Of course, when it comes to the Fury, Dos Santos still casts a long shadow. He was the team's first coach, and was the one who led them to the NASL final in 2015. And, it's impossible to look at Popovic without comparing his resume to Dos Santos's.

The truth is, 2018 will be a low point for men’s soccer in Canada. Boy, is it going to suck. It will be ultimate in lame-duck years. Canadian jobs will dwindle. We’ll have fewer teams to support. And even in TFC beats Seattle 10-0 on Saturday, that’s not going to change a thing.

While the Ottawa Fury are committed to return to USL in 2018, USL President Jake Edwards said that the team’s membership in the North American Division-2 circuit is on a year-to-year basis. And Edwards said he and the league are supportive of the move to launch a Canadian Premier League.

But, for those talking about a Canadian Premier League start in 2018 — and making the assumption that the Fury would or could be part of that — the most important part of the team's statement is this...  That the players are signed for the "club's second season in USL."

For the second time in the club's relatively short history, the Ottawa Fury have a changing of the guard at the head coach position.

What’s the nature of the deal? Does he still get a GA payout? Does Dallas retain his rights in any way? Well, that part is about as clear as mud. I asked FC Dallas’s front office this morning about Reid’s status, and was told the team had no comment, as it was still awaiting directions from MLS HQ.

That’s the thing when you’re the heavy underdog. You can’t afford to switch off for any amount of time. The Fury endured two awful minutes, and undid all of the team’s hard work leading up to that point. The Fury’s back line left the door slightly ajar, and TFC kicked it down.

The second stage of the Canadian Championship got underway Tuesday, as the three MLS teams got into the fray. The first legs provided plenty of talking points:

FC Edmonton captain Nik Ledgerwood didn’t sugar-coat his critique of his team’s play after the Eddies were eliminated at the first stage of the Canadian Championship for the second year in a row by the Ottawa Fury.

If a soccer game happens during the height of the NHL playoffs, will anyone hear (or see it)?