You may agree or disagree with these rankings, that’s your opinion. Feel free to let me know what your rankings would be if they differ from mine here. Just remember I keep things on performance based from week-to-week and also try to keep things in line for the whole season…early on is usually when we see the most movement here as teams sort themselves out in the early going.

Team	Rank (Last Week)	Record (W-L-T)	Comments
	1 (1)	0-0-2 2pts.	The own-goal was a killer but this club is still the one to beat right now. I know a lot of people won’t have them on top this week but I think the bar it still set at this club, though some clubs are rapidly approaching them.
	2 (2)	1-0-1 4 pts.	Not the best second week for the Fire but they did have a few guys missing against DC. But let’s not forget, four points in their first two road games, mostly without Blanco. I’m sure they will take that any day.
	3 (6)	2-0-0 6pts.	I have to admit, I hate having an expansion club this high but two dominate home wins can convince me. I still want to see how they handle a true road test, and next week they will get that against TFC in BMO Field.
	4 (7)	2-0-0 6 pts.	Two newbies for the AmeriGoats get the goals. Thing is they played a crappy defense on Sunday, I want to see them more against a Columbus or Chicago here before I really peg them as a true western contender. Saying that though my darkhorse is looking good.
	5 (5)	1-0-1 4 pts.	A patchwork lineup yet again looked pretty good against New York. Just like Chicago, four road points to kick off the season is not a bad thing at all when you think they are missing Taylor Twellman and Steve Ralston. Also, Kevin Alston is playing well above the pace of most rookies at this point.
	6 (4)	1-0-1 4 pts.	Normally four road points for this club would rise them up but when other clubs around them do a little better they get bumped down a bit. No worries though as the Reds have their home opener.
	7 (11)	1-1-0 3 pts.	I think it is safe to say that the Quakes will score their fair share of goals this year. The 15 minute stretch against the Dynamo was exciting. I do still have some concerns about their midfield though.
	8 (3)	0-1-1 1 pts.	Big drop due to the lack of defense on Saturday in San Jose. I wouldn’t be too worried though, the Quakes typically drop games like this early in the year.
	9 (13)	1-1-0 3 pt.	We knew the club could score here, it was just a matter of when and from who. Hopefully for Rapids fans Terry Cooke is back to his old self here this season. And it could be safe to say that Omar Cummings is on the verge of a solid season here too.
	10 (10)	0-0-1 1 pts.	No game, and no worries this week. Probably a good thing for Bruce Arena who used the time to get people healthy and get some rookies more time in practice.
	11 (12)	0-1-1 1 pts.	I’m still a little puzzled with this club. They are a streaky team to say the least. Inconsistent play will keep them out of the playoff picture though if they keep at this pace.
	12 (14)	0-1-1 1 pt.	They looked better this week but had it not been for an own-goal I really doubt they would have gotten on the board. For their sake they need Albert Celades in the line up sooner rather than later as their midfield continues to get out-done each week.
	13 (8)	0-1-0 0 pts.	They had their chances but in all honesty looked out classed by an expansion club. Sure the rust may have been there but this club just looks a lot like last year’s bunch (minus the playoff run), a very average club.
	14 (9)	0-2-0 0 pts.	Nothing to be impressed with here right now with the Wizards. Offensively they looked lost against a pretty average defense in Colorado and defensively they continue to get beat wide and with speed.
	15 (15)	0-2-0 0 pts.	The statement echoing through the press box on Sunday, “it’s going to be a long season here.”

You decide:

Fredy Montero:

Nate Jaqua:

Terry Cooke:

Chris Wondolowski:

Brad Davis:

Luciano Emilio:

Guillermo Barros Schelotto PK wasn't enough to beat TFC. (Getty Images)

Week number two is finally in the books here. We saw six games come and go with only a few goals this week to even mention. Loads of draws across the land early on Saturday, but the night came with the goals as the Seattle-RSL game and Houston-San Jose game saw more action than the first couple in the day.

