Brek Shea sits atop the MVP race, can he hold on to it? (Getty Images)

With only a few weeks left in the season the awards race in Major League Soccer is pretty dang hot. The MVP race alone is very interesting this season. In my book if I had to vote today for the top three in the MVP race would be fairly simple but there are a few dark horse candidates to keep a watch on.

The Top Contenders

Brek Shea, M, FC Dallas: This one is fairly simple. If Shea isn’t at the top of most folks list right now it means they either hate Dallas or don’t watch the league at all. The second one probably speaks more truth than anything if someone doesn’t have Shea in their top three once it is time to vote. Shea has done everything right for Dallas since the injury of last year’s MVP, David Ferreira. He’s scored plenty of big goals and has come up with a few quality assists. Simply put, Dallas is nothing without his service from the wings.

Mauro Rosales, M, Seattle Sounders FC: In a way Rosales has really just come on strong in the last two months but overall he is a huge reason why the Sounders are in the thick of things in the Supporter’s Shield race. His five goals and ten assists are something to marvel over but for me it comes down to his distribution and setting up the Sounders’ attack. I don’t see Lamar Neagle or Mike Fucito getting the goals that they have gotten this year without Rosales. Bold statement to make, sure, but it is one I feel pretty good about.

Landon Donovan, M, LA Galaxy: Of course, another season with Donovan in the MVP mix. His 11 goals and three assists will keep him in the discussion even though he hasn’t played as many minutes as Shea or some of the others here.

Still In The Mix:

Thierry Henry, F, New York Red Bulls: The New York Red Bulls’ season goes with Henry. As he goes, the club goes. He may lead the league in goals scored with 12 and have four assists on the year  but the way his club has played these last couple of months are hurting his MVP chances. He needs to continue to score goals and help get his club in the playoffs to get this award.

Brad Davis, M, Houston Dynamo: Another player who’s team goes as they do. Davis is always overlooked but there is no reason why he should be. His league-leading 13 assists are the main reason why the Dynamo are even in the playoff hunt to begin with. You want a valuable player to a club, look no further than to Davis.

David Beckham, M, LA Galaxy: Donovan and Beckham will likely cancel one another out in this race but consider Beckham’s stats at the moment, 12 assists and two goals isn’t bad at all. To be fair, this has been his best season to date as a member of the Galaxy.

Jack Jewsbury, M, Portland Timbers: You want some good stats? Seven goals and eight assists. That’s quality folks. Portland would be a really bad expansion team without Captain Jack.

Dwayne De Rosario, M, DC United: Another player with monster stats on the season, nine goals and eight assists. What will hurt him is he’s played on three teams this season. That really shouldn’t be the case as he’s really helped improve United’s offense.

Some Potential Dark horses:

Dominic Oduro, F, Chicago Fire: Hard to ignore Oduro right now. He’s scoring loads of goals (and missing loads too). He’s a long shot at best but he’s worth mentioning.

Sebastien Le Toux, M, Philadelphia Union: I think if he can continue his scoring (six goals on the year) to go with his assist numbers (eight assists), he’ll easily move up this order here. Last night’s great come back performance against New England was a sign that Le Toux will be in the mix.

Kyle Beckerman, M, Real Salt Lake: With Javier Morales going down earlier in the season, it was Beckerman who had to step up and be the midfield general. Looking at things today, RSL isn’t far away from an automatic bid into the playoffs.

Houston travels to Rio Tinto Stadium to face Real Salt Lake tonight. (Getty Images)

Revenge is the thought in the minds of Real Salt Lake players tonight as they host the Houston Dynamo in the league’s showcase game on ESPN2. It was a month or so ago when the Dynamo hosted RSL on a Thursday night and scored a 2-1 win over the defending champs thanks to not one but two penalty kicks.

Jamison Olave was a big reason why RSL gave up those two penalties that night as he committed both fouls. Both times Brad Davis went to the spot and put it home for the Dynamo. One thing we can bet on is Olave being a little more disciplined tonight for his club. RSL has put themselves in a position to move up the western conference latter with a win tonight and giving up more penalties is not a way to do that.

I’ve always been a big backer of RSL at home and for good reason, they hardly lose in Salt Lake and at Rio Tinto Stadium. If anyone could knock them off their horse at home its a club like Houston who plays physical through the back and midfield and gets a lot of free kicks in dangerous spots. RSL gives up enough fouls around their box so they will have to limit those mental mistakes.

I think tonight is RSL’s game to lose. They need the three points and will want to continue their dominance at Rio Tinto. A couple guys need to step up offensively in this one like Robbie Findley who just got called into the US national team’s camp for the World Cup. Also RSL will need another strong performance out of Javier Morales. If he can regain the form he had to start the season there is no doubt that RSL will walk out of this one with three points.

Houston will have to play a little more tight in the midfield but also need to spread out RSL through the midfield. Teams that have seen some success against RSL did a good job spreading them out to create chances on goal.

I like RSL in this one for the revenge factor and because Houston hasn’t shown enough consistency recently (though injuries play a part of that). Expect a real physical match too and probably a couple cards as well.

Player to watch out for: Kyle Beckerman – He has to be the rock in the midfield for RSL. His play will dicate how RSL fares in this one.

