The Overwatch League has a new stage champion following the San Francisco Shock's 4-2 victory over the Vancouver Titans. The Shock are the fifth different stage champions in the six stages played since the league's formation.
This also marks the end of the Vancouver Titans' win steak. They won 19 straight matches overall before losing in the Stage 2 finals. Their 14 match regular season win streak is still ongoing.
As a result, we'll enter Stage 3 with a new team setting themselves apart as the top team in the league. The Shock have certainly earned it.
How does the rest of the league stack up? Find out in this edition of Scrub's OWL Power Rankings.
Image credit: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
1. (+1) San Francisco Shock (11-3)
American over.gg user ideekae noted in the stage finals' match page that the
San Francisco Shock
San Francisco Shock
OWL
Rank #2
Viol2t
Park Min-ki
flex support
Finn
Oh Se-jin (오세진)
flex support
Proper
Kim Dong-hyeon (김동현)
dps
s9mm
Samuel Santos
dps
Coluge
Colin Arai
tank
won the maximum number of maps this stage. That's true. By winning all 28 regular season maps, plus winning all of their matches in the Stage 2 playoffs, the Shock maxed out their map wins by winning 39 maps. They were 39-3 overall.
2. (-1) Vancouver Titans (14-0)
After winning their first 19 matches in the Overwatch League, the
Vancouver Titans
Vancouver Titans
OWL
Rank #19
Aspire
Luka Rolovic
dps
MirroR
Chris Trịnh
dps
False
Nick Wiseman
tank
Masaa
Petja Kantanen
support
Aztac
Park Jeong-soo (박정수)
support
have finally experienced defeat. The Titans don't have to worry about seeing the Shock again for awhile, at least. The Titans don't play them in the regular season again until the final week of the regular season, which is also the week the Titans play the Excelsior for the first time.
3. (-) New York Excelsior (12-2)
The
New York Excelsior
New York Excelsior
OWL
Rank #18
Gangnamjin
Gang Nam-jin (강남진)
flex support
Myunb0ng
Seo Sang-min (서상민)
flex support
Flora
Lim Young-woo (임영우)
dps
Yaki
Kim Jun-gi (김준기)
dps
Kellan
Kim Min-jae
tank
maintained their status as the third best team in the league by cleanly sweeping the Gladiators. Despite that, their match against the Titans made it evident that they're still a class below the league's top two teams.
4. (-) Los Angeles Gladiators (9-5)
Despite being swept in the first round of the stage playoffs, the
Los Angeles Gladiators
Los Angeles Gladiators
OWL
Rank #4
Shu
Kim Jin-seo
flex support
kevster
Kevin Persson
dps
Patiphan
Patiphan Chaiwong
dps
Reiner
Corey Scoda
tank
FunnyAstro
Daniel Hathaway
support
still look better than the competition behind them. It helps that one of the two teams that looks closest to challenging the Gladiators and the other top teams missed the stage playoffs entirely and the other team lost in the first round to a team thought to look weaker than them.
5. (+3) Hangzhou Spark (8-6)
This is where the rankings get messy. The
Hangzhou Spark
Hangzhou Spark
OWL
Rank #6
BERNAR
Shin Se-won (신세원)
off tank
irony
Kim Hyeong-woo (김형우)
flex support
Shy
Zheng Yangjie (郑杨杰)
dps
AlphaYi
Kim Joon (김준)
dps
guxue
Xu Qiulin (徐秋林)
tank
superich
Wu Gengtuo (吴梗拓)
support
do not look as good as a team should to be considered one of the league's best five teams, especially after being swept by the Shock. However, they have wins over both the Spitfire and the Dynasty in the last two weeks and it's hard to argue that the other remaining playoff teams have done enough to be worth consideration for the top five.
In today's weekly Adora update, all three of the maps he played against the Spitfire were victories. The Spark then played him in every map against the Shock and were swept. Please don't do that. Please play Krystal .
6. (-) Seoul Dynasty (7-7)
While the
Seoul Dynasty
Seoul Dynasty
OWL
Rank #3
Ir1s
Kim Seung-Hyun (김승현)
FITS
Kim Dong-eon (김동언)
dps
Profit
Park Joon-yeong (박준영)
dps
smurf
Yoo Myeong-Hwan
tank
Vindaim
Junwoo Park
support
didn't play this weekend after succumbing to a 3-4 record in Stage 2, they still look better than most of the teams in the league. Separating the Dynasty, Spitfire and Dragons this week was tough, but the Dynasty get the edge over the others after weighing their schedule. The Dynasty were the only team of the three that beat a team in the Stage 2 playoffs during Stage 2 after sweeping the Fuel in the stage's third week. Their four losses came to the Titans twice, the Gladiators in five maps and to the Spark in a 3-1 match (the same scoreline in the game between the Spark and Spitfire).
