Getting off the topic of the "Hauptman Letter Debate" for a minute, some important info came out today regarding next Wednesday's MLS expansion draft. Here's the info, per Steve Goff (and NaperSteve -- who provided the tip):

Philadelphia will select 10 players; current clubs must submit their 11-man protected list by Monday afternoon; no club will lose more than one player, which means five teams won't lose anyone; Generation Adidas and home-grown players [(for the Fire that means Baggio Husidic and Patrick Nyarko] need not be protected; developmental players claimed must be offered a senior contract; clubs must protect designated players that have no-trade clauses.

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Former Galaxy player and goal hero Ned Grabavoy, left, and Real Salt Lake, which beat the Chicago Fire on penalty kicks to become Eastern Conference champions (let's get rid of these silly conferences based on irrelevant geography, MLS) will face the Galaxy Sunday in Seattle.

Grabavoy scored the winning goal just before the picture was taken above, although former Galaxy striker Robbie Findley almost scored in the dying moments of regulation time only to be denied by Palos Verdes Peninsula product John Thorrington.

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The Major League Soccer 2009 Eastern Conference Final was on Saturday with Real Salt Lake traveling to face the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park. The winner would move onto the MLS Cup Final next Sunday against the Los Angeles Galaxy. Here's a recap of the match along with video highlights.

Real Salt Lake beats Chicago Fire 0-0 (5-4 on penalty kicks) Video Highlights

It was a close match on Saturday but Real Salt Lake found a way to advance and continue their improbable run to the MLS Cup Final.

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A common saying amongst those in the soccer world is that a penalty kick shootout is a cruel way to decide a match.

After Saturday night, the Chicago Fire knows that saying back to front.

120 minutes of action saw the Fire and Real Salt Lake knotted at 0-0 so it all came down to a penalty shootout.

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Real Salt Lake needed extra time and penalties to see off Chicago and win the Eastern Conference final Saturday night at Toyota Park. With both sides applying offensive pressure throughout the 120 minutes, Chicago keeper Jon Busch and his opposite number Nick Rimando held up and kept it scoreless. In penalties, RSL's Javier Morales missed in the second round and Rimando saved John Thorrington's attempt in the fourth. Click to continue reading...

Who to protect and who to expose is the guessing game for the Fire. (Getty Images)

This year unlike the last couple the expansion draft caught up with me here. I almost feel like I am a little late getting these lists out for the draft which is a couple days after MLS Cup. Starting today I will release a team-by-team list of who I think will be protected and who I think will be left exposed.

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The season has got to end sometime. And for the Seattle Sounders, the script could have had a better ending on a dream season -- one that would have culminated hoisting the MLS Cup in front of the Sounders faithful at Qwest Field on November 22. Unfortunately for the Emerald City, it was not to be, as Brian Ching and the Houston Dynamo had other plans.

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Great to see Thorrington back and doing what he does best... being a winner!

BTW a friend of mine, Kirt Huffman, who is the massage therapist for the Fire took that shot Castro belted into the stands around the 3 minute 50 second mark to the head! He is a trooper but had to go to the hospital to get checked out.

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The second batch of Major League Soccer playoff games saw some tense football, great goals and short tempers. At the end of it, four teams progressed to the two conference finals. But did David Beckham and Cuauhtemoc Blanco make it?
On the 5th November, the King was dead. Columbus Crew were behind 1-0 on aggregate against Real Salt Lake and, despite quickly setting about overturning the deficit, the champions were ejected from the playoffs at the first hurdle. Click to continue reading...

When their season on the line, the Fire needed a big-time performance from the back line in Saturday night's second leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the New England Revolution. And did the defense ever deliver, putting together a comprehensive performance to shut down (and shutout) the Revolution and pave the way for the Fire to get into the Eastern Conference Final.

