THL Power Rankings: Week 1

2/17/2016

by TeamHearthLeague AP

A special shoutout to Tavern Talk for discussing the rankings and creating their own, as well as the community coming together to make a collective ranking, it was interesting hearing the different thoughts on all of the teams.

This week may be the toughest week to rank teams as the preseason rankings were just projections, now you have to factor in results as well, but you have the smallest amount of results that you will have all season. It's also important to note power rankings are not the same as standings which goes purely by results, power rankings have to balance results with the overall strength of a team. But hey, what's a rankings list without a little controversy?

What a way to kick off season two of THL. There was a massive upset, several teams validated their high ranking, and lots of series were very close. We have to be careful not to overreact after just one week but it seems a little clearer which teams are in the top half of the league, and that there isn't that big of a gap between the top and bottom teams. This is how I have the teams after a week of play.

1. Soupreme (last week: 5) – 1st Blue – 19 pts

Soupreme started off their season playing against the veteran Gosu Casuals and despite a disqualification from Moo easily cruised to victory. DeerJason and Cheesee10 only allowed one combined point from the casuals top two seeds and with what seems to be another scary 1-2 punch find themselves atop this week's rankings.

2. Xnergy (last week: 1) – 2nd Green – 18 pts

Going against Team Golden Wisp week one proved to be a good test for Xnergy, emerging with just a two point victory. Catota and VendiClique, a source of consistency for Xnergy last season, lost their matchups but Pacetry and TheSacredJew both kicked off their return to THL with key wins that gave Xnergy the edge.

3. Entropy (last week: 3) – 1st Red – 20 pts

It seems Entropy knew which wire to cut as they took out Boom Squad with a convincing win. Arthur Rhodes and Xaether were able to keep their cool on stream and win deciding game fives to help their team secure the win. This season's Entropy looks to be much more balanced than before and that balance should mean good results for them in the red division.

4. Pure Strategy (last week: 10) – 1st Green – 21 pts

Seeing the biggest jump in rankings this week is the team of Pure Strategy. Hambowen's squad welcomed Top Deck Kings to THL with a bit of a beatdown, scoring the most points of any team this week and coming one game short of scoring the maximum amount. It seems the new additions wasted no time complimenting YuruYuri and Hambowen and this new look Pure Strategy may be a team to watch out for.

5. Team Rank Five (last week: 2) – 3rd Orange – 12 pts

Shortly after writing the preseason rankings I was notified about a bit of a bombshell, captain Mainge was sitting out season two and being replaced by MVParker. This instantly gave TR5 a much needed one seed and would have gave them the preseason number one ranking with such a stacked roster. However, this stacked roster struggled a little out of the gate, losing to the consensus lowest ranked team. TR5 still has a great roster but will have to prove themselves over the next few weeks.

6. Team Golden Wisp (last week: 9) – 3rd Blue – 13 pts

It may look a little puzzling to see a team gain ranks after a loss but Team Golden Wisp barely missed the victory against a very strong Xnergy squad, with Alec and DrewbixQube getting key victories in their respective seeds. Alec has carried over his momentum from the playoffs and is proving to be a top tier one seed, now the only question is how well the newcomers on Team Golden Wisp will do moving forward.

7. Archon Storm (last week: 4) – 3rd Red – 14 pts

Perhaps there was some truth to Archon Storm taking a season off after ending week one with a tie over a team they had both a PR and experience advantage over. Hertzdonut continued his winning streak and now has the longest winning streak in the league, and new addition to the team Gideoneko started his season off with a sweep giving Archon Storm their only wins this week. There is still a lot of talent on this team but we'll have to see how a more relaxed approach affects them as the season goes on.

8. The Hairy Generals (last week: 11) – 2nd Blue – 14 pts

I originally had placed the Hairy Generals higher as three of four members came away with victories and it seemed they had secured a decisive win over Those Filthy Roleplayers. Then I saw BoomBoomHall had forfeited and the generals would now come away with a tie. This doesn't necessarily change how strong a team they are but it is a slight concern

9. The Gosu Casuals (last week: 6) – 4th Green – 8 pts

Slimsch and company didn't start off season two as they would have liked, running into a buzzsaw named Soupreme week one. Slimshch's impressive winning streak as a one seed has come to an end but there will be more streaks in the future. While not a great opener, The Gosu Casuals still have a nice roster and will not be playing teams the caliber of Soupreme every week.

10. The Super Heroes (last week: 8) – 1st Orange – 17 pts

The Super Heroes claimed a victory over Continuum in a nail-biter week one. The duo of SuperSam and MonkeyWarlord, kept intact from The Angry Chicken Fan Club, both found wins along with rookie JerryDamage. As with before, there are no concerns with SuperSam but the heroes success will depend on how fast the other members are able to adjust to THL.

11. Continuum (last week: 13) – 4th Red – 13 pts

One of the new teams to THL, Continuum came up just a point short of a victory in week one. Despite the loss, there were positives as many of the matches were close and Almace also got back on track with a win which will put him as Continuum's one seed heading into week two. There is a lot of potential for Continuum, time will tell if they are able to turn that potential into results.

12. Boom Squad (last week: 7) – 4th Orange – 10 pts

One of the harder teams to accurately assess with three THL rookies and a returning member to the league, Boom Squad had a rough go of things week one. Not everything was bad though, with three of the matches going to game five and the top seed DannyWu was able to win his first ever THL match. Boom Squad is still very volatile and may see the biggest swings on the rankings until they've had a few weeks to settle in.

13. The Dream Team (last week: 16) – 2nd Red – 17 pts

What a week for the Dream Team. Considered by everyone to be the weakest team in THL they shocked the league by handing Team Rank Five a loss, even with a disqualification from one of their players. Much was made about their low team PR and only offseason move being the addition of Leumer, which funnily enough the entire series came down to a game five which Leumer won. One win won't completely change the perception of a team but it is a start.

14. Those Filthy Roleplayers (last week: 14) – 3rd Green – 14 pts

With the help of a late disqualification Those Filthy Roleplayers came away with a tie week one. Rookie arbitraryarmor picked up a win over another rookie, the touted PokeHer, and will switch seeds with his teammate Alexstrasza for week two. It will be interesting to see how the pair of arbitraryarmor and Alexstrasza perform going forward.

15. Noob Central (last week: 15) – 2nd Orange – 14 pts

The defending champions and underdog team Noob Central walked away in a stalemate with the always dangerous Archon Storm. stiLLer3k opened his THL career off with a nice win over ClarkKent, and like his teammate from a season ago Kuthroat built upon his success from the playoffs and is gaining attention as a strong two seed.

16. Top Deck Kings – 4th Blue – 7 pts (last week: 12)

The new team with a complete roster of new players struggled a little week one going against the experienced Pure Strategy. Many new players have had this experience to THL as there is definitely an adjustment period, but the good news is it doesn't have to last very long. After learning the format and what to expect a lot of players and teams have seen improvement and Top Deck Kings can do the same as well.

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