Yesterday it emerged that LW Blue main tank, Song "janus" Jun-hwa, had been hospitalized after suffering a recurrence of the pneumothorax lung condition which had previously forced him to sit out of the APEX Season 2 Bronze Final back in late March.

The team released a statement on Facebook outlining the situation and wishing janus a speedy recovery, interestingly noting that "janus said he was willing to postpone the treatment for one day, but the team decided to admit him".

The news came barely 24 hours before LW Blue were set to face Kongdoo Panthera in the winners' match of a decidedly stacked Group B in the APEX Season 3 Playoffs. The stakes are incredibly high at this point in the group as the loser will be sent down to the lower bracket to (presumably) battle reigning champions, Lunatic-Hai, for their tournament lives.

Previously, in the Season 2 Bronze Final LW Blue were able to field sister team LW Red's main tank, Gye "r0ar" Chang-hoon, as a stand-in for janus, but it is unclear whether that is an option under OGN's Season 3 roster rules. With eight man rosters now a thing in APEX, LW Blue already have Pine and Sylph on the bench.

Support player Sylph has actually been sitting out for the season due to an ongoing eye condition, which will likely rule him out as a replacement. However, Pine, best known for his DPS prowess, actually played one map in their recent win over CONBOX Spirit. He stood in for Luna on Ana in that game, but could we see him don the monkey suit in 4 hours' time? Better yet, Pinehardt? Or is the smart money on a r0ar return?

The LW Blue for APEX Season 3 is currently:

  • Park "Saebyeolbe" Jong-ryeol (DPS)
  • Hwang "Fl0w3r" Yeon-oh (DPS)
  • Kim "Pine" Do-hyun (Tank?)
  • Kim "Mek0" Tae-hong (Flex)
  • Jang "Luna" Gyeong-ho (Support)
  • Heo "Gambler" Jin-woo (Support)
  • Song "janus" Jun-hwa (Injured)
  • Choi "Sylph" Seong-sik (Injured)