And, while other cities will be toss-ups, the key to DeRo winning the MVP award may just be the thing that some think would hold him back — playing for three teams in just one year. He still has support in Toronto, New York voters will use the pre- and post-DeRo Red Bulls as a measuring stick, and he has D.C. in the bag.

Hainault, who was not invited to the Canadian national team camp for next week’s two upcoming World Cup qualifiers against St. Kitts and Nevis, scored the opening goal as the Dynamo beat Sporting Kansas City 2-0 in the Eastern Conference Final.

But, we need to look at the Galaxy in a truly North American sports context — after all, MLS is a North American league — where regular-season success means very little compared to playoff excellence. The Galaxy, until it wins MLS Cup, has to be compared to the likes of the San Jose Sharks or San Diego Chargers, talented teams who consistently lose when it counts.

Hainault’s goal was the highlight of a day filled with MLS playoffs incidents that would turn the heads of Canadian soccer fans.

In what was a major statement game for his club, home-state product Lamar Neagle scored a hat trick for the Seattle Sounders in a 6-2 win over Eastern Conference leaders Columbus — and earned the Player of the Week nod from the membership of the North American Soccer Reporters.

Shea Salinas got the winning goal in a 1-0 victory Saturday over the Houston Dynamo, but the Vancouver Whitecaps’ also got an assist from Lady Luck to get their fourth win of the MLS season.

Heck, Philadelphia had two multiple-goal scorers in the same game in its 6-2 romp over Toronto FC. And, Justin Mapp got the nod after the votes from the North American Soccer Reporters were tallied. Union teammate Danny Mwanga also had two goals, and helped set up Mapp’s opening goal of the game.

After breezing past FC Edmonton on Wednesday in Nutrilite Canadian Championship play, Toronto FC has quickly shifted its focus to Saturday when the club takes on Houston Dynamo. “I think that mentally we are all focused on this Saturday’s game and going in there we have to visualize how we play with one another beside us,” said Cann. “It’s very crucial that we get the three points so that’s our main objective going forward.”

Program the PVR. Make sure your Internet connection is fast enough to allow for multiple streams. This weekend marks a landmark in Canadian soccer. Four professional clubs are in action; FC Edmonton and the Montreal Impact kick off their NASL campaigns Saturday with road games in Florida. And MLS? Toronto FC visits the San Jose Earthquakes Saturday night. And the Vancouver Whitecaps head to Texas to take on the Houston Dynamo on Sunday. Of the weekend’s action, only Montreal and FC Edmonton overlap.

In a game filled with trialists, some old problems haunted Toronto FC. Despite twice taking the lead, TFC lost 3-2 to the Houston Dynamo Thursday in their opening match of the preseason Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic in Orlando, Fla.