The quarterfinals roll into day two and we have more exciting matches, including the start of the Premier League playoffs. It’s going to be another action packed day of both 2s and 3s across three different channels. There’s a lot to watch and you’re not going to want to miss a second of it. To help guide you through all the streams we’re going to be breaking down every match for today, July 31st.
Foundation League
Standard: Puffins (1) vs. Sabres (4) 5:00 pm on mlesportsgg2
Foundation league 3s kicks off with an Arctic Division rivalry. The Sabres are a good pick for an underdog in these playoffs. They come in as the 4th seed but have some decent stats in their favor. G00S3N is 3rd overall in goals with 46 on the season and Maple is 3rd in assists with 24. The pair make a good combination that could thwart any of the higher-seeded teams on a good day. On the other side, the Puffins have seemingly flown under the radar for a number one seed. Despite a strong finish late in the season, closing out the last three weeks with a 13-2 record, they’ve spent most of the season sitting just below the league-leading Shadow and Hawks teams. But that doesn’t mean the Puffins aren’t lethal. They have the number one player in goals and assists with RealTouchy. They also have a star player in Frost who has but up 21 goals and 23 assists across 20 games.
Standard: AVIATORS (2) VS. HAWKS (3) 5:00 PM ON MLESPORTSGG3
This match will be a close one. It’s not just because the Aviators and Hawks are both airborne teams. They’re in the same division and have the exact same record. The Hawks are seeded higher because of ??? (some tiebreaker mumbo jumbo, we don’t know, go ask a League Ops member). The Hawks at 4 sat right under the Aviators at 3 in week 12 power rankings. In week 13, they switched places to put the Hawks on top at 3 and the Aviators on the bottom at 4. With how similar these teams are we have to look at the standout players to try and predict who will take the series. The Aviators have NEO on their side, the FL 3s player with the highest average MVPR of 3.82. Meanwhile, the Hawks have CellachMud with the second-highest average score of 403.45. This highly anticipated match is sure to be a highlight of the night as it kicks off the MLESPORTSGG3 stream.
Doubles: Flames (2) vs. Spectre (3) 6:00 pm on MLEsportsgg2
Despite this being a three versus two seed, this match looks to be more of an uphill battle for the Spectre than most would think. The Spectre have a great player in Istroception. 4th in shots of goal and 8th in goals, Istorception can be a difference-maker in any match. Badger also shows up as an impressive option, scoring 32 goals over 20 games. But the Spectre limped into the playoffs on a 6-9 record in the final three weeks. The Flames, however, seem to be catching fire at just the right time. They finished the second round of divisional play with a 12 and 3 record, including a convincing 4-1 win over the league-leading Shadow. Justin4728 has been the star of the team with a 5.19 MVPR this season and will likely put on a show in this match. Anything can happen in the playoffs and the Spectre aren’t a team to quit easily but they’re going to need to bring everything they’ve got to this matchup.
Academy League
Doubles: Knights (3) vs. Blizzard (4) 6:00 pm on mlesportsgg
We have a battle of two teams who had big wins in the Blue Conference quarterfinals. For the Knights, SirHoldSpace and KyleCornDog took charge in a close series against the Puffins. SirHoldSpace led the way with a 6.94 MVPR on 16 goals. As for the Blizzard Helly and Pesoh won another close series against the Hawks. Pesoh led the Blizzard with a 5.07 MVPR with a great defensive effort. This game could definitely be a close one and will be incredibly exciting to watch. Expect these two teams to continue playing to their strengths as a good offense meets a strong defense.
Doubles: Shadow (1) vs. Flames (5) 7:00 pm on mlesportsgg
The Flames come off a hot win against the Bulls led by FlaMEz and Binkyboppin. In an offensive explosion with 37 total shots, the Flames proved that their 5 seed might not reflect the level of skill they bring to the table. The Shadow, on the other hand, come off a week of rest. You could expect to see season leader TeeEsEm play, as he has a 5.01 MVPR over all of their series. While the Flames have momentum, will it be enough to beat the top-seeded Shadow?
Doubles: Aviators (1) vs. Spartans (7) 7:00 pm on mlesportsgg3
Last week the Spartans shocked MLE by sweeping the Sabres in a huge win with SpongebobGGoober and Passive Ways. Goober was definitely the star player, picking up a massive 7.84 MVPR in the process. As for their opponent, you could expect to see KuroKenshi play as he picked up a respectable 4.44 MVPR over 50 games. This game will be exciting for sure as the Spartans showed last week just what a seven seed can do.
Standard: Flames (5) vs. Elite (7) 6:00 pm on mlesportsgg3
The Flames come off another hot win against the Demolition. FlaMEz led the charge on 6 goals and a 3.66 MVPR against the four seed. With a win in both modes this postseason, this Flames team has to be feeling good and playing with confidence. As for the Elite, MysticGX led the way with a 3.54 MVPR also scoring 6 goals. The Elite are also coming off a big upset and should be just as confident after taking down a number 2 seeded team. This matchup will come down to the MVPs of the last series, the only question is, who is stronger?
Champion League
Doubles: Sharks (1) vs. Bears (7) 8:00 pm on mlesportsgg3
They say it’s difficult to win a shootout with an Outlaw but that’s exactly what the Bears did in week one to get the victory in a tough five-game series. Zinc and Linke combine for 17 goals on 39 shots against the favored Sun Division rivals. They also had to pull off quite the defensive performance as the Outlaws put up 49 shots. It’s hard to get any win when your opponent is shooting almost ten shots a game but the Bears found a way. The Sharks on the other side won’t give the Bears any easier of a challenge this week. Hobo1104 has already proved to be an all-star in threes these playoffs and boasts the third-highest goals in the league in doubles with 101. A number of other Sharks could make an appearance in doubles but I have my eye out for Raspberries who has averaged 2.43 goals per game and 1.87 saves this season.
