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RSL Playoff Watch after Wk 28/29

Only two games this week, what would be best for RSL?

By Kreg Asay
Los Angeles Galaxy v Real Salt Lake Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images

As MLS pauses (except for 8 teams) for the international break, most teams will take the opportunity to take a much needed rest or to work on some issues in their push for playoff berths.

Real Salt Lake is one of the latter (at least according to one source). After winning midweek vs LA Galaxy, we dropped all three in Texas vs newcomers Austin FC. However thanks to the LAG win, who also tied their weekend game we still come out in 5th thanks to goal differential.

So where do we stand? With only 6 games remaining our maximum point total would be 57, while our projected points based on home & away PPG is 47. That is tied for 6th with LAG, but again we currently hold the tiebreaker.

No Western teams are mathematically out of playoff contention yet, but FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo and Austin FC are all one or two bad results away.

So let’s take a look at this week’s games and see what would be the best results for RSL.

Only two games will concern RSL since we don’t play.

Saturday, Oct. 9th

  • Minnesota United (7th) vs Colorado Rapids (3rd) - I know it hurts to say this, but the Rapids winning would be the best for us right now. A tie won’t technically hurt us since it would put the Loons on equal points, but behind in tiebreakers. The Rapids are all but out of our reach unless we go on an amazing run and they falter.
  • Seattle Sounders (1st) vs Vancouver Whitecaps (8th) - Cheer for Seattle in this game. The only way we could only catch them is if we win out all our remaining games, and they lose all or tie only two of them. They will clinch the first West playoff berth with a win or tie. Vancouver sits only two points behind us, and a win moves them into 5th and drops us one step closer to missing out.

If both Minnesota and Vancouver win, we would drop to 7th. Still technically in the playoffs, but dangerously close to missing it a 2nd year in a row.

Current projected Western Conference Final Points

  1. Seattle Sounders: 68
  2. Sporting Kansas City: 63
  3. Colorado Rapids: 60
  4. Portland Timbers: 56
  5. Minnesota United: 49
  6. Real Salt Lake: 47 (leads on GD)
  7. LA Galaxy: 47
  8. Vancouver Whitecaps: 46
  9. Los Angeles FC: 41
  10. San Jose Earthquakes: 40
  11. FC Dallas: 35
  12. Houston Dynamo: 31 (leads on GD)
  13. Austin FC: 31

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