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MLS Week 1: First impressions of all 24 teams

By Christopher Dodson

LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 3: Los Angeles FC's head coach Bob Bradley prior to Los Angeles FC's MLS match against Sporting Kansas City at the Banc of California Stadium on March 3, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Los Angeles FC won the match 2-1 (Photo by Shaun Clark/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 3: Los Angeles FC's head coach Bob Bradley prior to Los Angeles FC's MLS match against Sporting Kansas City at the Banc of California Stadium on March 3, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Los Angeles FC won the match 2-1 (Photo by Shaun Clark/Getty Images) /
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COMMERCE CITY, CO – MARCH 02: Diego Valeri #8 and Sebastián Blanco #10 of Portland Timbers celebrate after Blanco scored during the first half against the Colorado Rapids at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on March 2, 2019 in Commerce City, Colorado. (Photo by Timothy Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
COMMERCE CITY, CO – MARCH 02: Diego Valeri #8 and Sebastián Blanco #10 of Portland Timbers celebrate after Blanco scored during the first half against the Colorado Rapids at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on March 2, 2019 in Commerce City, Colorado. (Photo by Timothy Nwachukwu/Getty Images) /

Portland Timbers

Portland is again starting the season on an extended road trip, but nothing is likely more taxing than playing in altitude and running in inches worth of snow. To have a win snatched away at the death is all the more grueling. The hundreds of Timbers’ Army members who soldiered through the weather had to have felt extra cold in the 94th minute.

Gio Savarese has the guile to lead Portland through a tough opening schedule, but it will demand his team to close out games against non-contenders. Hosting the MLS Cup makes a big difference, as Portland learned last year. The snow is an easy excuse, but letting a ten-man Rapids team equalize twice is nearly unforgivable. The snow should have helped the Timbers hold one of those leads.

Julio Cascante will get most of the blame for the dropped points, but he should consider the moment a lesson learned in the hardest of conditions. Just don’t let it happen again.

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