The New England Revolution, expected to be a strong MLS Cup contender in 2015, spent the regular season searching for their form.

It was an up and down summer but Jay Heaps' squad enters the playoffs coming off an impressive 3-1 victory over New York City. Over the 90 minutes, the Revolution midfielders controlled the game and very much played like the potential champion pundits thought they were at First Kick.

A big part of their success against NYCFC and hope for playoff glory was Kelyn Rowe. He has always flirted with being a true impact player in the league but his performance in recent weeks made him a player to watch in the postseason. The way he has combined recently with fellow midfielders Diego Fagundez, Jermaine Jones, and Lee Nguyen has showcased the team’s strengths.

“With players like this, you can take a lot of risks and when you take risks, good things happen,” Rowe told ASN. “It’s so hard with so much talent to remain unselfish throughout the midfield. On Sunday when you saw it when we were doing really well. We were giving one-twos and we were really moving for each other. I think you see that when we play really well, there is this connection and interchange that no one can really stop.”

When the Revolution take the field tonight against DC United, the question will be which teams show up. If DC United plays like it has over the past two months, it won’t take much for the Revolution to advance. Despite of DC United’s awful performance on Sunday in a 5-0 loss to finish the regular season, Rowe expects a tough game at a rainy RFK Stadium.

It's up to Rowe, Nguyen, and Fagunez to run the attack from the midfield and create plays against a vulnerable backline.

“For us, if we have good shape defensively, we can break teams down offensively with three to five guys,” Rowe said. “It’s hard to break us down. If we can start getting out set pieces going like we have recently, it’s a great weapon to have. Because we’re such a streaky team. You’ve seen it over the past two years we’ve played very well and then had a bad streak. For us, we’re hoping to start that good streak again. With a win at the end of the year following three games that weren’t so great, that confidence level needed to be raised. I think that happened on Sunday.”

The playoffs could help push Rowe to new heights as a player. U.S. national team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann is in search of new talent. Rowe is significantly younger than Jones and Nguyen, and his numbers this season were respectable with seven goals and six assists. The one drawback, however, is that like the Revolution as a team, Rowe was also streaky.

"It was an okay season for myself," he said. "There were a lot of ups and downs as every player will have. If you look at the numbers, they’re okay. But I learned a lot and fought through adversity. Just for us as a team, we’ve grown through good times and bad times.”

The national team and the spotlight, however, are talks of the future. For now, the Revolution have to win tonight or else their season comes to an abrupt end before November. Many players on the team know what it takes to advance in the playoffs which are quite a bit different than the regular season. Rowe believes that he and his teammates are ready.

“I think for us, we know what it takes to go far and to when games when you have to win,” he said. “It’s not the regular season, it really is a step up. We know that. We understand the fight it takes to keep going. It’s almost like a new season. It’s pressure, but it’s also the games you live for. These are the games you want to play in. This is what being a professional athlete is all about. We know what it takes.”