Taken from LoL Esports Youtube
This week in the European League Championship Series, we see the same three teams maintain their lead atop the standings. G2 Esports, Team Vitality, and H2K Gaming are all currently 11-3, with virtually nothing separating them. This is the first year competing for the EU LCS for two of these teams, with H2K being the only veteran. That being said, this is only H2K’s third split.
Photo credits go to: lolesports' Twitter
Here is a breakdown of each team in contention for first:
G2 Esports:
G2 Esports is new to the EU LCS, and surpassed most expectations making it this far. Despite how talented a team may be, it is very rare to be this successful in a team's first few splits in the EU LCS. They are looking to take it all, and the way things are going it is very possible.
- Top: Mateusz "Kikis" Szkudlarek - This year Kikis has moved away from some his preferred champions in the past to more meta picks such as Malphite, Poppy and Fiora, all of which has over a 6.0 KDA ratio on. Since his switch from jungle to top lane, he has been excelling for his team. He has a 4.9 KDA ratio, 6.6 CS per minute, and 66% kill participation.
- Jungle: GangYun "Trick" Kim - Trick has been one of the key factors in G2 Esports’ success this year. He has had great performances throughout the split that have landed his team the win. Often times you’ll see him on Nidalee or Lee Sin, but he has a very deep champion pool and this past week he played Gragas both games. Another astounding statistic is that Trick is 3-0 on Graves with a 32.0 KDA ratio. Trick’s average KDA ratio for the split is 6.4, CS per minute is 4.4, and kill participation is 74%.
- Mid: Luka "Perkz" Perkovic - He came into G2 Esports with some very strong possibly out of meta champions, but since then he has been able to play almost any champion his team needed. He still plays Viktor from time to time, but more commonly he plays Ahri and Lissandra, especially during recent matches. His KDA ratio this split is 5.5, CS per minute is 9.1, and kill participation is 68%.
- ADC: Jin-Hyeon "Emperor" Kim - After bouncing from Korea to North America and now finally to Europe, Emperor has found his place. As G2 Esports’ ADC this year, he has been one-half of an almost unstoppable bot lane duo, with his legendary Lucian. This split Emperor’s KDA ratio is 4.8, CS per minute is 8.5, and kill participation is 68%.
- Support: Glenn "Hybrid" Doornenbal - Hybrid has been a huge part of G2 Esports’ success this year as well. He plays a slew of supports, with his Braum sitting atop them all at 7-1 with a 7.2 KDA ratio. He even pulls out his Trundle support from time to time. His KDA ratio this split is 6.4, CS per minute is 1.3, and has 71% kill participation.
Team Vitality:
An overall ‘team of misfits,’ Team Vitality was put together with parts of H2K and Gambit Gaming. This is their first year at this stage of competitive play and to this point they have been excelling. They have won 6 games and show no signs of stopping.
- Top: Lucas "Cabochard" Simon-Meslet - Playing champions like Graves, Fiora, and Kennen in the top lane, Cabochard has helped his team lead the way to many victories. His average KDA ratio is 6.9, CS per minute at 7.7, and kill participation at 74% this split. Fun fact: he has not died in his last three games.
- Jungle: Ilyas "Shook" Hartsema - A combined 8-0 on Lee Sin and Nidalee, Shook has been a huge part of Team Vitality’s success this year. He prefers playing assassin junglers, despite the tank dominated meta. His average KDA ratio is 5.3, CS per minute at 4.0, and has 76% kill participation this split. His combined KDA in his last four games is 11/3/36.
- Mid: Erlend "Nukeduck" Holm - He is very comfortable on Ahri and Quinn, and often prefers deadly assassin mid laners, although he is very versatile at his role. Nukeduck often dies more than the rest of the team, resulting in lower overall KDAs, but it could be attributed to his aggressive playstyle or opponents focsuing him. His average KDA ratio is 5.0, CS per minute is 8.7, and has 68% kill participation this split.
