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NHLGamer Summer Cup Weekly: Who’s hot and Who’s not [Edition 3 - Special] Fellow NHLGamers, Continuing every Sunday – we at NHLGamer.com are presenting a weekly column for as long as the Summer Cup is in action. This column will feature a list of which Forward, Defenseman and Goalie have performed well enough on the ice to have earned the honor of being named to this weeks ”Hot”-list. In the interest of fairness, it will also feature one representative of each position who hasn’t performed as well, resulting in a spot on the ”Not”-list. Moving on, the list will work like a Power Ranking and not like a ”3 Stars of the Week” (like on the NHL website). A power ranking means that it’s not exclusively what a specific player has done in just the past week that matters, but instead what that player has delivered in total throughout the tournament when the list is published, that does. Say for example if Kenu scores 20 points in 2 games in Week 1, landing him on the ”Hot”-list for that week, he can still be on the ”Hot”-list for Week 2 even if he only scores 10 points in 4 games that week – because his total will still be 30 points in 6 games which, presumably, will still be at the top of the rankings. Do you catch my drift? Good! Then let’s get started. (Before you continue to rip me to shreds for being dead wrong on all my selections, I’ll remind everyone that this is a column of opinion and a playful, tounge-in-cheek way to celebrate what a success this Summer Cup has been. However, a comment of ”You’re an idiot Alpha, that’s just wrong” is always better than no comment so remember – share your opinions!) NEW THIS WEEK (Week 3): Now that's more like it! The comments went pouring in for Week 2 and I couldn't be happier - let's keep that trend going for Week 3. All the comments also gave me a chance to explain my reasoning behind how I make my selections. For those of you who didn't see one comment in particular, I'll paste that here: New for Week 3 is that we will be departing a bit from the regular format. Since the Beta for NHL 17 just came out (Read about it here and get your Beta code here) on Wednesday and there really wasn't more than 5-6 games played even at the start of the week, we won't be looking at the Summer Cup in general. Instead, we'll be a taking a look at the names behind each team - the captains. Look for the regular Hot or Not-format to return next week as the Summer Cup concludes its regular season but for now, this is the NHLGamer Summer Cup Weekly, Edition 3 [Captain Edition]. CAPTAINS (Week 3): GOALIES: #30, Mr Juizki ( @Juizki), Team Juizki Having been featured on the Hot-list for two weeks, one certainly can't complain about the results this goalie has delivered. He's been in net for all his teams games so far and a quick look at the standings reveal that same team to be headed for the playoffs. His first round pick TehhAhola has turned out to be a fine addition with 11 points in 8 games, only bested by second round pick Jageksis 19 points in 8 games. Looking good so far for Juizki. #8, Fin Sere ( @FINSeRe), Mirage With a record of 5-1-0, it's no wonder that Fin Sere found himself on the runner-up list for goalies last week. Combine his stellar save percentage and Goals Against Average in those 6 games with his historical numbers as a #1 goalie for Nordic Blizzard in both ECL 1 and 2 and you've got yourselves one of the best goalies in the community right now. Seems to have done well with the draft as his #1 and #2 picks, tbnantti and kaislikko_peruna are #1 and #2 in scoring for Mirage. #34, Juha Julmala ( @juha96), Hupimunat One of a few teams to have completed their Summer Cup regular season so far, things are looking good for Hupimunat. 22 points in 12 games with a record of 7-4-1 will most likely generate a playoff position. Team captain Julmala has been in net for all 12 games and have done an admirable job between the pipes. He also seems to have put together a well-balanced team that could feature in the playoffs for a long time. DEFENDERS: #53, Shayne Gostisbehere ( @vSilenttio ), Thats the Spirit Thats the Spirit is another team who have finished their 12-game slate for the Summer Cup. As it stands right now, a playoff position is looking unlikely in the very tough Group 2 but this team have certainly fought for it. Involved in more OT games than any team I've seen so far, Silenttio has led his men into many tough battles and has put up a point per game pace with a GWG in the mix as well. His first round pick, imosi1, also did what he could with almost 2 points per game