I know you’ve been waiting with bated breath for today. Can you believe it’s finally here? I know I can’t. And I bet you missed me. But don’t fret, I’ve missed you too.

And now with formalities aside, part two of Pucked In The Head’s  March to March series sees the Whitecaps enter the second month of the 2015 MLS season with a 2-1-1 record. April starts off with a tough contest for the boys in the blue and white, followed by two more games within a week.

What will be the result, you ask? Read on, find out and curse my divinations in the comment section.

Game #5: The Caps kick off month two of the 2015 season at home, against the defending league champions from Los Angeles, on April 4. The Whitecaps haven’t fared well against the five-time MLS Cup champions traditionally, having accumulated just 5 points out of a possible 36. Undoubtedly, Vancouver will be hoping that 2015 brings a change to their fortunes versus a dynamic Galaxy squad that features the 2014 league MVP in Robbie Keane.

Historical Result Table:

Date	Home	Away	Result
30 – JUL – 2011	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	LA Galaxy	0 – 4
17 – SEP – 2011	LA Galaxy	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	3 – 0
23 – JUN – 2012	LA Galaxy	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	3 – 0
18 – JUL – 2012	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	LA Galaxy	2 – 2
01 – SEP – 2012	LA Galaxy	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 0
01 – NOV – 2012	LA Galaxy	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 1
11 – MAY – 2013	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	LA Galaxy	3 – 1
20 – JUL – 2013	LA Galaxy	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 1
24 – AUG – 2013	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	LA Galaxy	0 – 1
12 – APR – 2014	LA Galaxy	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	1 – 0
19 – APR – 2014	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	LA Galaxy	2 – 2
23 – AUG – 2014	LA Galaxy	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 0

The Rub: The Galaxy will be without emotional catalyst and Hair Club for Men ‘before’ model Landon Donovan, who retired after the 2014 season. Vancouver will be coming off a loss on BC Place turf against their bitter rivals from Portland, and they will be motivated to give their fans a better performance. They kick off April with a 2-1 win.

Game #6: Vancouver will play host to the Columbus Crew on April 8, the Whitecaps’ second game in a four-day span. Fatigue shouldn’t play too much of an issue as it’s early in the season, but it’s an added impediment in their sixth match of the season. Despite a trend of dropping points to the Caps, the Crew always manage to make life difficult for their opponents.

Historical Result Table:

Date	Home	Away	Result
30 – APR – 2011	Columbus Crew	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 1
06 – JUL – 2011	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Columbus Crew	0 – 1
28 – APR – 2012	Columbus Crew	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	0 – 1
09 – MAR – 2013	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Columbus Crew	2 – 1
10 – MAY – 2014	Columbus Crew	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	0 – 1

The Rub: The Whitecaps have won the last three contests between these two teams, albeit by the slimmest of margins. Erik Hurtado’s first MLS goal in his first MLS start lifted the Caps to a 1-0 victory last season. Matches between these two teams tend to emphasize the defensive side of the game and the Caps will be looking to Kendall Waston and Matias Laba to impair the Crew attack. Whitecaps earn their second win in a row, 1-0.

Game #7: April 11 will see the Whitecaps roll into San Jose to take on the Earthquakes at Avaya Stadium. Pedro Morales managed to equal Eric Hassli’s franchise-best goal output against the Quakes in 2014, notching three goals in three games last season. Of course, San Jose’s MVP Chris Wondolowski has tallied nine against the Whitecaps in 11 games, so they may hold a slight advantage in that respect.

Historical Result Table:

Date	Home	Away	Result
11 – MAY – 2011	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	San Jose Earthquakes	1 – 1
20 – JUL – 2011	San Jose Earthquakes	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 2
07 – APR – 2012	San Jose Earthquakes	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	3 – 1
05 – MAY – 2012	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	San Jose Earthquakes	2 – 1
22 – JUL – 2012	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	San Jose Earthquakes	2 – 1
06 – APR – 2013	San Jose Earthquakes	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	1 – 1
10 – AUG – 2013	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	San Jose Earthquakes	2 – 0
14 – SEP – 2013	San Jose Earthquakes	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	0 – 0
03 – MAY – 2014	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	San Jose Earthquakes	3 – 2
10 – SEP – 2014	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	San Jose Earthquakes	2 – 0
18 – OCT – 2014	San Jose Earthquakes	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	0 – 0

The Rub: This will be the Whitecaps’ third game in a week, the first of a few scheduling nightmares that the team will fight through in the 2015 season. The Caps have had a level of success against the Earthquakes, having picked up at least a point in 10 of 11 games versus the San Jose squad. Their luck will run out in this one as they drop a 3-1 decision in California.

Game #8: The Caps continue on the road, arriving at Rio Tinto Stadium to take on Real Salt Lake on April 18. These two teams have a knack for theatrics, usually providing some excitement each time they meet as they jockey for position in the Western Conference. This one should be a fun one to watch.

Historical Result Table:

Date	Home	Away	Result
04 – JUN – 2011	Real Salt Lake	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 0
06 – OCT – 2011	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Real Salt Lake	3 – 0
27 – JUL – 2012	Real Salt Lake	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 1
11 – AUG – 2012	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Real Salt Lake	2 – 1
27 – OCT – 2012	Real Salt Lake	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	0 – 0
13 – APR – 2013	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Real Salt Lake	1 – 1
04 – MAY – 2013	Real Salt Lake	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 0
28 – SEP – 2013	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Real Salt Lake	0 – 1
26 – APR – 2014	Real Salt Lake	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	2 – 2
19 – JUL – 2014	Real Salt Lake	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	1 – 1
27 – SEP – 2014	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Real Salt Lake	2 – 1

The Rub: The last match featuring these two teams saw a Pedro Morales missed PK to end the first 45, followed by a successful Pedro Morales PK to draw the Caps even in the second half. Morales then completed the brace late in the game to secure a 2-1 victory for the Whitecaps. It was just their second win in eight games and kicked off the Caps’ impressive run to end the season. Things will be different this time around and RSL take this one with a 2-1 final.

Game #9: BC Place sees the return of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC on April 25 as they take on DC United. The visitors concluded the 2014 regular season atop the Eastern Conference standings and finished with the second best goal differential in the entire MLS. Oddly enough, the touted offence hasn’t mustered a goal against the Whitecaps since 2011.

Historical Result Table:

Date	Home	Away	Result
13 – AUG – 2011	DC United	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	4 – 0
12 – OCT – 2011	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	DC United	2 – 1
24 – MAR – 2012	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	DC United	0 – 0
29 – JUN – 2013	DC United	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	0 – 1
06 – SEP – 2014	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	DC United	0 – 0

The Rub: If you take the inaugural match between these two teams out of the mix, the squads have managed just four goals in the subsequent four matches between them. If you were to play it safe, I suppose you could extrapolate this one to be a “low-scoring affair,” but I’m not leaning this way. Perhaps it’s the Tree Brewing Rickshaw Raspberry Ale I’ve imbibed talking, but I’m saying the Caps win big in their return to the Bell pitch, 4-1.

The End Result: The Vancouver Whitecaps play to a 3-2-0 (W-L-T) record in April, lifting their overall record in 2015 to 5-3-1. After a downturn in form in the middle of the month, the Caps turn it around and end April on a positive note with a big win at home.

It has been an inspiring start to the season thus far, but can the run continue? Stay tuned for next week’s entry in Pucked In The Head’s exclusive March to March series!