Examiner.com's MLS Power Rankings: Through Week 30

October 14, 4:49 AMMLS ExaminerCharlie Corr

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Previous 2009 MLS Power Rankings

• Through Week 29: 1st - Col. Crew (unanimous)
• Through Week 28: 1st - Col. Crew (unanimous)
• Through Week 27: 1st - Col. Crew (unanimous)
• Through Week 26: 1st - Col. Crew (unanimous)
• Through Week 25: 1st - Col. Crew (unanimous)
• Through Week 24: 1st - Crew / Dynamo (tie)
• Through Week 23: 1st - Col. Crew (unanimous)
• Through Week 22: 1st - Col. Crew (unanimous)
• Through Week 21: 1st - Dynamo / Crew (tie)
• Through Week 20: 1st - Houston Dynamo
• Through Week 19: 1st - Dynamo / Sounders (tie)
• Through Week 18: 1st - Houston Dynamo
• Through Week 17: 1st - Houston Dynamo
• Through Week 16: 1st - Houston Dynamo
• Through Week 15: 1st - Houston Dynamo
• Through Week 14: 1st - Hou. Dynamo (unanimous)
• Through Week 13: 1st - Hou. Dynamo (unanimous)
• Through Week 12: 1st - Chivas USA
• Through Week 11: 1st - Chivas USA
• Through Week 10: 1st - Chivas USA (unanimous)
• Through Week 9: 1st - Chivas USA (unanimous)
• Through Week 8: 1st - Chivas USA (unanimous)

The Columbus Crew are broadening their Eastern Conference lead and continuing to garner all of the first-place votes in Examiner.com's MLS Power Rankings.

There were not too many heavy changes this week because of the lighter schedule with four games last week.

FC Dallas is the most noteworthy, moving from an 11th-place tie last week to ninth place this week. Dallas still is on the outside looking in as far as the playoffs go, but the red-hot scoring threat of Jeff Cunningham has kept them in the hunt.

EXAMINER.COM'S MLS POWER RANKINGS

Through games played Oct. 11 (last week's ranking in parentheses)

1. Columbus Crew (1): "Columbus broke away from the pack with 49 points, five higher than its three closest competitors, when its young reserve squad squashed the Revolution at Gillette Stadium last week and Gino Padula scored his first MLS goal. The Crew were without five starters due to national team duty, suspension and injury, but were still confident enough to let Guillermo Barros Schelotto sit on the bench for all 90 minutes." ~ L.E. Eisenmenger

2. Los Angeles Galaxy (2 tie): "Whether it's for the U.S. national team or L.A., Landon Donovan delivers. This season's revamped Galaxy face a tough task on the road in Houston, but with first place on the line for the West, the setting of the game might mean very little." ~ Charlie Corr

3. Houston Dynamo (2 tie): "Surprisingly, the Dynamo only pulled off a 1-1 tie with unpredictable Kansas City and will be more challenged by Los Angeles." ~ L.E. Eisenmenger

4. Chivas USA (4 tie): "Chivas won a second straight game and after a midseason slump is now in position to take first place in the Western Conference. Chivas became the fourth team to clinch a playoff berth." ~ Jeffrey Krotosky

5. Chicago Fire (4 tie): "The Fire and Revs prepare for a battle between two of the most injured MLS teams. If Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Chris Rolfe are fully healthy again, the edge goes to Chicago on the road." ~ Charlie Corr

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6. Seattle Sounders FC (6): "The Sounders have yet to win back-to-back road games, but I like their chances this week in K.C." ~ Charlie Corr

7. Colorado Rapids (8): "If Conor Casey is fit to play after the U.S. vs. Costa Rica match Wednesday, fans can expect a hail of shots when the league's top two goal scorers casey and Jeff Cunningham compete for the Golden Boot at FC Dallas." ~ L.E. Eisenmenger

8. New England Revolution (7): "Losing Jeff Larentowicz to a knee injury last week was the straw that broke the camel's back. His and (Edgaras) Jankauskas' fitness will determine if the Revolution can win their last home game against bitter adversary Chicago." ~ L.E. Eisenmenger

9. FC Dallas (11 tie): "Unbelievably, after another Jeff Cunningham goal, FC Dallas has put itself on the verge of playoff qualification with games remaining against Colorado and Seattle - two of the team ahead of them on the table. If Dallas does manage to qualify for the playoffs, it would be hard to argue against voting for Cunningham as the league MVP." ~ Jeffrey Krotosky

10. Toronto FC (9): "Suffering a late draw against San Jose obviously hurt Toronto's postseason hopes. Should Real Salt Lake top New York on Wednesday, the Reds will have an even steeper road to climb." ~ Charlie Corr

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11. Real Salt Lake (10): "Real finishes an 18-day layoff on Wednesday when they square off with the Red Bulls. RSL did manage to stay fresh with an unusual 'friendly' versus Chivas de Guadalajara that featured five yellow cards and two reds in the first half." ~ Jeffrey Krotosky

12. D.C. United (11 tie): "United will need to find a way to win against Columbus or they'll be watching the playoffs from their homes." ~ Jeffrey Krotosky

13. Kansas City Wizards (13): "Can the Wizards play spoiler to Seattle this week? They have it in them." ~ L.E. Eisenmenger

14. San Jose Earthquakes (14): "Their final two opponents (Chivas, L.A.) have already qualified for the playoffs, and the Quakes are out of the picture. Still, there is that pride factor, which received a jolt when pulling off last week's draw against Toronto FC." ~ Charlie Corr

15. New York Red Bulls (15): "Good thing the Red Bulls aren't a television show. No network would be ordering another season." ~ Jeffrey Krotosky

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The Examiner.com MLS Power Rankings are a compilation built among three Major League Soccer Examiners. Each writer submits his or her own list and individual commentary. The top-ranked team is awarded 15 points, and the last-place team 1 point. Here are the full numbers: 1. Columbus Crew (45); 2. Los Angeles Galaxy (42); 3. Houston Dynamo (38); 4. Chivas USA (37); 5. Chicago Fire (33); 6. Seattle Sounders FC (30); 7. Colorado Rapids (27); 8. New England Revolution (23); 9. FC Dallas (22); 10. Toronto FC (16); 11. Real Salt Lake (15); 12. D.C. United (14); 13. Kansas City Wizards (9); 14. San Jose Earthquakes (6); 15. New York Red Bulls (3).

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Charlie Corr is a freelance sports writer based in Chicago. In addition to his Major League Soccer duties, he is the Chicago Sports Examiner and the creator of a Chicago-based soccer Web site, SlideTackles.net.

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