ECL 11 Lite: Season Recap

NHLGamers,

The ECL 11 Lite season ended Bjorkloven's title run in a riveting final series where the fabled game 7 was eventually required to solve our champion. In this recap I briefly go through the finals and also the Lite season as an entirety - as a notion we can state that Bjorkloven Esport were quite an expected champion after an excellent regular season. However, the season also offered some surprises like the other big favorite MUKIMIEHET being eliminated in Round 1.

Finals game by game:

Game 1: 4-0 to Exerceo

Exerceo started strong by robbing the advantage. Powerplay goals were decisive. Bjorkloven was unable to get to their standard level of playing. On the other hand Exerceo was clinical in capitalizing on their opportunities.

Game 2 2-1 to Exerceo

Bjorkloven improved from Game 1 but Exerceo continued with their clinical finishing. In general, the game followed a similar formula as the previous game.

Game 3 5-1 to Bjorkloven Esports

Bjorkloven stayed on the right path, improving even more. Tremendous goaltending and converting on their opportunities led to their first and crucial win in this series.

Game 4 2-1 OT to Exerceo

Bjorkloven took the lead and the game eventually went to OT where Exerceo scored the decisive marker. At this point Exerceo looked very strong and was going for the gold but consequently their season ended in a very different way.

Game 5 2-0 to Bjorkloven

With Exerceo having a stranglehold on the series, every game from now on could be the end for Bjorkloven. Their resilience really showed and a big defensive and goaltender effort secured a shutout win.

Game 6 5-3 to Bjorkloven

Goaltending was predicted to be a key aspect of the fina series and in game 6, we could say that Exerceo was cought slipping in that department. Although Exerceo came back from down 5-1 to 5-3 there was no doubts of the winner in this game 6. The turning point of the entire series. Bjorkloven capitalized on their momentum in the series.

Game 7 4-2 to Bjorkloven 🏆

Evidently Bjorkloven got the crucial edge from coming back to tie the series. In Game 7 they were clearly one step ahead in every aspect of the game. Although Exerceo scored two goals there was really no beating Bjorkloven at this point. In this decisive game, Bjorkloven's leading scorers @olgaaa71 and @Tacterz played a big role and led their team by example.

In the finals preview, goaltending was stated to be an important factor - a statement which proved to be very true in the end. Bjorkloven  saw some top level netminging to secure the crucial wins in games 4-7, whereas Exerceo in turn didn't get those decisive gamesavers in these games. There were of course other reasons for Bjorklovens remarkable comeback from down 3-1. For example one of the key elements in these comebacks are the mental side of things. Bjorkloven had their back against the wall and remarkably often the team in those situations have a more relaxed feel in playing than the team who probably are already thinking of the championship celebrations taking place. We can only wonder how much of an impact a merited player such as @Tacterz had on his team in those moments. It should not be like that but surprisingly often it seems like the team close to the clinching win are losing their focus or the approach to the game and are living in the future rather than in the moment. Either way - we warmly congratulate both finalists for their efforts this season!

To start the season, MUKIMIEHET were one of the definite favorites to win the title with their incredibly strong roster and vast experience both from playing together and from playing at higher levels. They managed to play a strong regular season but were eventually knocked out already in the first round by Tic Tac Toes causing one of the biggest upsets of the season early on in the playoffs. Several teams found the way to make phenomenal runs throughout the season and examples of these are Hotbox, BoxinElite, Golden Nights and Oton Letkutemppu.

Some teams that were expected to perform a bit better than they eventually ended up doing are the experienced Murohoki, RoKi Esports and TuTo Esports. All of these teams look really good on paper and possess remarkable potential - resources that should be able to carry teams far in the Lite division but all of those teams faltered in the first playoff round. That just proves how tough the Lite division really is despite being the third tier of competition! An interesting notion this season was the fact that all semifinalists ended up being from the same regular season group.

Notable players

Throughout the season, some players made great impacts and managed to push their teams to the trajectory they eventually ended up on. A long stretch back in time, these were referred to as heart-and-soul players in a season preview. We'll be taking a short look back at some of the players that performed exceptionally well over the course of ECL 11 Lite. Obviously, this is a very subjective category and where some could make other picks, here are mine:

Eventual champion Bjorkloven Esports played a great season as a five man unit and saw great goaltending, but power duo @olgaaa71 and @Tacterz eventually elevated the teams play above others. Goaltender @Mrantonn also ended up being a difference maker in the finals against his counterpart on the Exerceo side.

