Keuschemisch

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

The first half of the regular season in ECL 12 Pro is done and with that it is a good time to take a closer look at what happened in the first weeks of virtual hockey action. Which teams are performing well? Which players are making the difference and who are the new kids on the block? Only a few points will make the difference and things begin to heat up in the race for the playoffs as well as in the battle of escaping relegation. We can look forward to an exciting race to the finish line in the 12th season of the second highest tier in the European Championship League. Written by @Keuschemisch Djurgarden Hockey and VISU Gaming are leading Group 1 with 31 points each while the freshly promoted group of former Exerceo still has two games in hand on the yellow, red and blue. The Swedish side built around captain @Jungledonk seem keen on repeating their strong performances from last season when they finished at a solid rank 2 behind the eventual Pro-finalists GOONS in the group stage. With 47 points in 22 games, @Strumpan87 is Group 1's top scorer and underlines the offensive standards of Djurgarden. Goalie @Sorsa103 already has 5 shutouts and is performing on a high level to strengthen their defense. VISU Gaming's @Sagee95 is on his way to become one of this seasons most dangerous forwards and already contributed to 21 goals and 23 assists to help his team gain a good spot in the playoffs. Especially his performance in the 7-2 win over RCTIC, where he scored 7 points, stresses his offensive abilities. Both teams look very strong and on the road to home ice advantage in the postseason if they are able to continue in their winning ways. With only 16 games played so far, BoxinElite is one of the special teams to keep an eye out for in the second half of the regular season. Scoring more than 3 goals per game and and rocking an outstanding record of 12-4-0, the Finnish side is trying to gain one of the top spots in group 1. If they manage to set up yet another winning streak and maintain their focus, BoxinElite can surely secure home ice advantage in the playoffs. Right behind we find yet another two Swedish squads: HV71 and ECL 11 Lite Champions Bjorkloven Esport are on their way to playoff qualification. Led by their captain @Demski13, the esports team of the 5-time SHL champion HV71 has seemed to take their next step in their development after missing the playoffs by only three points in ECL 11. Bjorkloven's captain @Kallmanius made the right decisions and brought in @rakkauspakkaus- from Ringette HC as well as ECL Season 1 veteran @Janzuh. After starting their Pro campaign with 8 wins in their first 10 games, Bjorkloven Esport immediately made an impact in the league and showed that they can compete on that higher level. Both Swedish squads need to continue gaining as much points as possible, especially with Kiekko-Espoo Esports and Blackdawgs breathing down their necks. The Finnish and Russian warhorses started rather well and are on a decent run with room to improve still. Blackdawgs' @Valluxet is performing at a high level once again, contributing with 20 goals and 15 assists and is one of the main reasons for the success of his team. It will be interesting to see which sides are able to repeat their strong first half in ECL 12 Pro and manage to gain a spot in the playoffs. In the middle of the pack we find Sinister, Hawaii Hockey, Golden Nights and Rögle BK. All four teams are quite new to the league after managing to gain promotion following ECL 11 Lite or find their way in through the Pro Qualifiers. While Sinister and Hawaii Hockey both started with a negative record, they seem to have acclimated themselves to the Pro level and were able to start winning streaks and find themselves in a tight battle for a playoff spot as we speak. @Kumbik was one of Bjorkloven's top scorers last season before changing colors and joining Hawaii Hockey in the Pro Wildcard Battle. The Czech forward and his center @theMaddias crucial pieces in the offense of their team and are surely some of the most exciting players to watch on the last stretch of the regular season. Will they be able to lead Hawaii Hockey into the postseason? A bit surprisingly, we find Herlev Eagles in 10th place in the standings of group 1. The Eagles who finished on a solid third place last season have failed to live up to their expectations. Especially with Danish superstar @vibholm10, who found himself among the leagues top scorers the past few seasons. Starting with five losses in a row, Herlev is still lacking in offensive efficiency. In the last eight games the team around captain @oSandello needs to turn course in order to keep their dream of making the playoffs alive. At the bottom of the table we find freshly promoted Russian team Nearbird Fighters, who have only managed to win two out of 16 games so far. Just ahead of them, Finnish outfit RCTIC find themselves in 15th place and are currently suffering from a six game losing streak against Rogle BK, Herlev Eagles and VISU Gaming respectively. @Janikka's Finnish Roosters continue to lag behind compared to last seasons performances also. After a negative start, the Roosters got back on track with five wins in their last six games. A qualification for the playoffs seems to be very unlikely but after splitting points with the very strong HV71 and Bjorkloven Esport, the Finnish side can be optimistic to avoid relegation if they continue to play like their most recent games. Another surprising face in the bottom of group 1 is the 5-time GCL Champion Team LEISURE. After getting beaten by Tunnel Vision in six games in the Elite relegation, the former Deadly Phantoms HC were keen on proving themselves and paving their way back into Elite, but after starting with three wins including two shutouts on the first matchday, LEISURE's ambitions turned around. Nine losses in a row followed by three matchdays with split points are not what they want to see in terms of results. Defender @xXPsykoSkillsXx finds himself among the best defensemen of the league while the offense is lacking in efficiency - LEISURE needs to find a way to decide tight matchups in their favour to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Germans have 12 matchdays left to prove everyone wrong and find themselves a spot in the Top 8 of group 1! Written by @Mikka In the second group, Conquer Gaming seems to have separated themselves from the rest of the pack by only losing once in regulation and once in overtime, backed by a strong start from their goalie @Jeresti and the entire division’s leading scorer, centerman @Jertsicc. Pata Hellalla has also been able to immediately reach a high level, fueled by their top scoring defensemen @kungenkurwa and @JOHTAJAVIRTANEN alongside the last minute addition of current internal top scorer @apettaja. There are two teams at the middle of the table that have not broken from their tradition of relying strongly on their captains: Inter Iceland and Sulkavan Sudet, led by @PLA77NER (Hasek-39--) and @Oxdoggi respectively. Their squads have been up and down, struggling to get into consistent winning streaks but on the other hand have also avoided losing too many times in a row. A bit below them the two Swedish teams with more or less Finnish reinforcements, Sjukstugan and Lekstugan HC, have fallen to gruelling losing streaks after starting out okay. They need to quickly gain their focus back and start turning the streaks into positive ones, or else they will have to battle to retain their divisional spots instead of eyeing for the last potential playoff spots. At the bottom end of the standings we find SPARTIATES X MCES in a somewhat similar, yet more challenging situation as the aforementioned teams ending in -stugan. The French outfit have seemed to have some trouble adjusting to the Pro level of play, only winning two of the first 13 games. Could they now be on the up though, having won their last three against top teams Pata Hellalla and Rookie Mistakes? The later mentioned squad has not had as strong of a start as maybe expected, but led by captain @Niskalaukaus and his assistant @xColeslaww (Koleslaav_) they have still managed to claw their way to pose a challenge at the top. Along with SPARTIATES X MCES towards the bottom is another team with a freshly signed esports contract, METALLURG MAGNITOGORSK. After winning four of their first seven games, the Russians have had losing streaks of five and four, with only a win in between. Any playoff hopes are probably over for the French and the Russians, leaving them to fight for their lives