IVES GALARCEP: Seattle Sounders 3-3 Vancouver Whitecaps (Seattle advances on away goals). This Cascadia series is the toughest quarterfinal to call, in part because of the uncertain status of Sounders stars Osvaldo Alonso and Jordan Morris. If the pair are healthy, then the Sounders have the edge in the series. If not, the Whitecaps have the attacking weapons and depth to knock off the defending champions.
JON ARNOLD: Seattle Sounders 2-4 Vancouver Whitecaps. The Whitecaps still have plenty left to prove after thrashing San Jose, and their speed on the counterattack will be tough for the Sounders to cope with. Vancouver could cause some damage in the first leg, then hang on in the second.
THOMAS FLOYD: Seattle Sounders 3-2 Vancouver Whitecaps (extra time). That Seattle attack grabs the headlines, but Stefan Frei, Chad Marshall and Roman Torres give the Sounders the defensive spine necessary to slow down the Whitecaps' high-flying attack. And Cristian Roldan has grown into a player capable of controlling the midfield, even if Osvaldo Alonso is sidelined.
ALLEN RAMSEY: Seattle Sounders 4-3 Vancouver Whitecaps. No Clint Dempsey in the first leg could lead to a narrow Whitecaps win, but look for Seattle to take the tie in a wide-open second leg.
SETH VERTELNEY: Seattle Sounders 2-4 Vancouver Whitecaps. The Sounders will be missing Clint Dempsey for the first leg, and Fredy Montero finally ended his postseason goal drought against San Jose. The former Sounder can now look forward to exacting some revenge against his injury-ravaged former club.
BEN VALENTINE: Seattle Sounders 2-3 Vancouver Whitecaps. No Dempsey, combined with their other losses is a problem for Seattle in the first leg. While they should come away with a victory in the second leg, Vancouver should do just enough there to advance.
IVES GALARCEP: Toronto FC 4-2 New York Red Bulls. The Red Bulls' pressing style should keep the series a closer one than some might expect, but look for Toronto's quality in midfield to shine through as Jozy Altidore proves to be too much for the New York center backs to handle.
JON ARNOLD: Toronto FC 5-2 New York Red Bulls. Can any team can cope with what Toronto can do getting forward when the wing backs join the attack? The Red Bulls definitely can't.
THOMAS FLOYD: Toronto FC 4-2 New York Red Bulls. The Red Bulls will put up a fight, but there are just too many talented options in this TFC attack for New York to survive. Expect Toronto's remarkable depth to prove critical over two legs.
ALLEN RAMSEY: Toronto FC 6-4 New York Red Bulls. Let the goals flow! Toronto is on a mission, but the Red Bulls will make it interesting.
SETH VERTELNEY: Toronto FC 3-2 New York Red Bulls. Despite Toronto's record-setting season and the Red Bulls carrying a six seed, this series should be extremely tight. In the end, TFC just has too many attacking weapons for a New York defense that can be vulnerable at times.
BEN VALENTINE: Toronto FC 5-2 New York Red Bulls. The Red Bulls are a different team with Tyler Adams coming into his own and Daniel Royer back from injury, but TFC has done too much this season to go against them here.
IVES GALARCEP: Portland Timbers 5-2 Houston Dynamo. Both teams enter on good runs of form, but the Timbers have been looking like a real title threat down the stretch. Houston's defense will struggle dealing with Portland's attack, especially if Fanendo Adi can make his return from injury. Portland's fullbacks are good enough to keep the Romell Quioto-Alberth Elis tandem from running wild, but Houston can't say the same about containing Diego Valeri.
JON ARNOLD: Portland Timbers 3-1 Houston Dynamo. Diego Valeri's campaign has been superb, and while the Dynamo were able to keep Sporting Kansas City from scoring and could frustrate the Timbers in the first leg, the trip to Portland should prove much more difficult for a beat-up back line.
THOMAS FLOYD: Portland Timbers 4-1 Houston Dynamo. Defensive injuries coupled with a draining knockout round match should keep the Dynamo from getting the result they need in the first leg, setting up the in-form Timbers to cruise at Providence Park.
ALLEN RAMSEY: Portland Timbers 2-3 Houston Dynamo. The Timbers' willingness to come out and play leaves them wide open for Houston's counterattack to do damage.
SETH VERTELNEY: Portland Timbers 5-3 Houston Dynamo. The Dynamo were poor on the road this season, meaning they'll need a victory at home in Monday's first leg to have a chance in this series. Coming off 120 grueling minutes against Sporting KC on Wednesday, Wilmer Cabrera's side may not be fresh enough to get the job done.
BEN VALENTINE: Portland Timbers 4-1 Houston Dynamo. The Dynamo are strong at home, which worked to their advantage in the knockout round. But in a two-legged affair, their struggles on the road will prove their undoing here. A heavy defeat in Portland would not be surprising.
IVES GALARCEP: New York City FC 4-3 Columbus Crew. The Crew have serious momentum, unbeaten in 11, but they could struggle to fully recover from the knockout round win against Atlanta United. NYCFC can capitalize and earn a good result in Columbus before closing things out at Yankee Stadium.
JON ARNOLD: New York City 2-3 Columbus Crew. Picking against David Villa is difficult, but the goals haven't been coming for NYCFC in the last few months and beating Zack Steffen clearly will be tough. The Crew picked up where they left off in the regular season in Thursday's shootout victory over Atlanta and can keep rolling.
THOMAS FLOYD: New York City FC 3-4 Columbus Crew. At this point the Crew just seem like a team of destiny, and it's safe to say NYCFC didn't play its best soccer down the stretch. While David Villa is imposing, Columbus is a team playing without fear.
ALLEN RAMSEY: New York City FC 2-3 Columbus Crew. Look for the Crew make the best of their home leg, and Gregg Berhalter's side should know how to defend a lead on the road.
SETH VERTELNEY: New York City FC 2-4 Columbus Crew. The Crew have two vital ingredients for a deep postseason run: momentum and a hot goalkeeper in Zack Steffen. Without a loss in nearly three months, including a "Decision Day" draw at NYCFC, Gregg Berhalter's side looks poised to get past NYCFC — and possibly go even further.
BEN VALENTINE: New York City FC 5-4 Columbus Crew. Two teams that like to play and get after it, NYCFC will make life difficult for the Crew in Columbus. Then they should do enough to get the necessary result at home to advance.