So just what did week two bring us? A new saves leader in Kevin Hartman, an expansion club at the top of the standings, and a young Columbian leading all in goals scored (talk about a goal too!).

I try to be quick in my recaps here this year, since I don’t see every game it should be a bit easier to do so.

Columbus Crew 1 – 1 Toronto FC:

Say what you will about the result, you have to give it up to Toronto for getting four points out of their first two road games. I don’t believe last year’s squad would have come close to that. Their home opener next week will really give us a strong indication of how good they really are I think.

Anyways, as far as this one went the Crew really handled the possession in this one and came up short in the end with the late own goal.

Some shaky moments for Crew fans when MVP Guillermo Barros Schelotto went down in the second half. He came off shortly after but no word on his status.

The one thing going against the Crew in this one had to be their finishing. They were missing Aljeandro Moreno to an international callup but for the most part the chances the Crew had came up short due to poor finishing.

Big story though was probably the crowd. These two supporter groups are really making this rivalry into something good here that the league really needed. A couple thousand TFC supporters crossed the border to make the trip and it really added to the atmosphere at Crew Stadium. Oh yeah, those Crew fans showed up pretty nicely on Saturday too.

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Chicago Fire 1 – 1 DC United

DC looked better in this one but still found a way for the Fire to get back in it and tie things up late. I’ve been saying for weeks that people need to keep an eye on Patrick Nyarko for Chicago, this week he comes through with a big time goal to give the Fire a big road point.

Like I said, DC looked better and the early goal from Luciano Emilio was very nice, maybe even goal of the week material. The Black-and-Red also seemed to do a good job controlling the midfield more this week against the Fire. Midfield was definitely bogged down a bit with the formation (3-5-2) that Tom Soehn put out on Saturday.

Chicago had their fair share of chances in this one though. I wasn’t as impressed with them as I have been here so far in 2009. It’s almost like their wow factor wasn’t there except with Nyarko’s goal.

The field was obviously an issue with the game too, very wet as we saw a lot of guys lose their footing throughout the game. Still it didn’t stop the large group of supporters for DC. Say what you will I still believe they are some of the best in the league, if not still the best.

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New York Red Bulls 1 – 1 New England Revolution

Another ho-hum kind of game for New England. Still they did enough late to get a road point. The late goal should be a good boost for the club going into their home opener. And really had it not been for the own-goal on Jay Heaps we may have just been talking about a 0-0 tie here instead of a 1-1 tie.

Early on I really liked what I saw out of Dane Richards. His speed on the wings was a lot to handle for New England and substitute keeper Brad Knighton (Matt Reis was a late scratch from the line up). But give credit to Knighton for coming up big a couple times against the Red Bulls. That has to be a good thing for Steve Nicol to know that if he needs a replacement for Reis for a game or two this year he has a solid one.

New England did have a few chances that I felt really could have seen the back of the net. Shalrie Joeseph looked real dangerous on a few times (not just the game-tying goal).

I still feel New York’s defense is a few weeks away from being good here. Their reinforcements still aren’t yet available to play but even when they are it will still take some time. Saying that they were better this week than in week one against Seattle. Then again it didn’t take much to be better than that.

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Kevin Hartman became the league's all-time save leader in the loss to Colorado. (Getty Images)

Colorado Rapids 2 – 1 Kansas City Wizards

After a pretty boring first half the Rapids broke through with a nice second half goal by Terry Cooke (remember him?!). But their defense quickly gave up a KC goal to Michael Kraus. Keeping the excitment going though a few mintues later Omar Cummings put home his second of the year to be the game winner.

Aside from that 12 minute span, this game didn’t have a whole lot to it other than Kevin Hartman’s record breaking save. Hartman is now the league’s all-time save leader. He now stands alove at the top with 1,137 in his career, passing Tony Meola atop the leaderboard.

KC had their fair share of chances in the opening 45 minutes but poor finishing an some bad touches didn’t help their cause.

