1. New England Revolution— 23 pts. | 2-0 loss vs. New York Red Bulls; Week 15: bye
MLS parity strikes again: New England was shut-out by New York at home, its second consecutive match without a goal after scoring 16 over a five-match span.
2. Sporting Kansas City— 22 pts. | 2-0 win at Houston Dynamo; Week 15: bye
Sporting Kansas City took advantage of Houston’s recent slide by getting a shutout victory on the road thanks to the efforts of its youth. 22-year-old Kevin Ellis, 17-year-old Erik Palmer-Brown and 19-year-old Igor Juliao all started on the backline.
3. D.C. United — 22 pts. | 0-0 draw vs. Columbus Crew; Week 15: at Montreal Impact
Fabian Espindola’s missed penalty cost D.C. United first place headed into an abridged Week 15, although a victory over Montreal Impact on Wednesday would put the Black-and-Red atop the Conference.
4. Toronto FC — 19 pts. | 1-0 win vs. San Jose Earthquakes; Week 15: bye
The standings say Toronto FC is in fourth, but going by points per game, the Reds lead the Conference at 1.73, just ahead of New England’s 1.64.
5. New York Red Bulls — 18 pts. | 2-0 win at New England Revolution; Week 15: bye
Without Thierry Henry and Jamison Olave, the Red Bulls went on the road and got a huge win over leaders New England. New York has an identical record as Columbus, but sits in fifth position due to the third tiebreaker: total goals scored.
6. Columbus Crew— 18 pts. | 1-1 draw vs. Real Salt Lake, 0-0 draw at D.C. United; Week 15: bye
Columbus rebounded from a stretch of three consecutive losses, as it now has just one loss in its last five matches. The 2014 FIFA World Cup break comes at a good time for the Crew, which has suffered injuries to Federico Higuain and Wil Trapp of late.
7. Houston Dynamo— 17 pts. | 2-0 loss vs. Sporting Kansas City; Week 15: bye
Houston has scored 15 goals in eight matches with Brad Davis and just one in eight without him. Is any other MLS player as important to his team’s success?
8. Philadelphia Union — 15 pts. | 3-3 draw vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC; Week 15: bye
A wild 3-3 draw against Vancouver at home has given a bit of life to Philadelphia, which trailed 2-0 in the match. Conor Casey’s resurgence has added an attacking mettle to this side, but it still has defensive question marks.
9. Chicago Fire — 14 pts. | 0-0 draw at Colorado Rapids, 3-2 loss vs. Seattle Sounders FC; Week 15: bye
Two more goals for Harrison Shipp against Seattle; the Rookie of the Year contender has a two-goal match and a hat trick in his MLS career, but no single-goal efforts. When he scores, he scores in bunches.
10. Montreal Impact —10 pts. | Bye; Week 15: vs. D.C. United
Montreal had a bye from MLS play but won the Canadian Championship in an two-legged victory over Toronto FC, earning it a berth in the CONCACAF Champions League.
