Two bitter rivals face off tonight in what is sure to be an exciting game. Photo from here.

The Vancouver Whitecaps will look to get their fourth home win in a row tonight in what will be a tough matchup against their Cascadian rival the Seattle Sounders.  Seattle has gotten the best of Vancouver in four of their last five matchups.

If the playoffs began today Vancouver and Seattle would face each other in a Western Conference first-round matchup. Vancouver will need step up scoring as they’ve haven’t managed more than one goal on Seattle in any of their last five games. The Whitecaps are a measly 1-3-0 when only scoring once. All eyes will be on Lucas Cavallini who has scored three goals in his last four games, including a pair in a 2-1 win over Las Angeles FC.

Cavallini, who’s playing his first year with the Whitecaps, also leads the team in shots on goal with fifteen.

Whitecaps fan are likely a little nervous; as Seattle’s leading scorer Raúl Ruidíaz returns after making a recovery from COVID-19. Ruidíaz is also third highest scorer in the MLS with nine goals in thirteen games.

Vancouver is currently seventh in the Western Conference, but a victory tonight could see them climb to fifth, owning a tiebreaker (wins) over Minnesota United FC. The top eight teams make the playoffs, so a win here could help them feel a bit more secure.

The Whitecaps came back from a 1-0 deficit on Saturday to win 2-1 against the San Jose Earthquake. The Sounders’ last game resulted in a 1-1 draw against the Portland Timbers on Thursday. Seattle is 0W-1L-2D in their last three games. Vancouver is 2W-1L-0D

“We’re going to push and try and have this team pushing to the end because we want to stay here.” Said Whitecaps coach Marc Dos Santos. “Although we miss our families, we want to stay here after the regular season to play in the playoffs.”

Will the Whitecaps finally get the best of Seattle? Or will the Sounders complete their season sweep? Tune in at 7pm tonight to find out!