Since April, the SJHL has been running a “Best in Sask Circuit Series” to determine the best NHL 21 player in Saskatchewan. The league has not been shy about using the virtual platform to supplant some action during the leagues recent rough patch, running a very successful playoff simulation and player showcase so far since the pandemic hit.

The tournament has provided tons of opportunity for sponsor involvement, with around 330 games taking place as we arrive at championship weekend. 72 Saskatchewan based contestants opened up play with the divisional round on April 16th, and played in individual tournaments to decide the representative for each SJHL franchise.

Dexter Francis is the Kindersley Klippers representative for the tournament and now gets a chance to rep his team while he goes for the official title of the best NHL gamer in the province. He has played competitively in the past and anyone who knows Dexter would be the first to tell you he is the man at “Chel”, but his entrance into this sponsored tournament does come after some time away from the scene.

“I haven’t really played Chel competitively in a while,” Dexter told West Central Online, “I just saw (the tournament) on Twitter when it was getting hyped up.”

He told us about his league debut in 2016 that got him started with online gaming, and that from there it has been something he does either casually or competitively because he has always been such a natural at the game. The SJHL’s tournament is for the one-on-one crown though Dexter’s experience comes mostly through “EASHL”, a mode in the game where 6 players can team up to manually control each player on the ice and play together as a team against the rest of the league.

The league is as authentic as can be with 82 games, 32 owners, a salary cap, and hand picked rosters; so commitment is a very necessary trait when it comes to anyone wanting to try their hand at the game.

Back to the tournament, listen to Dexter explain his road to the Final 6.

If Dexter manages to get into the finals and win, he will be taking home $2500. He has to get through the round robin first, and perhaps an even bigger obstacle, as the night-owl gamer might be hard pressed to make the 10:00 am start time on Championship Sunday.

“That’s gonna be a tough one, 10:00 am… it just really hurt me when I saw that.”

Good luck Dex!