Teams to watch out for in the Eastern Conference playoff push

Columbus Crew SC

Record: 7-5-8 (29 points); 6th in East

Games Left vs. Orlando: 10/9 @ Orlando (Decision Day)

One of the hottest stories in the league is the recent ascension of the 2020 MLS Cup Champions, the Columbus Crew. The Crew are unbeaten in their last eight games, with four wins and four draws. This has been a talented roster for the last three seasons, but Caleb Porter's men were a bit underwhelming and lacked real juice to start the year.

They received a supernova injection of energy this transfer window with the club-record signing of Cucho Hernandez from Watford. The diminutive Colombian forward scored four goals in his first three games in MLS, drawing comparisons to pre-injury Josef Martinez and forming a lethal combination with former club-record signing Lucas Zelarayan.

With those two superstars in attack, the Crew would be a lethal squad, but they also boast a strong supporting cast including Darlington Nagbe, Derrick Etienne Jr. and Jonathan Mensah. This is basically the same core group that won MLS Cup, but swap Gyasi Zardes for a guy who could be an MVP-level striker.