to at a minimum avoid instant relegation and even the qualifiers if all goes well. Company of Geeks had quite a decent beginning but have only won one of their last nine, with only the two most recent losses coming in overtime. The young rookie @xLeikku has taken his first strides on the ECL ice quite effectively, leading the team and at one point the whole division in scoring alongside with his captain @Jesus (eJezuz). The story of the German organization PENTA has been different, starting the season with an eight game losing streak before they began to pick up steam. Despite the tough adjustment period at the new level, their current form has them right at the brink of a playoff spot with Dynastia trailing them closely behind. The Finns started the season playing a lot of games with up and down results, ending up with a 8-7-1 record after the first seven days. As they have continued on a similar path since, captain @Majuri20 (Diktaattori62) definitely needs to lead his team towards more consistent results if they want to solidify their spot in the playoffs. They have had some trouble scoring relative to the rest of the group, so that should be a big area of focus for the remainder of the season. Despite never being a team expected to be seen in the relegation battle, the quite recently formed Patience has still managed to exceed expectations by mounting a challenge at the top of the table. Contrary to the best inexperienced newcomer teams we have grown accustomed to seeing in seasons past, it has not come with crazy offensive fireworks, but instead with the second fewest goals against per game in the group after Conquer Gaming. Their most experienced skater and former ECL 3 champion @Karkkyjaa has proved valuable, leading them in a fight for a top seed with an A on his chest. If Patience has been overachieving relative to pre-season expectations, bottom of the pack Sack Brothers have done exactly the opposite of that. Heading into their sophomore campaign after a first round exit last season, they looked like one of the group's better teams on paper with some added strength on the back end. That wasn’t necessarily reflected in their on-ice performance, with them only managing to cough up three points in the first 10 games alongside a couple of big margin losses. Perhaps they have finally started to gel together after the roster changes and are now back on their way up though, with four wins in their last six games. Finally, there is the squad that managed to upset team after team as a lower seed in the ECL 11 Lite Playoffs: Hotbox. Their rookie season in Pro began as anticipated in the season preview, with only three points amassed in the first eight games. After the rough start their lord and saviour emerged though, in the form of forward @James (Jamechkin), who joined them from Lite’s Reality Check HC after his qualifier related roster lock ended. Before the season got underway it looked like he was slated to be acquired as a defenseman by Rookie Mistakes, but fortunately for Hotbox that did not end up happening. Things have seemed to click for Hotbox and Jamechkin from the get go, with the Finns going on an eight game winning streak as soon as the move happened and only dropping three points overall during that period. If they can keep on going with the same flow, Hotbox now looks like a lock for the playoffs. Some of the pre-season predictions have been accurate and others have not, meanwhile some have been in the correct range but still not quite. That is the nature of the game though, and we will excitedly await to see how the rest of the season shapes up. Still a lot of points left up for grabs as the ECL 12 Pro regular season is to end on June 23rd, so fight hard and have fun doing so - see you on the ice!

NHLGamers, Right before the start of the 12th iteration of the European Championship League, Swiss hockey club EHC Biel-Bienne signed the roster of former The Black Jacks! The 3-time Swiss champions from the bilingual city of Biel/Bienne are after ZSC Esports, HC Lugano, EHC Basel and SC Bern already the fifth professional club from Switzerland who enters the EA Sports NHL 6s scene. After being founded in 1939 and reaching their three titles in 1978, 1981 and 1983, EHCB had to gain promotion back to NLA (the Swiss top tier) in 2008. In their red and yellow, EHC Biel-Bienne is on their hunt for the playoffs – in real life as well as on the virtual ice! Team captain Bryan @CuteTerminator7 Bolliger looks optimistically to the future: "We want to represent the club in its best light and with that we also hope that other clubs from Switzerland will enter the esports scene. Maybe we will see even more teams from the NLA on NHLGamer? We want to develop as a team and improve our style of play. Making the Playoffs this ECL will be the next step as well as finishing as good as possible in the next German Championship League!" Captain CuteTerminator7, Oliver @Red09Dragon08 Knapp and Dean @Sm0kez13_Bachmann played together since GCL 6, where they managed to win the Division 2 Championship with the Redlight Jokers. After that season, former Zürich defenseman Mario @Cami_7 Camenzind rebranded the former The Black Jacks as a partner team of ZSC Esports and added the mentioned trio as well as goalie veteran Peter @wobfighter Stein and big EHCB supporter Kyle @KG12PK88 Grossen to the team. In their first ECL 11 campaign in Lite the team managed to secure a strong 6th place in Group 1 but eventually got swept by TTK in the first round of the playoffs. Before the start of GCL 7, Sebastian @Sebwies2139 Wieser joined the "Eidgenossen“ to complete the goalie duo and later on received the Rookie of the Season-trophy for his efforts. Kevin @Gregson91 Householder and Janick @Janick_97 (ovechkin97) Hauser also joined the club to strengthen their offensive force. The Black Jacks managed to gain promotion in the qualification tournament and underlined their ambition by making the playoffs on a solid 4th seed but eventually found an early exit against PENTA in Round 1. Before the start of ECL 12 Lite The Black Jacks started the cooperation with EHC Biel-Bienne and is currently in a tight battle for a spot in the playoffs in group 2! We welcome EHC Biel-Bienne eSports to NHLGamer and wish them good luck in their first season in red and yellow!

The young and aspiring esports organization IQUE from Tampere, Finland is expanding to succeed among Europes virtual hockey Elite. ECL 11 Pro Winner Enigma signs with IQUE who are already competing in other titles like DOTA2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and PUBG. The talented and succesful roster around team captain Janne @Nieppii Niemelä will take the next step to professionalize and establish themselves in ECL Elite in a new and fresh colorway. Does black and green suit as well as black and red already did? The euphoria certainly is huge. Just before the start of ECL 12 Elite on Monday, IQUE is joining the World of CHEL. After being one of the top contenders in ECL Pro for the last few seasons, Enigma managed to pave their way to Europes Top 16. Since losing in the Finals of ECL 10 to superior Black Horse, Enigma bounced back in big fashion in the 11th version of the European Championship League. Finishing on Rank 3 in Group 2, the squad around captain trio Nieppii , Aleksanteri @sannteri Niemi and Tapani @Tappu Anttila beat Växjo Lakers, Tunnel Vision and finally GOONS in seven games to gain promotion. IQUE's roster looks stronger than ever. With a good mix of experienced horsemen and young talented players, the Finns are keen on establishing their team on the highest level of European 6v6 hockey. Captain Nieppii has a clear vision in his mind: "Our goals in this organization are to prove ourselves as a team who belongs in ECL Elite and are also able to succeed on the highest level. We have a good mix of veterans and young talented faces. We need to adjust our game style to play against the best of the best. Of course we are aiming to go to the playoffs – but first things first, we have to establish IQUE and stay in the league“. After adding former YMCA Esports and Butterfly Effect Goalie Rami @ramseyy2 (Ramsiil) Rissanen, who brings experience of 24 Elite games to the roster, the team is set to compete against the big guns. Defenseman Markus @Makeaxl Lahti will build the defensive core together with Nico @zNico Tuoreniemi. Center Arttu @laitineen64 Laitinen completes IQUE's cadre and aims to continue his strong scoring streak from last season (29+26=55 in 24GP). We welcome IQUE to the NHL esports scene and wish them good luck in their starting ECL 12 Elite season!