and 3 game winners but ultimately, things didn't go the way this captain wanted. #88, Boba Fett ( @LastMandalorian), Latvian Army for Hire A captain that I know quite well seeing as that we've played EASHL together since its inception on NHL 09. Wasn't sure about if he was going to play center or defense when the tournament started but eventually found a home on RD. Has delivered 3+3 in the 10 games Latvian Army for Hire has played so far but the real test for him and his team will come with two games remaining as the team is fighting for their playoff lives in Group 2. #17, Ludwig Borga ( @DieCutterMC), Ullas Pojkar A physical force on defense, Borga encourages the heavy hits among his teammates. Something that teammates FlyerKungen and Haldeem seems to have picked up on as they have almost 40 hits each. Teamwise, Ullas Pojkar have positioned themselves quite strongly ahead of the playoffs but will most likely have to win one or two of their remaining two games to secure a playoff spot. His first round pick, Tapparafan-, has only gotten into 6 games so far but has delivered 11 points in those games. #80, The Iceman ( @pelimies80), Team pelimies80 Defender who likes the defensive side of the game with strong positioning and few goals against, pelimies has his whole team playing solid defensive hockey. Having personally supplied 1+5 in 8 games, Iceman will have to continue his solid defensive play and timely scoring to help his team make the playoffs as the team are on the outside looking in right now with 4 games remaining. Hopefully he gets his #1 pick Foppatofflan back as he hasn't played in a single game so far. #44, - Billy ( @Billy44205), Team Billy44205 Putting Billy in any one position is tough as I've personally seen the man play defense and goalie in Summer Cup games, as well as seeing him as a forward in the box scores. Regardless, he stepped up to the captaincy plate with bravery, as he admitted to not knowing the players in the community as well as he would've liked. His team won't make the playoffs but he himself and most members of his team have conducted themselves professionally throughout and when problems have arisen, Billy has stepped up. FORWARDS: #88, Miro Hedman ( @mir02k1), Los Dominos Forming a very dangerous line with vilperi-90 and Nampa77, Miro has supplied 17 points in 8 games. Unfortunately, a slow start to the tournament has left Los Dominos in a tough position for the rest of the regular season, with a lot of ground to make up to be able to make the playoffs. One big factor in all this is the fact that the star Miro planned on leading the team, Dominointi, hasn't played in a single game so far. #91, Team Debi ( @debi_85), TEAM PELTIKII Debi is leading the charge for his team together with #1 pick Joukki and it has been quite a successfull charge. With 4 games remaining, Debis team has every chance of making the playoffs and do some damage once they get there. Debi is also the leading hitter among his teammates so one could make the argument he is leading by example on the scoresheet and in the physical side of the game. #86, Joonas Paatiala (???), Club Kannunkulma Patzlaf/BAAHTIS/forum name (?) has put together a high scoring team with him and #1 pick Plee at the helm. Not to be forgotten is the supporting cast of the team though, with defenders jaikken and plymalking, goalies FinKonna and Swigi and forwards indi696 and KenuFHR. At the "center" of it all, Patzlaf leads his team on both the offensive and defensive side of the game with an impressive 59% faceoff percentage and 28 hits outside his 21 points. #68, Jaromir Sniper ( @Basstian23), Everyday Im Byfuglien Truly a prime example of a captain leading the team with his performance on the ice. Having played in all 12 games for his team with 26 points to his name, Bastians team are most likely going to make the playoffs. Bastian has only used his #1 pick Chafak in 4 games so maybe there is more to gain there, but otherwise this sniper has formed quite the duo with second leading point scorer Hanssoni. #9, Busku Mees ( @Tuukka.R), Royal Warriors Busku and his Mees clan (seriously, atleast 5 players are named Mees) was probably the most game-ready team when the Summer Cup started. Having almost exclusively selected players from his own team Victorious Secret, the Royal Warriors were expected to come out of the games storming. For some reason it hasn't worked out perfectly so far but don't count this squad out as they will fight to the end for the last playoff spots in Group 2. #8, Teemu Selanne ( @selänne8), Mighty 8 Balls Last but not least, Selanne rounds out this captain