Pechalat and Bourzat are posed to make a big jump from 4th at Europeans last season to the top of the podium. They won gold at both their Grand Prix assignments and took silver at the Grand Prix Final. They have nearly an 8 point lead over the field in terms of scores for the season and their scores are the 2nd best out of all the competitors on the Grand Prix. This is their competition to lose, but this is one of the toughest and deepest fields at Europeans.
Bobrova and Soloviev have the 4th highest total score for the season. They won two Grand Prix medals, one gold, and finished 4th at the Grand Prix Final. If they can bring their short dance score up, they could make this an even tighter event, but they struggled in that segment at the Grand Prix Final. They finished 9th at Europeans next year and I predict they'll make a big jump in the standings.
The Kerrs have the 5th highest total score for the season but had to withdraw from their second Grand Prix and their nationals due to a shoulder injury. The injury was also plaguing them at their first event. If they're healthy, their scores should really come up here, especially in the free dance. They finished 5th here last season but do have one European medal already. They have announced that this will be their final season and they're going to be fighting for a spot on the podium at Europeans and Worlds.
Riazanova/Tkachenko have the 6th highest total score for the season and have a Grand Prix medal. They are another team with high short dance scores but lower free dance scores. With a good performance they could definitely contend for a medal but I see them finishing in the top 5.
Hoffman and Zavozin are one of three teams in this field that qualified for the Grand Prix Final. While I like their programs and their partnership, I think they capitalized on weaker fields at their events. They were a surprise 3rd at the Final after their short dance, but they had a rough free dance that dropped them into 6th place overall. While they have the 9th highest score of the season, their free dance does not make the top 10 list. I don't think they'll medal here, but they will definitely improve upon their 10th place finish last season.
Faiella and Scali won silver at Europeans last season but have had a rough time this year. At their first assignment they had problems with her skirt in both of their programs and only have the 10th best score of their season. In their second event, they were able to improve their short dance score but they still finished behind Bobrova and Soloviev and had to withdraw before the free dance. I think this team will definitely have an improvement in their scores, but it will be difficult for them to improve to a podium spot. I think they're looking at a top 5 placement.
Ilinykh/Katsalapov are the reigning world junior champions and won their first Grand Prix medal this season. Their free dance has the 9th best score of the season, but they need to improve their short dance to be competitive in this field. They should easily finish in the top 10, which is a respectable result for their first year as seniors.
Carron and Jones are another team that should land in the top 10. They finished just off the podium in their two Grand Prix assignments and finished 12th at Europeans last season.
Alessandrini/Vaturi are one of the teams to watch for after finishing 5th at Junior Worlds last season. The other teams in the top 5 have experienced good success this season at the junior and senior levels, so it will be interesting to see how this team holds up, especially as they did not receive Grand Prix assignments.
My podium predictions:
Gold: Pechalat/Bourzat
Silver: Kerr/Kerr
Bronze: Bobrova/Soloviev
My USFSA Fantasy Team:
A) Pechalat/Bourzat
B) Riazanova/Tkachenko
C) Testa/Mior
The teams:
Geil/Eisenbauer, AUT: They are the reigning national champions.
Valadzenkava/Vakunov, BLR: They finished 26th at Europeans and 29th at Junior Worlds.
Tremasova/Lichev, BUL: They finished 32nd at the World Junior Championships. They placed 13th and 16th at their two JGP assignments this season.
Mysliveckova/Novak, CZE: They finished 16th at Worlds. They finished 6th at NHK Trophy and 5th at Cup of Russia.
Good/Sorensen, DEN: They placed 24th at Worlds, 21st at Europeans and 17th at Junior Worlds.
Shtork/Rand, EST: They finished 23rd at the Olympics and 28th at Junior Worlds. They finished 8th and 6th at their two JGP assignments this season.
Lindholm/Kanervo, FIN: They are the reigning national champions.
Carron/Jones, FRA (D): They finished 12 at both Worlds and Europeans. They finished 5th at Skate Canada and 4th at Trophee Eric Bompard.
Pechalat/Bourzat, FRA (D): They placed 7th at the Olympics and 4th at both Worlds and Europeans. They won gold at Cup of China and Trophee Eric Bompard to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they won silver.
Reed/Japaridze, GEO: They finished 22nd at the Olympics, 21st at Worlds and 19th at Europeans.
Zhiganshina/Gazsi, GER: They are the reigning national champions.
Coomes/Buckland, GBR: Coomes and Buckland finished 20th at the Olympics and 16th at Europeans. They finished 8th at NHK Trophy and Skate America.
Kerr/Kerr, GBR (D): They finished 8th at the Olympics and 5th at Worlds and Europeans. They are the 2009 European Bronze medalists. They won silver at Skate Canada but withdrew from Cup of Russia due to injury.
Hoffman/Zavozin, HUN (D): Hoffman and Zavozin placed 13th at the Olympics and 10th at the World and European Championships. Zavozin used to compete for USA and won the World Junior title in 2005. They finished 4th in their Grand Prix debut at Cup of China, won silver at Cup of Russia, and placed 6th at the Grand Prix Final.
Nagy/Fejes, HUN: They are the reigning national silver medalists.
Frieling/Rumi, ISR (D):
Alessandrini/Vaturi, ITA (D): They finished 5th at the World Junior Championships.
Faiella/Scali, ITA (D): Faiella and Scali placed 5th at the Olympics and won bronze at the World Championships and silver at Europeans. They won bronze at Cup of China and withdrew from Cup of Russia.
Testa/Mior, ITA: They finished 22nd at Europeans.
Tobias/Stagniunas, LTU: This is their first season together.
Bobrova/Soloviev, RUS (D): They placed 15th at the Olympics, 8th at Worlds and 9th at Europeans. They are the 2007 World Junior Champions. They won silver at Cup of China and gold at Cup of Russia to qualify for the Grand Prix Final where they finished 4th.
Ilinykh/Katsalapov, RUS (D): They are the reigning World Junior champions. They placed 4th at NHK Trophy and won bronze at Cup of Russia.
Riazanova/Tkachenko, RUS (D): They finished 5th at Skate America and won silver at Trophee Eric Bompard.
Visnova/Csolley, SVK: They finished 20th at Europeans and 19th at World Juniors. They placed 10th and 7th at their two JGP assignments this season.
Hurtado/Diaz, ESP: They finished 16th at Junior Worlds. They placed 10th and 5th at their two JGP assignments this season.
Elsener/Roost, SUI: They finished 25th at Europeans and 27th at the World Junior Championships. They finished 7th and 13th at their two JGP assignments.
Frolenkova/Kasalo, UKR (D): They are the reigning national silver medalists.
Heekin-Canedy/Shakalov, UKR (D): They are the reigning national champions.
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