NHLGamers, The waiting has finally come to an end and the Finals of the German Championship League will be played this week. While ZSC Esports swept PENTA in the semifinals, noRex Gaming challenged Team LEISURE to a six-game-series (4:2) in their respective matchup. LEISURE will try everything to realize their dream of the sixth championship in a row and beat the hottest team of the German community in the finals. Will ZSC be able to beat Team LEISURE after two comfortable sweeps in the quarter and semifinals? Is Team LEISURE hungry enough to secure yet another championship? In the following piece, we want to take a closer look at both teams and the matchups on each positions. The series will be played in a best-of-seven format and will be broadcasted live on Twitch.tv/NHLGamer! #1 ZSC Esports vs Team LEISURE #2 Throughout the history of the GCL, there has never been such a close Final. In ZSC Esports and Team LEISURE, it really comes down to the two best german-speaking teams facing each other. Who will be crowned champion on Thursday? In the Regular Season we saw two close games (3:1 W for Team LEISURE & 3:2 W for ZSC Esports). During their Playoff run, the Swiss team managed to sweep Hyperion and PENTA on their way to the final. Did ZSC draw the right conclusions from last years loss in the finals of GCL6? ZSC scored 29 and only conceded 11 goals in 8 games throughout this run so far. This once again illustrates the individual talent as well as the good chemistry in their roster. Team LEISURE also swept Inter Iceland in the quarterfinals and had to deliver a hard fight in a 4:2 series win over noRex Gaming. 35 goals scored versus 17 conceded show the offensive power of Team LEISURE and how they managed to continue their good form from the regular season. Will the Championship be decided on offense or will defense once again win the championship? Goalies: @afc_Tschitsch & @burban26 for ZSC Esports vs @RPH_31 & @FoxGoalie for Team LEISURE Reto @afc_Tschitsch Ulrich got on track right in time for the start of the playoffs. While his backup Mike @burban26 Müller is delivering as a brilliant commentator, the Swiss team found a clear job division in their netminding department. A strong save percentage of nearly 83% and three shutouts show the individual class that @afc_Tschitsch holds at his best. With 52 shots faced, ZSC's number 22 faces the least shots against throughout the league, which is an indication of ZSC's good defensive play. In the finals, Ulrich will have to show his best performance to make the championship reality for his club. LEISURE's forwards will challenge him more than he was in the semi- or quarterfinal series. On the side of the defending champions, we have a rock solid duo: Patrick @RPH_31 Braun aka "0 Ping RPH" played 8 games while Mark @FoxGoalie Thiel was in net for two games in the quarterfinals against Inter Iceland. Most likely, Braun will be starter in the Finals due to his strong performances so far this season. A GAA of 1.88 and a solid save percentage of 80% makes RPH31 once again one of the best Goalies in the league. Braun faced more shots than his counterpart for ZSC, which could be an advantage in a long series. Considering that Team LEISURE already faced two of Germany's top teams (Inter Iceland & noRex Gaming), the team will be in good form and hard to stop. With his experience and coolness, @RPH_31can be the decisive factor in this series. Predicition: Advantage Team LEISURE Defense: @Toneee9& @Haldeem for ZSC Esports vs @Franky__2768 & @xXPsykoSkillsXx for Team LEISURE What a Matchup! In the Finals of GCL 7 we will arguably see four of the best defenders of the German community. With Max @Toneee9 Tonitz and Reto @Haldeem Haldemann, ZSC Esports has one of the best defensive duos on the central server who are only playing their second season together. During their run in ECL 11 Pro the chemistry between the Austrian and Swiss defensemen improved a lot and was one of the main reasons for Zürichs promotion to ECL Elite. With 12 points in 8 games, Tonitz's amazing form continues and has the third most takeaways in the playoffs after Niklas @xXPsykoSkillsXx Schmitz and Christian @GERxVillain Ungeheuer (noRex Gaming). We will see how well the defensive pair will be able to outplay Team LEISUREs forecheck or find solutions to unlock a more defensive minded trap if required. Team LEISURE sports a well-functioning and experienced pair at their back end. Frank @Franky__2768 Münch and @xXPsykoSkillsXx have lead Team LEISURE's defense over the last six seasons and have assisted their teammates throughout this time in brilliant fashion. Especially @Franky__2768 seems to have found great form this season, overtaking his colelague Schmitz as the top scoring defenseman. With six goals and 14 assists, Münch scored the most goals out of any defenseman in the playoffs. On top of that he secures rank 3 overall in scoring in the playoffs too. Any mistake can be decisive in these matches. The experience and routine as well as Münch's brilliant form might be the decisive factor in a long final series! Predicition: Advantage Team LEISURE Offense: @IDangledYouOut, @Freeman7187, @Timasy & @Original-SnuS for ZSC Esports vs @Krinke, @ProfaneKiss & @PlaymakerSJ for Team LEISURE With the offensive power of both teams we are likely to see one of the best duels of the German community to date. While ZSC Esports played their quarter and semifinals series with an unusual lineup it will be interesting to see if captain Sven @Original-SnuS Julmi will return to the starting six in the finals. Tim @Timasy Hess replaced Julmi as a center and his brilliant performances have made him playoffs top scorer. 22 points in 8 games ranks him as number 1 in the league - this could bethe x-factor in the matchup against his former teammates. With Claudio @Freeman7187 Salamoni (8+9=17) and Alex @IDangledYouOut Wagner (7+8=15), ZSC Esports has arguably the best winger duo in the league. Both can decide any match at any time with a dangerous shot or creative dekes and moves. Many variations are possible and ZSC is able to rotate without any loss of quality. As in the defense, Team LEISURE trusts their well-functioning attacking trio. Stephan @Krinke Krinke and Felix @ProfaneKiss Kiss are both strong offensive players who have competed on a high level for a long time. While Kiss is more of a playmaking winger (4+13=17) his counterpart Krinke is more of a prolific goal scorer (10+8=18). Both profit from Simon @PlaymakerSJ Junker who has been on fire this season. Normally known for assisting his mates, Junker surprisingly finds the way to tickle twine more often now. 15 goals and 7 assists during LEISUREs playoff run illustrates how well the experienced center performs and is one of the main reasons why the former Phantoms are in their sixth final in a row. Whether he will face Hess or Julmi, we can be expectant of a high level matchup on the center lane. ZSC Esports' advantage could be the rotation with four world class forwards. Many lineups are possible and the transfer of Timasy gives Zürich the possibility to rotate or try new strategies after the first three games on the first evening. If he plays, Hess will be the x-factor against his ex-club. His talent and good form will make the difference in a long series. Prediction: Advantage ZSC Esports Conclusion: 4:3 Team LEISURE Yet, one thing is certain: we will see one of the closest and most anticipated finals of GCL history. With their promotion to ECL Elite, ZSC Esports is on a hot streak right now and will be keen on being crowned as GCL Champions. On the other side the long time torchbearer of the German community will try everything to get their sixth title in a row. The smallest mistakes will make the difference. Every wrong decision will be punished and decide between defeat or victory. The advantage of Team LEISURE could be the unchanged starting six in the regular season as well as during the playoffs. The good chemistry and experience can be what it takes to win in the finals of GCL 7. With two sweeps in their backpack ZSC Esports will go into this series with a lot of confidence. On Wednesday and Thursday, we will be a lot wiser - meanwhile, let's get hyped and look forward to some high quality virtual hockey!