The additions of Cooke and Kraus really changed the game though in the second half. Both really injected some much needed energy to the game. Goal of the game though had to go to Cummings with his game winner. Really nothing Hartman could do about it.

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San Jose Earthquakes 3 – 2 Houston Dynamo

For two clubs that have offenses that have so many questions it was surprising to say the least to get five goals out of this one. All in the first half nonetheless. From the half-hour mark until halftime this game really entertaining to say the least. Ryan Johnson started things off for the Quakes, followed quickly by a Arturo Alvarez goal.

The visitors quickly came back with two of their own with Brad Davis and Chris Wondolowski putting home a goal each.

Some how San Jose wasn’t done though, just before the half Frank Yallop got just what he was waiting for out of Cam Weaver, as the big man put home the eventual game winner.

I wasn’t too shocked with the result but the scoreline was definitely nice to see out of these clubs as we really didn’t expect this kind of offense out of either of them just yet this season. Houston didn’t look terrible though here but they did seem a bit shakier in the midfield than normal. San Jose did a good job in the first half taking advantage of those chances.

The second half was pretty exciting as Houston tried to battle back. Their chances just came up short however. I think we still need to see the Quakes on the road here this year before we can say whether or not they are for real. But based on Saturday night I thought they made a good argument for it.

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Seattle Sounders FC 2 – 0 Real Salt Lake

What more can we say about the Sounders here? While RSL looked good and dangerous at times RSL on all ends really showed some class on Saturday night.

Some of my questions about RSL’s defense were answered as I still think they are a bit shaky. The goal to Nate Jaqua proves that. You should never leave a guy that big alone in the box like that. Just a great play by the number one overall pick Steve Zakuani to set up Jaqua in the box. If you had questions about his ball skills you just need to watch that set up to Jaqua, it was very classy.

RSL did however press a lot in the second half to get the equalizer but again Kasey Keller showed us he still has it here. Big save after big save really seperated things for Seattle on the defensive end. Both Yura Movsisyan and Kyle Beckerman had their chances but it was Keller to the rescue for Seattle.

Late in the second half it was Fredy Montero with what has to be the goal of the week. Just a load of space in the midfield given by RSL’s defense to Montero and he made them pay for it in a big way with the 24 foot blast. After the goal RSL really cooled off as Seattle closed the door on the offensive end for the visitors.

Two games in and Seattle is at the top of the standings. Give credit all around to this club for it too. I want to see how they are on the road before I really say they are one of the better clubs in the league. If they can prove it on the road we may just have a true contender here.

Also, give a lot of credit to those Sounder supporters. A typical Seattle day, cold and wet, though they still showed up 28,000+ strong. A true credit to how well this club is being run here.

And one last note, Freddie Ljungberg made his MLS debut. Not a bad one but once he gets healthy he really could make this club that much more dangerous.

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Chivas USA 2 – 0 FC Dallas

A real bummer of a game to end the weekend on. Not only was the game a bit sloppy in the midfield but there was no one in the stands to see it. The game went back and forth for the majority of it but it was defensive mistakes again that costed the home side in this one.

Mexican striker Eduardo Lillingston found the back of the net mid-way through the second half to put the visitors on top. It was pretty much all the AmeriGoats needed to get the big three points on the road.

Dallas had their chances but the finishing just wasn’t there. Ther was better play out of playmaker David Ferreira in this one for Dallas but still not enough to put the club over the top. Dallas still struggled to get a good connection between their playmakers in the midfield and their two strikers up top. They did have a couple more moments in the attack than Chivas but nothing that really tested Chivas keeper Zach Thornton.

Late second half sub Bojan Stepanovic gave the visitors the two-goal lead. Stepanovic made his MLS debut Sunday and really made a great impact for Preki’s club.

Not a lot of people like what they see out of Chivas but they pretty much remind me of the “Little Engine The Could”. Everyone doubts them but Preki keeps plugging away with a bunch of no-names.

Last week the league kicked off with a pretty big bang up in Seattle, but I am sure week two won’t be any different with the Trillium Cup clash in Columbus.

