The Seattle Sounders, after a mid-season slump caused by inane MLS policies and frustrating injuries, caught fire down the stretch of the MLS regular season, going their last eight matches without a loss en route to securing a home match in the knockout stage of the MLS Playoffs. This was good. Except that they drew the LA Galaxy. Which was bad.

As the Galaxy have knocked the Sounders out of approximately 37 consecutive postseasons, defying reason and human decency in the process, a little bit of pessimism heading into Wednesday’s match was forgivable. That pessimism would also have forgivably mutated into straight nihilism upon hearing the news that midfield destroyer Osvaldo Alonso would miss the match due to an injury suffered in the team’s final regular season match. This was the blueprint of last year’s playoff disappointment all over again.

However, nothing about Wednesday’s match had anything to do with blueprints or careful planning or precedence. Instead of regular soccer, total anarchy broke out on the pitch at CenturyLink Field. Straight from the kickoff, a misplaced pass in the Sounders own zone created a chance for Sounders nemesis Robbie Keane that led to a threatening corner. And minutes later the scoring was opened by Clint Dempsey, who banged in a scuffed clearance by Galaxy keeper Donovan Ricketts.

Then the Galaxy equalized. Then the Sounders scored off a set play. Then the Galaxy equalized again. Then the Sounders looked to have taken the league, only to see the play called back due to a questionable call from the officials. Then the Galaxy put the ball in the back of the net only to see the offside flag go up. This was all in the first 25 minutes.

The rest of the match did not keep up that breakneck pace, but it remained taut and thrilling as the aftermath of that many goals is bound to be. That said, while the opening stanza of the match was fairly even, the Sounders grabbed control after halftime, and took a deserved lead after Erik Friberg put the ball in the back of the net with a beautiful strike following some scruffy play in and around the Galaxy penalty area.

Friberg Golazo is the Winner from LEVYfilms on Vimeo.

And somehow that was it. There was no late Robbie Keane equalizer, no moment of magic from a lethargic looking Steven Gerrard. The Sounders won 3-2. They vanquished their playoff demons against the Galaxy. They now haven’t lost in nine matches. And frankly, despite coming into the playoffs as a four-seed, now qualify as one of the MLS Cup favorites.

That said, road bumps are coming. The Conference semi-final is being played this Sunday in Seattle, which means limited rest ahead of a huge match for the Sounders. And they have some serious injury issues. Ozzie is still day-to-day. Centerback/fullback/Swiss Army knife/handsome gentleman Brad Evans suffered a leg injury of yet unknown severity, which throws his availability into doubt. Fullback Leo Gonzalez took an injury. Midfielder Marco Pappas? Yeah, he’s hurt too.

But the good news is that the Sounders' attack is fit and in form. Dempsey is banging in goals, Obafemi Martins is playing well enough to earn a recall to the Nigerian national squad, and new additions Andreas Ivanschitz and Nelson Valdez are contributing in a big way. Even if they don’t secure their first ever MLS Cup title, and add the one trophy that has eluded them in their thus-far highly successful tenure of existence to their case, this Sounders squad, having already done their pre-Halloween demon exorcising, is going to play some very entertaining soccer the rest of the postseason.