Three days of wild card weekend are ahead of us. That means three days of previewing great playoff matchups. We’re here to give you a glimpse of what you’ll see for every series this weekend. Here are all the Acadamy League matchups happening today, July 23rd.
DOUBLES
Rhinos (2) vs. Pandas (7): 7:00 pm on mlesportsgg2
Our first matchup in the Orange Conference consists of a scrap between a 2 and 7 seed. On paper, the Sun Division winner Rhinos appear to have the advantage with a phenomenal goal differential of 91. However, the Pandas boast very similar averages to the Rhinos, meaning we’ll likely get a great game out of the two. I’d expect to see The End Of You make a big impact for the Rhinos as he boasts a whopping 5.92 MVPR and only 6 losses on the season. As for the Pandas, Bearhawk02 will probably step out as the Pandas leader, holding a strong 5.15 MVPR and a relentless 4.4 shots per game.
Sabres (2) vs. Spartans (7) 7:00 pm on mlesportsgg3
Heading over to the Blue Conference, we have the Arctic Division winning Sabres against the 7th seeded Spartans. Despite their seedings, the teams come in matched up fairly evenly, with only one game separating their records. For the Sabres, Little Sauctin stands out to me with an MVPR just under 5. If I had to pick an MVP for the Spartans I’d have to go with TheSouthPawRyan. Despite his lower salary, he commands a solid 5.02 MVPR over 15 games.
Standard
Pirates (2) vs. Rhinos (7) 8:00 pm on mlesportsgg
As we head into standard we go back to the Orange Conference where we see a divisional battle between the Pirates and Rhinos. There seems to be a large gap in the odds, as the Pirates lead the Rhinos by 9 games. However, the late-season loss of Hakuu may shorten the gap a bit. With the Pirates that remain, however, Finicko is certainly a player to be wary of as he leads the Pirates in all major stats. For the Rhinos, Yurek is the player to watch, as he holds an MVPR of just under 3.
Lightning (2) vs Jets (7) 8:00 pm on mlesportsgg2
Swapping over to the Blue Conference, we have a matchup between the 7th seeded Jets and the 2nd seeded Lightning. While the Lightning have found dominance in their division in 3s, some midseason roster changes may prove detrimental against the Jets. One of the Jet’s greatest strengths has always been their team chemistry and comradery. A postseason push is certainly not out of range for this group. The Lightning have been led in 3s by the offensive fanatic Aatxe, who nearly has a 3.5 MVPR and 57 goals. For the Jets, it’s the Micah show, boasting a 3.17 MVPR over 30 games.
Those are the series that you will see on day one of the Academy League wild card round. Be sure to stop in throughout the weekend for more previews of this weekend’s matches and tune into all our twitch channels to catch all the MLE action.
