—by Chris Rifer

Welcome, Montreal!

Just a year after the Timbers went through this same process – albeit with some expansion competition in Vancouver – the Montreal Impact are preparing for Wednesday’s Expansion Draft. With protected lists due out Monday, it is time to look ahead to what the Timbers’ protected list might look like.

We start with a point that may make this entire section moot. During the season, the Timbers sent longtime favorite Ryan Pore to Montreal on loan. At the time it was hinted that the move had expansion draft implications. The Impact have reportedly been satisfied with Pore’s services and have him in their plans going forward, despite Portland holding his rights in the future.

It is entirely possible that as part of the loan the Timbers and Impact made a handshake deal whereby Montreal can take Pore in the Expansion Draft in exchange for the Impact leaving the rest of Portland’s roster on the board. If that’s the case, well, fantastic. Love me some Ryan Pore, but the Timbers have better options on the wings.

Unfortunately few outside of Morrison Street really have much insight into such deals, so assuming the entirety of the Timbers are fair game, here is who the Timbers ought to protect.

First off, as a Generation Adidas player, Darlington Nagbe is not eligible for selection. So that frees up one spot on the protected list. He is the only Timbers player that is ineligible for selection, however, as Portland does not have any Home Grown players on the roster. Here is who I would protect.

Mortal Locks

1.  Troy Perkins – Still has plenty of years ahead of him in goal and provides the Timbers the medium-term stability between the posts to give time for Portland’s young goalkeeping talent to develop.

2.  Diego Chara – Best player on the team. Reasonable salary number. Has at least a half decade of peak performance ahead of him.

3.  Eric Brunner – Good young central defender. Has shown he can anchor the defense and, again, provides great value and good promise for quite a while.

4.  Kalif Alhassan – Way too much potential to be leaving unprotected.

Worthy of Protection

5.  Rodney Wallace – Given my rather turbulent relationship with Rodney as a player (I’ve never met him, but he seems like a standup guy) this makes me cringe a little bit, but he’s only 23 and if needs be could fill a very valuable position for a long time. One thing nobody has been talking about, though, is that rumor has it Tigres wouldn’t mind parting ways with Jonathan Bornstein. If that’s the case, and he wants to come back to MLS, then Portland is his home. Should that be in the works, Rod drops of this list in a hurry

6.  Futty – Gets a slight edge over David Horst. I see them largely as equals in defense, but Futty showed some serious prowess in the air on set pieces this year. He’s just a little bit better rounded player than Horst, and accordingly gets a coveted spot on the protected list.

7.  Sal Zizzo – He’s a good young wing. As discussed at the end of the season, the Timbers need more scoreboard production out of him, but he’s only 24 and has shown promise.

8.  Eric Alexander – Really didn’t get much of an opportunity to see him demonstrate his full range of talents, but he’s young, has a ton of potential, and the front office appears to be high on him.

On the Good Side of the Bubble

9.  Jake Gleeson – It’s a bold strategy to protect two keepers,[1] but Gleeson is a tremendous talent. On top of that, with a strong veteran presence in goal right now, Jake is in a prime position to develop into an outstanding keeper.

10.  Jack Jewsbury – It’s unlikely he would get picked considering his age, but to lose Jack for nothing would be awful for the Timbers. He showed this year that he is the leader of the team and very much a contributor. He is also a powerful bargaining chip for Portland. Either he will be in the Timbers uniform next year or he will help bring something else of great value.

11.  Lovel Palmer – I agonized a bit over this spot, but the reality is the Timbers would be in trouble if they lost Lovel without having something else come in at that spot. If the Timbers do have something else on the way, this spot goes elsewhere. But absent that, Palmer is a passable – if perhaps a bit vulnerable – incumbent.

The Tough Omissions

The Starting Forwards – Yeah, I know, I didn’t protect a true forward. Two reasons for this: First off, especially with Cooper’s salary figure, I think it is unlikely they get plucked. Anyway, if either of them did get picked, would you be devastated? With Nagbe’s emergence up front, Perlaza may be on the outside looking in anyway. Cooper showed promise toward the end of the season, but something tells me if Gavin had an extra $267,000 to bandy about he could find a replacement. The point is, and this is the second reason, attacking talent is not that hard to come by. If Montreal decided to loot the Timbers strikeforce, I have full confidence Gavin and Spencer could find a fitting replacement before January.

David Horst – Very nearly gave him the last spot instead of Palmer. Also very nearly gave him Futty’s spot. I’ll be very disappointed if Horst is pilfered, but tough decisions have to be made when you can only protect 11.

Mike Chabala – Another tough decision. I fell out of love with Chewy a little bit in the last month or so of the season, and Rodney Wallace’s advantage in potential made me gravitate to Rod. That said, this is the omission that I feel I would have the greatest possibility of regretting.

Brian Umony – I don’t think he’ll get picked, but it would be a shrewd gamble for Montreal. I’m curious to see what Umony could do in another season in Portland, especially if he can stay injury-free. I would rather Montreal not have the opportunity to see that through.

James Marcelin – To be honest, there are three guys on the protected list that can play central mid (including Alexander) that have greater value than Marcelin. I already have two goalkeepers protected, I can’t possibly protect four central midfielders.

Bright Dike – Again, this came down to whether he could be replaced. I think Bright brings some things to the field that would be tough to replace, but ultimately he is a decent reserve forward in this league. Good thing to have, but not a terribly hard thing to find.

The Cup

Predictions are dangerous because, more often than not, they make you look stupid. That said, I’m making an MLS Cup prediction.

2-0, L.A Galaxy. Yeah, okay, not exactly a bold prediction. I just don’t think the Dynamo attack will be able to function effectively against a pretty good Galaxy defense without Brad Davis. The Galaxy attack has been pretty darn good, with Mike Magee and David Beckham starring. Imagine what would happen if Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane come to play today as well. I think they will, and I think that will make this a bit one-sided. Houston has arguably been the best team to date in the playoffs, but no team can lose somebody like Davis and maintain their level of quality. Personally, I would rather see Dynamo win, but I’m prepared for disappointment.

The Good Cannoli

I don’t fancy myself a food critic, but I hit up Zizzo’s FC for the first time at lunch on Friday. Very impressive.

I got the Salsiccia sandwich and some cannoli for dessert. The sandwich was great. The sausage was tasty, but the peppers stole the show. I don’t know if it’s how they cook them or where they get them, but the peppers were some of the most flavorful I have ever had. Add in some grilled onions and a slice of provolone and you have yourself a pretty happy lunch hour.

The cannoli was top-notch as well. The filling of knock-off cannoli is often little better than miracle whip. This is no knock-off cannoli. The filling was delightfully rich with a good hint of cinnamon, and was well accompanied by the crunch of the shell and a perfect dusting of powdered sugar.

I’m a sucker for tomatoes, and the Caprese sandwich was the David Horst[2] of my lunch order. If you haven’t tried it yet, you really should go. There’s a decent chance you’ll see me there.

Onward, Rose City!