lost the Supporters' Shield through a tiebreaker. Chicago would enter the playoffs without several injured players as well as Olympic call-ups Josh Wolff and Evan Whitfield, requiring additional lineup changes. Bocanegra won the MLS Rookie of the Year Award, while the midfield trio of Armas, Nowak, and Stoichkov were named to the MLS Best XI for their regular season performances. In the playoff quarterfinals, Chicago faced the seventh-seeded New England Revolution, the only team they hadn't defeated during the regular season. The first leg, played on damaged turf at Soldier Field after a National Football League game, remained scoreless at half-time but opened with a goal in the 50th minute by Wolde Harris to give the visiting Revolution a lead. The Fire responded with an equalizer four minutes later through an own goal by Mauricio Wright and a second goal in the 73rd minute from Dema Kovalenko to win 2–1. The series was tied at three points apiece after New England won 2–1 in the second leg at Foxboro Stadium, taking the lead through a goal from Eric Wynalda in the 18th minute. A penalty from Stoitchkov was saved in first-half stoppage time, but Kovalenko managed to score an equalizer for Chicago in the 83rd minute; the Revolution responded two minutes later with a header from Wright to force a decisive third match. The Fire hosted the final quarterfinal leg and set an MLS record for largest margin of victory in the playoffs by winning 6–0, scoring four times during the first half. Stoitchkov and Razov each scored twice, the latter earning four assists to set a team record, while Nowak added a first-half stoppage time shot and Sam George finished off the match in the 75th minute with his goal. The Fire opened their semifinal series against the New York/New Jersey MetroStars with a 3–0 victory at Soldier Field despite missing Nowak to a hamstring injury. Stoitchkov and Kovalenko each scored in the first half, while Razov added an insurance goal late in the second half and Thornton made eight saves to keep a shutout. The MetroStars played the second leg with first-choice goalkeeper Mike Ammann, who had returned from injury, and shutout the Fire 2–0 at Giants Stadium to force a third match in the series. Mark Chung opened the scoring in the 40th minute and Adolfo Valencia added an insurance goal in the 84th minute, while the