WVH Prediction: RSL 2, Houston 1

Week four in Major League Soccer got off to a slight bang last night. Philadelphia and Toronto clashed up on the new grass at BMO Field. Dwayne De Rosario nailed two goals for the Reds in the 2-1 win. Take away the red card to Danny Califf and really Philadelphia should have at least gotten a point out of last night’s game. But they didn’t and its time to move on.

The win was definitely bigger for Toronto, even if it wasn’t pretty. Fans held up banners that said YOU MUST WIN last night. They may have won but they are far from being a team that is on the up and coming here. Preki knows lots still need to change, don’t be at all shocked if they continue to re-work this roster.

One thing we did learn from Philadelphia last night is that Roger Torres and Cristian Arrieta are solid players. Torres’ pass to Jordan Harvey on the lone Union goal was a thing of beauty. I know I’ve raved over New York’s Joel Lindpere as one of the best newcomers this year but keep watching Torres, he’s young and loaded with talent.

Now for the weekend, we have seven games with six coming up tomorrow. Some how Columbus managed to be left off the weekend slate. Can anyone figure out why a club that will have such a heavy schedule late in the year has two weekends off within the first month of the year? Shouldn’t the league have loaded their schedule up a little more early on? I don’t know, just a weird thing to see.

Feel free as always to leave you score predictions and thoughts on this weekend’s games below in the comments section.

Saturday

Kansas City Wizards – at – Seattle Sounders FC

One of the better games this weekend, the Wizards travel to Seattle to face the Sounders. Qwest Field is a place the Wizards managed to grab a win at last year so don’t be shocked if they find a way to do the same this year. With Ryan Smith charging down the sideline it could happen. This will be a great test for the Wizards though, most of us really wonder exactly how good this team really is here this season. We’ve only seen them at home and on a smaller field.

Seattle will need to use their speed and skill on the wings to spread the Wizards out. I’d expect another solid game out of Steve Zakuani in this one as I love him going against either Roger Espinoza or Michael Harrington. I think his speed may be too much to handle for either one. Also can KC handle Fredy Montero up top? They did well to shut down Omar Cummings and Conor Casey a week ago but Montero can be an entirely different kind of handfull to deal with. I like the Sounders at home but in a close one.

Player to watch out for: Jimmy Nielsen – I’m not usually one to point out a keeper in this area but so far he’s kept a clean sheet this season. I’m mainly curious to see how he handles the turf at Qwest, sometimes its a tricky monster to deal with.

WVH Prediction: Seattle 2, Kansas City 1

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Chivas USA – at – Houston Dynamo

This one could be interesting, on one hand you have a club that never does well at Robertson Stadium and on the other hand you have a club that has nearly nothing to place on the field at striker. As we all know Brian Ching is out with an injury, so is Cam Weaver and Luis Angel Landin will sit with a red card suspension. So who will the Orange turn to? Dominic Oduro and newly signed Joeseph Ngwenya.

The thing is Houston finds ways to get points, and wins at home. I expect that to happen this weekend even with all the injury issues that the Dynamo have right now. Chivas hasn’t been tested on the road yet this season, unless you count the SuperClasico game against LA, which I don’t count as a road test. Brad Davis and Geoff Cameron will be too much for Chivas to deal with.

Player to watch out for: Jesus Padilla – If Chivas is going to win they will need this guy to find ways to score again this week. His goals last week against New York weren’t pretty but were enough for three points.

WVH Prediction: Houston 2, Chivas 0

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Chicago Fire – at – D.C. United

Its hard to really think that between these two clubs they combine for only one point on the season so far. And it’s not like that draw for the Fire was pretty either. Both have plenty of issues that is obvious. D.C. however may have a few more issues in the injury department than the Fire do at this point, especially defensively. Its hard to take a club serious that has that many issues in the back like D.C. does right now.

For whatever reason the Fire are a better road team still than they are at home. I think this will be one of those cases where they play the spoiler on the road and grab three points. Even with the issues I just like the Fire’s attack and midfield a little more than United’s right now.

Player to watch out for: Marco Pappa – He has to be the guy that keeps the Fire going in this one. He can be a bit too hot and cold at times but when he’s hot he’s extremely tough to stop.

WVH Prediction: Chicago 2, D.C. 1

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FC Dallas – at – New York Red Bulls

Dallas goes on the road for the first time and it won’t be easy as they get their first try at Red Bull Arena. The Red Bulls will have to do a better job possessing the ball if they want to pick up three points. Dallas has improved a lot in that department this year but only have two points to show for it.

I think the trip back across the country (again) will be rougher on the Red Bulls than some will think. Remember they went from Seattle to LA to NY all within three weeks. That’s a lot of traveling, long traveling to be exact. Dallas will have to find a way to cut down Joel Lindpere’s touches on the ball and spread the field with their wing play. I think we’ll figure out how good exactly this New York side is after this game, but I just small another draw for Dallas though. New York’s offense hasn’t come alive yet this season and believe it or not but Dallas is doing better in the back.

Player to watch out for: Juan Pablo Angel – He’s gotta get going for New York if they want to win this one. He has the technical skill to beat Dallas.

