Houston, D.C. bring back normalcy

PRINT EMAIL FACEBOOK DIGG TWITTER RSS SHARE

In just two games since arriving from San Jose via trade, Cam Weaver (15) has two goals and an assist for first-place Houston. Rick Yeatts/MLS via Getty Images

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

Dynamo Cam

After one practice with his new club, Cam Weaver notched Houston's game-winning assist against Chivas USA last week. Then, three days later, he scored a pair on FC Dallas in a 3-1 victory. "We played against Cam a couple of times this season, and he gave us some problems," Dynamo midfielder Stuart Holden told Free Kicks, clearly glad to have Weaver on his side. Houston has won eight out of its past nine matches and is tied for first place in the Western Conference with Chivas. "We started out a little slow, and we were playing OK, but not good enough to win games," Holden said. "Once we got a little bit of confidence, we got on a roll." With Weaver coming aboard, the roll should continue.

The return of the regulars

After surprising starts by Seattle and Chivas USA, life in MLS is returning to normal. Perennial powers D.C. United and Houston lead the Eastern and Western Conferences, respectively, with Chicago and surging Columbus waiting in the wings just below United. To be fair, Chivas remains tied with Houston -- although the L.A. club has played two more matches -- and expansion Seattle is third, but both have stumbled in recent weeks and need to regain their form. For now, though, the traditionally strong clubs are making midseason runs.

And then there were 11 ...

Four teams -- Chivas USA, Chicago, Kansas City and New England -- will take a two-week break to compete in the 2009 SuperLiga, leaving 11 MLS squads to fill out the schedule. The week kicks off with a bang Wednesday as D.C. travels to Seattle, where the Sounders are 4-1-2. Just three days later, the Sounders visit struggling New York while United travels to Colorado. Filling out the docket are matches between Columbus and FC Dallas, Real Salt Lake and Houston, and Los Angeles and San Jose.

Week 14 Power Rankings   < tr> New Rank Previous Rank Team 1 1 Houston Dynamo (8-2-3) Three matches in eight days posed no problems for the Dynamo as the team continues its impressive assault on the rest of MLS. 2 4 D.C. United (5-2-7) With Luciano Emilio suspended, Jaime Moreno and Christian Gómez tallied on set pieces, and United hung on vs. the Fire. 3 5 Columbus Crew (4-2-7) Guillermo Barros Schelotto continued his remarkable run with two goals on Chivas as Crew extended their unbeaten run to nine. 4 2 Chivas USA (8-4-3) Preki's lineup magic has worn off. With Jonathan Bornstein and Sacha Kljestan absent, his club fell for third time in four games. 5 3 Chicago Fire (5-3-6) Cuauhtémoc Blanco got the night off, but it was Josh Wicks' save of a Brian McBride spot kick that doomed Chicago to a loss. 6 6 Seattle Sounders FC (5-3-5) Seattle returned to its winning ways vs. San Jose, courtesy of goals from Freddie Ljungberg and Fredy Montero. 7 9 Toronto FC (5-5-4) Three-game losing streak ended vs. New York as Sam Cronin scored with a rebound off an Amado Guevara penalty kick. 8 11 Kansas City Wizards (5-5-4) The Wiz continue their quiet ascent up the Eastern Conference standings and now sit tied for third place with TFC. 9 8 Colorado Rapids (4-2-5) A big home test against D.C. awaits the rested Rapids, who can separate themselves from the middle of the West pack with a win. 10 7 New England Revolution (4-4-4) Steve Ralston to Shalrie Joseph continues to pay off, but Revs D suffered a serious letdown in K.C. after last week's clean sheet. 11 12 Real Salt Lake (4-6-3) Six weeks from its last victory, RSL stopped L.A.'s undefeated streak with goals from Yura Movsisyan and Nat Borchers. 12 14 San Jose Earthquakes (2-8-3) Darren Huckerby's return injected life into Quakes attack, but not enough to return from the Pacific Northwest with any points. 13 10 Los Angeles Galaxy (2-2-9) L.A. will be without the services of defender Eddie Lewis -- shown red in the 65th minute vs. RSL -- as it looks to begin a new run. 14 13 FC Dallas (2-7-4) So much for the four-match unbeaten streak: FCD joined the Dynamo list of victims in impressive fashion at Pizza Hut Park. 15 15 New York Red Bulls (2-10-3) The Red Bulls have set a dubious MLS record, as the squad is now winless in 20 consecutive regular-season road matches.