- ADC: Petter "Hjärnan" Freyschuss - A strong European ADC, with a Corki that is 6-0 this split in EU LCS play. He plays a big part in his team’s decision making unike many ADC’s. He is one half of the deadly botlane duo that has helped Team Vitality to so many victories. His KDA ratio is 5.2, CS per minute is 8.9, and has 68% kill participation this split.
- Support: Ryan "KaSing" Tsang - Another huge contributor to Team Vitality’s success this year, KaSing and his ADC counterpart have found a new home at their new team and continue to succeed in this new environment. His most played champions include Thresh, Morgana, and Tahm Kench, all of which bolster 4.0 or better KDA ratios. As support, KaSing has a KDA ratio of 5.2, 1.4 CS per minute, and a 74% KDA ratio.
H2K:
Following up two solid third place finishes in their first two splits, H2K have their eyes set on first. Despite all this success, H2K will need someone to step up to the ADC role that FORG1VENGRE, will be vacating while in military service.
- Top: Andrei "Odoamne" Pascu - A very versatile top laner, and one of the best in this EU LCS Spring Split. He has found success on champions like Nautilus and Shen, although he has played a large number of champions top lane this split. He has been a big contributor for H2K this split as they look to close out the season. Odamne has a KDA ratio of 4.6, 7.1 CS per minute, and 73% kill participation this split.
- Jungle: Marcin "Jankos" Jankoski - Known to be a very aggressive jungler using champions like Lee Sin, Elise and Nidalee, to name a few. Jankos was originally a member of ROCCAT, but moved to H2K before the spring split, and it seems to be a fit for him. His KDA ratio this split is 5.4, with 3.9 CS per minute, and 75% kill participation.
- Mid: SangUk "Ryu" Ryu - A once Korean player battling against greats like WonSeok "PawN" Heo and SangHyeok "Faker" Lee, Ryu has found a new home at H2K. One of the most experienced members on the team, he has helped lead them to many victories. Ryu has a very large champion pool and has no standout champions that he has played more than any others this split. Ryu has a 6.5 KDA ratio, 8.6 CS per minute, and 68% kill participation this split.
- ADC: Konstantinos "FORG1VENGRE" Tzortziou - Bouncing around a few teams in 2015, he has now found a place at H2K. He has put in great performances on Corki, Caitlyn and Lucian, to name a few. He is a huge factor in H2K’s success this year and one half of one of the best bot lanes in Europe. This split he boasts a 6.8 KDA ratio, 9.2 CS per minute, and 66% kill participation.
- Support: Oskar "VandeR" Bogdan - As H2K’s support he has played many traditional supports like Alistar, Braum, Thresh and Janna, and more untraditional ones like Trundle. He has found success on everyone he has played this split, and it shows in H2K’s record. This split he has held up a 6.2 KDA ratio, 1.0 CS per minute, and a whopping 76% kill participation.
Conclusion:
This week was no different for them as each team picked up two wins handily. Based on the final two weeks and each team’s schedule, H2K seem to be the favorites to take the league. They do not have to play either of the other teams tied for first, and even have games versus ROCCAT and Elements. After the break for IEM Katowice, G2 Esports are set to face off against Team Vitality, which could very well decide the top three positions. It is entirely possible that the winner of this game could tie with H2K if both teams win out the rest of the season. Barring some upsets, which are entirely possible, H2K and the winner of the Team Vitality-G2 Esports game will be tied atop the standings. Despite all these probabilities, each team has dropped games to teams lower than them on the standings. Team Vitality have lost to ROCCAT and Unicorns of Love, G2 Esports have lost to Fnatic, and H2K have also lost to Fnatic.
If I were to give a prediction, I would put H2k at first, Team Vitality at second, and G2 Esports at third. Unicorns of Love and Fnatic have both had solid splits, but I do not see all three top teams simultaneously dropping games. We will see how these final weeks unfold. It is clear that first is for the taking.