WVH Prediction: New York 1, FC Dallas 1

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New England Revolution –  at – San Jose Earthquakes

The Revs momentum may be slowed down a bit with the loss of Shalrie Joseph this weekend. He’s out again with an injured hip. Still going for a third straight win will be big for Steve Nicol’s side. Frank Yallop’s side got three points of their own a week ago in Chicago thanks to a Ike Opara goal. So the confidence is there for both sides.

The matter comes down to the midfield and even without Joseph I still like how the Revs are playing through the midfield these days. Pat Phelan will likely slide back into the starting role this week. The wing play of Sainey Nyassi will be key for the Revs attack, his pace should be too much for the Quakes to figure out. One also has to wonder what the hat trick for rookie Zach Schilawski, can he keep it up? I think so.

Player to watch out for: Ramiro Corrales – He has to be the one for the Quakes to shutdown Nyassi, if he does that it may give the homeside some points.

WVH Prediction: New England 1, San Jose 0

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Real Salt Lake – at – LA Galaxy

The Big one for sure this weekend, a MLS Cup rematch out in LA. Its easy to say right now that LA is the best club in the league, both standings-wise and play-wise. RSL will have to find ways to get their attack going and pressure a defense that hasn’t given up a thing thus far this season. The big story will be if Javier Morales will be 100% or not, he picked up an adductor strain last week against Seattle. Without him at full strength others like Kyle Beckerman, Will Johnson and Fabian Espindola will have to pick up the slack.

Defensively RSL will have to figure out a way to slow down the hot feet of Edson Buddle. He currently leads the league in goals with five so far this season. Let’s not forget that RSL isn’t the best road team in the league either over the last couple of years. Just too many issues to overcome I think for Jason Kreis’ bunch.

Player to watch out for: Sean Franklin – He’s quietly putting together a very nice season so far for the Galaxy. He’ll have to find a way to slow down Espindola or Robbie Findley in this one.

WVH Prediction: LA 2, RSL 0

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Sunday

Toronto FC – at – Colorado Rapids

No time to rest for the Reds, they immediately go on the road after their first win of the year on Thursday night to face the Rapids on Sunday in Colorado. Not the easiest of road trips for a Thursday-Sunday swing. I’ll make this one short because let’s be honest after last night we know that Toronto lacks the depth and talent to go on Thursday-Sunday swing here. Colorado will be hungry for another win and to get their defense more in check. This should be a good game for them to do just that.

Player to watch out for: Claudio Lopez – He’s new to the Rapids but if he sees playing time he’ll be too much for Toronto to handle.

WVH Prediction: Colorado 3, Toronto 1

Peter Nowak and Philadelphia make their home debut this weekend. (MLSSoccer.com)

Are you ready for tomorrow? Seriously, are you ready? Eight games in one day, a new league record. We knew this day would come eventually with all the expansion in the league and kudos to the league for putting one so early in the season too.

If you’re like me, you’ll find tomorrow to be a tough one because of the amount of games on at once. Thankfully with my Mac I can at least throw up a few different game windows in multiple spaces.

So get your DVRs ready (if you can hold this many games), sign up for the league video package online (if you haven’t done so already), or be like most folks and just go to a game if you can. Its going to be a fun weekend for sure.

Feel free as always to leave your predictions below in the comments section.

New York Red Bulls – at – Chivas USA:

Lets just say that Chivas USA needs to figure out their offensive issues here. In to town is the new look Red Bulls who’ve won two straight shutouts. Hans Backe’s club has been solid defensively so far this season but a second straight west coast game will prove to be a bigger test than some will really think, even though Chivas has yet to score this season. We could see a potential letdown by the Red Bulls after they finally got their first road win a week ago after 27-games of coming up short away from home.

For me its going to come down to who scores in this one. Even with the two wins on the year the Red Bulls haven’t lit up the scoreboard so far (only two goals). I see a slight drop off in this one while Chivas continues to struggle to score.

Player to watch out for: Tim Ream – the rookie is as good as advertised here. Look for him to be all over Chivas’ Maykel Galindo in this one.

WVH Prediction: Chivas 0, New York 0

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D.C. United – at – Philadelphia Union

Home opener for Philadelphia is a big, big deal. They’re expecting about 30k+ tomorrow at the Linc, don’t be shocked if they reach a sellout figure (they’re caping the capacity for this one at 35k). This new rivalry will be heated, especially given how bad both have started off the year. D.C. has look awful all over the field while Philadelphia struggled on the road in their debut two weeks ago. Given the fact that Peter Nowak has had a little more time to prepare for this one I like the Union’s chances in this one a little more.

Curt Onalfo’s side has to figure out where to get their offense from. So far in attack they’ve looked uncreative and in result have been unproductive. You could say it comes down to their midfield not doing enough with the possession too. I’d imagine Nowak will do a better job with his lineup now that he gets Fred back. Look for their shape to be a little better in this one as they ride the massive fan support in the home opener. Its easy to go for a draw here given the poor results by these two so far but I like Philadelphia’s chances here.

Player to watch out for: Danny Mwanga – With Fred back and likely in the midfield, we should see more out of Mwanga in this one for Philadelphia. Hopefully Nowak learned that he belongs up top.