Standard: Outlaws (2) vs Dodgers (3) 7:00 pm on mlesportsgg2
The Dodgers series over the Shadow was probably one of the most exciting to watch last week even with its low-scoring games. The series went back and forth and neither team seemed to pull ahead. Shraxl, Jarhead, and Shadowz pulled equal weight in finally pulling out the game five win. The Dodger CL team has a lot going for them (including a standout player of Jarhead) but sometimes the biggest factor needed in the playoffs is grit and the Dodgers showed they have it. By comparison, the Outlaw’s week one win over the Wizards was almost a dull, clock-in, win, and clock-out affair. The Outlaws swept the series 3-0 and held their opponents to just three goals. Luke, Theevilisback, and EveryDamnDay look like a well-oiled machine. This series looks like an example of what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object. I can’t predict the result but I can tell you I’m very excited to witness it.
Master league
Doubles: Elite (3) vs. Rhinos (5) 8:00 pm on mlesportsgg
The one and only Master League match happening on Saturday will be an orange conference showdown between two fast (and furious) duos. Both teams took care of business in week one with a 3-1 victory. TmanRL and ElectoZx put up 18 goals on 38 shots to upset the fourth-seeded Spectre. They played four high-scoring games but proved they could win in a shooting contest to get the series victory. The Elite had to play a little more defense to fend off an upset from the Flames. Dstn and BuffaloBeast held their opponents to just 8 goals on 43 shots in those four games. The Elite look like a composed team who can punish on the quick counterattack. The Rhinos look exactly like their intimidating mascot, a charging rhino, willing to barrel through their opponents.
Premier League
Doubles: JETS (1) VS. BLIZZARD (4) 8:00 PM ON MLESPORTSGG2
The Jets vs Blizzard match tonight signals the start of the Premier League’s 2s playoffs. It’s a classic 1 vs 4 seed matchup to potentially set the tone for the rest of the PL matches through the night (and the rest of playoffs)! The Jets come in with an 82% game win percentage. This can be attributed to the teamwork and flexibility of the roster. Different combinations of their players yield surprisingly consistent results and no matter which players they bring to the table they’re sure to perform. I expect the Jets to put in their MLE veteran, Vitali., along with Wovah or Windle to round out the field. Most of their losses come to them in the middle of a series – game 3, specifically. This small flaw in the well-oiled machine of the Jets is where the Blizzard may need to strike. The Blizzard was swept by the Jets in their regular season encounter but this match could be their chance at redemption. Danger and Tagmata have been teaming up the last few weeks of the season to push the team into playoffs which they succeeded at. Perhaps the Blizzard duo’s specific chemistry will give them a chance at surprising the crowd tonight.
Doubles: BULLS (1) VS. TYRANTS (4) 9:00 PM ON MLESPORTSGG2
The Bulls sit on top of multiple leaderboards as they wait for their first round of playoffs tonight. Their regular season win rate is a whopping 82.2%. They’ve dropped 8 individual games and won 37. The only thing the Bulls are not currently dominating is the week 13 power rankings where they place 2nd. Evil and Deluxe have the opportunity to push past this first round if they can maintain the same skills that took them through the regular season. Despite being up against the Bulls, the Tyrants are far from doomed. In the first week of the season, the Tyrants pulled an impressive 5-0 victory over the Bulls. Both teams have changed a bit since then due to roster changes. The history is there if the Tyrants want to repeat it with their original team of Wein_22 and Ls against the Bulls.
Standard: Knights (1) vs Eclipse(4) 9:00 pm on mlesportsgg
The first time these two teams played each other this season it was unfortunately not streamed. But since then I have been looking forward to watching this rematch live, in the playoffs, where I think most people knew these teams would end up. The Eclipse, unlike most Premier League teams, have a six-player roster that has rotated around through most of the season. This means that the Eclipse are stacked with depth and have multiple options for lineups depending on who is meshing well together. Two players that you’re likely to see are Canadiyan, who leads the offense with 1.13 goals per game, and Pops, who is a defensive force with 1.7 saves per game. On the other side, we know all about who will be starting for the Knights. Prema, Comp, and Ryker have been wreaking havoc on teams all season in standard. Comp is the superstar with a 4.61 VMPR and a league-leading 62 goals on the season. The Knights enter the series as the favorite but I would expect some explosive play to come from both sides in this match.
Standard: Bulls (1) vs. Tyrants (4) 10:00 on mlesportsgg
On the Orange Conference side, we have yet another match that promises highlight-reel plays and some great competition. The outstanding offense of Deluxe will face off against the impeccable defense of Ls. Ls leads this Tyrants team of players who are excellent at holding the line on defense and not breaking under pressure. Low scoring games are their bread and butter and counter-attacking is their weapon of choice. Antzu and Wein_22 are the two other likely starters for the Tyrants, putting up average MVPRs of 3.28 and 2.86 respectively. The Tyrants face off against the number one seeded Bulls whose motto seems to be the best defense is a relentless offense. The team is lead by Deluxe who is 2nd in goals scored and tied for 2nd in shots this season. BasiliskRL has also made the top 10 in goals and Evil was 3rd in assists this season but not a single Bull made the top ten in saves, perhaps because they simply don’t spend any time on their own side of the field.
That’s everything you’re going to see on day two of the MLE season 12 quarterfinals. Be sure to tune in to our streams tonight on MLEsportsgg, MLEsportsgg2, and MLEsportsgg3 to catch all the action, and check back tomorrow for even more coverage of the playoffs.
