The Mighty Deks and Men In Black split their two-game set, with each team securing a victory in a series defined by explosive offense and massive momentum swings. The Mighty Deks opened the series with a statement, crushing Men In Black 9-4 behind a clinical 50% shooting percentage. However, Men In Black showed incredible resilience in the second matchup, tightening up their defensive play and controlling the pace to edge out a gritty 5-4 win.
Across the series, **Duchesne_x_10** was the absolute engine for the Mighty Deks, racking up 7 goals and 10 total points while leading all skaters with 22 hits. He was well-supported by **Teoskiii** and **TwO AcCuRaTE**, who both tallied 8 points over the two games. For Men In Black, **l_Willis_97_l** was the standout playmaker, figuring into 8 of his team's 9 total goals (3 goals, 5 assists). **Animal x86** and **MoNsTeR I30I** also provided consistent secondary scoring, each recording 3 goals and 4 points across the series to keep the Men In Black competitive.
The outcome of these matchups boiled down to efficiency versus volume. In Game 1, the Deks were surgical, scoring 9 times on just 18 shots and punishing every Men In Black turnover. The script flipped in the second game, as Men In Black dominated the territorial battle with 9:36 of possession time compared to the Deks' 6:52. Goaltending also played a major role in the split; while **lrxfio** stood tall in the opener with 26 total saves, **Imdomleegoat260** came up with a massive breakaway save in the second game to help Men In Black secure their narrow victory and salvage the series split.