Liebe DACH-Community, es ist endlich soweit! Die langersehnte Finalserie der siebten German Championship League steht vor der Tür. Während sich der ZSC Esports mit einem engen, jedoch verdienten Sweep gegen PENTA (ehemals ECDC Memmingen Esports) durchsetzen konnte, verlangte noRex Gaming dem Serienmeister von Team LEISURE nahezu alles ab. Allerdings konnte sich der Favorit auch hier mit einem verdienten Seriensieg von 4:2 durchsetzen und erneut ins Finale einziehen. Leisure dürfte alles daran setzen die aufstrebenden Zürchern den oftmals zitierten "Wind aus den Segeln" nehmen zu wollen und sich so den Titel-Doppelhattrick zu sichern. Kann sich der ZSC nach zwei Sweeps in Serie auch gegen das langjährige Flagschiff der deutschsprachigen Community durchsetzen? Ist Team LEISURE nach all den Titeln noch hungrig genug? Behält der ZSC einen kühlen Kopf in einer engen Finalserie? Im Folgenden wollen wir beide Teams im direkten Vergleich genauer unter die Lupe nehmen und einen Blick in die Glaskugel werfen wer sich am Ende der nächsten Woche Champion der GCL7 nennen darf! Auch das Finale wird im Best-Of-7 Modus ausgespielt. #1 ZSC Esports vs #2 Team LEISURE Nie dürfte es in der Geschichte der GCL auf NHLGamer.com eine so ausgeglichene und enge Finalserie gegeben haben. Mit dem ZSC Esports und Team LEISURE treffen die zwei besten Teams der Hauptrunde und erwarteten Favoriten im großen Finale aufeinander. Doch wer wird im direkten Vergleich die Nase vorne haben und sich im Best-Of-7 Modus durchsetzen können? In der Regular Season sahen wir zwei enge Matchups der beiden Schwergewichte (3:1 für Team LEISURE & 3:2 für ZSC Esports). In den Playoffs setzten sich Zürcher Löwen mit zwei überzeugenden Sweeps gegen Hyperion und PENTA durch und sicherten sich die zweite Finalteilnahme in Folge. Hat man aus der Finalniederlage in GCL6 seine Lehren gezogen und kann nun mit verändertem Kader den Machtwechsel vollziehen? 29 geschossenen Toren stehen lediglich 11 kassierte Tore gegenüber und unterstreicht noch einmal die individuelle Klasse der Schweizer auf jeder Position. Team LEISURE gelang ebenfalls der Sweep im Viertelfinale gegen Inter Iceland, ehe man im Halbfinale einen harten und leidenschaftlichen Kampf gegen noRex Gaming abliefern musste und sich schlussendlich mit 4:2 durchsetzte. Mit 35:17 Toren rollt die Offensivmaschinerie wie bereits in der Regular Season weiter auf Hochtouren - doch wird die Meisterschaft gemäß dem Motto "Defense wins Championships" auf dem anderen Ende des virtuellen Eises entschieden? Goalies: @afc_Tschitsch & @burban26(ZSC Esports) vs @RPH_31 & @FoxGoalie (Team LEISURE) Reto Ulrich aka @afc_Tschitschkam pünktlich zum Start der Playoffs ins Rollen. Während sein Backup @burban26 aus der Kommentatorenbox glänzt, absolvierte der Schweizer alle 8 Playoff-Partien und sicherte sich mit einer starken Fangquote von rund 83% ebenfalls 3 Shutouts. Mit 52 Schüssen bekam die Nummer 22 des ZSC die verhältnismäßig Wenigsten auf sein Tor. Ein Indiz für die starke Abwehrarbeit der Lions? eTschitsch wird in der Finalserie qualitativ wertigere Schüsse und Chancen abwehren müssen als dies noch in den vorangegangenen Serien der Fall war. In der ECL 11 Pro und dem Elite-Qualifier gegen die Gotham Knights hat Ulrich bereits seine Klasse unter Beweis stellen können. Nun muss er im Finale an ähnliche Leistungen anknüpfen um den GCL-Titel möglich zu machen. Ihm Gegenüber steht ein starkes Duo von Team LEISURE! @RPH_31 aka "0 Ping RPH" stand ebenfalls in 8 Playoff-Partien im Kasten des Rekordmeisters. @FoxGoalie durfte sich hingegen in zwei Spielen gegen Inter Iceland auszeichnen und neben einem Shutout eine Fangquote von rund 92% sichern. Man darf davon ausgehen, dass Routinier Patrick "Raphi" Braun den Vorzug im Finale erhalten wird. Ein Gegentorschnitt von 1,88 und eine Savepercentage von knapp 80% stellen einen soliden Wert dar, insbesondere wenn man einen Blick auf die Zahlen wirft: Braun erhielt 21 Schüsse mehr auf sein eigenes Gehäuse als sein Gegenüber. Ein Vorteil, dass Team LEISURE bereits vermeintlich stärkere Gegner in beiden Playoff-Runden schlagen konnte und musste? Braun absolviert seine sechste GCL und ist dem hohen Druck aus entscheidenden Spielen gewachsen. Die Stürmer des ZSC werden ihm alles abverlangen - mit seiner Coolness und guten Saves kann er zu einem X-Factor werden. Prognose: Vorteil Team LEISURE Defense: @Toneee9 & @Haldeem (ZSC Esports) vs @Franky__2768 & @xXPsykoSkillsXx (Team LEISURE) Was für ein Matchup! In der Finalserie stehen sich die wohl vier stärksten Verteidiger der deutschsprachigen Community gegenüber. Mit Max Tonitz und Reto Haldemann verfügt man auf Seiten des ZSC über zwei ungemein spielstarke Verteidiger die nun ihre zweite gemeinsame Saison absolvieren. Im Laufe der vergangenen ECL 11 Pro harmonierten der Österreicher und Schweizer immer besser miteinander und verhalfen den Lions zu so noch nie da gewesener Stärke. Mit 12 Punkten aus 8 Spielen führt Tonitz seinen herausragenden Lauf aus der Regular Season fort und hat nach @xXPsykoSkillsXx und @GERxVillain (noRex Gaming) die drittmeisten Takeaways aller Verteidiger. Hier darf man gespannt sein, wie gut es dem ZSC-Duo gelingen wird den aggressiven Leisure-Forecheck auszuspielen oder eine eventuelle Fulltrap überspielen zu können. Auf der anderen Seite steht ein jahrelang gesetztes Defensivduo in der Starting Six. Frank Münch und Niklas Schmitz führten in den vergangenen sechs Saisons die Leisure-Verteidigung an und brillierten als Vorlagengeber und Torschützen. Insbesondere @Franky__2768 scheint Schmitz Rolle aus vergangener GCL6 als Topscorer übernommen zu haben. Mit 6 Toren und 14 Assists ist Münch nicht nur torgefährlichster Verteidiger der Playoffs, sondern auch drittbester Scorer der Liga. Nuancen werden den Unterschied ausmachen. Die Routine und Erfahrung, sowie der exzellente Lauf von Frank Münch, kann den entscheidenden Vorsprung in einer engen Finalserie geben. Prognose: Leichter Vorteil Team LEISURE Offense: @IDangledYouOut, @Freeman7187, @Timasy & @Original-SnuS (ZSC Esports) vs @Krinke, @PlaymakerSJ & @ProfaneKiss (Team LEISURE) Ein Matchup scheint besser als das Andere zu sein! Auch in der Offensive werden wir enge Duelle unter den wohl besten Stürmern der Community erleben. Auf Seiten des ZSC sah man in der Viertel- und Halbfinalserie ein ungewöhnlicheres Lineup. Neuzugang @Timasy ersetzte den abstinenten @Original-SnuS auf dem Center-Spot. Mit 22 Punkten aus 8 Spielen ist Heß nicht nur Playoff-Topscorer sondern auch entscheidender Faktor im Match gegen seine alten Teamkollegen. Hier darf man gespannt sein, ob Kapitän Julmi pünktlich zur Finalserie zurück ins Lineup rückt und wer die Zürcher Flügelpositionen bekleiden wird. Mit Salamoni (8G + 9A) und Wagner (7G + 8A) verfügt man über zwei herausragende Winger die ein Spiel zu jederzeit mit individuellen Aktionen entscheiden können. Viele offensive Konstellation sind denkbar und der ZSC kann nahezu ohne Qualitätsverlust rotieren. Hingegen findet man bei Team LEISURE, wie bereits in der Verteidigung, ein unheimlich eingespieltes Angriffs-Trio. Mit Stephan Krinke und Felix Kiss verfügt man über eine der kreativsten Flügelzangen im deutschsprachigen Raum. Während @ProfaneKiss mit 4 Toren und 13 Assists eher als klassischer Spielmacher agiert, hat man mit @Krinke und seinen 10 Toren einen klassischen Goalscorer. Beide profitieren im derzeitigen Playoffrun vom mal wieder brillierenden @PlaymakerSJ. Simon Junker ist für seine Scoringfähigkeiten bekannt, findet jedoch in der laufenden Spielzeit überraschend oft selber den Weg zum gegnerischen Tor (15G + 7A). Sei es Heß oder Julmi der Junker gegenüberstehen sollte, man darf auf ein enorm spannendes Center-Duell gespannt sein! Dem ZSC Esports könnte eine "4-Stürmer-Strategie" zum Vorteil werden, da man in verschiedenen Aufstellungen in die Finalduelle gehen kann. Ebenso ist eine Umstellung nach den ersten Spielen möglich, um sein Offensivspiel für Team LEISURE noch untransparenter machen zu können. Heß dürfte für die Serie gesetzt sein und egal auf welcher Position für den entscheidenden Unterschied verantwortlich sein. Prognose: Vorteil ZSC Esports Fazit: 4:3 für Team LEISURE Eines ist klar: Wir dürfen uns auf eine ungemein enge Finalserie zwischen den zwei besten deutschsprachigen Teams gefasst machen. Mit dem Elite-Aufsteiger des ZSC Esports hat man den Shooting Star der DACH-Community, welcher nahezu unaufhaltbar scheint. Ihm Gegenüber die Routiniers der ehemaligen Deadly Phantoms, auf dem Weg zum vielleicht sechsten GCL-Titel in Folge. Wie bereits beschrieben wird jede Kleinigkeit den Unterschied ausmachen. Jeder Fehler wird bestraft und die Entscheidung über Sieg oder Niederlage bringen. Der Vorteil für Team Leisure liegt in der Routine und jahrelangen Erfahrung. Eine nahezu unveränderte Starting Six, die auf dem Weg ins Finale bereits zwei weitere Top Teams besiegen konnte, kann in engen Momentan aufgrund ihrer Beschlagenheit die richtigen Entscheidungen treffen und so in einer langen Serie die Meisterschaft für sich entscheiden. Wir wünschen beiden Teams und allen Spielern viel Erfolg und freuen uns auf gutes virtuelles Hockey!