As always feel free to post your predictions to this weekend’s games below.

Toronto FC – at – Columbus Crew:

1. Can Toronto actually win back-to-back games on the road?

Let’s face it for us to really take this Toronto club seriously in 2009 we need to see them win more than a couple games on the road and we have to see them win some back-to-back roadies too. Toronto looked good in week one with their 3-2 win over KC. I think had it not been for two stellar goals by Davy Arnaud that game would have been a shutout for the Reds.

I think we know Toronto can win on the road here with the way Dwayne De Rosario and Amado Guevara looked last week. Thing is they will have their hands full with Guillermo Barros Schelotto.

2. Who will handle the international callups better?

Here’s the list for both clubs:

CLB: Frankie Hejduk (USA; vs El Salvador, March 28); Alejandro Moreno (Venezuela; vs Argentina, March 28); Duncan Oughton (New Zealand; vs Thailand, March 28) … TOR: Amado Guevara (Honduras; vs Trinidad & Tobago, March 28); Carl Robinson (Wales; vs Finland, March 28)

For the most part it seems like Columbus will be missing more with no Hejduk and Moreno gone. Thing is I see Robinson and Guevara being a bigger hit for Toronto than most will think. Robinson controls a lot in the defensive side of the midfield and Guevara showed last week that he may have MVP form this season.

Still its pretty even on boths sides here. The Crew will have to find another scorer though with Moreno gone. I see Robbie Rogers stepping up in a big way for this one to make up for the loss of Moreno.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

Emmanuel Ekpo will be a guy on the wings for Columbus that Toronto may not have an answer for with their international callup losses.

Quick Preview:

This one as we know should be pretty exciting. We know of the rivalry and what it is turning into. Crew Stadium should be pretty full for this since the club will be celebrating their title from last year before the game in a banner ceremony. Add to that the couple thousand Toronto fans that will be making the trip and this could be the game of the weekend. If this game were in Toronto I’d feel better about picking TFC. At Crew Stadium I just can’t go against the Crew just yet here this season.

WVH Prediction: Columbus 2, Toronto 1

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DC United – at – Chicago Fire:

1. A sloppy and injury ridden defense going against a strong defense missing two key players…who has the edge?

Seeing the Fire without both Bakary Soumare and Gonzalo Segares could be just what DC United needs. Thing is Chicago has a better midfield than DC right now so the edge easily moves to the homeside. With the injuries in the midfield (Fred) and some questions in defense (McTavish, Janicki), DC will likely have more pressure on them than the Fire will.

But one advantage that could be on DC’s side, the road club has been pretty dominate in recent meetings in this rivalry.

2. How big of a factor is having Ben Olsen on the field for DC?

The thing I love about Ben is his ability to lead a club, even when he isn’t at his best. Having him back this year should be a big lift for the Black-and-Red. If anyone is to lead a club out of a funk (United is winless in their last 10 away league matches, losing seven and drawing three, and have lost 16 of their last 21 away matches in all competitions since the start of 2008), it’s Olsen. And right now DC needs to lead on him more than they ever have.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

You want speed? Patrick Nyarko is definitely your guy. I think with the injuries in defense and in the midfield you could see the second-year striker have a big evening.

Quick Preview:

I know the road side has been good lately in this series but I see that coming to an end tomorrow night. While DC looked decent at times last weekend in their opener I really felt the Fire looked a lot better in their own. What it comes down to for me is defense and even without Segares and Soumare I still feel that the Fire have a better club overall than United right now. The midfield play from the Fire will be too much for DC to overcome.

WVH Prediction: Chicago 3, DC 1

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New England Revolution – at – New York Red Bulls:

1. Can the Red Bulls respond to their horrible opener with a strong showing against a I-95 rival?

I think if the Red Bulls struggle out of the gate in this one there could be a lot of boos from the crowd at Giant Stadium by halftime. We know their showing last week in the opener was bad but if they follow that up with another stinker to a rival club in their conference it could really put this club in an early hole in the standings. Luckily for them they play a Revs side that is still hit with some injuries here already at the start of the year.

