If you spent your weekend locked into the six Round One matches that kicked off the Audi 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs, this single play probably captures the essence of the new postseason MLS experience:
There have been so many of those moments in the playoffs and it's the kind of action you'd expect to see when teams are presented the option "win or go home."
The single-elimination playoff format introduced for the 2019 postseason sounded good to most fans on paper when it was unveiled last December.
It turned out it was even better in real life.
The six Round One matchups we witnessed -- high on excitement, drama and unpredictable swings -- proved that the one-and-done format is delivering on the promise of compelling playoff matchups. There was no tomorrow for any these clubs and they sure played like it.
The matches were close but wide open ...
Each of the contests bar one was decided by a single goal and the one lopsided result -- Toronto's 5-1 win over D.C. United -- was actually much closer than the final score would let on. Half of the games needed extratime.
And although the teams may have all been evenly matched, the games were still generally wide open, end-to-end affairs. Here's what they were not: the cautious and speculative stalemates from the previous home-and-home, aggregate-goal system.
... and they were entertaining
Not only did we see 27 goals in 6 matches, an average of about 4 goals a game -- and two of the highest scoring playoff games in league history -- but we also got a collection of memorable moments and an unexpected turn of events in virtually every single game.
No one saw FC Dallas coming back from 2-0 and 3-2 down in a stadium that's been a house of horrors for them. And if it weren't for Sounders 'keeper Stefan Frei standing on his head in extra time, the road team would have won in Seattle.
Facing a similar 2-0 deficit at home, the Philadelphia Union came all the way back to beat their rivals New York Red Bulls. After a series of ghastly errors by their 'keeper, they willed their way back behind one of the most heroic performances in MLS playoff history: captain Alejandro Bedoya gutting out over 100 minutes despite carrying an injury that had him doubling over at times.
And who thought that the visiting New England Revolution would have the best scoring chances in Atlanta and nearly take the defending champs to extra time? This match was the first of the day and it really set the tone.
D.C. United fans are surely still ruing the saves by Toronto goalkeeper Quentin Westberg on three big second-half chances -- one for Ola Kamara and two for Wayne Rooney, who played in his final MLS match. (You would bank on Rooney scoring at least one of the two chances that fell to him.)
In the snow and rain at Rio Tinto Stadium, we nearly got the hero turn off the bench from Timbers legend Diego Valeri, only for young RSL star Jefferson Savarino to deliver the winner with only a couple of minutes left in regulation.
And with every home team advancing, the LA Galaxy had to overcome the road odds to knock out Minnesota United in the final match of the round. The big moment there? A golazo by Jonathan Dos Santos and a passionate hug with his head coach.
And most of the higher seeds still advanced
And even with all this, it still paid to be the higher seed with five of six home teams advancing and reaping the reward for a better regular season finish than their opponents.
How much did home-field advantage factor into the final results? It's obviously difficult to quantify, but when contests are as evenly matched as Round One has shown, the slightest edge (like playing at home) can make the difference.
And don't take my word for it. The protagonists also pointed out how there was something different in the air:
"It was intense and I think that's what the league wants," Seattle Sounders head coach Brian Schemetzer said after his team survived FC Dallas 4-3. "You've got games that are just so intense. You saw the emotion on the bench -- both benches. Calls for VAR. Their team delaying when they had the advantage. Our team delaying when we had the advantage. That was an intense soccer game."
"It definitely has a bit of a different feel to it," Atlanta's Julian Gressel said. "You don't have that second game to rely back on it. Today felt like a final. Coming here, the vibe in the locker room felt like a final and I expect the same on Thursday and hopefully we have a few more."
And if the players and coaches didn't say it, they showed it on their faces, starting with Revs goalkeeper Matt Turner's reaction to Josef Martinez wagging his pointer in his face:
And then the tears and emotion shown by the FC Dallas players who came so close to a historic upset in Seattle:
The new format raised the stakes. The urgency was ratcheted up. The pressure was multiplied. And the heightened emotions and tension were a direct result.
In short, we can probably get used to this new way of deciding an MLS Cup champion.