Liebe DACH-Community, die Hauptrunde der GCL7 hat viele Highlights geboten. Die Top-Spieler der Liga faszinierten uns mit ihren Dekes und Toren, aber auch Newcomer mischten mit ihrer frischen und unbedarften Art die Liga ordentlich auf. Wir sahen Goalies die ihr Team unter Dauerbeschuss im Spiel hielten, Verteidiger mit atemberaubenden Scoringfähigkeiten und abgezockte Rookies die völlig befreit aufspielen konnten. Während sich die letzten Teams im Kampf um die deutschsprachige Meisterschaft befinden, wollen wir die Gunst der Stunde nutzen und noch einmal auf das von den GMs gewählte Team der Saison zurückblicken. Viele Spieler der Community hätten die Wahl ins Team verdient gehabt - geschafft haben es diese Sechs: Goalie: @Fightlocke3 (noRex Gaming) by @Franky__2768 noRex Gaming hat wohl in Christian @Fightlocke3 Schubert den nächsten Stern am deutschsprachigen Goaliehimmel gefunden. Er ist noch relativ frisch in der Szene, bestritt er mit dieser GCL 7 Saison erst seine Dritte auf NHLGamer. In der GCL 6 war er eher noch Backup, steigerte sich jedoch innerhalb der ECL 11 Pro zum Starter um nun in dieser Saison das vollkommene Vertrauen der Teamführung zu erhalten und fast jedes Spiel zu spielen. In der regulären Saison war er der Fels in der Brandung bei einem defensivstarken noRex-Team, die jedoch einen hocheffektiven Torhüter brauchen, der viele Schüsse halten kann. Ebenfalls konnte er sich oft bei Breakaways auszeichnen, da gerade gegen einigelnde Gegner noRex gerne auch mal offensiver agiert. Mit fünf Shutouts führt Schubert diese Statistik an und rangiert unter den Top-Goalies der Liga. Auch die Fangquote von 82,68% ist sehr beachtlich und war zwischenzeitlich im 85er Bereich zu verordnen. In den Playoffs zeigte Schubert ebenfalls sehr starke Leistungen zwischen den Pfosten und war gerade in der Serie gegen Team LEISURE einer der Gründe, weshalb diese so eng ausfiel. Der Defensivverbund um @GERxVillain, @Paddyy1903 und ihm wird diesen Schwung für den bevorstehenden Pro-Qualifier mitnehmen und eine schwer zu knackende Nuss sein. Außerdem nominiert waren: @afc_Tschitsch, @NHLDennis86, @DiMatteo70, @Asap_Kev231 Rechtsverteidiger: @xXPsykoSkillsXx(Team LEISURE) Was wäre ein Team of the Season ohne ihn? Niklas Schmitz, Rechtsverteidiger und im Notfall Allroundkünstler, ist euer RD der vergangenen Hauptrunde der GCL7. Der Krefelder konnte seinen Scoringtitle aus der GCL6 leider nicht verteidigen, spielte jedoch mit 49 Punkten aus 26 Spielen eine erneut überragende Saison! Während @xXPsykoSkillsXx sich zu Beginn der Saison abermals in den Dienst der Mannschaft stellte und sowohl auf dem linken als auch auf dem rechten Flügel aushalf, fand man ihn in der restlichen Saison auf seiner wohl gewohnt stärksten Position. Aus der rechten Verteidigung eröffnete er das Spiel gemeinsam mit Defenderpartner @Franky__2768 und ist so Denker und Lenker im Spiel der ehemaligen Phantoms. Besonders gefürchtet ist Schmitz Rolle im äußerst effektiven Powerplay von Team Leisure (35,94%). Im Umbrella nimmt er gerne die Rolle des Quarterbacks ein und verteilt die Scheiben oberhalb der Bullykreise. Sei es zum Onetimer auf seine Winger @ProfaneKiss und @Krinke oder mit einem gezielten Schlagschuss ins lange Eck. Die Nummer 63 verfügt über ein exzellentes Decisionmaking in offensiven und defensiven Situationen und ist damit einer der besten Feldspieler der deutschsprachigen Community! Außerdem nominiert waren: @Haldeem, @Paddyy1903, @KG12PK88, @CashAllGreen Linksverteidiger: @Toneee9 (ZSC Esports) Der torgefährlichste Verteidiger der Liga ist euer LV der Saison! Max Tonitz, seines Zeichens Rechtsschütze und zweitbester Scorer der internen Verteidigerwertung, führte sein Team mit 42 Punkten in 26 Spielen an. Der junge Österreicher sprühte regelrecht vor Spielfreude und konnte mit 27 Assists nicht nur seine Stürmerkollegen unterstützen, sondern war ganze 15 Mal selber erfolgreich. Die spielstarke Nummer 9 der Zürcher Löwen weiß wo das Tor steht und nahm mit 53 Schüssen mehr als alle anderen Defender der Liga. Tonitz lieferte seine punktbeste GCL-Hauptrunde seiner Karriere ab und erstickt Angriffsversuche gegnerischer Teams über seinen Flügel oftmals im Keim. Vom Spielwitz und gutem Hockey-IQ profitieren seine Mitspieler und zahlen es ihm mit großem Vertrauen zurück. Der starke Run in der vergangenen ECL 11 Pro nahm in der deutschen Meisterschaft kein Ende und @Toneee9ist aus dem Zürcher Spiel nicht mehr wegzudenken. Er bildet das perfekte Gegenstück zu Defensivpartner@Haldeemund macht die Verteidigung des ZSC zu einem defensiven Boll- und offensivem Feuerwerk. Außerdem nominiert waren: @Franky__2768, @GERxVillain, @Much1979, @JoeDillon Rechter Flügel: @Keuschemisch (noRex Gaming) by @Franky__2768 Der Assistenzkapitän von noRex Gaming hat die Rolle des Offensiv-Leaders übernommen. Er ist für die Kreativgestaltung verantwortlich und besticht durch starke 1vs1 Duelle. Zusammen mit @Paddyy1903 bildet er eine der besten deutschsprachigen Flügelkombinationen und sind für eine starke Rotation auf der rechten Außenbahn bekannt. Zwar besticht Kevin Berg vorallem durch seine Playmaking-Skills, hat diese Saison jedoch einen absurd hohen Anteil an den spielentscheidenden Toren. Die Hälfte seiner Tore (9 von 18 inklusive Playoffs) waren jeweils Game-Winning-Goals, welche zusätzlich mit den Vorlagen zu einem Top 10 Platz in der Scorerwertung führen. Er ist gerne auch für das ein oder andere Schmankerl bzw. Highlightreel zu haben - sei es eine Between-the-legs-Vorlage oder multiple Dekes und Cuts, welche den Defender schwindelig spielen. Nach seiner ersten Saison in der ECL Pro scheint Bergs Spiel gereift zu sein. Gutes Decisionmaking und das Kreieren von Offensivchancen haben @Keuschemisch innerhalb weniger Saisons zu einem der besten Flügelspieler der deutschsprachigen Community werden lassen. Außerdem nominiert waren: @ProfaneKiss, @Freeman7187, @Red09Dragon08, @Fuchs2534 Linker Flügel: @IDangledYouOut (ZSC Esports) Alex Wagner ist mit einer überwältigenden Mehrheit zum Leftwinger der GCL7 gewählt worden! Der 23-jährige Flügelstürmer des ZSC Esports hat mit 66 Punkten aus 22 Spielen nicht nur seine punktbeste GCL-Saison absolviert, sondern auch in überragender Manier seine starke Ausbeute aus der vergangenen ECL 11 Pro (34G + 34A in 30GP) abermals bestätigt. Der Nummer 28 gelingt es seine Mitspieler in Szene zu setzen und auch selber kaltschnäuzig abschliessen zu können. Neben 36 Assists steuerte der Linksschütze ebenfalls 30 Tore bei und spielte so eine entscheidende Rolle beim Hauptrundensieg des ZSC. Seine