in the west and qualifying for the playoffs by just 2 points. San Jose faced off with the Kansas City Wizards in the playoffs. Mullan played every minute of the two legs as KC advanced 3–2 on aggregate. Mullan also made 3 appearances in the Open Cup, helping the Earthquakes reach the semifinal. The 2005 season got underway for San Jose and Mullan on April 2 with a 2–2 draw with the New England Revolution. On May 14, Mullan suffered an ankle injury in a 0–0 draw with FC Dallas. On June 29, Mullan returned to the lineup after missing 7 games and had the game winning assist after setting up Dwayne De Rosario in the 88th minute, giving San Jose a 1–0 win over the Colorado Rapids. He scored his first goal of the season on July 2 in a 2–2 draw with Dallas. On October 15, Mullan scored once and had one assist to give the Quakes a 3–1 win over the Los Angeles Galaxy in the final match of the regular season. He had 3 goals and 6 assists from 25 regular season appearances as he helped the Earthquakes win their first Supporters' Shield in club history. In the playoffs, Mullan played in both legs of the first round against the Galaxy and had one assist, but Los Angeles would advance 4–2 on aggregate. He also made 2 appearances and scored one goal in the Open Cup during the season. Houston Dynamo Ahead of the 2006 season, the Earthquakes franchise and players moved to Houston, Texas and rebranded as the Houston Dynamo. On April 2, 2006, Mullan recorded 2 assists to help Houston beat the Colorado Rapids 5–2 in the inaugural game in Dynamo history. On June 17 he had a goal and an assist to give the Dynamo a 2–1 win over Real Salt Lake. Mullan finished the regular season with 31 appearances, 2 goals, 4 assists, helping the Dynamo finish 2nd in the Western Conference. In the first leg of the conference semifinals, Mullan had one assist in a 2–1 Dynamo loss. Houston would recover in the second leg to win 3–2 on aggregate. Mullan had a goal and an assist in the conference final, helping Houston to a 3–1 win over Colorado and advance to MLS Cup 2006. In the final, Houston and the New England Revolution battled to a 0–0 draw during the