MLS Dogpile | Night of the Living 'Zards?

Quick, name the three hottest teams in MLS! Well, sure, there's the Crew, netting ten points from the last fifteen on offer. Predictable, right? Somewhat more unbelievably, but borne out by their current league standing, the Galaxy are matching the Hard Hats step for step. But what about those Kansas City Wizards? They've taken nine points from their last five games and have mounted an unlikely charge at the exposed derrière of the playoff scrum. So how do they fare on the Pile?

So the Crew didn't win this weekend, while the Dynamo and Galaxy saw off a couple of playoff wanna-be's, but they're still the undisputed top team in the league. Why not the Dynamo? How about the fact that this win comes on the back of two draws and two losses while they're trying to claim the Supporters' Shield? And while the Fire did technically only draw at home to the Alpha Dogs, they were ably abetted by the officials. That performance, combined with the lingering taste of LA's home shellacking by the Hoops just one week ago, conspires to keep the Galaxy in fourth.

Seattle couldn't quite manage to send the faithful home happy, but at least they seem to have recovered from their wobble to shore up their post-season credentials. Colorado looked in jeopardy of having their own chances dealt a major blow, but a last-gasp PK let them out of jail and kept them steady on the Pile. Chivas can thank Zach Thornton's "superkeeper" routine for keeping them in the Playoff Pack, and DC United didn't kick a ball in anger this weekend, but benefit from RSL's continued inconsistency.

Outside the playoff pack, the Revs continue to creep along at a miserable point-per-game pace, negating the advantage their games in hand should be providing. But that's still enough to boost them past RSL. Why drop RSL so far, you ask? They were playing a man down on the road and only succumbed to late heroics from Brad Davis after fighting their way back from an early two-goal deficit, right? A stirring performance no doubt, but the problems were there for all to see--reckless defense, inconsistency, and more misery away from home.

Those worries will have them looking over their shoulders at the charging Wizards, who are mounting an unlikely bid for post-season play that vaults them past the two lamest sides in MLS over the last five weeks: the newly DP-ed but defenseless Canucks of Toronto FC and Hyndman's shambolic FC Dallas. Down at the bottom, the Quakes dropped a near thing to the Rapids, which should have given them a boost, but I can't ignore their points total (though Dallas' current run may soon make that irrelevant). And the Red Bulls salvaged a home draw but are victims of that same glaring fault, with only the Quakes likely in their sights as potential victims to overtake.

Thoughts?