@olgaaa71  26GP 42+53=95 (Regular season), 33GP 41+27=68 (Playoffs)
@Tacterz  24GP 39+55=94 (Regular season), 33GP 26+41=67 (Playoffs)
@Mrantonn  14GP, 13W, 83.65 SV%, 1.21 GAA, 4 SO (Regular season), 16GP, 12W, 79.37 SV%, 1.63 GAA, 4 SO (Playoffs)

Exerceo ended up having a very similar formula as Bjorkloven, where a very strong duo up front carried their game very far. @Sagee95 and @Limbe65 were their main weapons all season, which shows in their numbers.

@Sagee95  26GP, 45+53=98 (Regular season), 30GP, 26+44=70 (Playoffs)
@Limbe65  26GP, 52+45=97 (Regular season), 30GP, 32+39=71 (Playoffs)(Playoffs)

A third team that ended up pushing way further than expected (despite consistently being at the losing end of predictions) were Hotbox, who faltered only in the semifinals at the hands of the eventual champion. You could say they had three go-to guys that were their drivers all season long:

@Frans-Fin  26GP, 30+57=87 (Regular season), 34GP, 24+41=65 (Playoffs)
@Jann3_67_  26GP, 30+36=66 (Regular season), 34GP, 30+22=52 (Playoffs)
@Randomjanne  26GP, 16W, 77.12 SV%, 2.38 GAA, 4 SO (Regular season), 34GP, 23W, 82,69 SV%, 1.85 GAA, 2 SO (Playoffs)

The french connection was strong in a team from - you guessed it - France. Grenoble BDL Esport had a sensational season led by a few players:

@Adri1_SCP 26GP, 40+30=70 (Regular season), 34GP, 37+33=70 (Playoffs)
@Winci   20GP, 30+35=65 (Regular season), 31GP, 19+33=52 (Playoffs)
@Trollstivegen 26GP, 19W, 78.1 SV%, 2.04 GAA, 3 SO (Regular season), 34GP, 18W, 76,62 SV%, 2.44 GAA, 5 SO (Playoffs)
 

Although MUKIMIEHET was one of the biggest disappointments of the season, two of their stars played a big role in their overall performance. For example, @PCJP had great stats as a goalie and was one of the best players in his team despite them being eliminated early. The same applies to @hpkfani as forward who was dominant in the offensive zone, just as we're used to.

@hpkfani  28GP, 25+49=74 (Regular season), 5GP, 0+4=4 (Playoffs)
@PCJP  28GP, 23W, 83.41 SV%, 1.32 GAA, 8 SO (Regular season), 5GP, 1W, 77,55 SV%, 2.2 GAA, 0 SO (Playoffs)
 

The ones who eliminated the big, bad MUKIMIEHET were Tic Tac Toes and they had three main guys dominating their stats department. @L4nnisto was a great secondary scorer from the defense while @Artuzio and @Wpaanane lit it up as forwards. @maatti64 did a good job in the playoffs with the added responsibility, showcasing the potential he has.

@Wpaanane  22GP, 41+43=84 (Regular season), 11GP, 13+6=19 (Playoffs)
@Artuzio  26GP, 35+44=79 (Regular season), 11GP, 5+15=20 (Playoffs)
@L4nnisto  26GP, 6+33 =39 (Regular season), 11GP, 4+3=7 (Playoffs)
 

One of the biggest surprises of the season was Golden Nights. Although their defence backed up very well, their dominant attacking line  Naappi, Saskipoeka00 and JJimbo stood for almost 75% of their production throughout the season.

@Naaappi  26GP, 26+27=53 (Regular season) 16GP, 10+6=16 (Playoffs)
@Sasuttaja00  26GP, 30+22=52 (Regular season) 16GP, 11+9=20 (Playoffs)
@JJimbo-  26GP, 19+32=51 (Regular season) 16GP, 7+14=21 (Playoffs)

Concluding words of the season

It was really entertaining to follow the Lite division throughout the season. There were loads of exciting games with all the ingredients of great hockey. We all know the pinnacle of virtual hockey to be ECL Elite, but the Lite division should by no means sell itself short - it is high level. Teams have a very professional attitude and the entire ECL framework has a bright future ahead. The journey to mainstream entertainment has only just begun. All people involved should feel proud to be a part of the community and to be among the pioneers pushing this sport forward. Thanks to all - now let's look forward to next season in the ECL.