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Seattle Sounders FC v. Houston Dynamo
As Kevin Calabro might say, the magic-carpet ride is over. The inaugural season for the Sounders FC is over after an overtime strike by Brian Ching gave the Dynamo a 1-0 aggregate win.
Can't say Seattle didn't turn heads in their first year. Click to continue reading...

MLS Playoff Wrap Up

Real Salt Lake (4-2) Columbus

The first game between the 1 and 4 seeds in the East went to Salt Lake thanks to a late goal by Robbie Findley. Knowing that they were playing against the defending MLS champions Salt Lake knew the importance of getting a result at home.

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MLS Playoff Wrap Up

Real Salt Lake (4-2) Columbus

The first game between the 1 and 4 seeds in the East went to Salt Lake thanks to a late goal by Robbie Findley. Knowing that they were playing against the defending MLS champions, Salt Lake knew the importance of getting a result at home.

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The Fire came into the second leg down 2-1 in aggregate goals facing an opponent that they've faced a huge number of times in the playoffs over the years, lately with good results. I could go on about the challenges that the Revs faced this year, but frankly it's not worth the time. This Fire team came into the playoffs in mediocre form, with rumors of trouble in the locker room and using a patchwork lineup. Click to continue reading...

Patrick Nyarko was elusive and hard to pin down by the Revs

How did Pat Phelan not bury that pinpoint Kenny Mansally cross into the back of the net? It was the clearest look at the goal all night and Phelan heads the ball out. He could have been a hero forcing extra time. As it turned out, the Fire did not have to go through that route.

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The Major League Soccer 2009 Playoffs continued on Saturday, November 7, 2009 with the second leg between the Chicago Fire and New England Revolution. The Revolution were up 2-1 after the first leg but the Fire hosted the second leg on Saturday. The winner would go on to face Real Salt Lake next weekend, who earlier beat the Columbus Crew 4-2 on aggregate.

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After losing the first-leg 2-1, the Chicago Fire will be playing for the Eastern Conference title. Chicago beat New England 2-0 at Toyota Park on Saturday night, taking the series 3-2 on total goals. The Fire will now face Real Salt Lake for a spot in the 2009 MLS Cup. Chicago got a 35th-minute goal from John Thorrington to even the series. Click to continue reading...

What a night at Toyota Park.

After losing the first leg of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series with New England 2-1, the Fire stormed back in dramatic fashion tonight, getting a 2-0 victory to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals on a 3-2 aggregate score.

Cuauhtemoc Blanco and John Thorrington scored the goals for the Fire, who will take on fourth seeded Real Salt Lake in the Conference Final next Saturday at Toyota Park.

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The Fire meet the Revs today at Toyota Park, 8:30 PM

New England are up 2-1 in the first leg and are in great position to cause the second upset of the playoffs. This match is of great interest for Fire fans because it could also be Blanco's last MLS game as he is out of contract and is returning to second division Mexican club Veracruz.

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STARTERS
Got this note yesterday from a great reader named Anthony who lives in Glasgow: Have you heard of any fans making the trip to Bratislava for the Nov 14 game? I haven't heard anything and US Soccer hasn't even released info about tickets, but I got a cheap flight from Edinburgh to Bratislava so I'm going for the weekend in hopes I can get a ticket there and looking to meet up w any other US fans before the game to march and sing to the stadium together. Click to continue reading...

Here are a few links to get your day started...
The 'Players Only' section of the Chicago Tribune did a fun little piece with Fire midfielders John Thorrington and Logan Pause the other day. Thorrington interviewed Pause for the entry, asking Logan all sorts of things in rapid-fire format. Click to continue reading...

Last week I took a look at five key questions that would play a role in determining the winner of Game 1 of the Fire-Revolution Eastern Conference Semifinal Series. Now, with the 2-1 Revolution win in the books, it's time to take a second look at those five questions and see how they played out.

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Hey everybody, I just got off the phone with Fire Head Coach Denis Hamlett so it's time for the Mid-Week Update. Here we go...

