New Year, New Hopes For Success

The Fire Will Be Flying High Again

I actually fell asleep for part of the Maryland game on Sunday when it looked like they were out of it. I woke up with about 5 minutes left and watched the comeback begin. Part of me wishes I had just stayed asleep. I was unaware of it, but I was standing in front of my tv when Korie Lucious drained the 3 at the buzzer to win it for Michigan State. My wife said I sank to my knees and buried my face in the carpet, leaving it there for a good 30 seconds or so. She said she had never seen that from me before, and I guess I was so numb that I didn't even realize I had reacted that way. As blogger-mate Walsh said "I would have rather lost by 15 than to have to re-live that shot over and over again on every channel."

Agreed, Pat. At least Georgetown once again s*it the bed in the 1st round, so there's some solace in that. Now if only Duke can get their asses handed to them sometime this weekend, all will be right with the world. And yes, in case you're wondering, I'm rooting for Northern Iowa Friday night.

Okay, enough about that, let's get to the most interesting (?) topic of the week, which is the start of the MLS season. Truth be told, there have been so many changes in the offseason that it's been hard to follow. We don't know how quickly these teams will gel, how they'll do with new coaches, and what new players will emerge as stars. One thing is for sure; Dallas, Colorado, and Kansas City will all have continue to have crappy attendance.

I'll submit my prediction in order of finish, and Pat will do the same later in the week. Here goes:

Eastern Conference:

Chicago: With Blanco and Chris Rolfe gone, will Patrick Nyarko be able to take some of the goal-scoring pressure off Brian McBride? Players seem to really like new Coach Carlos de los Cobos' style and knowledge.

Columbus: Robert Warzycha hopes to get at least one more solid season from aging veterans Frankie Hejduk and Schelotto as they mentor the younger players.

DC United: Going out on a limb here. As my colleague Craig Stouffer (The Examiner) pointed out, "They play better when they have fewer games." With no outside tournaments other than the U.S. Open Cup to play in, they have no other distractions from the MLS grind.

New England: Lost several solid players over the past 2 years, but somehow Steve Nicol has his team in contention every year. The ever-present Shalrie Joseph might be the league's toughest player.

New York: Teams with new stadiums tend to do well in them their 1st year. Besides, the Red Bulls couldn't get any worse than last year. Some interesting roster moves might put this team in contention for a playoff spot.

Philadelphia: The last time Peter Nowak was involved with an expansion team (Chicago), they won MLS Cup. He won't pull off any miracles this year, but the Union will be surprisingly competitive.

Toronto: There's not a lot of youth on this team, which could play a factor when the team plays in the heat of July and August. Dwayne DeRosario will need to play out of his mind to give this team a chance.

Kansas City: I don't think firing Curt Onalfo will help. Outside of Davy Arnaud, Jimmy Conrad, and (maybe) Josh Wolff, I don't know who else on this team would start for almost any other team.

Western Conference:

Los Angeles: I'm allowed to put an asterisk here...as long as Donovan stays the entire year, I think L.A. wins it here. If he goes to Europe after (hopefully) a successful World Cup campaign, then all bets are off.

Seattle: Sigi Schmidt worked wonders with this team last year. They won't sneak up on anybody in 2010, but that doesn't mean their fans won't see a ton of wins in their second season.

Houston: Dominick Kinnear is a lot like Steve Nicoll in that his teams are in the thick of it every year. He's lost great players like Rico Clark and Stuart Holden, but has a knack for finding solid replacements and fitting them into his system.

Real Salt Lake: I know it looks crazy to put the defending MLS Champs here, but it just shows how competitive I think the West will be this year. But I like their roster and wouldn't be surprised to see them repeat as champions.

Chivas USA - They have a good core of players like Bornstein and Kljestan, but this roster is full of grizzled vets who, like Toronto, might fade down the stretch in the summer heat.

FC Dallas - They have a pretty good defense, especially with the addition of Kevin Hartman, but can Jeff Cunningham score enough goals to get this team some wins, and heaven forbid, a few fans?

Colorado - Conor Casey is one of the league's premier target forwards, but there isn't enough creativity and talent around for him to be truly lethal. Anybody want to place an "over/under" bet on Pablo Mastroeni ejections this year?

San Jose - When I look at this roster, I don't see a single player who scares me. Will challenge Kansas City for the title of league's worst team.

Playoffs: I still have no clue how the thing works, so I'll skip this and go right to my MLS Cup pick;

MLS Cup - Chicago over Los Angeles - The West is stronger, but the Fire have arguably the deepest roster and a coach who probably knows how to use it.

One final note; a big shout out to friend of the blog Brian Straus who has become AOL's full time MLS reporter. Brian is a great writer and will be a great addition to the very few professional soccer writers in this country. Way to go, Straus!

Walsh will be back later in the week with his predictions, and remember to sign up for our MLS Fantasy Division Pat created (see his blog from earlier in the week for the link)...