Endless Playoff Possibilities Promise Intriguing MLS Conclusion

Maurice Edu made news not for playing, but for running across a couple of racist idiots in Glasgow. The Houston Dynamo lost to previously winless and goalless Isidro Metapan on Wednesday night and was eliminated from the CONCACAF Champions League. Oguchi Onyewu had surgery on his torn left patella tendon and will be out an estimated six months--50 percent longer than originally thought.

Thankfully, a lousy week for American soccer is about to get better. On Thursday night, the Chicago Fire will host Chivas USA (8PM ET, ESPN2) in the first of a half-dozen games that will impact the MLS playoff picture. The competition for postseason spots is unprecedented, with seven clubs vying for three berths on the final weekend. We'll save the criticism of the league's ridiculous playoff format for another time, and instead will enjoy the fact that with 14 relatively even-matched teams (and New York), MLS at last has produced a meaningful regular season.

None of the four quarterfinal matchups has been decided and the permutations are practically endless. Four teams (Los Angeles, Houston, Chivas and Seattle) still could finish atop the Western Conference, while Chicago could finish second in the East or miss out on the playoffs altogether. Chivas (13-9-6, 45 points) and Columbus (13-6-10, 49 points) are the only two clubs in contention for the Supporters Shield.

The current standings can be found here, and an admirable attempt by Goal.com to flesh out the various tiebreaking possibilities, some of which involve up to six teams, is here.

So, since there's little point to prognostication, let's take a look at the games and figure out which playoff matchups we think would continue the league's momentum into November and the MLS Cup final, scheduled for Nov. 22 in Seattle. Based on what's currently possible according to the standings and tiebreaker procedures, here's what we'd like to see:

Chivas and Chicago draw on Thursday. On Saturday, Toronto and D.C. United grab wins on the road against already-eliminated New York and Kansas City, while Real Salt Lake takes pleasure in ending rival Colorado's season at Rio Tinto. We'll root for draws in both the Seattle-Dallas and Los Angeles-San Jose games because it helps produce the most intriguing playoff matchups. Those are sealed on Sunday as Houston, sore over its Champions League elimination, beats a tired Chivas at the Home Depot Center to clinch top spot in the West and Columbus wins its second consecutive Supporters Shield with a victory over fading New England.

As a result (we think), American soccer fans will get four very intriguing playoff series.

Eastern Conference

No. 1 Columbus vs. No. 4 D.C. United

Perhaps a visit from the hated Black-and-Red will galvanize a Columbus fan base with so much potential. It would be great to see Crew Stadium full, and the chance to eliminate D.C. (which knocked out the Crew three times in the late 1990s) might generate some excitement. United veterans Ben Olsen and Jaime Moreno deserve another crack at the postseason, but a playoff appearance should not deter club owner Will Chang from instigating the philosophical changes now needed so badly at the capital club.

No. 2 Chicago vs. No. 3 Toronto FC

Toronto's first playoff appearance should generate considerable excitement north of the border, and the midfield matchup between the Reds' Dwayne DeRosario and Amado Guevara and the Fire's Cuahtemoc Blanco would be the postseason's most intriguing. Under the above scenario, Chicago will enter the series winless in seven matches, perhaps setting up MLS's preseason favorites for a first-round exit and a conference final between nascent rivals Columbus and Toronto.

Western Conference

No. 1 Houston vs. No. 4 Seattle

The league's best team over the past four years, Houston was winless in three games against the expansion Sounders this season, including a riveting and ill-tempered U.S. Open Cup semifinal that was decided in overtime. This matchup also would feature two of the league's four best coaches (Bruce Arena and Steve Nicol have to be considered the others), and a couple of the most colorful crowds, while offering a must-see Ricardo Clark vs. Freddie Ljungberg showdown in the middle.

No. 2 Los Angeles vs. No. 3 Chivas USA

The two SoCal clubs finally are decent at the same time, and David Beckham deserves nothing less for his maiden MLS Cup effort than a genuine derby. Galaxy-Chivas games have produced some of the best atmosphere MLS has seen, and would be a fitting way to introduce new viewers, opting to check in for the Englishman's postseason debut, to the league. Anything that stokes some real rivalry in American soccer is a good thing.

Let the games begin.