Tim Howard wasn't asked to do much Sunday, but the highest-paid goalkeeper in MLS history earned his paycheck when it mattered most.
The 37-year-old made a pair of saves — including the clinching stop on Jeff Larentowicz — as the Colorado Rapids eliminated the LA Galaxy with a 3-1 shootout win in their Western Conference semifinal series.
Howard the hero. #COLvLA #MLSCupPlayoffs https://t.co/zE3srN1qqd
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 6, 2016
Kevin Doyle, Sebastien Le Toux and Marco Pappa converted for the Rapids, who limited the Galaxy to one shot on goal over 120 minutes Sunday. Steven Gerrard netted for LA, meanwhile, before watching Giovani dos Santos fire over the bar and Ashley Cole join Larentowicz in being denied by Howard.
The shootout came after the Rapids notched a 1-0 win in the second leg at Dick's Sporting Goods Park on Shkelzen Gashi's long-range strike in the 36th minute . That strike tied the series 1-1 on aggregate after Dos Santos scored in a 1-0 Galaxy victory last weekend.
With neither team scoring an away goal to win the tiebreaker, the clubs played through 30 scoreless minutes of extra time before Howard's shootout heroics.