Good Friday morning Caps fans and happy September. Hope you all are having a good week and that freedom is at hand soon for some weekend relaxation.

It was a productive midweek for Vancouver, who turned in a competent if gritty performance on Wednesday in Chicago, seeing off the fire in a 1-0 win.

If you missed the match, this is probably not one to go back and watch in its entirety but there were lots of really good signs for the Caps. The continued partnership of Ryan Gauld and Brian White is probably chief among them but it was good to notch a clean sheet after a prolonged fallow period.

Still, Gauld and White continue to steal the show and both men could have had multiple goals in the first half. Gauld also became the club’s assist leader with his tally on White’s goal. Their interplay was not the only bright spot, as Ryan Raposo got in on the action as well.

The defense was largely stout, aside from a 15 minute period at the beginning of the second half where a Fire formation change caused them some problems.

The upshot is that Vancouver has started their road trip off strong, granting them a bit of relief from the pressure that comes from such an extended run of away matches. And picking up points against an Eastern Conference foe (particularly one in poor form) is always a relief.

Lo and behold, the Caps get another team in a similar boat on Saturday in NYCFC, completing their cross country jaunt. There will presumably be some tired legs out there but if they could secure a result here, that would go a long way to consolidating their position above the playoff line, where they currently sit fifth.

Shameless Self Promotion

Instead of re-watching the midweek match, our recap has everything you need to know about the Caps’ performance.

Best of the Rest

Gauld’s performance earned him yet another appearance in the team of the matchweek — his eighth of the season

It’s official: John Herdman has escaped the sinking ship of the national team for the slightly less sinking ship that is Toronto FC

The Caps’ Canadian contingent rubishes reports that Herdman lost the national team dressing room

Not one but three MLS Argentinans are in their sides’ roster for an international call-up.

Cavalry FC will get a league record fee for Goteh Ntignee, as he heads to Ligue 2’s FC Annecy