Injury Updates --

Gonzalo Segares --

Segares, who has been out with a left MCL sprain since August 9th, is getting closer and closer to making his long-awaited return to the lineup.

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We should have known all along that it would come down to this. The Fire and the Revolution, facing off in the playoff's for the eighth team in the Fire's 12 year history. It's one of the biggest rivalries in the league, sure to be full of nastiness and with no room spared for niceties.

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With the Fire getting ready to take on the New England Revolution this Saturday, the time is ripe for an injury update. Here we go... John Thorrington - Out The central midfielder, who hasn't played since August 29th, will miss this weekend's match with a case of athletic pubaglia (English translation: groin pain/sports hernia).

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And those word are: Gutting it out.

The Los Angeles Galaxy took three points at home from a determined Fire team populated with a large number of replacement for injured players. As has been the case all season, the defense provided the base from which the Galaxy was able to generate just enough offense to put the game away.

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An important game for two teams with identical records as the regular season winds down and playoff implications on the line.

Lovely warm fall night here at Home Depot Center; let's hope the crowd fills in.

Not surprisingly, Galaxy Coach Bruce Arena has rung the changes in the wake of the disappointing 2-0 loss to Columbus last weekend.

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A four-year wait could be over for the Galaxy this weekend.

The Galaxy will qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the MLS Cup-winning season of 2005 if they defeat the Fire and Chivas USA ties or wins at D.C. United.

How long ago is that?

That was a team that featured Naldo, Pablo Chinchilla and one-season wonder Herculez Gomez, scorer of 11 goals in 22 games.

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The Los Angeles Galaxy takes on the Chicago Fire in a battle of second place teams on Friday, October 2 at 8PM. The game will be on ESPN2.

On paper this should be a tough, hard fought match between two teams that need to be peaking right now if they have hopes of going deep in the post-season.

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It appears David Beckham may well play Friday against Chicago at Home Depot Center after all.

He trained with the squad Tuesday and "upped" the pace in practice again today; no adverse effects I'm told and things are looking good for the crucial encounter that could see (depending on results Saturday) the Galaxy make the playoffs for the first time in four years.

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The Chicago Fire are down to four regular-season games remaining, including two at home. The first of those two takes place at 7:30 p.m. Saturday against Toronto FC at Toyota Park (televised on My50).
Toronto (9-10-7, 34 points) still is working in its recent designated player signing (Julian de Guzman). Click to continue reading...

CHICAGO FIRE VS. TORONTO FC
Toyota Park - Saturday, 8:30PM EST
TV: Rogers Sportsnet
Well if it wasn't bad enough that NASL nostalgia has brought back Sounders, Timbers, Earthquakes, Whitecaps and no doubt Cosmos, Chicago Fire has decided to make Saturday's game an anniversary celebration of Soccer Bowl 1984! Click to continue reading...

As if facing a desperate Toronto FC team that just happens to be loaded with attacking options isn't enough, the Fire will be playing Saturday night's game at Toyota Park without two of their best - as both Cuauhtemoc Blanco and John Thorrington have been ruled out of this weekend's match. But despite the absence of the playmaking Blanco and the stalwart Thorrington, the Fire (who beat TFC 2-0 on May 16th) is confident that they will be able to walk away from the match with all three points - keeping pace with first place Columbus in the process.

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Just a few quick updates on the injury situations of Gonzalo Segares and John Thorrington to keep your day moving along... Gonzalo Segares - Segares, who has been out with a sprained left MCL since August 9th, told me last week that he was targeting this Saturday's game against Toronto FC for his return and it appears that he will be available right on schedule.

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MLS rosters are finally frozen. Here's a look at how much each team has changed since March.
Also worth checking is something that can shake up a roster without a personnel decision: the injury list.
CHICAGO
Hasn't changed much since the beginning of the season except for the departure of unhappy defender Bakary Soumare to Europe. Click to continue reading...