2018 Season Preview & Predictions

On to hopefully happier news, the start of the 2018 season!  Usually I do a preview breaking down what to expect this year but there's so much new about this team I don't really have a good idea of what to expect.  About the only thing I'm sure if is this organization is going to be more professional than perhaps at any point in its history.  That's not a knock on the early years, a startup league trying to establish the first pro league in 10 years in this country had to fly by the seat of its pants before the teams could become fully professional inside and out.  It is, however, a knock on the last 5 years or so.  We should see a huge change in the look and feel of the Rapids, even if the results on the field don't change noticeably.

Which leads me to this.  I don't think this team, as currently constructed, will make the playoffs.  There isn't enough firepower to keep ahead of 6 other teams in the standings.  I don't even think we can stay close and sign somebody midseason to get us over the hump.  I think a 7th/8th place finish is likely, missing the playoffs by 5 points, give or take.

So with that, on to the rest of my predictions:

• Rapids finish with 43 points
• The Golden Boot winner is not currently on the roster
• Beyond a notable striker signing the Rapids make no other major changes to the roster during the season
• We win the Rocky Mountain Cup in a surprise 2 goal win in the final game at the Dick
• The USOC is as expected.  Beat our lower-league competition in the first round, then lose to a MLS side
• The Rapids won't look outclassed for any length of time over the season but they will not look as good as the better teams.
• Jack Price becomes a fan-favorite and leads MVP voting among the fans
• Gashi is more 2016 Gashi than 2017 Gashi
• Edgar Castillo is a one and done player but Joe Mason makes a permanent move to Colorado
• The FO's decision to focus on lower-leagues in Europe while the rest of the league looked at South America will not be proven to be a bad decision, but it won't be a better decision than South America either
• Fans will be unsettled, fairly, at the end of the year because we missed the playoffs, despite improvement