Dallas didn’t play at all last week, but they did make some big changes to the staff over the break. The Dallas that will be playing this week will have Lucas “Note” Meissner from the Boston Uprising on the starting roster. This trade likely happened due to Note’s and Assistant Coach Justin “Jayne” Conroy’s previous history on Team Canada from the 2018 World Cup.
Not only that but previous Main Tank turned Assistant Coach Christian “Cocco” Jonsson retired and Dallas picked up Julien “daemoN” Ducros from the Paris Eternal to take his place. There was one more bombshell that dropped last week with Hyeong “Effect” Hwang announcing his retirement from professional Overwatch. This could be problematic for the Fuel as this stage is seeing more flexibility and DPS picks. Effect was a staple Tracer player but he also could flex over to Genji, Widowmaker, Soldier: 76, Doomfist and anything the roster needed. This week could be the time for Zachary “ZachaREEE” Lombardo to fill the shoes of Effect and flex for the team.
(Image Courtesy of the Toronto Defiant)
Toronto flew under the radar a bit last Stage, but ended up in the Playoffs regardless. So far Toronto played one match sporting DPS compositions against the Washington Justice, with newcomer Jin “IM37” Hong on Widowmaker and Tracer. If Dallas wants to take that duel Dylan “aKm” Bignet may have to reacquaint himself with Widowmaker. Perhaps viewers may see the return of Timo “Taimou” Kettunen for a Widow duel. Since ZachaREEE plays both Tracer and Widowmaker, he is also an option that could step up to the plate.
The maps in this set are Oasis, Paris, Kings Row and Rialto. Oasis is the only map in this set that is almost guaranteed to have DPS characters, with Kings Row and Rialto being GOATS favored. Teams are still making up strategies for attacking and defending Paris, but Bastion, Orisa and Baptise have looked strong on the defense of both points so far.
Can Dallas adapt to their new roster? Can ZachaREEE fill the shoes left by Effect? These questions are on everyone’s mind going into Dallas’ first match this stage. It took some time for Dallas to find their flow in Stage 1, this could very well happen again if Dallas decides to switch up compositions.
Prediction: Toronto wins 3-2
2018-09-23 / Photo: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
After daemoN came over from the Paris team, it only makes sense to pit his new team against his old one. The Paris roster is getting different looks, both in the starting six and in their compositions. Last Stage Paris exclusively played GOATS, now they are pulling out triple DPS compositions. This could also mean Dallas will run triple DPS compositions instead of the 3-3 they have gotten used to.
The maps in this match are Busan, Paris, Blizzard World and Rialto. Both Busan and Blizzard World are DPS favored due to their open design, so expect something unique coming from both teams on these maps. However, Paris so far are favoring Bunker compositions for defense and high mobility for attack. There will likely be some shenanigans on this odd map. Rialto, while having a fairly open design, is generally considered a strong GOATS map. Dallas looked strong on GOATS last Stage, so there is a strong possibility they will be running it here.
This match could be considered the OWL version of the French Revolution. The Fuel roster has aKm and Benjamin “uNKOE” Chevasson from team France in the OWWC, as well as the new coach daemoN from Team Paris. This going up against the Paris Eternal, where four players and three staff are French, means that the winner of this match could be considered the better French team.
Prediction: Dallas wins 3-1
Image Courtesy of Dallas Fuel
Fresh off of the Boston Uprising, Lucas “Note” Meissner will be trying to gel with his new teammates. While flexing less than the previous Off-Tank, Note would be considered the better D.Va player. His playstyle could take time for the rest of the roster to get used to. He tends to be good at spotting out positional errors from the enemy and will try to punish them for it. Note has always been a pleasure to watch, so now that he is on a new team, keep an extra close eye on him.
What are your predictions for week two? Tell Ethan what you think @Hearin_Voices
Featured image courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
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