7. (+2) Shanghai Dragons (7-7)
Both the
Shanghai Dragons
Shanghai Dragons
OWL
Rank #5
Izayaki
Kim Min-chul (김민철)
flex support
Void
Kang Jun-woo (강준우)
off tank
Fleta
Kim Byung-sun (김병선)
dps
LIP
Lee Jae-won (이재원)
dps
Fate
Koo Pan-seung (구판승)
tank
LeeJaeGon
Lee Jae-gon (이재곤)
support
and the London Spitfire lost 3-1 this week, but the Dragons lost to the Shock and the Spitfire lost to the Spark. The Dragons were the first team this stage and the only team other than the Titans to take a map off the Shock. The Dragons took care of the Hunters this stage while the Spitfire did not, helping contribute to the Dragons surpassing them.
8. (-3) London Spitfire (9-5)
While the
London Spitfire
London Spitfire
OWL
Rank #12
Landon
flex support
SparkR
William Andersson
dps
Backbone
Jamie O'Neill
dps
Hadi
Daniel Bleinagel
tank
Admiral
Oliver Vahar
support
are really good at their peak, they are incredibly inconsistent. The same could be said of last year's Spitfire, of course, but the competition come postseason playoff time will be a lot tougher this year than last.
9. (-2) Dallas Fuel (9-5)
The
Dallas Fuel
Dallas Fuel
OWL
Rank #1
Fielder
Kwon Joon (권준)
flex support
Doha
Kim Dong-Ha (김동하)
dps
SP9RK1E
Kim Young-han (김영한)
dps
FEARLESS
Lee Eui-seok (이의석)
tank
ChiYo
Han Hyeon-syuk (한현석)
support
kept their match with the Titans as close as expected (which meant it wasn't close at all). On the bright side, the Fuel are only three wins away from equaling their win total from playing in 40 matches last season.
10. (-) Atlanta Reign (7-7)
No team will move from this point onward in the power rankings, including the
Atlanta Reign
Atlanta Reign
OWL
Rank #10
Kai
Kai Collins
dps
nero
Charlie Zwarg
dps
Hawk
Xander Domecq
tank
UltraViolet
Benjamin David
support
Ojee
Christian Han
support
. The Reign ended Stage 2 by beating the Excelsior twice and losing to the Charge. Their potential to be a competitive team and even a good team is there, but they have regularly proven to be a mediocre and sometimes terrible team. Hopefully the Reign use this break to get
NLaaeR
the practice on Zarya necessary to give them confidence to play him over
BABYBAY
. It's worth experimenting with to find their groove.
11. (-) Philadelphia Fusion (8-6)
The
Philadelphia Fusion
Philadelphia Fusion
OWL
Rank #11
AimGod
Min-seok Kwon
flex support
MN3
Yoon Jae-hee
dps
ZEST
Kim Hyun-woo (김현우)
dps
Belosrea
tank
FiXa
Kwon Young Hoon (권영훈)
support
have looked very average throughout this season. Maybe they need a new patch with a drastically different meta to kick it into high gear? It currently doesn't look like such a patch will happen, so they shouldn't count on it and perhaps need to look at other ways to improve their play.
12. (-) Boston Uprising (7-7)
This is a great time to remind everyone that the
Boston Uprising
Boston Uprising
OWL
Rank #16
Valentine
Kim Byoungju
dps
punk
Leyton Gilchrist
tank
Faith
Hong Gyu Kim
support
Crimzo
William Hernandez
support
never formally announced a new head coach after Crusty left the franchise to join the Shock.
13. (-) Los Angeles Valiant (3-11)
If their trade with the Mayhem is any indication, the
Los Angeles Valiant
Los Angeles Valiant
OWL
Rank #15
Molly
He Chengzhi (何诚智)
flex support
Diya
Lu Weida (陆炜达)
dps
innovation
Oh Seok-hyun (오석현)
dps
Becky
Il-ha Kim (김일하)
dps
Ezhan
dps
Marve1
Hwang Min-seo (황민서)
tank
Lengsa
Chen Jingyi (陈婧逸)
support
could look like a wildly different team by the time Stage 3 starts. It's good to see
FCTFCTN
back into the Overwatch League, and
Shax
should be an immediate upgrade on DPS. It's less clear how
McGravy
fits into the Valiant's future plans, but there's not a problem with reinforcing the bench.
