Coffee with the Caps, Monday March 15

Good Monday morning Caps fans. It is a dark, rainy, post-Daylight Savings Monday in my neck of the woods — but we’re one day closer to having MLS back in our lives, right?

Optimism for the upcoming season is always a bit tenuous. No matter what happens in the offseasons, I always find a way of talking myself into the idea that the Caps are going to be good, that this is going to be the season where it all comes together. Even if I know in my heart of hearts that this isn’t true, the opening day in MLS is like opening day in baseball — it is a siren call for believing in your team, even if that belief is not warranted.

But this year I think people are feeling a sense of genuine optimism, especially if business picks up on the linchpin to the puzzle, the vaunted DP number 10.

We were working on our season preview #content the other night (more to come on that soon) and I realized that I haven’t felt quite this excited for the Caps to hit the pitch in some time. Sure, the start of the season is going to be rough due to international call-ups (who knows when we will see the entire first-choice XI on the pitch at the same time?) but that gives us an excuse if there is a slow start out of the gate. If they somehow hit the ground running (against a tricky opening schedule no less)? We’re all going to be insufferable.

I’m keeping today's column short and sweet but we will have much more on the start of the season in the coming weeks. We know the options for you to get your Whitecaps news have shrunk in recent months and I think I speak for the blog when I say that I’m excited for what we have in store for the next seven months.

Shameless Self Promotion

Still riding the high from the Caio Alexandre signing? Caleb runs down what his arrival means for the team and how a glut of midfielders could impact their setup.

Best of the Rest

How we got to the point where ownership is willing to splash the cash and how Axel Schuster hopes they will continue to “surprise” in the transfer market

More on the goalkeeper battle between Thomas Hasal and Max Crepeau

FC Cincinnati appears to have reached a deal to bring Luciano Acosta back to MLS from Atlas in Liga MX