This week in the Overwatch League we have two teams returning to play. First off is the London Spitfire, raring to go against the Hunters in the Asia region. Second, is the Vancouver Titans, however they may appear. At the time of this writing, (05/06/2020), they have not confirmed who they have signed, but they have released their entire roster and coaches. This also means that Vancouver’s place is representative of votes before the entire roster was released. The first match of the week, Shanghai versus Seoul, is the match-of-the-week, as two top-tier teams battle it out. In Week 14’s hero pools we have Ashe, Reaper, Reinhardt, and Brigitte out of rotation. With all that covered, here’s how The Game Haus has the Overwatch League Power Rankings.
(High is the highest an individual ranked the team, Low is the lowest an individual ranked them, and LW= Last Week’s Power Ranking Position)
The Dragons are able to maintain their hold on first overall in the rankings, thanks in part to a wonderful match against the NYXL last week. While they went down 2-0, the Dragons roared back and completed the reverse sweep. It’s good to see that the Dragons have the ability to make adjustments mid-match, something that could be a detriment last season. Also good was Jin-hyeok “DDing” Yang’s Echo, as the talented DPS was an excellent pair to rookie-of-the-year candidate Jae Won “Lip” Lee.
Philly did what Philly do, they went to another game five against the Eternal and pulled it out. While this may say more about Paris than the Fusion, Philly fans should remain confident. This team is absolutely one of the best teams in the league and it is a shame that they wont be able to see who is top dog against the likes of the Dragons and Excelsior anytime soon. Those games would be straight fire. Until then, Philly will likely remain second.
The NYXL are still settling into their new division, and trying to prove they are still a top-tier team. Their consistency continues to keep them highly ranked, but it will take more than that if they want to end this season as champions. This week vs the Charge should give them an opportunity to add more stability to their record and smooth out some of the wrinkles they showed last weekend.
The Shock were easily able to take down the Outlaws with a 3-0 map score, but were taken to a draw on Paris. Dongjun “Rascal” Kim was particularly impressive in Echo’s Overwatch debut. The Shock aren’t the clear frontrunners they were last season, but they are most definitely a top-tier team. Even with Jay “Sinatraa” Won departed, this team’s DPS like Rascal, is lethal.
Image courtesy of Robert Paul for the Overwatch League
Until now, Atlanta has been able to blame their lackluster record on strength of schedule. It may be time to start wondering if they are able to keep their heads above water with the shifting weekly metas or if they can only excel in specific circumstances. Projected to do very well this season- the Reign at times seem unable to find their footing, which is worrisome if they want to come anywhere close to the expectations set for them. After last weekend, they shouldn’t take this weeks’ match against Houston lightly.
The Seoul Dynasty had a rough few games. Last week was not their meta. The first loss in this streak of losses was against one of the top teams of the Shanghai Dragons. Hopefully this week they will fit into this meta better, but they will have to tighten up their communication and learn how to deal with Echo.
The Gladiators end the week with another victory at the expense of Toronto. Another great victory comes in the form of Mirror finding another useful weapon in the game’s newest hero, Echo. But only time will tell if their momentum will continue against the Paris Eternal.
The Paris Eternal find themselves slipping down the rankings after a three match losing streak on the back of mounting roster complications. DPS stand-out Jung “Xzi” Ki-hyo has had to miss several matches while returning to Korea for health issues and main support Harrison “Kruise” Pond was transferred to the Toronto Defiant on Friday. But if Sunday’s five map brawl against the Philadelphia Fusion (again) is any indication, the Eternal are still here to put up a good fight. With brand new support pickup Kwon “Fielder” Joon making a legendary debut, playing from Korea on 200ms ping, Paris seems to be headed back in the right direction.
The Charge continue to be a middling team, though perhaps gradually growing stronger as they swept a struggling Dynasty last week. In Week 14, they’ll face the giants again with NYXL being their first opponent. Then they battle it out against the Spitfire, who haven’t played since Week 4. This should likely be a neutral week for the Charge, neither bringing them up or down in the rankings. That is, unless they can manage to pull off an upset over the NYXL.
