FC Edmonton vaulted into second place in the NASL standings with a 2-1 Victoria Day win over NSC Minnesota Stars at Foote Field. Kyle Porter scored twice for FCE, after Minnesota had taken the lead through Simone Bracalello.

Coach Stephen Hart won’t have a lot of time to prepare his Canadian men’s national side for the June 1 friendly against Ecuador and the June 7 kickoff of the Gold Cup schedule. Hart named Canada’s 23-man provisional roster Monday; those players will be available for selection for the June 1 Ecuador match at BMO Field. From that, 20 will …

A 3-0 loss to FC Tampa Bay Saturday showed just how far behind schedule the Impact are when it comes to being ready for Major League Soccer. Other than keeper Bill Gaudette, who made several outstanding saves to keep the scoreline from being more severe, there wasn’t an Impact player on the pitch who looked anywhere close to being what anyone would call an MLS prospect.

New FC Edmonton general manager Tom Leip said that finding a new stadium for the team to call home is his top priority. “For us, the key is a new facility,” he said. “We have to have more seating, we need different levels of seating. We need to be in a situation where we can create more revenue streams.”

After a couple of weeks of delays, FC Edmonton has announced the hiring of former Portland sports executive Tom Leip as its new general manager. Leip will assume control of the business operations of the NASL club, while director of soccer operations Joe Petrone will make the player and personnel decisions.

In an interview today, Hill told The 11 that he welcomes the CSA or the CSL to call him to help with the inquiry — and that there is no excuse for delays. “Right now, innocent or guilty, there is a dark cloud hanging over Canadian soccer,” said Hill. “A court has identified a game that it considers suspicious. Done. Let’s get the investigation started. I am not talking about making arrests. I’m not saying that someone is guilty or innocent. But the investigation has to start right away.”

FC Edmonton Lance Parker was named the NASL’s Defensive Player of the Week Monday. Parker has been a revelation for FC Edmonton since he took over in goal from Rein Baart three matches ago. He has started the last two NASL matches for FC Edmonton and the second leg of the Nutrilite Canadian Championship semifinal, allowing just two goals in that stretch, and making a series of highlight-reel saves.

“We always have a good game against this team. I really liked it,” said Barbara, who has scored in every NASL game he’s played in this season and already set the RailHawks record for most goals in a season with nine. “Any game we play against Montreal could go either way. Right now I’m on a streak and everything is happening automatically. I could have got another hat trick today.” Reminded that the Impact is moving on up next season Barbara expressed his interest in doing the same thing. “I came here with the intention of not staying in this league. Although I love playing in Carolina my aim is always to play in a higher league. I hope to make an impact because I want to play in MLS.”

Chris Kooy had two great chances to get FC Edmonton a last-gasp equalizer in Tampa. After being denied by an outstanding piece of goalkeeping by FC Tampa Bay’s Jeff Attinella with his first chance, Kooy was able to score in injury time, canceling out Chad Burt’s opening goal in a 1-1 draw.

A 2009 Canadian Soccer League match between the Montreal Impact’s reserve team and Toronto Croatia has been linked to a major European match-fixing ring.