WVH Prediction: Philadelphia 1, D.C. 0

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Toronto FC – at – New England Revolution

Steve Nicol is looking for his 100th career MLS win in this one, and he probably couldn’t ask for a better opponent. Toronto FC is still in a bit of a state of flux after all the moves that have gone on over these last few weeks including the latest with the retirement of Jim Brennan. That loss thins out the Reds defense even more here. New England could possibly see Shalrie Joseph back for the home opener but even without him I like the Revs chances in this one. The Revs could also see Darrius Barnes back for this one as well, which would only make it rougher on Toronto to score in this one.

It seems like Toronto hasn’t scored a goal in league play or in exhibition play in ages here. I don’t see that starting back up right now. The Revs played their game last week in D.C. and I’d imagine Nicol will use some of the same tactics this week to get three more points.

Player to watch out for: Dwayne De Rosario – Really Toronto’s only hope to get on the scoreboard. If he can work his magic that we’ve seen him do in the past against the Revs, Toronto could sneak out with some points.

WVH Prediction: New England 2, Toronto 0

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Colorado Rapids – at – Kansas City Wizards

Here’s one game this weekend I’m looking forward to. Two clubs that everyone is still trying to figure out here. Are both contenders or pretenders this season? We think they could be contenders but its still too early to tell. The Rapids have to get their defense in line here for this one as the Wizards showed early on this year that they can score early and often.

As we saw last week, Kansas City’s best bet to get by the Rapids defense is to go right at them with some speed. Look for Ryan Smith and Kei Kamara to do just that on the wings as things in the center of the park will be a little tight. The Rapids haven’t won in KC since 2002 and something tells me that streak isn’t going to end here this season either. However I do think a draw sounds more likely with these two trading some goals early on in this one.

Player to watch out for: Omar Cummings – For me he is by far the most dangerous player on the field in this one. If he finds open space in the final third for Colorado he can score and create chances for Conor Casey.

WVH Prediction: Kansas City 2, Colorado 2

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LA Galaxy – at – Houston Dynamo

I love the promo the Dynamo are running for this one –  a flash light campaign, in case the lights go out again with these two on the field. Beautiful stuff.

Houston as we know is a bit banged up with Brian Ching on the shelf for a few weeks. Dominic Kinnear will have to look elsewhere for offense. Maybe we’ll finally see their Designated Player Luis Angel Landin finally step into the role. Or Kinnear can go with Cam Weaver. Either one with the speed of Dominic Oduro should be fine.

LA has been very good on defense so far this year, with no goals against. But both of those games came from the friendly confines of the Home Depot Center. Things are a little different for the Galaxy at Robertson Stadium, a place few get points at. I see this one staying close but look for the Dynamo to figure out a way to get one by Donovan Ricketts.

Player to watch out for: Brad Davis – Don’t expect another two goals from the PK spot this weekend for Davis but no matter who scores for Houston in this one it will be due to the play of this guy.

WVH Prediction: Houston 1, LA 0

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Columbus Crew – at – FC Dallas

The regular season version of the Pioneer Cup. Both teams had a week off last week to plan for this game. It will be interesting to see if Chad Marshall makes it back for this one for the Crew. If he isn’t out there their defense could be a bit exposed with him gone and Eric Brunner out. Guys like Andy Iro will likely have to step up to contain Jeff Cunningham.

Dallas isn’t too different in the back either as both Kyle Davies and Ugo Ihemelu are banged up. We could even see Brek Shea in the back for the Red Stripes in this one as a bit of a patch work job by manager Schellas Hyndman. Expect this one to come down to who can control things in the midfield. On one side we have Guillermo Barros Schelotto and the other David Ferriera. I’d be lying if I didn’t think that was the best matchup of the weekend right there. The visitors could go away with three points but a draw sounds more likely.

Player to watch out for: Atiba Harris – Dallas needs some big time play on the wings and Harris has to be that guy for them. He scored in the season opener and if he can work his way into the middle in the final third of the field we could see him score again.

WVH Prediction: Dallas 1, Columbus 1

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San Jose Earthquakes – at – Chicago Fire

We know the storyline in this one, Jon Busch’s return to Chicago. That should be a it awkward. The Fire looked a little better in week two but they still haven’t found that consistent play out of their midfield. Manager Carlos de los Cobos went with a 4-3-3 last week and it started to work for them as Collins John made an impact with the open space up top. Chicago has to get more out of Marco Pappa though in the midfield.

The Quakes just need to figure themselves out here though. In week one they looked more like an expansion team than a team in it’s third year. Frank Yallop made a couple changes to his roster and got former Quake Scott Sealy back. I’m not entirely sure if that move will get their club going or not here. The road hasn’t been kind to the Quakes lately either. Chicago should find a way to win this one.

Player to watch out for: Ryan Johnson – He’s the main guy for the Quakes, if he doesn’t get going in this one it will be a long night in the Windy City for Yallop’s side.

WVH Prediction: Chicago 2, San Jose 0

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Seattle Sounders FC – at – Real Salt Lake

Probably the game of the week in most folks minds. Rightfully so as both clubs are looking to rebound after dismal efforts in week two. RSL will look to resume their home dominance while Seattle will hope to get on the right track this year away from Qwest Field. Sigi Schmid has to find a way to get his club going offensively though to get any sort of points in this one. I wouldn’t be shocked to see Pat Noonan get the starting nod in this one for them to make an effort to kick start their offense.

