So, in the latter part of 2016, as the second division of North America was in turmoil, Fath had been unflinching in his mantra; he said over and over that his team solidly backed the North American Soccer League.

FC Edmonton co-owner Tom Fath says that the club is a go for the 2017 season.

And, the Ottawa Fury go down as the most Canadian-friendly NASL or MLS team in North America. Canadians played an average of more than 347 minutes per game for the Fury.

Three Canadians made their NASL or MLS debuts this past weekend.

Mason Trafford will be Canadian who has played the most minutes in either MLS or NASL this season. Trafford has a 124-minute lead over Toronto FC’s Jonathan Osorio. But Osorio has just one game left on his schedule; so Osorio can’t make up the ground.

Geison Moura’s early headed goal stood up as the Fort Lauderdale Strikers beat FC Edmonton 1-0 Wednesday.

The hottest Canadian in USL, though, is Mark Anthony Gonzalez. He scored the opening goal as Swope Park Rangers beat Orange County 2-1 in extra time, despite being down to nine men.

But, let’s move our focus back to the USL.That league’s regular season is done. But the playoffs got underway this past week, and we’d be remiss not to mention a few Canadian standouts:

We’ve reached the end of the USL’s regular season. In the end, more than 100 Canadian players appeared in at least one USL match this season. That’s an advertisement about the job opportunities provided by a league that — unlike NASL and MLS — allow Canadians to occupy domestic spots on the rosters on American teams.

Look at the 40 Canadians who have played in MLS and NASL this year. Only six currently play on American teams.