Malmo on a very similar track to last season, with one big distinction

[scoop 3,382]

Important note regarding any time that I refer to the standings at a certain point in the season, I am referring to after each team has played the same number of games. Obviously that's not exactly how the schedule works, but that is how my research was done. I just wanted to make that clear.

 

As we pass the halfway point in the season, the Malmo Nighthawks find themselves with a ten-point lead in the European Conference. They are in the midst of a seven-game winning streak, part of a 17-2-1 stretch from games 19 to 38. This came after starting the season with a respectable 10-6-2 record, which did have them in third place. They spent some time a bit lower in the standings earlier in the season, but they've found themselves in that top three for a while now and have a solid grasp of first place for the time being.

 

This trajectory is somewhat similar to last season. In S91, the Nighthawks were 5-6-1 in their first 12 games, which had them out of the playoff picture in sixth place. While it was early in the season, the conference had six legitimate contenders. Some seasons, it will be pretty clear who will end up making the playoffs, and even if one of those locks is in the bottom three early on, there are no worries. This was not the case last season. But Malmo found their groove pretty quickly after the less-than-ideal start. In games 13 through 40 of their season, they went 24-3-1. Compare that to the 17-2-1 run that they are currently on this season. The Nighthawks fans have to hope this is where the trajectory stops mimicking, last year, however, as they finished Season 91 going 16-13-3 in the final 32 games.

 

There is one key distinction between last season and this season: the Season 92 Nighthawks have had sole possession of first place in Europe since 23 games into the season; the Season 91 Nighthawks never held sole possession of first place in the conference. After 43 games in the season, they were tied with Riga at 65 points. There were three other teams within nine points. This was the last time Malmo was atop the European Conference, and they ended up sliding down all the way to fourth. When we compare the standings at the exact same point (38 games into the season for each team), the conference leader a season ago was Riga with 57 points. This season, first place Malmo has that same 57. Riga, however, was closely followed by teams with 56, 55, 54, and 48 points. There were four teams closer than this year's second place.

 

Malmo is actually a point behind where they were a season ago, but given the look of the standings as a whole, they are in a relatively better position. I wouldn't say that I am particularly confident that Malmo will finish this season on top of the conference, but I certainly do not expect a similar downfall to the one we had a season ago. Also, as we found out in last year's playoffs, regular season success does not necessarily equate to post-season success. Europe is once again going to produce five playoff teams which will have very similar odds of making it to the finals.

[LucyXpher 1,142]

Great article updating on the Nighthawks season so far!  As a newbie to the forum, I appreciated how you included the context of last year's team and where they were at the same point in the season and how that all relates to the current league standings and point spread.  It really helps to bring readers like me up to speed with some recent history instead of me having to look it up myself.  I'd consider myself a Nighthawks fan, I really like your team/players and I'm rooting for you guys to go far this season and to win it all in the playoffs. The 24-3-1 stretch that you referenced is an incredible run of form, and the current run of 17-2-1 is almost as impressive.  Again, a well written piece that informs readers of the context of stats rather than just feeding them numbers or saying Malmo is in first without contextualizing, so well done! And go Nighthawks!

 

9.5/10

02/04/24