Manic race for final playoff berths

PRINT EMAIL FACEBOOK DIGG TWITTER RSS SHARE

With their 3-2 win in Kansas City, the expansion Seattle Sounders are headed to the playoffs in their inaugural season. AP

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

Seven for three

Thirty-one weeks later and we still have no idea who will make up almost half the playoff picture. Chicago (42 points) is in with a tie and Colorado (40) with a win, but four teams -- D.C. United, FC Dallas, New England and Toronto FC -- have 39 points with a single match remaining, while Real Salt Lake finds itself just two behind the quartet. The tiebreaking scenarios are too complex to examine here (see this story for a complete breakdown), but it's possible all six could finish with 40 points. That situation would see TFC land in the eighth and final spot, no doubt cheering up fans north of the border and sending a chill -- literally -- through the rest of the squads in MLS.

Westward ho!

Seattle defeated Kansas City on the road last weekend and that result -- combined with Chivas USA's home draw with San Jose and the Los Angeles-Houston scoreless draw -- thrust the first-year franchise back into the race for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. The Goats have to be the favorite as they boast a game in hand (and are the only squad capable of wresting the Supporters' Shield from Columbus), but there's an attitude about this Sounders team Free Kicks loves. Plus, two words: Sigi Schmid. This race is going down to the wire, folks. Or, perhaps more accurately, to around 5 p.m. ET on Sunday when the Houston-Chivas match concludes the West schedule.

Once more, with feeling

The final week of the regular season features eight matches, and every one matters to at least one squad. The Fire open the Sunday-to-Sunday stretch when they play host to Chivas USA. Can Brian McBride & Co. alter their home woes and reach the playoffs? The highlight of Saturday's five matches has to be white-hot FCD invading the rocking Qwest Field pitch, but you could make a case for the Rapids-Real Salt Lake tilt as well. In addition to the Dynamo-Goats fixture on Sunday, the Revs take the pitch in Columbus knowing the result they need against a Crew side that's likely to be resting some regulars.

Week 32 Power Rankings   New Rank Previous Rank Team 1 1 Columbus Crew (13-6-10) With just one goal in October, MLS' best team isn't exactly storming into the postseason. 2 4 Seattle Sounders FC (11-7-11) Despite a midseason slide, the expansion team boasts both the league's third-best goal differential and road record. 3 2 Houston Dynamo (12-8-9) Pat "The Cat" Onstad is one match away from playing every minute of the season. Not too shabby for a 41-year-old. 4 3 Los Angeles Galaxy (11-6-12) Even Landon Donovan's appearance in the 53rd minute couldn't help the Galaxy break through a stalwart defense in Houston. 5 6 Chivas USA (13-9-6) Led by the rejuvenated Zach Thornton in net, Preki's club has allowed less than a goal a game. 6 5 Chicago Fire (10-7-12) Was Aug. 23 really the last time the Fire tasted victory in MLS play? Yes, yes it was. 7 9 FC Dallas (11-12-6) Jeff Cunningham's goal-scoring streak has gotten all the press recently, but don't sleep on the striker's eight assists. 8 7 Colorado Rapids (10-9-10) Pat Noonan tallied his second of the year in Dallas, but it wasn't enough as the Rapids again failed to clinch a postseason berth. 9 10 Toronto FC (10-10-9) With a win at New York in Saturday's first game, TFC will put immense pressure on the rest of the league's playoff hopefuls. 10 11 D.C. United (9-8-12) Luciano Emilio's 10th tally, against the Crew, gave United's ailing postseason aspirations a much-needed shot of life. 11 8 New England Revolution (10-10-9) Edgaras Jankauskas returned to the Starting XI, but he couldn't help the struggling team avoid a scoreless draw vs. Fire. 12 12 Real Salt Lake (10-12-7) Left for dead a couple of weeks ago, RSL resurrected its playoff hopes thanks to Andy Williams' 80th-minute strike in Toronto. 13 13 San Jose Earthquakes (7-13-9) A tough season indeed for the Northern California squad, but Ryan Johnson is having a breakout year with 11 goals. 14 14 Kansas City Wizards (8-13-8) After going just 4-6-4 at CommunityAmerica Ballpark, the Wiz need to shore up their home-field advantage in 2010. 15 15 New York Red Bulls (4-19-6) The only drama remaining in RBNY's brutal '09 is whether it can reach 20 losses. Oh, and who will helm the squad next year.