Also keep in mind that New York will be without their own share of players for this one due to international callups. Newly signed Carlos Johnson will be missed again along with Andrew Boyens and Jorge Rojas. I think the Rojas loss could be a tough one to overcome.

2. Who has the edge in the midfield?

Judging by the callups and injuries I have to give the slight edge to New England here. I just don’t like a midfield that has Juan Pietravallo in it. The midfield that the Revs put out still is a strong one with Shalrie Joespeh and Jeff Larentowicz. I still believe the Revs have one of the best midfield groups in the league due to those two, at leat they are definitely underrated by most.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

For New York watch out for rookie Jeremy Hall. I did see a few good things out of him last week and I really believe he could be a strong candidate for rookie of the year this season. He might be a strong addition off the bench for New York in the second half if he doesn’t start.

Quick Preview:

New York will be under pressure to show that last week’s game was a total fluke. I think they will have to lean heavily on Juan Pablo Angel in this one. If he doesn’t come up strong then it will be up to some unproven guys to do the workload. If it comes to that I think the Revs could come up strong and win another early road game here this season. Neither offense really showed a lot in week one but defensively New England looked pretty good. I’m going to give New York the benifit of the doubt for last week and call this one a draw. I still lean a bit to New England but I think New York can at least get a point in this one.

WVH Prediction: New York 1, New England 1

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Kansas City Wizards – at – Colorado Rapids:

1. Can KC get over the hump in the Mile High City?

The Wizards haven’t seen kind times in Colorado for a while. The Wizards haven’t won in Denver since June 9, 2004, a span of five league matches. The Rapids have won four of those, with one draw. Overall the club hasn’t done well historically in Denver, winning only four times in 22 meetings.

To get over the hump they need to rely on their midfield, particularly the hot foot of Davy Arnaud. If he can even have half the performance that he did a week ago, it could be just the boost the Wizards need here early on in the year.

2. Player to keep an eye on for both clubs.

Gregory Richardson for Colorado. I really think his signing will prove to be a good one for the Rapids this year. If he is given the right amount of time he could see a good game tomorrow against the Wizards. His size and speed could be tough to handle late in the second half if he comes on as a sub.

Herculez Gomez for Kansas City. Gomez has been one of those hot and cold guys in his career. I didn’t think he had a real solid opener last week but I think he could bounce back with a nice showing against the Rapids.

Quick Preview:

I will be real honest, this could be the least interesting game on the slate this weekend. It doesn’t mean that it won’t matter any in the long run but to be honest in a rivalry weekend this one just doesn’t excite me like other do. No offense Rapids or Wizards fans, but I just can’t say I am amped for this one. It sounds to me like it could be a close one with a slight advantage for Colorado based on what I saw out of Conor Casey last week. I think he will break through on the scoring.

WVH Prediction: Colorado 2, Kansas City 1

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Houston Dyanmo – at – San Jose Earthquakes:

1. No Ching for Houston, who’s gonna carry the offensive load?

No Brian Ching and no Kai Kamera for Houston. Does this mean no offense? Probably not, because this club will rely heavily on set peices in a game like this. If they score any in this one you better believe it will be due to some quality service on a corner or on a free kick. It may be a good weekend for Stuart Holden to live up to some of hype this weekend.

2. Can San Jose get over the hump and actually show they have offense worth watching?

Listen, a lot of people knocked the Quakes for their showing against the Revs last week and for good reason. But every club has a game like that where they can’t hit anything. It happens. I don’t see it being the case here as Cam Weaver looked dangerous and I highly doubt Darren Huckerby will struggle to find the back of the net like he did last weekend.

The offense is going to come, though against a strong defense like Houston we may be waiting another week. I may just have more faith in Frank Yallop’s club than most here though.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

Geoff Cameron for Houston. I think Cameron will have his hands busy in the backline with a guy like Weaver on the attack for the Quakes. If Cameron and Bobby Boswell can shutdown Weaver and company it could be a long evening for the Quakes. I think Cameron is just the guy to do it as he is the style of player Dominic Kinnear loves, a true workhorse.