Schussquote von rund 44% unterstreichen die Qualität und das gute Decisionmaking des erfahrenen Angreifers und beförderten ihn an Rang 2 der ligaweiten Topscorer. Wagners gefürchteter Forecheck und aggressive Art die gegnerischen Verteidiger unter Druck zu setzen katapultieren ihn mit großem Abstand auf Platz 1 in puncto Checks. Mit 212 Hits in 22 Partien ist @IDangledYouOutunangefochtene Nummer Eins im ligaweiten Vergleich und ein Indiz für seine mannschaftsdienlichen Spielstil. Wagner trifft, assistiert und ist sich nicht zu schade die "Drecksarbeit" zu erledigen und damit verdientermaßen unser LW der Saison! Außerdem nominiert waren: @Krinke, @Flo_goes_grazy, @Stigi, @DaMan Center: @Original-SnuS (ZSC Esports) Captain des Elite-Aufsteigers. Topscorer der Hauptrunde. Sven Julmi ist zum besten Center der vergangenen Hauptrunde gewählt worden! Der Gründer des ZSC Esports und früheren The Black Jacks rangiert mit 79 Punkten an Platz 1 der ligaweiten Scorerwertung und führt seinen starken Lauf aus den vergangenen Saisons weiter fort. Sind es die ikonischen goldenen Schlittschuhe die Julmi zu einem der besten Spieler der Liga machen? @Original-SnuSharmoniert mit seinen Teamkollegen so gut wie nie. Diese Chemie und spielerische Klasse münzt der ZSC in Zählbares um, welches sich in großer Dominanz auch auf dem Scoreboard niederschlägt. 55 Assists machen ihn zum besten Vorlagengeber der Hauptrunde und unterstreichen das gute Auge des Rechtsschützen, sowie die Harmonie und Klasse seiner Mannschaftskameraden. Eine solide Bullyquote, sowie dominanteres und physischeres Spiel als in vergangenen Saisons (86 Hits) machen den Eidgenossen zum Dreh- und Angelpunkt, da nahezu jede Aktion im Zürcher Spiel über die Nummer 21 läuft. Mit diesen Scoringfähigkeiten ist SnuS einer der besten Feldspieler des Central-Servers und euer Center im Team of the Season! Außerdem nominiert waren: @PlaymakerSJ, @Pathen-21-, @CuteTerminator7, @domii_ecn Neben dem Team der Saison haben wir dank eurer Mithilfe ebenfalls den "Rookie der Saison" wählen dürfen! Diesen wollen wir ebenfalls für die nächsten Saisons der German Championship League etablieren. Voraussetzung hierfür ist, dass der/die SpielerIn seine/ihre erste volle Saison in der Division 1 der GCL absolviert. Das Alter oder vorher gespielte Turniere welche nicht auf NHLGamer.com gespielt wurden spielen hier keine Rolle. Ausgenommen von der Regelung sind nicht-deutschsprachige Lizenz- bzw. Leihspieler. Diese sind von der Rookie-Wertung ausgenommen. Rookie: @Sebwies2139 (The Black Jacks) Sebastian Wieser, Schlussmann des schweizer Aufsteigers The Black Jacks, ist unser Rookie der Saison! Die Nummer 39 des schweizer Playoffteilnehmers mauserte sich im Laufe der Saison zu einem soliden Rückhalt und legte mit seiner Seelenruhe den Grundstein für Platz 4 in der Regular Season. Wieser begann seine virtuelle Karriere beim Black Wings HC und sammelte dort Erfahrungen in der GCL 6 Div. 2, sowie der ECL 11 Neo. Mit stabilen Fangquoten von knapp 80% konnte man dort bereits erahnen, dass der Linksfänger eine blühende Zukunft vor sich hat. Im Qualifier durfte er für The Black Jacks erstmalig sein Können unter Beweis stellen und hatte großen Anteil am Aufstieg seines Teams. Im Laufe der Hauptrunde kristallisierte sich @Sebwies2139als Starter heraus und zeigte in seiner ersten Division 1 Saison starke Leistungen. Man darf gespannt sein, ob Wieser auch auf dem internationalen Eis seine Fähigkeiten ähnlich unter Beweis stellen kann. Eine Fangquote von rund 81%, ein Gegentorschnitt von 2,20, drei Shutouts und zehn Wins bringen ihn an Platz 8 der ligaweiten Goalie-Wertung. Der Österreicher muss insbesondere in engen Spielen Triggerdiscipline und einen kühlen Kopf bewahren, um in die Elite der deutschsprachigen Goalies anzukommen. Wieser hat eine beeindruckende Rookie-Saison gespielt und mit Leistungen wie dieser eine gute Zukunft vor sich! Außerdem nominiert waren: @CuteTerminator7, @Fuchs2534, @Altenpfleger_89, @JoeDillon

NHLGamers, The Regular Season of GCL7 brought us many highlights. The top players of the league fascinated us with their dekes and goals but even some newcomers mixed the league up - in a positive sense. We have seen goalies saving their teams, defensemen scoring like forwards and rookies playing like they did nothing else in their past. We've boiled down to the last teams that are fighting for the German Championship and we want to take a moment to look back at our team of the season at this point. Many players of the community would have deserved to get a spot in that team - but the following six have done so this season: Goalie: @Fightlocke3 (noRex Gaming) by @Franky__2768 It seems like noRex Gaming has found the new bright goalie star. Christian @Fightlocke3 Schubert is quite new to competitive gaming but seems to be one of the hottest newcomers in the German community. Having started as a backup in GCL 6, Schubert became a starter during the past ECL 11 Pro Season. He now has the full trust of his team and thereby played every game in the regular season and the playoffs (except for three matches due to illness). During the regular season he was rock solid for his defensive-minded noRex squad. Especially on breakaways @Fightlocke3 was able to save his team several times and leads the league with five shutouts and a solid save percentage of 82.68%. During the playoffs, Schubert was able to underline his solid performances and was one of the main reasons to forcing game 6 against the favorites Team LEISURE. The defense consisting of @GERxVillain, @Paddyy1903 and him will ride the momentum into the starting Pro Qualifier, making it a true challenge for any team to score against noRex Gaming. other Nominees: @afc_Tschitsch, @NHLDennis86, @DiMatteo70, @Asap_Kev231 Right Defenceman: @xXPsykoSkillsXx (Team LEISURE) There cannot be a "Team of the Season" without him. Niklas Schmitz, right defenseman and allrounder is your RD of GCL7! The Player from Krefeld was not able to defend his GCL6 scoring title nevertheless he still managed to play another excellent season with 49 points in 26 matches. As @xXPsykoSkillsXx once again did what was best for his team by helping out in the offense in the beginning of the season, he spent the rest of the GCL at his primary position on the right defensive side. Together with @Franky__2768, he leads the game of Team LEISURE and has become a floor general for the former "Deadly Phantoms". Therefore he plays a huge role in the extremely effective powerplay of Team LEISURE (35.94%). In the umbrella formation