Houston rules; the kids are alright

With a tough 1-0 win at Chicago, Craig Waibel (front) and Houston are undefeated in eight. Brian Kersey/MLS via Getty Images

Our weekly dose of Major League Soccer quick takes, plotlines to watch and Power Rankings.

Banner year for the rooks

Steve Zakuani, the No. 1 pick in MLS' 2009 SuperDraft, is becoming a force for his surprising Seattle Sounders. Meanwhile, the second pick, Wake Forest's Sam Cronin, has people calling for him to get a spot on the U.S.' CONCACAF Gold Cup roster later this summer, while his Toronto FC teammate, goalkeeper Stefan Frei, has played wonderfully. In D.C., Rodney Wallace and Chris Pontius -- the sixth and seventh selections, respectively -- continue to build on their impressive early-year form. Kevin Alston has been a revelation on New England's right flank. After roughly a third of the season, it's safe to say the kids are alright.

A tale of two cities

Los Angeles and New York, the league's two marquee franchises, are traveling in opposite directions. While the Galaxy haven't lost in 10 matches, the Red Bulls can't buy a victory. Juan Carlos Osorio's team, whose run to the final last season looks increasingly like a fluke, has conceded an astounding 15 goals in its last five matches, all losses. On the Left Coast, however, Bruce Arena's boys finally figured out how to win and are progressing up the MLS table nicely. (The question, of course, is what happens with L.A. when potential clubhouse cancer David Beckham returns in July? Does a very public disaster await?)

Clocks set for Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. ET

That's when the league's two best teams -- the Power Rankings' new No. 1, the Dynamo, and Chivas USA -- battle in Houston's Robertson Stadium. Despite going just 1-1-2 in their last four matches, the visitors sit six points clear in the Western Conference, but the home side has two games in hand and a win would put Chivas' season-long stranglehold of the top spot in jeopardy. Elsewhere, Chicago and D.C. duke it out for bragging rights in the East, while the Galaxy look to continue their unbeaten streak when Real Salt Lake visits the Home Depot Center.

Week 13 Power Rankings   New Rank Previous Rank Team 1 3 Houston Dynamo (6-2-3) Stuart Holden's wonderful touch over Fire keeper Jon Busch proved to be enough as Dynamo extended unbeaten run to eight. 2 2 Chivas USA (8-2-3) Zach Thornton and Eduardo Lillingston saved Goats yet again as they emerged from tilt with Seattle with an essential victory. 3 1 Chicago Fire (5-2-6) A tough home loss saw the Fire fall to Houston despite holding their opponent to a single shot on net. 4 4 D.C. United (4-2-7) D.C. started off New York's nightmare week with a 2-0 victory as Jaime Moreno continues his display of agelessness. 5 8 Columbus Crew (3-2-7) Guillermo Barros Schelotto joins Conor Casey on top of the MLS scoring leaderboard as his club rounds into form. 6 5 Seattle Sounders FC (4-3-5) Will be without Nate Jaqua next week after striker drew second yellow for a reckless, late-match challenge on Paulo Nagamura. 7 9 New England Revolution (4-3-4) Taylor Twellman got his 100th goal and Matt Reis his 50th shutout as the Revs ran over a reeling Red Bulls squad. 8 7 Colorado Rapids (4-2-5) Omar Cummings' beautiful strike from the right side salvaged a point for the Rapids, who were outplayed in Salt Lake City. 9 6 Toronto FC (4-5-4) Freefall continues as TFC, without Marvell Wynne and Amado Guevara, fell in the formerly friendly confines of BMO Field. 10 13 Los Angeles Galaxy (2-1-9) Edson Buddle got revenge on former mates as his second-half strike was the winner for Landon Donovan-less Galaxy at TFC. 11 10 Kansas City Wizards (4-5-4) K.C. couldn't solve the Crew's defense despite having a man advantage for much of the final 45. 12 15 Real Salt Lake (3-6-3) An unlucky second yellow to Robbie Russell doomed RSL, which is winless in seven straight matches, to a draw. 13 14 FC Dallas (2-6-4) Youngster Brek Shea got his first MLS assist on Kenny Cooper's equalizer as FCD seems to be emerging from early struggles. 14 12 San Jose Earthquakes (2-7-3) Frank Yallop's side -- missing a number of first-teamers -- couldn't hold a goal lead with eight minutes to play. 15 11 New York Red Bulls (2-9-3) New York has yet to score on the road. Can manager Osorio hold onto his job much longer?