Warsaw is giving it to Moscow

[MetalToday 266]

Well after the first 2 games, it is clear Warsaw versus Moscow will be a tough battle and will be close series. So far from the 2 games Warsaw won the first game at a score of 4 to 1, a bit of a blow out for a victory cup team, but then Moscow won the second game by a tight score 3-2. Warsaw was the underdog for this series, but with their tight defensive skills and the increased scoring, the underdogs came to be the favorites. Although this is only 2 games, one thing that fans, players, and management have noticed is that the top players on Warsaw have started producing again. Take Brendan Marner for example, he had gotten 3 goals and 7 points in the last 2 games, much better production than he had in the last series against Helsinki. Will Marners 2.5 points a game continue? Probably not, but this series has proved that he found his game again, and if Warsaw wants to stay on top, they will need to have Marner and other top line players to continue to improve. Vasile Lamb is another top player that has seen an improvement in productivity, where he has gotten a 4-point night in the first game in this series, almost matching his points in the series against Helsinki, all that in one game. Omi Aberg is another player who has had some trouble with production last series, although he is more of a depth piece, it is still somebody you want to see production from. At that depth role, Aberg has really proven his worth against a team that came on top in the regular season, with 5 points in the last 2 games, that is more than double the production he had in the 7 games he played against Helsinki. As the playoff move on, you want to see your players play better, and that is what we are seeing in Warsaw, the will to win is going up. What we need to see from Warsaw is take a series in less than 7 games, they need to prove they are ready to win, they are ready for the run, but they took Helsinki in 7, and if they keep on the 1 to 1 games they are doing in Moscow, they will likely take the series to game 7. Warsaw needs to prove the victory cup means nothing in this league, but they still need to win 3 more games, the series has come to the best of 5, and with the help of the top players productivity increase we should see the underdogs take the game before we see 7 games. Moscow has a good team and without Warsaw’s depth and experienced team, there may have been no chance for a Warsaw victory. Warsaw will look different next season, but they may not be as different as one might expect, with the resigning’s midseason, the team is ready to be competitive for years to come. There are still some players looking to resign, but they are probably waiting to see if the continental cup goes to Warsaw to really gather that money bag. The end of this season will be very interesting in the end as there will be some players looking for a huge pay day just for being cup champions, and from that will Warsaw be able to pay the money to those winning players? We will need to see if they win first.