RSL also has some decisions to make offensively. Do they start Robbie Findley over Fabian Espindola or Alvaro Saborio, or do they keep him as a second half sub for now? Either way I think we’ll get more Findley this week than what we’ve seen so far this season. I like RSL in this one though with the way their midfield plays at home. I doubt we’ll see the same defensive meltdowns that we saw out of them in Houston a week ago too.

Player to watch out for: Steve Zakuani – The one big chance the Sounders have in this one is for Zakuani to expose RSL on the wings. His pace could be a big difference maker.

WVH Predictions: RSL 2, Seattle 1

I’d normally like to get these predictions out much sooner but with all that has gone on this winter the day before First Kick seems about right really. The rosters became compliant at 5pm ET yesterday and thus will put an end to the preseason in a way for all the clubs.

In the past I’ve done these bold season predictions in various ways. I ended up sticking with the tradition of the predictions and picks and also added some other items like I did a year ago. I know some of the bold predictions are silly and meaningless but they’re fun to do nonetheless.

As always feel free to put in your season predictions below.

Players to watch out for in 2010:

• Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Columbus): Can he guide this club to another stellar season? I think he will but it won’t be easy with the league out to get them.
• Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy): No doubt Donovan will return to his MVP form from a year ago, but the question will he be with the club after the World Cup? Part of me thinks he will and part of me sees him going back to England.
• Juan Pablo Angel (New York Red Bulls): Once he is 100% again look for him to do very well this year. Not playing on nasty turf at home will do wonders for him and the Red Bulls.
• Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo): Big, big year in Houston for the Dynamo especially for Cameron. If he can help keep their offense in check and facilitate things like I believe he can then look out.
• Freddy Montero (Seattle Sounders FC): He’s a marked man but if he can break open in space like we’ve seen him do time and time again then he’ll get his goals this year.

Coaches Already Feeling The Heat

Each year I’ve done a Coaching Hot Seat, where I look around the league to see who stands the greatest chance of getting the boot. Last couple year’s I’ve been right on with some picks on here while a few others have been a bit off. Again, its just my opinion on each coach listed and it doesn’t mean it will actually happen. In other words don’t get all bent out of shape if you see your coach on here at any point this year, I can’t tell you how many emails I get over this issue.

But in saying so this year could be a fairly light year for coaching hot seats in general since there have been so many coaching changes.

• Frank Yallop (San Jose Earthquakes): Its year three for the Quakes 2.0 which means Yallop should really feel some heat if he doesn’t get this club winning early on this year. I wasn’t shocked to see him get another season with the club after last year but I wouldn’t be at all shocked to see him be the first gone this year.
• Gary Smith (Colorado Rapids): Another western coach that should feel some heat this year if his club isn’t winning. If they continue to be inconsistent look for lots of calls for his head later this year. Thing is the Rapids owners typically drag these things out. I think he’ll be fine but for now this is more of a caution of possible things to come.
• Hans Backe (New York Red Bulls): I do believe he’ll last longer than most expected him to but I think its more of a formality at this point to always include the New York boss in these lists given the fact that they have a new coach about every year or year and a half.
• Schellas Hyndman (FC Dallas): While I believe he will have this job as long as he wants it I also think that if he has another clunker of a season the pressure for him to go will have to mount. His overall record (15-18-14) isn’t anything to brag about.

Early Award Predictions:

Below are some predictions for each end-of-season award. I left a few off that I really don’t care about, why we vote on things like the Ref of the year is beyond me. I’ll give you my top three for each since that is how we have to vote on it anyways.

Goalkeeper:

1. Donovan Ricketts (LA Galaxy): He’s a beast…nothing more to say than that.
2. Kasey Keller (Seattle Sounders): If Ricketts isn’t 100% all year then this award easily goes to Keller.
3. Will Hesmer (Columbus): I find him to be highly underrated.

Defender:

1. Chad Marshall (Columbus): Hard not to go against the league’s best defender.
2. Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (Seattle): He’s the rock in the back for the Sounders.
3. Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy): I see this kid growing into a perennial All-Star.

Comeback Player:

1. Taylor Twellman (New England): Its gotta be Twellman right? Anyone else to put here?

(Yes I’m sure there are others but right now Twellman is all I have for this one.)

Newcomer:

1. Joel Lindpere (New York Red Bulls): If NY is going to be half as good as people think/say they are this year it will be because of this guy.
2. Eduardo (San Jose Earthquakes): The Quakes need a goal scorer and he will help do just that.
3. Blaise N’Kufo (Seattle Sounders FC): Yes he is only playing a half season but I agree with a lot of folks out there that think he is the final piece to the puzzle that puts this club over the top.

(Note: this will easily change as newcomers join the league in the summer and after the World Cup)

Coach:

1. Sigi Schmid (Seattle Sounders): He’ll continue to work his magic in the Pacific Northwest.
2. Peter Nowak (Philadelphia Union): I do believe he’ll make them better than most expansion clubs and thus will get high praise for it. A playoff birth would easily help him win this though.
3. Bruce Arena (LA Galaxy): If they end up losing Landon Donovan this summer and they still do well in the west then he may very well beat out Schmid for this honor.