he likes to quarterback the play and distributes the puck from above the faceoff circles. Wether by playing passes to his wingers @Krinke and @ProfaneKiss for the perfect one-timer or doing it by himself and scoring with his deadly slapshots, he is a force on the blueline. The Team LEISURE number 63 is known for excellent decision making in both ends of the ice and therefore is one of the best players in the German community. other Nominees: @Haldeem, @Paddyy1903, @KG12PK88, @CashAllGreen Left Defenceman: @Toneee9 (ZSC Esports) The most offensive minded defender of the league is your LD of the season! Max Tonitz, Right-handed shooter and the prolific scorer for ZSC Esports, led his teams defense corps with 42 Points in 26 matches. The young Austrian stands for the joy of playing and contributed 27 assists but also managed to score 15 goals along the way. Number 9 for the Lions knows exactly how to score and took the most shots out of any defenders in the league (54 Shots). On top of that, he delivered his personal record of points in the GCL regular season. His teammates benefit from his great hockey IQ and they return it by putting him in situations needed to perform on a high level. His strong run in the past ECL 11 Pro season also continued into the GCL and makes him nearly irreplaceable for his squad. @Toneee9 is the perfect fit for his defensive partner @Haldeem and together they are a solid mix offense and defense on the back end. other Nominees: @Franky__2768, @GERxVillain, @Much1979, sgtsoccer Right Winger: @Keuschemisch (noRex Gaming) by @Franky__2768 The assistant captain of noRex Gaming has taken a leading role on and off the ice. @Keuschemisch is responsible for a majority of his teams offensive plays and impresses with brilliant 1v1 skills. Together with @Paddyy1903 he represents one of the best winger-defender duos in the German community who are well known for switching positions and rotating offensively and defensively. His biggest strength is his playmaking ability but was also a big reason for winning games during the regular season by scoring in decisive moments. Nine out of his 18 goals (including Playoffs) are GWGs which grants him a place in the Top 10 scorers of the league. Well known for his highlight reel plays such as a between-the-legs pass to decide a Playoff series or multiple dekes and cuts to outplay his opposing defensemen. After his first season on the Pro-level in the ECL, it seems like his Decision making on the ice has improved a lot. Being able to help his teammates and deciding close games has made him one of the best forwards in the German community! other Nominees: @ProfaneKiss, @Freeman7187, @Red09Dragon08, @Fuchs2534 Left Winger: @IDangledYouOut (ZSC Esports) Alex Wagner has been voted as the best left winger by a vast majority! The 23-year-old winger from ZSC Esports not only had his best scoring season in the GCL with 66 points in 22 matches but also repeated his strong performances from the past ECL 11 Pro season (34G + 34A in 30GP). ZSC's number 28 makes his teammates better and has the ability to read the play and score goals from anywhere on the ice. These qualities led to 36 assists as well as 30 goals which were a huge factor for winning the regular season. His shot percentage of 44% illustrates his talent and shows why he is second best scorer of the whole league. Wagners forecheck and his aggressive style of playing is feared by his opponents and placed him first in hits throughout the league. 212 hits in 22 games also ranked him as undisputed number one in GCL7 and shows that @IDangledYouOut is all about helping the team. Wagner scores, passes and does the "dirty work" which makes him our LW of the season! other Nominees: @Krinke, @Flo_goes_grazy, @Stigi, @DaMan Center: @Original-SnuS (ZSC Esports) Captain of the freshly promoted Elite team. Top scorer of the regular season. Sven Julmi has been voted as the best center of GCL7! The founder of ZSC Esports and former The Black Jacks ranks first on the scoring list and continues his brilliant run from previous tournaments. Is it the iconic golden skates that make him one of the best players in the league? The chemistry between @Original-SnuS and his teammates is as good as ever before. The team spirit as well as the individual talent helped ZSC to reach a dominant position on the ice and the standings. With 55 assists he also became the top provider of assists which stresses not only his good vision for the game but also the harmony within the team. A solid face-off percentage and a more dominant and physical game compared to last seasons (86 Hits) play have made the player with number 21 for ZSC the key player of the Swiss Lions. Because of those scoring abilites, SnuS becomes one of the best players on the server and is your center of the season! other Nominees: @PlaymakerSJ, @Pathen-21-, @CuteTerminator7, @domii_ecn Thanks to your help we were also able to vote on the "Rookie of the Season"! We want to establish this award for the upcoming seasons of the German Championship League. Requirements to become "Rookie of the Season": The player must play his first full season in Division 1. Age or previous tournaments outside of NHLGamer are irrelevant. Non-German License players can not participate and taken out of the voting. Rookie: @Sebwies2139 (The Black Jacks) Sebastian Wieser, Goalie of The Black Jacks is our "Rookie of the Season". Number 39 of the Playoff participants from Switzerland became a huge factor during the season and was one of the main reasons to finish the regular season as the 4th seed. Wieser started his career with Black Wings HC and gained some experience in Divison 2 of GCL6 as well as ECL 11 Neo. By stringing together a series of impressive performances it became quite obvious that the left handed netminder will have a bright future ahead. During the Qualifier he made his first appearances for The Black Jacks and showed his talent right away. During the regular season he established himself as starting goalie and showed many good performances in his very first Division 1 season. It will be exciting to see how he manages to translate his game to the international level in the ECL. His save percentage of 81%, GAA of 2.20, three shutouts and ten wins made him the 8th best goalie in the league. The Austrian still has a lot of room to improve, especially in terms of trigger discipline and staying cool in stressful situations he has the ability to become one of GCL's best goaltenders. With his impressive rookie performances it is safe to say that we will see a lot of @Sebwies2139 in the future! other Nominees: @CuteTerminator7, @Fuchs2534, @Altenpfleger_89, sgt_soccer

