BEAVERTON, Ore. – Most of the Portland Timbers’ last two months has been focused on this moment, one where the team could forget the ups and downs of an inconsistent regular season and focus on what their campaign would always be about. Too many games on the road, then, perhaps, too many games at home – none of it matters come the second season. And on Saturday in Sandy, Utah, that second season officially starts (7pm PT, ESPNews).
For the third-straight year, the Timbers are in the MLS Cup Playoffs, only whereas in 2018 there was a sense of magic to the team’s dash through the Western Conference, this postseason has arrived with expectations, a standard born of what happened before.