Call Of Duty League Stage 1/Week 2/Day 1 preview — What we think going in

On to week two! After a hyper competitive week one, it certainly looks like we’re going to have some absolute bangers here in week two. We’ve already had a couple of teams establish dominance (Definitely looking at you Seattle), and we’ve got some fun story lines going in. Let’s focus on day one, and the four matches we’ll be talking about shortly.

Boston Breach vs Paris Legion, Feb 11th at 3pm EST

• Can Boston make a statement in this one? They’re not going up against world beaters, as Paris still hasn’t taken a step past bottom eight, but it’s important to win this one, especially with Faze next on the docket. A 3-0 or 3-1 will leave you feeling more confident going into Saturday, while a too close for comfort 3-2 or a loss might signal that the Breach aren’t ready for the big leagues.
• I’d like to see Boston step it up in the Hardpoints versus Paris. They lost both to the Guerrillas last week, and even though they were close, closing out that opening Bocage is a 3-0, and similarly winning Berlin is a 3-1. Making a match shorter takes the life out of the other team, and that’s important versus a surprisingly decent Paris squad.
• While TJHaLy was good on Bocage, he was only 20/33 on Berlin, and Methodz was similarly not as great on Bocage at 25/32, but had a stronger Berlin with a 31/23. Sure, the maps benefit each of them differently, but these are your veterans. Seeing a bit more consistency here probably swings the Hardpoints.

• Oh Paris, you’re so close but yet so far. They took Faze to a 2-3, then turned in an ugly 1-3 versus Florida. Getting bigger plays out of Temp and John is important, who were both over a 1.12 and 9k damage versus Faze.
• If you’re the Legion, hope with all your heart that Gavutu isn’t vetoed. Paris looked their best on that map, and even though Florida managed to beat them there on Control, it certainly seemed to be where they’re the most comfortable.
• Keep improving in Search and Destroy. John made some great clutches versus Atlanta and Florida, so let him keep doing his thing. Felo also needs to elevate his play, given they won with him dropping a 10/7 versus the Mutineers but lost during his 1/7 and 5/7 versus Atlanta.

Minnesota Rokkr vs Seattle Surge, Feb 11th at 4:30pm EST

• Bring that closer mentality you brought versus Optic Texas. Seattle is most likely going to win some maps, but if Minnesota clutches the Search and Destroy’s I think they can find a respawn in there somewhere.
• If you want to win, Standy has to keep Pred in check. The Control may be Rokkr’s best shot, and keeping Pred out of your back is a key to pulling it off. Seattle tends to let him go rogue, you have to figure out how to stop him or avoid him.
• On S&D, keep doing what you’re doing. It might be tempting to want to pull Attach off the sniper to increase engagements, but unless you’re playing on Bocage you want to keep him there feeding info. That and try to get Desert Siege in the rotation.

• I don’t know what they’re feeding Sib, but let the boy keep cooking. He had an insane 1.40 KD and +29 kills versus Toronto of all squads. He may not have been as impactful in the Berlin S&D, but one has to think Toronto was focusing in on him. Let Sib do Sib things.
• I’d also keep trying to play Gavutu, especially on Control. Pred has been thriving on that map, and even though you lost there versus the Ultra you’ve made top teams look silly there. Keep it in the rotation.
• Besides those things it’s hard to say Seattle should be focusing on anything in particular. They feel like one of the most complete teams in the league, so maybe try and widen your map pool but picking stuff you aren’t as comfortable on. Better to do that earlier in the season than face it in the Grand Finals at Champs.

Toronto Ultra vs Los Angeles Guerillas, Feb 11th at 6pm EST

• Shake off the loss versus Seattle with a beatdown. I don’t know that many teams have suffered the heartbreak Toronto has had, although to be fair they also had a meteoric rise after Stage 1 last year with Insight. You have a matchup in LAG you should be able to exploit, and a quick 3-0 will give you the pick me up you need.
• Pick the maps you don’t feel comfortable on here. You’ll probably smoke LAG anyway, so letting the gap in points close or risking a 3-1 is worth cleaning up your strats here. Toronto doesn’t have many weaknesses but a Berlin Search and maybe getting Gavutu into rotation might be a good idea.
• It’s only the second game of a long season, but get Cammy feeling himself in this one. He only was positive on the Gavutu Control, and that even was only by a single kill. If he goes -12 constantly you won’t win games.

• What else can we say besides keep being competitive. They certainly look like they’ve rebounded since the awful showing versus Florida at the Kickoff Classic, with a 2-3 loss versus Boston they at least kept in striking distance and a 3-1 versus New York that probably should have been a 3-0. I don’t think they can beat Toronto, but you can’t get blown out.
• Let Asim fry. The boy went rogue and it paid off versus New York. He needs to play with that fire again, although his team needs to back him up a bit better. You shouldn’t lose a Control when Asim goes 42/17, even if Huke evens it out with a 27/40.
• Speaking of Huke, he’s got to find consistency. He should be the superstar arguably on this team, but for every great map he has a crappy one. Getting better results across the board from him will raise the bar for LAG.

New York Subliners vs Los Angeles Thieves, Feb 11th at 7:30pm EST

• Get Clayster humming in the Hardpoints. I don’t know what maps he’s good at, because frankly he’s sucked so far on them all in the two regular season matches. Could Bocage or Gavutu help wake him up? It’s possible, but they’ll have to hope vetoing Berlin or Tuscan gets one of them in rotation early.
• Quickly integrate Royalty/or whoever the new SMG is. Honestly, I don’t like the Neptune benching. If it’s true that sickness around the team and his sustaining a thumb infection kept them from practicing, I’d be more willing to blame it all on that. While I know the coaching staff probably has final say, I wouldn’t be surprised if CrimSix and Clayster are a big part of this decision, and it feels too much like a knee-jerk reaction. Sure, they haven’t looked very competitive, but the other 0-2 teams aren’t making moves.
• Kind of like LAG, be competitive. The Thieves are better than the 3-1 loss versus Atlanta Faze, and while New York is adjusting they’ve got to play better and beyond their circumstances. I feel like this will be a 3-1, so push it to a 3-2 at least. Maybe that will bring the confidence level of the team up.

pic.twitter.com/iDCbhU7XOr

— Travis (@NNeptuunE) February 10, 2022

• Avoid Bocage. Thieves dropped this one for the game loss in their last two, losing the S&D to Toronto at the Kickoff Classic and to Faze via a 250-136 Hardpoint smackdown. This seems to be a map you need to auto-veto, even if Kenny most likely won’t play that badly again.
• Speaking of Kenny, his play was pretty ugly versus Atlanta. He needs to let that ignite a fire in him and use that to slay out in this match. The Thieves can’t afford him to be -25 kills and a .70 KD.
• Let Envoy be the menace. I know he can play somewhat more conservatively than Drazah, who runs around the map like a bat out of hell. But I’d like to see their roles switch up a little bit. Envoy is probably more comfortable being the slower sub, but he’s usually at his best playing the rotations and flanks and causing havoc.

Stay tuned to Gaming Trend for our takeaways as the season continues, and we’ll do our best to bring you content here and on our YouTube channel! You can follow the league both live and after hours on the official Call Of Duty League YouTube channel right here. If you want to jump into the game, check out CallOfDuty.com, and if you want to know more about it first, check out our review right here.

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