list. His 32 points are the most out of any player in the cup and that is with 2 games remaining! A likely candidate to win the scoring title, Selanne has done well with his draft selections and team as well. #1 pick OxtreeLAT has been in net for all the teams wins so far and those wins have carried the team to a likely #1 or #2 spot in Group 1. Later picks Leksa, The_Alpha_Furyan and RedMisti have also contributed to the teams scoring prowess and every member of the team has delivered solid performances thus far. Remains to be seen if this team can carry their regular season success into what will be a tough playoff matchup. Now, bring your chainsaws to the comment section and let me have it! Did I make the wrong selections? The right ones? Were there any factual errors? Who's happy? Who's upset? Who's secretly plotting to murder me? Later skaters // Alpha Furyan

NHLGamer Summer Cup Weekly: Who’s hot and Who’s not [Edition 2] Fellow NHLGamers, Continuing every Sunday – we at NHLGamer.com are presenting a weekly column for as long as the Summer Cup is in action. This column will feature a list of which Forward, Defenseman and Goalie have performed well enough on the ice to have earned the honor of being named to this weeks ”Hot”-list. In the interest of fairness, it will also feature one representative of each position who hasn’t performed as well, resulting in a spot on the ”Not”-list. Moving on, the list will work like a Power Ranking and not like a ”3 Stars of the Week” (like on the NHL website). A power ranking means that it’s not exclusively what a specific player has done in just the past week that matters, but instead what that player has delivered in total throughout the tournament when the list is published, that does. Say for example if Kenu scores 20 points in 2 games in Week 1, landing him on the ”Hot”-list for that week, he can still be on the ”Hot”-list for Week 2 even if he only scores 10 points in 4 games that week – because his total will still be 30 points in 6 games which, presumably, will still be at the top of the rankings. Do you catch my drift? Good! Then let’s get started. (Before you continue to rip me to shreds for being dead wrong on all my selections, I’ll remind everyone that this is a column of opinion and a playful, tounge-in-cheek way to celebrate what a success this Summer Cup has been. However, a comment of ”You’re an idiot Alpha, that’s just wrong” is always better than no comment so remember – share your opinions!) NEW THIS WEEK (Week 2): Okay, so after Week 1 I'm adding a little something to this weekly column. First, let me just say that ALL your feedback has been appreciated! Even though it didn't take place as much in the official comment section as I would've hoped (seriously - drop some comment bombs!), it's still fun to know that what is being written is also being read and better yet - that it's making people FEEL something, whether that's anger, joy or hate! Anyway, as I said, new addition. It might seem small, but I've decided to add "runner-ups" for all categories. These runner-ups will feature who else was in my mind when I made my decision. These runner-ups will just get a short paragraph to explain why they are there but regardless, just having them in the column will hopefully let you guys in on what my thought process was for makings these selections! Okay, lets do this. WHO’S HOT (Week 2): FORWARD: #68, Jaromir Jagr ( @vilperi90), Los Dominos, 8GP 8G 10A = 18P, -2, 4 PIM, 30 Hits While Plee and Patzlaf continues their destruction of the Summer Cup (52 points combined) they will have to step aside this week for vilperi-90. What a comeback story! After being featured on the defenseman "Not"-list for Week 1, vilperi-90 shifted from defense to forward and started to tear the league up. Having scored 0 points in 2 games on defense, he absolutely exploded for 8 goals and 10 assists in 6 games as a forward, landing him 5th overall in the scoring race. Very impressive and certainly worthy of a spot on the "Hot"-list. Runner-ups: PleeMaker & Patzlaf - Club Kannunkulma [By far the best 1-2 punch in the tournament so far, leading points scorers, unstoppable?] BiggestEight - Mighty 8 Balls [This captain is leading his team by example, the top point getter after Plee&Patz] DEFENDER: #17, Junior Jaihicovic ( @JaikenK ), Club Kannunkulma, 10GP 2G 10A = 12P, +18, 10 PIM, 21 Hits No longer the leading scorer amongst defenders, Jaiken is still a strong 2nd with 2 goals and 10 assists. Furthermore, Jaiken is currently the only defender (with Haldeem) to play in 10 out of 10 games, suggesting how highly valued he is