Most of the Hangzhou Spark’s 2021 Overwatch League offseason will likely be spent looking for support players considering the team’s most recent roster changes.
The Spark is parting ways with DPS Seo “SeoMinSoo” Min-soo, flex support Tong “ColdEst” Xiaodong, and main supports Liu “M1ka” Jiming and Park “idk” Ho-jin, the team announced today. Assistant coach Chen “U4” Congshan was also let go.
For the time being, this leaves the team with no support players heading into the 2022 season.
M1ka and ColdEst have been playing as a support duo for multiple years on teams like Flag Gaming in Overwatch Contenders China. They moved on to the Spark’s academy team, Bilibili Gaming, and then were called up to the main roster before the 2020 season began.
Many of Hangzhou’s DPS players are specialists, but SeoMinSoo was always depended upon for his flexibility. A former member of RunAway and the Vancouver Titans, he was often able to swap between DPS and off-tank roles with ease.
Of all the roster changes made today, Spark fans are likely most affected by iDK’s release. The main support is one of the longest-serving members of the team, having been a part of the roster since late 2018 when Hangzhou was introduced to the Overwatch League.
Despite an extensive and talented roster, the Spark encountered numerous issues during the 2021 season. An ever-changing line of assistant and head coaches led to inconsistencies with the team and, eventually, many defeats. They ended the 2021 season ranked fifth in the East Region with a 7-9 record.
