series – both teams are lacking in efficiency while being on the powerplay. BoxinElite had the best penalty kill in their group (94,44%) and will be very hard to break down even while being one man short. It will be interesting to see if SPARTIATES X MCES are able to maintain their strong form and continue their five game winning streak. The winger duo of @Winciand @Adri1_SCP needs to produce and convert any chance given into a goal. High efficiency will be the most important factor. Will the French side be able to perform in the underdog role? @Keuschemisch’s prediction: BoxinElite 4-1 @Mikka's prediction: BoxinElite 4-1 (3) Djurgarden Hockey – Hotbox (6) The team from Sweden's capital found themselves among the top teams of Group 1 for the whole season. With a record of 18-7-5 Djurgarden Hockey secured rank 3 and home ice advantage in the first round. The Swedish side added @Strumpan87 from SSK Esports to their roster who immediately became their top scorer and contributed with 57 points in 30 games. While Danish Winger @Birkedal96 left the team after 6 games to ZSC Esports in ECL Elite, @amadee21 started every game on the right wing and found himself on a strong scoring streak. Lower seeded Hotbox started with a 5 game losing streak into this ECL 12 campaign. After getting acclimated to the Pro level, the Finnish squad started to collect their first points and especially being superior in winning tight matches by only one goal. Captain @Frans-Fin, who played every game in the regular season is also the teams best scorer with 44 points in 28 games followed by his winger colleague @James(Jamechkin) who contributed 35 points to the teams success. While Hotbox records the league's best powerplay with 34,21%, Djurgarden Hockey records the league's best defense by only conceding 45 goals in 30 games. Like in every series, special teams may be a decisive reason to win or lose games. It will be interesting to see if the Swedish side manages to stay away from the penalty box or if Hotbox will be able to break down Djurgardens solid defense. While the Finnish outfit of Hotbox is quite new to ECL Pro playoffs territory, the Swedish squad is well experienced on that ground. Finishing on rank 2 last season and beating Blackdawgs (4-2) in round 1 but falling short to later promoted ZSC Esports (0-4) the squad around captain @Jungledonk will be keen on taking the next step. Right according to the mantra: Offense wins games but defense wins championships? @Keuschemisch’s prediction: Djurgarden Hockey 4-1 @Mikka's prediction: Djurgarden Hockey 4-2 (4) Kiekko-Espoo Esports – Dynastia (5) Will it be one of the tightest series in this year's first round? Kiekko-Espoo Esports find themselves on rank 4 while recording 18 wins and being one point ahead of VISU Gaming. After falling short of a playoff qualification in ECL 11 by only 2 points, the Finnish outfit around captain @Hazard-laser is set to take the next step in the postseason. After bringing in @Frilander to strengthen the defensive force beside @Raikkoneeh, Kiekko-Espoo seemed to have found their starting six that we can also expect to play in this series. Dynastia fought their way through the Pro Qualification tournament right into their first postseason appearance on Pro level. Right from the start, Dynastia was able to collect points. The only team the freshly promoted side was not able to get points from was Hotbox who eventually finished one rank behind them in their group. Captain @Majuri20 (Diktaattori62) and winger @Vilze (Vilze92) are leading their team in points. Strong performances will be needed to beat Kiekko-Espoo in the first round. With 64 goals in 30 games, Kiekko-Espoo is the weakest offensive team of the top 8 in Group 1. On the other hand they record a strong defense by conceding only 1,93 goals per game. With their starting goalie @jg697000(Gresu__) reportedly being absent in the first round it will be interesting to see if backup @sMiika will be able to follow in his footsteps and carry the team to the second round. While Dynastia is one of three teams who managed to secure a spot for the playoffs with a negative goal difference it will be exciting to see how the offensive and defensive abilities of both teams will develop in this series. If Kiekko-Espoo maintains their calmness, they should be able to make use of their efficiency. @Timez(Timoccio), @Mikka and Hazard-laser played all 30 regular season games and scored many powerplay goals which could give them the edge over Dynastia. @Keuschemisch’s prediction: 4-2 Kiekko-Espoo Esports @Mikka's prediction: Mikka plays for Kiekko-Espoo Esports and stays neutral (1) Conquer Gaming - Bjorkloven Esport (8) Bjorkloven ended up staying above the playoff line after some walkover drama made sure to keep Sinister below them, but it does not in any way mean that they would not be worthy of playoff hockey. That being said though, the tight knit Conquer Gaming is the strong favorite here after steadily plowing through a Group 2 where it felt like almost every single team got into either losing or winning streaks of eight plus games. A testament to their consistency, Conquer had the best goal differential in the whole Pro division by a wide margin: a whopping +49 compared to the next-best +34 of Sulkavan Sudet and Djurgarden Hockey. Their leading offensive force centerman @Jertsicc was on fire too, finishing with a division leading 26+46=72 points in 28 games. At the other end, netminder @Jeresti (28 GP, 82.94%, 1.54 GAA, 2 SO) finished with the best save percentage amongst goalies who played the majority of games. While Conquer ended up as the second best in both most goals scored and the fewest conceded, Bjorkloven did not really shine in any stat category. Bjorkloven’s roster also had more variation, with seven skaters seeing playing time and only @Janzuh and @vVoDee featuring in every game, meanwhile Conquer played the whole regular season with the same starting six. Conquer should be able to keep their train back to Elite steadily on the tracks, but the ECL 11 Lite champions could cause the well oiled machine some problems by starting on the right foot from the get go, with the help of their high level names like @EDHOLMINHO and Janzuh stepping up