So close, almost there, nearly: each of these words come from my prior stories on the SFU Hearthstone White Team. Last season for the White Team was a season of close games every single week. Each game felt like a great movie that was missing a climax and was disappointing to say the least. This is not to say that the play from the Red Flash was lackluster at all, in fact the opposite. Each player showed their clear aptitude for Hearthstone making plays that would make any organization happy to have them. The disappointment came in only seeing this team win two of their six games when they were on the precipice of being a real contender to get into the playoffs. Motivated by their lack of success, the Red Flash came into this game with a fire in their belly and went pedal to the metal from the start. This week the Flash played the Siena Heights Saints and obliterated the competition winning 3-0.
Game One (1) – Won
Red Flash Bomb Warrior v. Siena Heights Shaman
As per usual with last season, Jared "Dedzo" Ohler was back to starting for the White Team in their first match up. The team knew that their win condition against the Siena Heights Shaman deck was to keep them from filling the decks with totems that could prove to be deadly as the rounds progressed. Siena was able to fill the board with 5 cards only a few turns into the game and it was not looking great for the team. However, after a masterful play, the Red Flash was able to clear the entire board in one play and took board control right after. Just a few rounds later the game was over with the White Team having done 20 face damage in one turn, making the series 1-0.
Game Two (2) – Won
Red Flash Soul Demon Hunter v. Siena Heights Druid
With momentum on their side and a confidence I had never seen in this team before, they went into game two with Jimmy "JimJam" Gresko at the controls. The Demon Hunter deck crafted by SFU was perfect to take out the Druid deck the Saints had thrown together. The first few turns were rather slow, but what would follow was an absolute masterclass in Hearthstone emulating the experience of watching Gordon Ramsey teaching young chefs how to fillet a fish. Gresko was able to clear the entire board, play a few cards, and put the Saints out of their misery within what seemed to be a blink of an eye. Having only taken two damage the entire game, JimJam put the Red Flash up 2-0.
Game Three (3) – Won
Red Flash Hunter v. Siena Heights Hunter
James "Joker" Nichols stepped up to the plate for the last game and was absolutely lights out. Nichols was able to take an advantage early on into the game and never let up. It is a surprise that the Saints did not just concede after the first two games, but if they had, James would not have been able to play the most clean and quick game of Hearthstone I have ever seen. As if trying to live up to the Flash name, the match was over within three minutes. When asked about his stellar performance Nichols cited playing "Pregame Battlegrounds" for his victory and if that is true, he should play battlegrounds before every game he ever plays.
This was a great game for the Red Flash White Team and was unlike anything I had ever seen out of them before. I truly hope they will continue to impress and improve over the season because they have the potential to make some of the best stories I have had the privilege of writing so far. They look to keep this up next Thursday at 8:00pm.
