Leafs kick off online gaming tourney, with finale at Scotiabank Arena Jan. 3

TORONTO — Having already brought the Raptors and Toronto FC into the esports world, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment is now looking for the best hockey video gamers.

The Toronto Maple Leafs and World Gaming Network have announced Leafs Gaming League, a one-versus-one online ladder for “EA Sports NHL 19” gamers.

“We want to find the best

‘NHL 19’ gamer in Leafs Nation, and crown them as the Leafs gaming champion,” said Shane Talbot, MLSE’s esports manager.

From Oct. 3 through the 2018 holiday season, “NHL 19” gamers can compete online with ladder rankings determining qualification for various promotions and tournaments, including the grand finals Jan. 3 at Scotiabank Arena.

The prize for the winner has yet to be announced.

All players will use the Maple Leafs as their team, moving up and down the ladder depending on their results.

The top eight players on the ladder as of midnight Oct. 18 will also take part in Leafs Gaming Day on Oct. 21 at Real Sports Bar and Grill in Toronto.

Organizers are not sure how many gamers the online tournament will attract. “What we know is that Toronto is wellrepresented in the NHL (gaming) community. We know there’s a lot of top players in Leaf Nation. So we’re excited to see what the response is,” said Talbot.

The National Hockey League’s first foray into esports was the NHL Gaming World Championship, which netted Finnish winner Erik Tammenpaa US$50,000 in June.

The league has also encouraged its franchises to pursue esports locally.

World Gaming partnered earlier this year with the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation, created by the late Philadelphia Flyers owner, for the inaugural Snider Hockey Cup. The event, whose final was in March, drew more than 4,000 gamers.

It was the first tournament using the made-in-Canada EA Sports NHL title for World Gaming, although the gaming platform has put on hockey events since 2010 under its previous guise as Virgin Gaming.