and carrying them through. Out of all playoff teams they were the most penalized one in the regular season, so they will need to stay out of the box too if they want to have a chance to cause an upset. @Mikka's prediction: Conquer Gaming 4-1 @Keuschemisch’s prediction: Conquer Gaming 4-0 (2) Sulkavan Sudet - Team LEISURE (7) Another tight-knit former Elite roster, Team LEISURE have not had an amazing fairytale campaign back to the top this far this season. They struggled in the beginning to find their footing in the tighter Group 1, falling to a nine game losing streak after winning their three first, but have seemed to finally find it with 10 wins in their last 12, many of them with wide margins. Compared to the German outfit’s lackluster start resulting in them barely making the playoffs, Sulkavan Sudet on the other hand have been a positive surprise by managing to snatch the #2 seed from Group 2. The division’s top scoring squad (98 goals for) ended their regular season on a high note too, with winning streaks of four and eight games in their last 14. Their last opponents consisted of mainly the group’s bottom teams though, meanwhile Team LEISURE’s schedule had a bit of a wider mix of both bottom and playoff bubble opponents. This could be one of the more interesting matchups in the first round, with Sulkavan Sudet always having been an offensive minded, strong counter attacking squad that now are facing the highly experienced Team LEISURE, who have traditionally been known for their strong defense and team play. That is not to say that they cannot score though, as they ended up scoring the second most goals in Group 1, with their tally of 88 falling just one shy of the well known offensive dynamo BoxinElite’s 89. They got a lot of help on that front from their back end, with @Franky__2768 (6+28=34) and @xXPsykoSkillsXx (5+29=34) finishing as the number one and two in points among all defensemen in the division. Now that the Germans seem to have finally found their stride, I do not see many reasons why they would not be able to upset the much higher seeded Sudet. LEISURE’s playing style seems like it will match well against them as long as they keep an eye out for the Finns’ counter attacks. They have only made a six-game playoff appearance during their two prior Pro seasons, meanwhile Team LEISURE has always been a playoff performer and got some more experience from tighter games in the lower scoring Group 1. Even though Sulkavan Sudet racked up the most goals in Pro, they also let in a lot and that is why in my eyes Team Leisure have the advantage despite their low seed. @Mikka's prediction: 1-4 Team LEISURE @Keuschemisch’s prediction: 1-4 Team LEISURE (3) Patience - Blackdawgs (6) At around the midseason mark, Patience had some kind of internal falling out with their clear starter and only listed goalie, @PCJP(Pelkoneen), and he has not played a game for them since. After that the post between the pipes has been shared by ECL rookie @SirRaittinen and ECL 1 original @Miska (Zundeh), who has a few seasons worth of games under his belt at that position. The former seems to have been performing better though and looks slated to be the starting netminder come playoff time, with the latter most likely taking the center spot and @Karkkyjaa moving to SirRaittinen’s prior LW spot. Patience’s results have taken a bit of a dip after the goaltending change, but we will see if the uncertainty is now behind as they get ready to take on Blackdawgs. As expected prior to the season, the mostly Russian outfit was led by the clear internal top scorer @Valluxet with 27+26=53, 15 more points than their next best @Tiltsson. Other than that, they did not cause major feelings in any way, ending up with streaky results both ways. Every time they lost a game after a win, they also lost at least the next one. As in, all of their losses were part of at least a two game losing streak. The same kind of trend can be observed with their wins too, with only one of them being neither followed or preceded by another one. Expect this series to be a tight battle that can be won by either team that ends up having the hot streak during next week. Can Patience smother the guy on whose shoulders the Blackdawgs' offense lies on, or can Valluxet execute his scoring prowess and take advantage of the opponent’s goaltender situation? @Mikka's prediction: Patience 4-3 @Keuschemisch’s prediction: Blackdawgs 3-4 (4) Pata Hellalla - VISU Gaming (5) Last but definitely not least, Pata Hellalla and VISU Gaming are going to be facing off against each other. VISU looked very strong to start the season with only two losses in their first 16 games, but then something happened and what at the time looked like an easy ride to the top seed changed to a nine game losing streak. They managed to somewhat gather their form back when it started to look like they could even fall out of the playoffs, dropping only three points in their last five with a record of 3-1-1. In their second last regular season game, the former ECL 11 Lite runner ups got a huge confidence boost from a 6-2 win over BoxinElite that also kept the fellow Pro rookies from overtaking HV71 as the Group 1 number one seed. Similarly to VISU Gaming, Pata Hellalla had a very strong start too with 11 wins in a row, and after a one goal loss to Inter Iceland they once again got three wins in a row. After that though, in the remaining 13 games they only managed to gain a total of three wins, two of which in overtime, and one overtime loss along with seven of them in regulation, on top of the two walkover losses handed to them against Patience over their last matchup. This series is a battle of two teams with plenty of experienced players, which is once again going to be decided through who has the best form coming into the matchup. Although both outfits started out looking like their respective groups’ number one squads, VISU seems to have the slightly better form right now, giving them the edge over Pata Hellalla. Even then, this series is a toss up and could really go either way so do not be surprised about how it ends, unless it is a clear 4-0 sweep for either one. @Mikka's prediction: 3-4 VISU Gaming @Keuschemisch’s prediction: 2-4 VISU Gaming