Quick Preview:

This rivalry is an interesting one and may be even more different now that former Quakes Dwayne De Rosario aren’t in a Dynamo jersey. I still believe it will be a hard faught game. The clubs have a lot to prove right now and it will make for an entertaining game I think. Not a lot seperates the two right now with the callups and injuries. I will however give the slight edge to the home side. Maybe I am just more of a Quake believer in 2009 than most but I think they will bounce back well from last week’s poor showing.

WVH Prediction: San Jose 1, Houston 0

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Real Salt Lake – at – Seattle Sounders FC

1. Which club is really for real here?

No pun on the word real either but a lot of people love Real this season and everyone has jumped on the Sounders bandwagon here. So what gives? I think it will come down to midfield play for this one more than anything else. Each club has a decent backline and a decent attack but the midfield action is where it will be at. Right now I have to give a slight edge to the visitors with due to their MLS experience over a fairly unknown Sounder midfield. Sure they had one good game but will it carry over against a club who actually has a solid midfield?

2. What should we expect out of Freddy and Fredy?

Seattle’s two Freds should be an interesting watch in itself. Fredy Montero was a beast a week ago as he scored two and earned the league’s honor as Player of the Week. I think he could have a repeat performance in this one too. The other Fred, as in Freddy Ljungberg could be set to make his Sounder and MLS debut tomorrow. If he can be the Ljungberg that carried Aresenal a few years back then the Sounders will be a real tough team to beat in the middle. If not then he will just join the past DPs that were a waste of time and money to the league.

3. Player to watch.

For me it’s gotta be Javier Morales for RSL. The man is Schelotto like in the middle and should find a way to get his club on the board in this one. If he can break down young Osvaldo Alonso in the middle it could be a very good start to the season for RSL.

Quick Preview:

People are high on both clubs and for good reason. Seattle looked great in the opener against New York and most expect RSL to carry over what they started last year. I still want to see what exactly RSL brings to the table in 2009. I think they will be good, no doubt but I think Seattle has a good chance to push them around in this one due to the strong crowd and the actual quality that they have on the field. I think RSL gets on the board in this one but Seattle pulls through late.

WVH Prediction: Seattle 2, RSL 1

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Chivas USA – at – FC Dallas:

1. Can FC Dallas get over their offensive woes?

This looks like a good game for Dallas to find their scoring touch. Though typically Chivas plays them very well at Pizza Hut Park. Dallas just needs to find a way to get David Ferreira more involved in the offense. I really felt last week against Chicago he wasn’t seen enough around the ball in the attack. Sure it was his first MLS game but the first impression didn’t leave me with much. For Dallas to do well here they need him to step up and be the playmaker that they expected him to be when he signed.

2. With Sasha Kljestan gone to be with the national team, who steps up in the midfield?

That’s a big one for Chivas. IF anyone is to step up it may have to be their goalscorer from a week ago, Paulo Nagamura. He was the biggest reason why the AmeriGoats won their opener, not just the two goals but he was seriously all over the place a week ago. He was like a whole new player for Chivas out there and if that is the case we could see a good replacement for Kljestan when he decides to take off to Europe.

3. Player to keep an eye on.

I think for Dallas you gotta watch out for David van den Burgh. The Dutchman was a big part of the team’s offensive plays last week and I don’t see that changing. Since he won’t have to deal with Kljestan as much in the midfield he could see more space in the middle of the park to create some magic for Dallas. Plus the wings should be more open too for that matter.

Quick Preview:

I think Dallas should be able to respond here against Chivas this weekend. Thing is Chivas is a very tough team to judge with the way Preki coaches them up, even when their best players are out hurt or due to callups. I think it could be a tight game but just as season ago I see Dallas scoring early but giving up a cheap one late.

WVH Prediction: Dallas 1, Chivas 1