Robert Paul of Blizzard Entertainment
After a few lacklustre weeks, the Spark finally showed off their prowess with a 3-0 win versus the mighty Seoul Dynasty. Hangzhou was able to make it a hat-trick after the Dynasty suffered back-to-back 0-3 losses to Shanghai and Guangzhou. The win exemplified that the team is not giving up on the season by matching both the Dragons and the Charge in recent map differential against Seoul. On top of that, it also showed the team’s resilience against teams that they have previously lost to. Whether this is a result that the Spark can consistently produce is to be seen, but is 100% a bright spot in a currently mediocre season for the squad.
Who saw that coming? It was certainly possible, but not expected. The Valiant’s upset win proves that their record does not reflect their actual skill. Now with two easy seeming games ahead of them, they could finish the May Tournament qualifier at 3-0. Things are looking up.
Although Florida is now on a small winning streak, the majority of their recent opponents have been poorly performing teams like Toronto and Boston, so they haven’t yet been able to justify their current position in the top eight of the ladder. And unfortunately, the Mayhem’s next two matches are against a Washington team that looks to be the the worst performing team in the league besides Boston and Vancouver — a team that may or may not even have a team under contract right now. So for the time being, it seems the Mayhem should be able to keep coasting forward.
Dallas has worked their way up the rankings and has established themselves firmly in the middle of the pack. Up until now, they have largely played against opponents that stand at their level or lower on the totem pole. Their next test, however, is the Philadelphia Fusion. This week, the Fuel are playing with the big boys.
Chengdu had their rematch against the NYXL and returned with the same result, a loss. However, their performance was better, being able to snag one map win. This week, they’ll face the Spitfire, a team that hasn’t played since Week 4. An upstart team looking to prove themselves could easily describe either of these teams at the moment, and it should be an invigorating match to watch.
This team continues to dash the hopes of its fans. It has a solid performance one week against its rival and then lays an egg the next. While it was against the Shock, Houston still just never seem to be on the same page. It is hard to tell if it is the talent or coaching but there is something that needs to be done with this team sooner rather than later. There is still a good chance for Houston to make a run but until some changes are made and some puzzle pieces are fit together or found at all, they will be mired near the bottom of the standings.
Image courtesy of the Toronto Defiant twitter.
Toronto showed this week that they are a team that you cannot take lightly. Being able to take a map off of the Gladiators is no small feat. DPS superstars Brady “Agilities” Girardi and Lane “Surefour” Roberts adapted nicely to and playing against Echo while other players like Adam “Beast” Denton and Jooseong “RoKy” Park had their moments. Though they came out losing, Defiant fans can be proud to see the team is still fighting despite losing both a main coach and a main support. Sadly, the road gets no smoother moving forward. The Defiant will be taking on the San Francisco Shock this Sunday followed by the L.A. Valiant the following week. The team will have to work extra hard while continuing to integrate their new main support Harrison “Kruise” Pond.
The Washington Justice continue to toil toward the bottom of the power rankings with another loss at the hands of the Dallas Fuel. The promise and excitement that surrounded this team has faded, and they look much like they did last season. The star talent is there, it just doesn’t persist or result in a team win. This week they have their best shot at climbing back into the win column, facing off against the currently unconfirmed Tier 2 Vancouver Titans roster.
Boston lost in another awful 3-0 fashion, but they delayed Florida a little bit this time around. If there is one take away from this game, it’s that Boston looks a little better than horrid when they are on offense. Once the Uprising can figure out their defensive gameplan, they just might eek out a map win.
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Our voters for OWL Power Rankings: Jezi Scott, Ethan Seftor, Mallory, Robert Hanes, Dalton Jewell, Lotte, Sam O’Dwyer, Bryan Rockwood, Brad Killion, Seneca, Mandii, Rhiannon, Laruen “Daebakowl” Olson, Matthew Kennedy, Christian Wisniewski, Jordan Garcia, Rocco Romeo, Tiffany Purcell, Joe Gvora, London Bishop, Sebastian Quintanilla, Ethan Butler,
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