Rookie:

1. Tony Tchani (New York Red Bulls): He’s a beast, believe me.
2. Zach Loyd (FC Dallas): The man that can play just about anywhere for Schellas Hyndman. Once he settles into a role he’ll be golden.
3. Teal Bunbury (Kansas City Wizards): He’s a natural goal scorer, and KC needs goals.

MVP:

1. Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy): Not settling the world on fire with this pick but as long as he is in the league he’s the best player no matter what.
2. Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Columbus Crew): As long as he has a full healthy season he could end up winning this on his production alone.
3. Kyle Beckerman (RSL): If this club is going to repeat it will be because of this man.

Playoff Predictions:

Top two from Eastern Conference: Columbus Crew* and Chicago Fire
Top two from Western Conference: Seattle Sounders FC and LA Galaxy

Wild card winners: Real Salt Lake, Houston Dynamo, FC Dallas, D.C. United

I feel as though the first six (auto-bids, RSL, and Houston) are simple picks for me but with parity in this league we really could see any number of teams in those final two spots. I think it will come down between Dallas, D.C., Colorado, Chivas, Toronto, New York and New England for those final two spots. I felt weird taking four western conference wild cards so D.C. gets the nod for me though I’ll be honest I’m not totally set on that pick. Dallas needs to find a partner for Jeff Cunningham or they’ll be in trouble. Still Dallas is a dark-horse for me just as I’ve said all winter long. Had to stay with that pick here.

First round playoff winners: Columbus (over Dallas); Chicago (over D.C.); Seattle (over Houston); and RSL (over LA).

Conference final winners: Columbus and Seattle.

MLS Cup winner: Seattle Sounders FC

(*= Supporter’s Shield winners)

The Rest of the WVH Bold Predictions:

1. A MLS club will win SuperLiga: I still hate this tournament but I’m a homer and root for anyone MLS in it. My guess is Houston will take it hom this year.
2. A MLS club will win the US Open Cup: The league usually does every year and with the whole Division II mess that went on these past few months I like a MLS club’s chance even more. I’m going to go with the Chicago Fire to win this year.
3. MLS will get four clubs in CCL Group stage: We already get two in Columbus and Real Salt Lake. I’ll say LA and Toronto some how manages their way into the group stage this year. Seattle falls short.
4. MLS will win the All-Star game: Yawn.
5. Three clubs will add DPs by the end of summer: New York will add their second while Chicago and D.C. get new ones.
6. More Yanks will return home: Maybe a Benny Feihaber? Who knows? I still see a couple coming back this summer.
7. A couple Yanks transfer out of MLS: This deserves it’s own post (again) but I wouldn’t be shocked to see Donovan go as well as someone like Brek Shea.
8. Dominic Kinnear will once again trade like crazy: He does it each year and it only makes his team better. Why people trade with him I’ll never know. You can bet one at least one trade really working out in the Dynamo’s favor though.
9. Mo Johnston and Preki will butt heads: All seems good now as they continue to dump salaries but at some point they’ll clash over player pickups.
10. Houston and San Jose will see their stadiums go up: They’ll join Kansas City in the movin’ dirt department.
11. D.C. will still be stuck at RFK: Its election year for D.C.’s mayoral race, so I don’t see anything happening to United’s stadium issues anytime soon. Which sucks.
12. Montreal will get their expansion bid: They’ll be in the league in 2012…its all but announced at this point.
13. No other expansion bid will be announced this year: I think the league will carefully plan who their 20th club will be. My money is on them trying to find an owner in New York to bring a second club to that area.
14. A late season run will help…D.C.: We see it every year, last year it was RSL getting lucky at the right time, this year it will be D.C.
15. Juan Pablo Angel will lead the league in goals: No turf at Red Bull Arena will go a long way in getting him back to producing lots of goals.
16. Brad Davis will lead the league in assists: He always quietly gets lots of assists and no one notices.
17. Kasey Keller will lead the league in saves: I still see the Sounders give up a fair amount of shots but Keller will be there to save most of them.
18. The US Men’s National Team will make it to the quarterfinals: Not MLS related but definitely worth predicting at this point. I love the boy’s chances in South Africa, as much as I want to put them in the semi-finals, a quarterfinal exit seems more likely.

Brian Ching will be called to lead the Dynamo yet again. (Getty Images)

The 2010 season presents a challenge for Dominic Kinnear and the Houston Dynamo. First of all their top two stars from a year ago are now gone to Europe. Stuart Holden and Ricardo Clark left a big hole in the midfield and some would even argue that the club is still recovering from the trade of Dwayne de Rosario from last winter.

Today we take a gander at where they are right now going into the new year. So far the Dynamo have shifted some players around drafted a couple guys that may never see time on the field and for the most part done very little in terms of player movement this winter. We’ve actually heard more news surrounding this club’s potential stadium deal than new players joining the roster this winter.

Let’s take a look at who the Dynamo have and where they still need to go before the new season starts next month.

Keepers:

Who they have: Pat Onstad, Tally Hall, and Tyler Deric.

