PVPLive’s HPL Week 6 Recap
by JR Cook - 9 years ago show comments
Week 6 of HPL has just finished, but how much has the landscape of the league changed from week 5? Join me as I recap the best moments of week 4, and we prepare for what’s still to come.
| Standing | Player | Win% | Wins | Losses | GB | Streak | L5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SjoW | 80.0 | 8 | 2 | 4-1 | ||
| 2 | Dog | 77.8 | 7 | 2 | 0.5 | 2 | 3-2 |
| 3 | Zalae | 66.7 | 6 | 3 | 1.5 | 4 | 4-1 |
| 3 | Purple | 66.7 | 6 | 3 | 1.5 | 1 | 4-1 |
| 5 | JAB | 63.6 | 7 | 4 | 1.5 | 3-2 | |
| 6 | Neirea | 60.0 | 6 | 4 | 2.0 | 1 | 2-3 |
| 7 | Superjj | 55.6 | 5 | 4 | 2.5 | 1 | 2-3 |
| 8 | Muzzy | 54.5 | 6 | 5 | 2.5 | 4 | 4-1 |
| 9 | Powder | 50.0 | 5 | 5 | 3.0 | 2-3 | |
| 10 | ErA | 40.0 | 4 | 6 | 4.0 | 2-3 | |
| 11 | Kaldi | 37.5 | 3 | 5 | 4.0 | 2-3 | |
| 11 | Kranich | 37.5 | 3 | 5 | 4.0 | 2-3 | |
| 13 | Rdu | 28.6 | 2 | 5 | 4.5 | 2-2 | |
| 14 | ek0p | 25.0 | 2 | 6 | 5.0 | 1-4 | |
| 15 | Ostkaka | 14.3 | 1 | 6 | 5.5 | 1-4 | |
| 16 | Greensheep | 12.5 | 1 | 7 | 6.0 | 0-5 |
Highlights
The Sjowstopper:
As we told you last week, this week was going to be the week of the Sjow. Sjow delivered big time on Monday and Wednesday, beating Jab and Powder, and extending his winning streak to 6. But 7 wasn’t to be Sjow’s lucky number, as his streak came crashing to a halt on Thursday. Archon’s Zalae followed up on an earlier win against Ostkaka, and took a hard fought 3-2 victory over our tournament leader. Zalae got super frothy, finishing Sjow off with a huge Berserker + Grim Patron that you just have to see for yourself on the video below.
With this victory, Zalae now jumps to third place on his competition and is tied for the longest winning streak at 4.
Sweeping the competition:
This week featured lots of 3-0 sweeps. JJ over Neirea, Dog over RDU, Zalae over Ostkaka, Purple over Kranich, Neirea over Ekop, and Muzzy over RDU. That’s 6 sweeps out of 12 games, a whooping 50%. Funny enough, the other 6 games were all 3-2 nailbiters. With the half-point of the season now past us, the leaderboard is painting a clear picture of who the favorites are.
Team Dominance:
Right now, only 4 teams have players on the TOP 8. Liquid has Sjow and Neirea, Complexity has Dog and SuperJJ, Archon has Zalae and Purple, and finally Hearthlytics has Jab and Muzzy. Sure there’s still a bit under a half of a season to go, and the bottom part of the top 8 is still heavily contested. But you cannot tell me that some teams haven’t been making a serious statement here on HPL.
It’s looking very likely that all 4 of these elite teams will get an invite to season 2 of HPL.
Next Week’s Featured Matches
Sjow vs ErA:
If you thought Sjow week was over, better think again. Sure, Zalae might have stopped Sjow for now. But the Liquid representative is still our overall leader and he will be looking to start a new winning streak. ErA is not that far from the TOP 8 himself, and he is going to need every win he can get to make sure he earns a pass to the LAN finale. These two collide on Monday, and the stakes are high.
Kaldi vs Powder:
Both Kaldi and Powder are players that are just below the TOP 8, but still have a very good chance of sneaking back up there and getting their respective teams invited back for season 2. This match is key in their top 8 efforts as they get closer and closer to their goal, and at the same time they send one of their direct competitors down a peg. Sadly, they are both representing Fnatic on this tournament. This Tuesday, tune in for what could become a real team kill match.
Zalae vs Muzzy:
What do Zalae and Muzzy have in common? Well, for starters they are both currently on the TOP 8 of the leaderboard. They are also both 4-1 on their last 5, and both carry an active 4-game winning streak. This Wednesday one streak extends to 5, and one sees its end. The winner of this match is going to be the hottest player on HPL, and if they can capitalize on that momentum, they will be a heavy favorite going forward.
Kaldi vs Kranich:
Kaldi has not 1, but 2 key match-ups this week. Kranich is also lurking right below the top 8, and Kaldi will be once again trying to keep his competition down. Kaldi has the unique opportunity to shape his future, by winning both of his matches he can separate himself from the rest of the competitors trying to sneak into the top 8. Tune into HPL this Thursday to see these two go at it.
For more information on HPL, head over to PVPLive’s Website, and check the matches live on their Twitch Channel from Monday through Thursday, starting 6:30pm Eastern.
