Every team that's won champs has had a disappointing year after, whether it be roster changes or just a falloff in performance, but I believe this is the first year we'll see that change, and for one simple reason: Offseason. This is the first year that the champ's winning team is participating actively in offseason events AND has no roster changes. Whether they look good or bad rn is another argument, but I believe this will overall help keep the edge that EDG has over the CN region and allow them to craft creative comps/ideas going into the year.
Clove/Breach Lotus, double smokes Abyss were introduced by them, and by the looks of their ascent vs. PRX, their permaban from last year, they've improved on it a lot. I could just be on high dosages of hopium, but I think this is the year a champs winning side gets another trophy.