Notes: As long as Onstad remains healthy this isn’t an area of concern for Kinnear. Big thing will the the development of Deric who has to be in some way the future keeper of this club. My bet is they will loan out Deric this season to a USSF Division II club or even a USL-2 club. They have to get him some playing time to get any sort of progression out of their first academy signing.

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Defense:

Who they have: Bobby Boswell, Eddie Robinson, Ryan Cochrane, Craig Waibel, Mike Chabala, Wade Barrett, and Andrew Hainault.

Notes: Getting a healthy Robinson back this season should be a big thing for the Dynamo. This group will still be solid with all the talent they still have in the back. One thing though will be getting some depth and some youth here.

I still believe if this group stays healthy they won’t have too many issues this season. I kind of see Kinnear trading for a defender to add depth at some point this season.

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Midfield:

Who they have: Kevin Harmse, Geoff Cameron, Brad Davis, Daniel Cruz, Erik Ustruck, Richard Mulrooney, Brian Mullan, Corey Ashe, Samuel Appiah, and David Walker.

Notes: Big change here will be seeing Cameron slide into the midfield. Honestly from knowing Cameron and seeing him play he’s probably better suited for the midfield than in the defense anyways. Houston will be looking for him to really step it up this season and carry the load in the midfield. Thankfully he does have some quality offensive players like Brad Davis to help out in the assist department.

Big thing here will be if guys like Ashe can step up play on the wings. If Houston’s wing play is weak this season so will their offense. Ashe, Davis, and Cameron have to step it up in order to keep the Dynamo near the top in the west.

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Forwards:

Who they have: Brian Ching, Dominic Oduro, Luis Angel Landin, and Cam Weaver.

Notes: We know this, Ching will have to carry the load once again…that is if Landin doesn’t finally step up and play to his DP status. Those are two guys that will have to score the goals this season we know that but don’t sleep on Oduro or Weaver here. Oduro and his speed along with Weaver’s size are big parts to this groups offensive output. How Kinnear uses them this season will be key.

Landin, Weaver and Oduro will likely have to step up production though if Ching does make it to South Africa with the USMNT this summer. Should any dip in goals happen while Ching is gone this club will be in trouble.

More than likely we’ll see a trade for this group though at some point in the season. It seems like once a year Kinnear makes a trade for a striker within the league. I look for that to happen yet again this season towards the middle part of summer.

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Overall:

The questions always surround this club each year about their offense and where it will come from. Now the question will be can they improve from losing two important players in their midfield. They can replace one with Cameron and they’ll get away with guys like Mulrooney filling in for Clark but will that be enough? I honestly doubt it.

Funny thing is we always doubt something with this club each year and yet they still show up when it matters. Kinnear knows what he is doing more than most coaches in this league do. He works his system well and always knows how to find the right parts for it. They won’t be flashy this year but they’ll get by. I think adding a couple more parts in the midfield on the wings and maybe a defender or two in the back for depth purposes will suit them well.

Stuart Holden is on his way to Bolton. (Getty Images)

The day has some for those Houston Dynamo fans, their club no now longer has Stuart Holden. Bolton manager Owen Coyle has confirmed that the club will sign Holden as one of two winter acquisitions.

Holden joins former Dynamo teammate Ricardo Clark, who has signed with Eintracht Frankfurt, as Americans to make major transfer moves from MLS this winter.

How can a team recover from the loss of their two most important midfielders? It won’t be easy though having quality coaching in Dominic Kinnear, who has been a master at getting exactly what he wants out of players and deals with other teams. Also having some quality talent like Brad Davis and Geoff Cameron doesn’t hurt either.

But it is more than losing the likes of Clark and Holden that will be a game changer this winter for Houston and for that matter Major League Soccer. Clark we knew was headed overseas and the Dynamo easily knew last winter that they’d need to prepare for such a move. As for Holden there was always some hope that they could retain him even though his price tag was far higher than anything they could pay for.

Houston will have to recover fast here as the western conference is getting better each day with LA, RSL, Chivas, Seattle and even Dallas being major players for this coming season. If they don’t want to get passed up as the top dog in the west for good Kinnear will have to make some moves, which have to be expected at this point. I wouldn’t be shocked to see him go within the league for a veteran looking for a new home. Possibly a guy like Pablo Mastroeni would be a decent fit to replace Clark (just an idea floating in my head).

Houston is going to be down this year but I don’t think we can count them out just yet.

Houston had another strong season behind Brian Ching. (Getty Images)

Dominic Kinnear teams always compete, always and the 2009 edition of the Houston Dynamo looked very similar to the ones we’ve seen win league titles over the last few years. Even though the Dynamo lost their big star in the midfield in a trade to Toronto before the season started everyone knew this team would still compete.

Just as in years past the Dynamo started out strong on the year. Brian Ching, Stuart Holden and up and coming stars like Geoff Cameron lead the way for the Orange. Pat Onstad had yet another stellar season in front of the net thanks to another strong defense in front of him.

And just like in years past Kinnear pulled all the right strings in trades by getting parts on his roster that were missing like speed up front when he got Dominic Oduro from New York or some extra size when he got Cam Weaver from San Jose. Yet again we asked questions like “why are clubs even going into business with Kinnear and the Dynamo?” We knew the results would be the same as before as Kinnear would get something out of nothing and lead his club to the top of the standings again.

