UNTIL SOMEBODY STEPS UP and says otherwise, the Los Angeles Galaxy are still the team to beat in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference. This weekend the Vancouver Whitecaps will get a chance to suggest otherwise when it visits Southern California to take on the reigning champs. 

The ‘Caps come to town as the hottest team in MLS while L.A. is winless in three straight, making this game an opportunity for Vancouver to announce a changing of the hierarchal guard out west (Saturday, 10:00 ET, MLS DirectKick).

THE BASICS

After a season-opening 3-1 loss to Toronto, Vancouver has reeled off three straight wins and allowed only one goal during this streak. It should also be noted that this is a team that finished the regular season last year 4-0-1 so clearly Carl Robinson’s men are figuring out how to win in the regular season. Meanwhile, after beating Chicago 2-0 on opening day, the Galaxy have had a pair of draws then fell to D.C. United last week.

THE SUBPLOTS

Bruce Arena has rarely been one to sweat early-season results, even dating back to his days at the University of Virginia. Arena, more than any other American soccer coach, has mastered the art of getting his teams to peak heading into and during the postseason. It’s why he’s won so many trophies. 

This year the Galaxy seem even less pressed because the team’s identity will change this summer with the arrival of Steve Gerrard from Liverpool. How he meshes with Robbie Keane, Gyasi Zardes and company will have far more to do with how the Galaxy fare down the stretch than an April game against Vancouver. 

At the same time, Arena also knows home field advantage matters in the playoffs and in the loaded Western Conference, with Dallas still unbeaten, Seattle still a force, and Vancouver playing well, the Galaxy need to avoid falling too far behind so it can avoid play-in games and competing on the road in the playoffs. 

The Whitecaps, meanwhile, are looking for that signature win. Yes, it is 7-1-1 over its last nine regular season games dating back to last year but a win over the the Galaxy in Carson, Calif., would send a message that this team is for real.  

PLAYERS TO WATCH

For Vancouver, it’s hard to ignore Octavio Rivero, the league’s player of the month for March. The Uruguayan had that awful miss against Toronto just minutes into his MLS career, but he put that behind him and scored in three straight games. In a league with new players like Kaka and David Villa, Rivero has been the best newcomer so far. If he gets service, he’ll test the Galaxy backline.

The Galaxy's most pleasant surprise in 2015 has been Jose Villareal. The 21-year-old homegrown product has shown flashes of potential in the past but this year appears to have added consistency. Splitting time between left-mid and forward, he has scored a goal and registered two assists and gone a long way in helping L.A. make up for the productivity it lost when Landon Donovan retired. Villarreal will be challenged by Whitecaps right back Steve Beitashour, the Iranian World Cup player who loves to get forward.

THE X-FACTOR

Since his rookie season in 2009, Omar Gonzalez has been one of the top defenders in MLS. But if the Galaxy big man has a liability, it’s his susceptibility to small, quick players. And no one in MLS fits that bill quite like the Whitecaps speedster Kekuta Manneh. The 20-year-old Gambian (by way of Austin, Texas) is the fastest player in MLS with the ball at his feet and if he can run at Gonzalez and the rest of the Galaxy back line, he can cause them fits.

PREDICTION

The Whitcaps will manage to score on the Galaxy but Robbie Keane and Gyasi Zardes return from international duty and allow the Galaxy to slow the Whitecaps ascension up the Western Conference standings with a 2-1 win.

Brooke Tunstall is an American Soccer Now contributing editor and ASN 100 panelist. Follow him on Twitter