by his team. He also sports the very best +/- among all defenders (+18) all the while having a GWG and 21 hits to his name. All in all, the top defender on what is very likely one of the best teams in the tournament. Runner-ups: The_Alpha_Furyan - Mighty 8 Balls [Top point scorer among all defenders, needs more hits and better +/-] FIN_Potilas - Hupimunat [Strong in points and powerplay goals, although sometimes plays center] Haldeem - Ullas Pojkar [Solid point production, most hits among defenders, plays every game for his team] GOALIE: #30, Mr Juizki ( @Juizki), Team Juizki, 6GP 4W 2L 0TL, 85.29%, 1.66 GAA, 2 shutouts Still the reigning champion, Juizki remains at the very top of all goalie stats (#1 in save percentage, tied for #3 in wins, #5 in total saves, #3 in GAA, tied for #1 in shutouts). However, just like Jaiken among the defenders, Juizki is getting tougher competition - from several goalies - every week and he will have to continue playing at the highest level to remain at the top of this list in the future. Runner-ups: FINSeRe - Mirage [Close to Juizki in both save percentage and shutouts, needs more games] frenchplayer92 - Everyday I'm Byfuglien [Solid save %, solid GAA, solid goalie - on the rise!] MonkeyHead_AF - Latvian Army For Hire [Acrobatic goalie with the most saves and best save % out of all goalies with 8 GP] WHO’S NOT (Week 2): FORWARD: #84, - Bonn ( @Bjono), Latvian Army For Hire, 6GP 1G 5A = 6P, +5, 10 PIM, 26 Hits Perhaps being a high draft pick means being unfairly held to a higher standard than other players. However fair, the fact remains that this is another first round pick to end up on this list. An experienced ECL veteran - Bonn hasn't gotten everything going points-wise with his new team yet, although credible inside sources tell me he's been a leader and calming presence on the ice. With just a single goal to his name so far and a playoff position for his team in jeopardy, expect him to come out firing the last weeks of the regular season. Runner-ups: Billy44205 - Team Billy44205 [Will have to start leading his team out of the hole they've dug themselves as the team with the lowest point total so far] joukki13 - TEAM PELTIKII [Another first round pick with just 1 goal, in just 3 games played - where is joukki?] Pelle3000 - Los Dominos [4+1 in 5 games and a -3, has more in him!] DEFENDER: #53, Shayne Gostisbehere ( @vSilenttio ), Thats the Spirit, 6GP 0G 6A = 6P, -5, 4 PIM, 20 Hits Speaking of unfair, it is a known fact that when a team is struggling as a unit, the captain sometimes has to shoulder a disproportionate amount of the responsibility. Like Ovechkin when the Caps are struggling or Subban when Montreal (was) struggling. Which leads us to this defender... vSilenttio is a leader and one of the better two-way defenders in the tournament with loads of offensive skill, so with 0+6 in 6 games and his team on the verge of falling behind the pack and missing the playoffs - he will have to step up even more. Runner-ups: Nikge_89 - Thats the Spirit [Like his D partner, Nikge will have to step up the rest of the regular season for their team to make the playoffs] |tokFan| - Hupimunat [0 goals and 3 assists in 7 GP with just 3 shots on goal, on one of the highest scoring teams in the league] vatalisti - Team Billy44205 [Is leading his team in scoring so is most likely doing all he possibly can, but as a #2 overall pick - more is expected than a league-worst -7] GOALIE: #20, Antti Miettinen ( @JOHTAJAVIRTANEN), Ullas Pojkar, 6GP 5W 1L 0TL, 55.17%, 2.16 GAA, 0 shutout Just like last week, I am "attacking" a goaltender who is part of a winning team but isn't producing as good stats as can be expected of such a team enviroment. Miettinen does have a solid Goals Against Average with 2.16 and is actually helping his team win with a 5-1-0 record. Perhaps it is his team that is putting him in tough situations and maybe he is making the tougher breakaway saves, but with a league-worst 55.17% in save percentage, Miettinen is on this list for now. Runner-ups: poliskontroll - Thats the Spirit [Is struggling to help his team win games as he's gone 2-4-0 with 65.51% and 3.33 GAA - probably hungry to bounce back] Siickan - Team Billy44205 [will need to step up together with his teammates to help Team Billy make the playoffs] Now, bring your chainsaws to the comment section and let me have it! Did I make the wrong selections? The right ones? Were there any factual errors? Who's happy? Who's upset? Who's secretly plotting to murder me? Later skaters // Alpha Furyan

