With less than two weeks remaining in the regular season, four berths for the MLS Cup Playoffs have been secured.

The remaining four slots will be decided between now and October 25, with most teams playing two matches down the stretch to determine their fate.
Columbus has secured the top spot in the East, but it is the only team from that Conference that’s assured of a playoff spot.

In the West, Los Angeles, Houston and Chivas USA are all confirmed for the postseason, but with 44 points each, the top spot is still to be determined.
That means advantage Chivas as it has three matches remaining, compared to two for the Galaxy and Dynamo.

The dream, of course, for MLS is that the top spot in the conference comes down to the final day of the season when Chivas plays host to Houston.
Of course, there’s plenty of other action before that potentially titanic tilt.

In the East, Saturday will be a huge day for New England. The Revolution will host Chicago, and with a win could tie the Fire for second place in the East with 41 points. One of those two teams should secure the second berth from the conference, but are both still in a tenuous position with regard to the wild cards.

As the top three in the West battle it out for the top position, the next three teams – Seattle, Colorado and FC Dallas – are looking to better their standing to get into the playoffs with a wild card.

Seattle, with 41 points, and Colorado with 40, could still sneak ahead of any, or all, of the top three in the Conference.

FC Dallas, meanwhile, finds itself two points back from the last wild card sport (New England with 38), but also in the three-way tie with D.C. United and Toronto FC. For all three of those clubs, wins are vital down the stretch.

A run of wins could give Real Salt Lake a very outside chance at sneaking into the playoff picture late. With 34 points and three games remaining (against New York, at Toronto and against Colorado), closing the season with three wins would put Salt Lake into the mix.

Here’s a look at the MLS table through Oct. 13:
Club        W    L    T    Pts
# Columbus    13    5    10    49
* Los Angeles    11    6    11    44
* Houston    12    8    8    44
* Chivas USA    13    9    5    44
Chicago    10    7    11    41
Seattle        10    7    11    41
Colorado    10    8    10    40
New England    10    10    8    38

FC Dallas    10    12    6    36
D.C. United    8    8    12    36
Toronto FC    9    10    9    36

# – Clinched Conference Championship
* – Clinched Playoff Berth
italics indicates Eastern Conference