Liebe DACH-Community, die Viertelfinals der siebten Auflage der German Championship League sind nun Geschichte. Die Favoriten konnten sich in solider Manier durchsetzen und wir sehen nun mit dem ZSC Esports, Team LEISURE, noRex Gaming (ehemals EBR eSports), sowie dem ECDC Memmingen Esports zum zweiten Mal in Folge die vier gleichen Halbfinalisten im Kampf um die deutschsprachige Meisterschaft. Wir sahen im Ergebnis vier deutliche Serien inklusive drei Sweeps und die Topspieler der Liga zu Hochtouren auflaufen. Wer wird im Halbfinale die Oberhand haben und ins Finale einziehen? Wird es der frischgebackene Elite-Aufsteiger aus der Schweiz oder der 5-fache Serienmeister von Team LEISURE? Kann noRex Gaming oder der ECDC Memmingen den vermeintlichen Favoriten ein Bein stellen? Nächste Woche sind wir schlauer! Auch im Halbfinale werden die Spiele im Best-Of-7 Modus gespielt. Die Runde wird im Zeitraum vom 29.03.2021 bis 01.04.2021 stattfinden. Die Streaming-Termine im NHLGamer Broadcast werden wie gewohnt über die Social Media Kanäle kommuniziert. Division 1: #1 ZSC Esports vs #5 ECDC Memmingen Esports Zum ersten Mal in der Geschichte der GCL-Playoffs treffen die Esportler der ZSC Lions auf die des ECDC Memmingen! Es erwartet uns eine spielerisch hochklassige Serie zwischen zwei Teams die sich keinen Centimeter des virtuellen Eises schenken werden. Beide Mannschaften konnten sich im Viertelfinale mit einem Sweep mehr als souverän durchsetzen und so in die Runde der letzten Vier einziehen. Während der ZSC seinen Viertelfinalgegner Hyperion mit deutlichen Siegen in die Off-Season schickte (3:0, 4:1, 3:1 und 6:0), war das Matchup des bayrischen Oberligisten gegen die an Platz 4 geseedeten The Black Jacks deutlich knapper (2:1, 1:0, 2:0 und 2:1). Im Speziellen wird abzuwarten sein, ob Captain und Topscorer @Original-SnuS pünktlich zum Halbfinale zurückkehren wird oder man weiterhin auf @IDangledYouOut, @Timasyund @Freeman7187in der Offensive setzen wird. Wie bereits angemerkt ist der Königstransfer von Tim Heß ein möglicher Gamechanger im Spiel der Lions, da man offensiv nahezu ohne Qualitätsverlust rotieren kann. Mit 13 Punkten aus 4 Spielen ist der Hesse derzeit Playoff-Topscorer und wird alles Mögliche daran setzen seinen guten Run gegen die Memminger fortzusetzen. Ihnen Gegenüber steht ein nun eingespieltes Trio rundum @Wowa_1995, @domii_ecn und @DaMan(Akin71). Mit 7 Toren aus 4 Spielen gegen The Black Jacks wird man abwarten müssen, ob die Indians-Offensive nun ausgerechnet gegen das eingespielte Defender-Duo von @Toneee9und @Haldeemins Rollen kommen wird. Eins steht fest: Beide Teams lieben das Offensivspiel und High Scoring Games. Ganz anders als in der Regular Season und der ersten Playoff-Runde werden sich so gerade offensiv auf beiden Seiten andere Möglichkeiten und Räume bieten. Hier können insbesondere die beiden gesetzten Schlussmänner @Asap_Kev231 und @afc_Tschitscheine tragende Rolle für ihre Teams einnehmen. Der ECDC hat in der Hauptrunde bereits bewiesen ein sehr unangenehmer Gegner für den ZSC zu sein. Packen die Memminger über die Dauer einer gesamten Serie ihr A-Game aus, ist es möglich den ZSC Esports ins Stolpern zu bringen. Direkter Vergleich: 4:3 und 3:2 OT für ZSC Esports Prognose: 4:2 für ZSC Esports Players To Watch: @Timasy und @domii_ecn #2 Team LEISURE vs #3 noRex Gaming Ein weiteres Matchup zweier Schwergewichte der deutschsprachigen Community! Mit den ehemaligen Deadly Phantoms hat man den fünffachen Serienmeister und ein mit individueller Klasse und haufenweise ECL-Elite-Erfahrung gespicktes Roster. Auf der anderen Seite finden wir mit noRex Gaming eines der talentiertesten und ehrgeizigsten Teams der Liga. Die Mannen rundum Team-Captain und Scoring-Maschine @Franky__2768werden alles daran setzen den erneuten Finaleinzug zu realisieren und so die Chance auf den vielleicht sechsten Meistertitel der Vereinsgeschichte zu wahren. Das eingespielte Offensivtrio um @PlaymakerSJ, @ProfaneKiss und @Krinke führten ihre grandiosen Scoringfähigkeiten aus der Regular Season auch in der Viertelfinalserie gegen Inter Iceland fort. Ein Sweep in "Big Fashion" (6:2, 4:3 OT, 7:0 und 4:1) bescherte dem Elite-Absteiger das Ticket zum Halbfinale und stellt mit 21 Toren aus 4 Spielen die beste Offensive der Playoffs. @FoxGoalie und @RPH_31 teilten sich wie bereits in der Regular Season die Spielzeit und spornen sich gegenseitig zu Höchstleistungen an. noRex Gamings Flügelzange @Stigi und @Keuschemisch werden nahezu jede Chance nutzen müssen, um die Serie möglichst ausgeglichen gestalten zu können während Kapitän @kandykills weiterhin als Center das Bindeglied zur Defensive bildet. Gerade der Youngster @Paddyy1903hat in der Serie gegen die Central Hockey Canucks an beiden Enden des Eises großartige Leistungen gezeigt. Bewahrt der Linksschütze diese Coolness auch gegen die ganz Großen? Gewisse Parallelen zum Matchup des ECDC Memmingen Esports gegen The Black Jacks fallen ins Auge, da sich noRex gegen gerade defensiv sehr starke Canucks oftmals schwer tat, das Viertelfinale jedoch am Ende verdient mit 4:1 zu Ihren Gunsten entscheiden konnten (2:1, 1:2, 3:2 OT, 3:1 und 2:0). Gegen LEISURE wird sich womöglich eine deutlich attraktivere Serie entwickeln können, da auch hier beide Mannschaften alles daran setzen werden jede Situation spielerisch zu lösen. Mit @xXPsykoSkillsXx und @GERxVillainstehen zwei der spielstärksten Verteidiger der Community auf dem Eis und können das Spiel mit eleganten Saucer-Pässen lenken. Welches Team behält am Ende die Nerven und wird seine Chancen in Bares ummünzen können? noRex wird auf die Rückkehr des abstinenten @Fightlocke3 hoffen, der seine Kollegen mit Big Saves beflügeln und so den Grundstein zum Erfolg legen kann. Wenn Team LEISURE ihre gewohnten Leistungen abrufen kann wird es unheimlich schwierig sie über 7 Spiele zu besiegen. Direkter Vergleich: 1:2 OT für noRex Gaming und 3:1 für Team LEISURE Prognose: 4:2 für Team LEISURE Players To Watch: @Franky__2768 und @Fightlocke3 Division 2 #1 HC Berlin Eagles vs Deggendorfer SC eSports #8 #2 EV Duisburg vs IHL Rams #7 #3 SCB eSports vs Infernus #6 #4 Bauer Rangers GmbH vs Crazy Capricorns #5 Division 3 #1 AM United vs The Real Rookies #7 #3 EC Bad Nauheim eSports vs Mega #4 Promotions-Runde #2 Sailors Bremerhaven eSports vs The Yellow Blues #8 #5 OilBarons vs Blue Tigers #5 Die Serien sind alle im Modus best-of-7 und sind vom 29.03.2021 bis zum 01.04.2021 zu spielen.