The Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS) group stage wrapped up last weekend, and we saw some new names rise to the top as we go into the online finals this weekend. North America was won over by the successes of Lucky Bounce and stunned by the failures of iBuyPower.
The Rocket League community Power Rankings (created by a panel of analysts and pro players) held no sway over the group stage either, with massive upsets everywhere. Here's how each team's run in the group stage panned out:
1. Lucky Bounce | 22-13 | Power ranking: 5th
Lucky Bounce came into the group stage hovering around the fifth or sixth place in the Community Power Rankings and was expected to be fighting for the middle-upper spots with Retrospect and Genesis. Yet, here it is, standing atop the North American group stage with a rather impressive record of 22-13. Those numbers include some massive wins over Retrospect (4-1) and Kings of Urban (3-2).
Lucky Bounce went to the top on the back of Darkfire and Torment's striking partnership, with Darkfire first in goals and second in assists and Torment fourth in assists. This was supported by the highest shooting percentage in the league with an astounding 46.7 percent, making it the second-highest-scoring team even though it had only the sixth most shots in the league. Beyond the team percentages, Darkfire was easily the tournament MVP with an astounding 42 goals (second place), 31 assists (second place) and 49 saves (10th place).
2. Exodus | 21-14 | Power ranking: 3rd
Exodus was the dark horse to take the first spot in the group stage, with strong showings against iBuyPower (3-2) and Lucky Bounce (3-2). Exodus ended up with an extremely strong second place with one of the best defenses in the league: second best in goals allowed with 75 and the second-best save percentage with a staggering 71.8 percent. This was thanks to the contributions of Moses -- their new acquisition -- who was third in saves with 62; he demonstrated his worth as one of the best roster moves in the Rocket League's short history. Unfortunately for Exodus, it lacked the clinical finish that would have seen it rise to the top of the league.
3. Genesis | 19-16 | Power ranking: 4th
Genesis starts off our block of 19-16 teams, winning the most games versus the other three to clinch the third-place spot and finish slightly above Power Rankings expectations. Key wins over Mockit (4-1) and Kings (3-2) were the necessary victories to take this spot. Genesis went through as one of the best defensive teams with a 72.2 percent save rate (first place) and the third-best record for goals against. The team featured a very resolute Pluto, who had the second-most saves in the league (62).
4. Kings of Urban | 19-16 | Power ranking: 1st
Coming in as the favorite and finishing fourth is an underwhelming performance. Despite that, Kings of Urban had solid wins, especially against Exodus (3-2). Kings of Urban showed itself as one of the highest-scoring teams with an immense striking ability: Fireburner was third in goals (39), Jacob second in assists (31) and Sadjunior sixth in both goals and assists (34 and 26, respectively). Despite its high-octane offense, Kings of Urban just couldn't bring it together to climb to the top.
5. iBuyPower | 19-16 | Power ranking: 2nd
iBP came into RLCS as the second favorite and left the group stage disgraced. It brought the highest pressure in North America, barely allowing opposing teams to shoot and shooting the most of any team. Yet the reason it fell to fifth is because it had the lowest save percentage in the league with a measly 60.9 percent. When pressure fails, iBP fails to win, and that leaves it just short of the top four.
6. Mockit NA | 19-16 | Power ranking: 6th
Mockit ends our block of 19-16 teams with a very unlucky sixth place. Mockit played the best defense in the entire league, allowing only 74 goals. Its problems, however, arose from losing many low-scoring close games. Mockit needs only to turn a few of those close games around and it could easily be in the top four.
7. Retrospect | 14-21 | Power ranking: 7th
Retrospect is a team with a very porous defense and one exceptional player. Retrospect had the second-lowest goal difference (minus-10) and only one clean sheet out of all 35 games. Klassux did his best as a one-man team (sixth in saves per game), yet it was not enough to carry Retrospect out of the bottom end of the league.
8. Selfless | 7-28 | Power ranking: 8th
Selfless is nothing if not consistent; it managed to go 1-4 in every series it played. Unfortunately, that is its best accolade of the tournament. It had the worst goals per game (1.63), worst goals against per game (3.4), and the worst goal difference (minus-46). Beyond that, it wasn't simply small mistakes. It had no offensive pressure (lowest shots for) and no defensive pressure (highest shots against). Overall, it was a tournament to forget for Selfless, which will hope to come back stronger in the future.
With the group stage done, it's time for the online finals next weekend, when the top four seeds in each region will match up in a single-elimination bracket. Will Lucky Bounce's colossal rise continue? Can Kings of Urban reign once more? With results no one expected coming out of the group stage, the team to watch is Lucky Bounce, who are hoping to continue their ascent to the top. North America showed itself as a wildly competitive league with any team from sixth to first being able to compete and provide fans with tons of exciting matches.