14. (-) Chengdu Hunters (6-8)
The level of success
YangXiaoLong
and
Baconjack
have found this season is surprising considering neither had played Overwatch professionally since 2017. Neither player is a star, but both hold their own as decent Overwatch League DPS players. It's a shame they both play the same role so the
Chengdu Hunters
Chengdu Hunters
OWL
Rank #13
Mmonk
Zhou Xiang (周翔)
flex support
Daizi
Ni Yuandong (倪远东)
off tank
Jinmu
Yi Hu (易虎)
dps
Leave
Huang Xin (黄馨)
dps
GA9A
Qiu Jiaxin (仇佳鑫)
tank
Nisha
Tan Li (谭力)
support
often have to pick one over the other in their lineups.
15. (-) Toronto Defiant (7-7)
Hopefully, the
Toronto Defiant
Toronto Defiant
OWL
Rank #14
Twilight
Lee Joo-seok (이주석)
flex support
Heesu
Jeong Hee-su (정희수)
dps
Finale
dps
MuZe
Kim Young-hun (김영훈)
tank
Ch0r0ng
support
aren't blinded by their Stage 1 success and make much needed additions to their roster during this break between matches.
16. (-) Guangzhou Charge (5-9)
The
Guangzhou Charge
Guangzhou Charge
OWL
Rank #9
Cr0ng
Nam Ki-cheol (남기철)
off tank
Farway1987
Cao Jiale (曹家乐)
flex support
choisehwan
Choi Se-Hwan (최세환)
dps
Develop
Chae Rak-hoon (채락훈)
dps
Rio
Oh Seung-pyo (오승표)
tank
Unique
Yoo Dong-hyun
support
should bolster their roster with new additions, but need to be careful about it. Sure, they have already committed to playing with an international roster, but a midseason addition who cannot immediately speak the team's chosen language for communication is worthless. The offseason is for learning anything needed to communicate and play well together, the season is for putting that into practice.
17. (-) Paris Eternal (5-9)
This is your weekly reminder that there is plenty of talent in Atlantic Showdown the
Paris Eternal
Paris Eternal
OWL
Rank #20
Kaan
Emir Kaan Okumus
flex support
Glister
Lim Gil-seong (임길성)
dps
Wub
Cameron Johnson
dps
Dove
Jesse Palomo
dps
Malthel
Josh Gonzales
dps
Daan
Daniël Vincentius Paulus Scheltema
tank
Krawi
tank
dridro
Arthur Szanto
support
Lukemino
Luke Fish
support
Rakattack
Kyle Rakauskas
support
can consider for their team. Also the Eternal should know that Smex is now a free agent without a contract to buy-out. They have options.
18. (-) Washington Justice (2-12)
The
Washington Justice
Washington Justice
OWL
Rank #17
Decay
Jang Gui-un (장귀운)
dps
Happy
Lee Jung-woo (이정우)
dps
Mag
Kim Tae-sung (김태성)
tank
Krillin
Jeong Young-hoon
support
Opener
An Gi-beom
support
are a good example of a team improving with midseason roster moves. They should look to beef up their tank line next.
19. (-) Houston Outlaws (3-11)
If the rumors are true and Immortals do purchase Infinite Esports & Entertainment, the parent company of the
Houston Outlaws
Houston Outlaws
OWL
Rank #7
Lastro
Moon Jung-won (문정원)
flex support
creative
Kim Young-wan (김영완)
flex support
Danteh
Dante Cruz
dps
Pelican
Oh Se-hyun (오세현)
dps
Mer1t
Choi Tae-min
dps
Piggy
Shin Min-jun
tank
, the Outlaws might be stuck in limbo for awhile as Immortals (who own the Los Angeles Valiant) try to sell the team (it was reported by ESPN that Immortals would not be allowed to retain the Outlaws). Despite desperately needing changes, the Outlaws might be stuck with their current roster if that happens. With other teams making the changes they need to improve, that could result in the Outlaws falling to the bottom of the table.
20. (-) Florida Mayhem (1-13)
The
Florida Mayhem
Florida Mayhem
OWL
Rank #8
SirMajed
Majed Alrashied
flex support
Checkmate
Baek Seung-hun
dps
Hydron
Isaiah Rodriguez
dps
someone
tank
ANAMO
Jeong Tae-seong (정태성)
support
have now added
Fate
and
Byrem
in the last week. They still need to dump
TviQ
and
Apply
and have room to add several more players after that. Expect many more changes to come for the Mayhem.
Weekly Wrap-up
Just because there will be no Overwatch League matches for the next month doesn't mean the period will be boring.
Before the next Overwatch League match, there will be both the Atlantic Showdown and Pacific Showdown, both of which should offer high-quality exciting LAN matches for fans to watch.
Of course, the Overwatch League All-Star Game happens before either one of those tournaments to fill fans' appetite for watching Overwatch League players compete. That won't really be an option once the All-Star Game ends tonight.
Beyond the match lobby, this should be the busiest part of the season for roster moves. Expect teams desperate to get an edge to move aggressively to improve their team.