NHLGamer Summer Cup Weekly: Who’s hot and Who’s not Fellow NHLGamers, starting today and continuing on every Sunday – we at NHLGamer.com are introducing a new weekly column for as long as the Summer Cup is in action. This column will feature a list of which Forward, Defenseman and Goalie have performed well enough on the ice to have earned the honor of being named to this weeks ”Hot”-list. In the interest of fairness, it will also feature one representative of each position who hasn’t performed as well, resulting in a spot on the ”Not”-list. Moving on, the list will work like a Power Ranking and not like a ”3 Stars of the Week” (like on the NHL website). A power ranking means that it’s not exclusively what a specific player has done in just the past week that matters, but instead what that player has delivered in total throughout the tournament when the list is published, that does. Say for example if Kenu scores 20 points in 2 games in Week 1, landing him on the ”Hot”-list for that week, he can still be on the ”Hot”-list for Week 2 even if he only scores 10 points in 4 games that week – because his total will still be 30 points in 6 games which, presumably, will still be at the top of the rankings. Do you catch my drift? Good! Then let’s get started. (Before you continue to rip me to shreds for being dead wrong on all my selections, I’ll remind everyone that this is a column of opinion and a playful, tounge-in-cheek way to celebrate what a success this Summer Cup has been. However, a comment of ”You’re an idiot Alpha, that’s just wrong” is always better than no comment so remember – share your opinions!) WHO’S HOT (Week 1): Forward: #44, Reijo Renkewitz ( @plee999 ), Club Kannunkulma, 6GP 10G 8A = 18P, +12, 16 PIM, 25 Hits PleeMaker came into the tournament like shot out of a cannon – determined to live up to his early draft pick status – and immediatey started racking up the goals and points. Playing on a line with players like BAAHTIS (Patzlaf), indi696 and the NHLGamer staff’s very own KenuFHR has surely helped but, having put up the most points in the tournament to this point, PleeMaker has to be considered the frontrunner for best forward thus far. Defender: #17, Junior Jaihicovic ( @JaikenK ), Club Kannunkulma, 6GP 0G 9A = 9P, +12, 2 PIM, 15 Hits Got to go with another Kannunkulma player here as they have been not only one of the highest scoring teams thus far, but also one of the teams who have played the most with 6 games played. Jaikenkk of Sjukstugan is the defenseman with the most total points thus far and when you combine that with a solid 15 hits and just 2 PIMs and you’ve got your defenseman of the week. Goalie: #30, Mr Juizki ( @Juizki), Team Juizki, 4GP 3W 1L 0TL, 88.0%, 1.50 GAA, 1 shutout Given that Captain Juizki has lead his team to 3 wins in 4 games all the while putting up the most saves and the highest save percentage – this one was a no-brainer. Having been a relative newcomer to ECL (only joining in ECL Season 2 with Checkmate) Juizki is seeing his star rise quickly with performances like this. A well earned spot on the Hot-list. WHO’S NOT (Week 1): Forward: #34, Olli Palola ( @Tapparafan), Ullas Pojkar, 2GP 1G 1A = 2P, -2, 2 PIM, 5 Hits This first round pick has had a tough start to the Summer Cup as the only two games he has participated in so far ended up in just 1+1 in scoring, with the team losing both games and getting 0 points out of it. Ullas Pojkar has had somewhat of a rough start in general, collecting 6 points total in their first 6 games, and to snap out of it they need their #1 pick to lead by example. Defender: #68, Jaromir Jagr ( @vilperi90) & #7, Blob Beaverson ( @Akasido-95), Los Dominos, 2GP 0G 0A = 0P, -1, 0 PIM, 0 Hits With identical statlines, it was impossible to single out any one of these Los Dominos defenders to put on the list – so the solution was to have them share it. Both experienced ECL players known to be able to play any positon (Defense or Forward), these gentlemen will most likely pick their game up as Los Dominos gets rolling but, after a start where their team gained 1 out of 6 possible points with no production from either one of them, they start out here on this list. Goalie: #59, Peter Savemaker ( @FinKonna), Club Kannunkulma, 6GP 4W 1L 1TL, 62.79%, 2.66 GAA, 0 shutout The third member of Club Kannunkulma to feature in this article, FinKonna probably won’t be as happy to be on the list. Known to be a top goalie in the community, FinKonna has been a part of his teams 4-1-1 start while at the same time not delivering stellar numbers. Goaltending in EASHL is a tough business and I have no doubt FinKonna will bounce back but for now, he is on the Not-list.