Wasatch Soccer Sentinel
MLS paused last week for the international break (with the exception of 10 teams), so it’s a good opportunity to take a look at the playoff picture for the Western Conference before play starts again.
MLS has once again changed the playoff format for 2023, 9 teams make the cut with 8th and 9th playing a one-off wildcard game, the winner will get the last playoff berth. The next round will see the following matchups:
- 1 vs 8/9 winner
- 2 vs 7
- 3 vs 6
- 4 vs 5
The games will be best-of-three with the higher seed at home for games one and three. There will be NO TIES and NO AGGREGATE score, ties at the end of regulation go directly to penalty kicks. First team to win 2 games advances to the next round.
The 2nd round will once again return to single-game elimination hosted by the higher seed, with 2 extra time periods added before PK’s if tied at regulation.
So let’s look at the current projected points based on home / away points per game.
Even with RSL’s poor run after the Leagues Cup break, we’re on track to potentially be in 2nd place in the West - that is if we win 2 of the 3 remaining home games, and pick up 6 points out of the 4 remaining away games. Since the margins are so thin we have to expect these projections to change.
