Just maybe, Vancouver Whitecaps FC's magic from 2021 – their dramatic turnaround under then-interim manager Vanni Sartini that sparked an Audi MLS Cup Playoffs berth – is back for another year.
Saturday night at BC Place, Ryan Gauld’s penalty kick in second-half stoppage time secured a 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake and put the Whitecaps (17 pts, 5W-7L-2D record) back within a point of the Western Conference's playoff line despite a challenging start to the 2022 campaign.
Not only that, but the win also takes Vancouver above Cascadia rivals Seattle Sounders FC and Portland Timbers in the West. While Vancouver have a limited playoff pedigree, Seattle and Portland are the only two Western Conference teams to appear in MLS Cup since 2016.
Saturday's result may be owed to some good fortune and strong goalkeeping from Cody Cropper, with Sartini noting his squad "didn't deserve to win."
But in the bigger picture, it's getting harder and harder to ignore the possibility that Vancouver – who are now 4W-1L-1D in their last six games – will again have something to say about the West playoff race.
Here are four reasons why.
Given whose participation has been limited thus far, Vancouver’s 10th-place standing in a jam-packed Western Conference race is nothing to scoff at.
Playmaker Ryan Gauld and 2021 leading scorer Brian White have been limited to nine appearances each through 14 matches. Same goes for goalkeeper Thomas Hasal, who has missed the last five games with a middle finger injury and is growing into the role now-LAFC goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau had during 2021's sixth-place West finish.
Brazilian midfielder Caio Alexandre only made his 2022 debut Saturday after missing an extended period of time with a broken hand, and forward Cristian Dajome, last year's second-leading scorer, has missed time as well.
Vancouver are also awaiting the debut of new DP midfielder Andrés Cubas, who's currently with Paraguay on international duty after his transfer from French side Nimes.
The short version: Whitecaps FC's on-field group isn't the full picture yet, and they're still getting results.
The 29-year-old striker missed extended stretches of the 2021 season and had a modest six goals in 2020, but looks like he could be on the verge of a banner 2022 season.
Lucas Cavallini did not play Saturday while joining Canada on international duty, but he leads the club with four goals and two assists through 11 appearances this season.
El Tanque originally joined Vancouver from Liga MX side Puebla on a club-record deal. He hasn't always met the Designated Player tag he received, leading to outbound transfer speculation last winter. But with a Qatar 2022 World Cup roster spot to chase, he's taking a step forward production-wise.
The Whitecaps have taken 14 points from their seven home matches so far in 2022. Going back further, they’ve earned 36 points in their last 16 home matches.
That latter stretch accounts for every home game in league play since Vancouver were first able to return to BC Place in 2021 after playing their early-season “home” games at neutral venues in the United States (COVID-19 travel restrictions).
Those 36 points are also four more than Nashville SC have earned over their last 16 home matches. Nashville, especially prone to draws, are keepers of the longest active home unbeaten run in MLS (24 all-competition games).
The Whitecaps sure believe they can make plays to earn points in the final stages.
Gauld’s penalty vs. RSL – earned after Aaron Herrera’s no-question-about-it foul on Luis Martins and subsequent red card – marked the fourth consecutive Whitecaps home game where they’ve scored in the 90th minute or later to change the outcome of the match.
Maybe more impressively, those goals have been scored by four different players: Cavallini, Erik Godoy, Tosaint Ricketts and now Gauld.
This trend could come in handy for Vancouver, with three of their next five games at home when they welcome LAFC, Minnesota United FC and the New England Revolution to BC Place. Although putting games to bed earlier would surely suit Sartini's efforts all the same.