But then the ladder part of the summer hit. Ching, Holden and Ricardo Clark missed buckets of time with the US national team and that seemed to be when things got a little dicey. They brought in Luis Angel Landin as their DP, and while that should be a good move for 2010 it didn’t pan out all that much for 2009. Also for some reason the club’s discipline kept shooting themselves in the foot. August and September saw more cards, particularly red cards than most would want to see.

By the end of things the Dynamo lost on a weird night in LA in the playoffs. They may have been the better team on the night but moving forward into 2010 will certainly be interesting.

What Went Right In 2009:
A lot of good did happen in Houston this season. Ching produced, Brad Davis continued to be completely underrated, Cameron emerged like most had figured he would and Holden showed he could very well be the real deal. The Dynamo continued to have strong depth that kept them afloat despite all issues they had late in the season with suspensions and what not.

What Went Wrong In 2009:
As mentioned before the lack of discipline they showed late in the season was a real bummer to see. They went from being one of the most consistent clubs in the league on the year to a wildly inconsistent bunch. Offensively they still lacked a punch when needed and Landin didn’t step into the role as a DP like most would have liked this year.

What’s Next:
Well we know Ricardo Clark is out and its possible Stuart Holden could join him. Should that happen this bunch will go from being one of the deepest teams in the midfield to just a mid-level team. Kinnear will have to do his best to find replacements if that happens. They have to find a way to retain Holden and improve their roster on offense. But at the same time they do need to find some depth in defense behind Bobby Boswell and Cameron.

The best goal for me was either Sainey Nyassi’s run against New York or Brad Davis’ strike against RSL.

(Note QuickKicks on the league site did not have the Columbus/Chicago goals)

Order of video: David Beckham, Edson Buddle, Brian Ching, Yura Movsisyan, Brad Davis, Dax McCarty, Jimmy Conrad, Sainey Nyassi, and John Wolyneic.

I wanted to get into some MVP race discussion. I mention earlier that I felt Colorado’s Omar Cummings deserves to be in the discussion, well I have a few other names that are right up there with Cummings.

- Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy): Aside from his 10 goals and five assists, Donovan is the cog that keeps the Galaxy going. When he is on his game the Galaxy are a tough team to beat. You will see that when he is gone with the National team in the coming weeks, LA just doesn’t look the same without him.

- Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids): Current leader in goals in the league with 11 (and one assist). Casey will probably get more mentions than his teammate Cummings due to the number of goals. One thing is certain though, Casey has stepped his game up in a big way this season and the Rapids are finding out just how good he can be.

- Fredy Montero (Seattle Sounders FC): Some may say that there are better candidates on the Sounders’ roster but Montero gets my nod. His 10 goals and six assists is more than enough for me to place him here. We know just how dangerous he can be and when he is on it is something else to see.

- Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Columbus Crew): Before he went out with an injury GBS was the clear favorite in this race but his injury made it worth watching again. He still is up there in the top of the league leaders in goals with 10 and isn’t doing too bad with three assists on the year. If he returns to even half the form we saw out of him early on this season he still has a great shot at another MVP award.

Others to mention:

Shalrie Joseph (New England): Without him the Revs would be dead in the water.

Brad Davis (Houston): While Brian Ching scores all the goals it is Davis who does the dirty work that sets him up.

Cuauhtemoc Blanco (Chicago): While I’m not a fan of his work he is second in the league in assists.

Dwayne De Rosario (Toronto): The Reds wouldn’t even be near playoff contention this year if it weren’t for DeRo.

Got any other names that I am missing?

Shea Upset In Dallas?

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Gotta love seeing an angry comment or two from a young player that really needs PT. Believe me folks you want to see Brek Shea do well because he has the potential to be something special. Thing is he is stuck in a system in Dallas that doesn’t utilize young talent properly. He knows it and now he is sounding off about it. My bet he will be on the first plane to Europe this winter after the U-20 World Cup wraps up next month in Egypt.

Union Front Office Discusses Stadium

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Philly execs discuss the on-going stadium project in Chester. Good to see some solid progress on the new stadium for next year’s expansion club.

DC’s “Next Trophy” Photo:

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I do wish more teams knew how to market themselves better like DC and Seattle. Right now the two are at a pissing war over next week’s US Open Cup final at RFK Stadium. DC posted a photo of this year’s trophy on their blog today and Seattle fans were quick to discuss it.

Portland Timbers Prepare For MLS Jump

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I’ll be honest, I don’t follow the USL first division nearly the way I should. I know there is quality soccer there but I just don’t go for it nearly as much as I do MLS. Probably my lack of FSC has something to do with it. Anyways, its great seeing Portland getting more pup due to their play on the field and what is going on off the field. This year’s Timbers are a pretty impressive bunch going on a 23-game unbeaten run in the USL. Yeah only one loss this year for the Timbers and that was way back at the first game of the year.

Vancouver Expansion Looking Darker?

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Let’s just say the reports up in Vancouver are going from bad to worse as we speak. Apparently the roof at BC Place is a big part of their expansion bid with the league. Honestly, the league shouldn’t go nutty over the lack of retractable roof if the city can’t pay for it. Sure its nice to have open air stadiums like the article says but it isn’t the end of the word is it?