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CARSON -- Brian Ching's first game against his former Houston Dynamo teammates started with a warning. His one-time (and again) nemesis Bobby Boswell told him before kickoff: “Make sure you wear your shinguards.”

Ching's response: “Are you sure I don't need a helmet?”

That's about as emotional as it got for the Montreal Impact's veteran forward, who was forced in November to leave Houston for Major League Soccer's newest club against his (and the Dynamo's) will, and wasn't shy about saying so.

On Wednesday, some 2½ months after Montreal plucked him in the expansion draft, he took on his former 'mates in a preseason friendly on one of the training fields outside Home Depot Center's main stadium. He played the first 45 minutes, battling Boswell and fellow center back Geoff Cameron with some success but few real opportunities, then watched the Dynamo score twice in the second half for a 2-0 victory.

How weird was it for him?

“Ah, playing against the old team,” he said after the Impact's first game as an MLS club against an MLS club. “I know all those guys. I've played against them every day. I guess you could say it's a little weird, but not really, at this point.”

He said he never mistook an orange-shirted player for a teammate, that there wasn't much conversation with Boswell and Cameron, and that he knows the emotions will be far stronger when the teams meet for real June 23 in Montreal and, especially, July 21 and Oct. 6 in Houston.

“It will definitely be weird,” he says. “This is just a preseason game.”

DYNAMO ICON: Perhaps not just any preseason game. Ching, 33, had been the iconic face of the Dynamo since the old San Jose Earthquakes, whom he'd played for since 2003, up and moved to South Texas following the 2005 season. He led them for six seasons, through two MLS Cup title-winning campaigns and toward another championship-game appearance last year -- and played a key promotional role in the campaign that led to the downtown stadium that opens in May.

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Chivas USA on Friday re-signed left back Ante Jazic, as expected, and Galaxy forward Adam Cristman withdrew from Monday's first-stage draft in Major League Soccer's re-entry process.

Jazic, 35, was expected to return to the Goats after the club declined its option on his contract, which was worth $115,000 ($123,000 average guaranteed compensation). Figures from the new pact weren't released and likely won't be available until the MLS Players Union next spring unveils every league salary, as it does annually. The contract is believed to be for one year.

Cristman, 26, whose option was declined, withdrew from the process and could be negotiating a new deal with the Galaxy, although it's unlikely he would accept much less than the $42,000 he made this season.

Midfielder Jovan Kirovski, 35, whose option also was declined, pulled out of the process before the re-entry list was released Wednesday. The Escondido product, who made $84,000 in 2011, is expected to re-sign with the Galaxy or retire.

Several others, including one local player, have pulled out of Monday's draft for one reason or another.

Vancouver midfielder John Thorrington (Palos Verdes Estates/Chadwick School) withdrew from the process and is in talks on a new contract with the Whitecaps, a club spokesman said.

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CARSON -- Landon Donovan finished a feed from Robbie Keane in the 71st minute, and the Galaxy completed arguably its best campaign, claiming its third MLS Cup championship with a 1-0 victory Sunday night over the Houston Dynamo.

Donovan, who had last scored in early September, slipped Keane's pass inside the far post as the Galaxy, dominant from the opening whistle, thrilled a crowd of 30,281, the largest to see a soccer game at Home Depot Center.

The Galaxy added the trophy, named after its owner, Philip Anschutz, to those won in 2002 and 2005 -- and to the Supporters' Shield they captured as Major League Soccer's regular-season champion.

Todd Dunivant's throw-in from the left wing led to the goal. David Beckham got his head to it, nodding it onto Keane's path heading toward Houston's goal. Keane stepped past Dynamo center back Bobby Boswell, then split Boswell and Geoff Cameron with a little ball for the streaking Donovan.

Donovan, who moved up front when Chris Birchall came on for Adam Cristman in the 57th minute, redirected the ball past goalkeeper Tally Hall and inside the the right post.

The goal was Donovan's record 20th in MLS postseason play and his fourth in an MLS Cup final -- to go with three scored in San Jose's 2001 and 2003 title-game wins.

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CARSON -- Expect a tight, physical, tactical battle in Sunday evening's MLS Cup final at Home Depot Center, with both teams looking to implement a direct attack -- and the Galaxy, in their home stadium, likely the aggressors, at least to start.

Whether it'll be an attack-filled classic or a defensive struggle is impossible to know. This is an intriguing matchup of size (advantage: Houston) and skill (L.A.), reliance on long balls or possession and the limits of defensive organization, which ultimately will determine who's parading the trophy at the end.

Here are two keys to victory in the final:

1. UP IN THE AIR

Geoff Cameron is 6-foot-3, fellow center back Bobby Boswell is 6-2, and forward Brian Ching is a very aggressive 6-1, and the way they go after Brad Davis' set pieces is something to behold. The Dynamo are even more dominant at the other end, with Cameron, Boswell and 6-footer Andre Hainault repelling crosses into their area.

This team thrives on the aerial game, and in Davis possessed the perfect conduit, the closest thing to a Bobby Boswell among American players. Davis' injury complicates things.

Adam Moffat, who has a rocket foot, will take the set pieces, but speedy Corey Ashe, who will take Davis' place on the left side of midfield, has a far different game. Figure Moffat to wander wide to provide service or go over the top for Ching or to take advantage of Calen Carr's pace.

Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear can call on rookie Will Bruin and Honduran star Carlo Costly, both 6-2, if he needs more targets late.

“Adam places a good ball,” Davis said. “And I've said all year we've got guys that have the desire and will to want to score goals and want to attack the ball.”

The Galaxy have occasionally struggled with their marking on set pieces, so that's been a point of emphasis in preparations.

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CARSON -- He was Major League Soccer's Rookie of the Year in 2009, a Best XI selection last year, and now he's MLS's Defender of the Year.

What more does Omar Gonzalez need to do to make the U.S. national team?

That question was posed to the Galaxy's 6-foot-5 Texan just a few minutes after word came down that he'd won the league's top defensive honor, and Gonzalez, who has made it clear he wants to play for Jurgen Klinsmann, didn't flinch.

“I have no idea,” he said. “I haven't talked to the coaches at all. I'm just worried about winning this MLS Cup and worrying about getting better. I think if I worry about the right things, good things will come. I just have to keep on getting better, and, hopefully, they will notice.”

MLS's best-defender honor, richly reserved, is a good thing, “another step in his development,” in coach Bruce Arena's words, and reward for everyone else whose contributions gave L.A. the league's best record, with fewest goals conceded and 17 shutouts, tying the MLS regular-season mark.

“He deserves it. He's been our rock this year,” said veteran center back/assistant coach Gregg Berhalter, Gonzalez's primary mentor in his first three years as a pro. “Add to it the offensive quality, in scoring the goals, and his dominance in the air and his presence and the type of year he's had. I'm really proud of him. He's come a long way.

“And not only that, his consistency has been there this year. That's the one thing that's improved from last year. He's been steady the whole year. ... We're excited for him, we're extremely proud of him, and it's a great honor for all of us that he won.”

Gonzalez, who will lead the Galaxy backline in the Nov. 20 MLS Cup final against Houston at Home Depot Center, outpointed fellow finalists Jamison Olave and Nat Borchers, both from Real Salt Lake. The same trio was up for the award last year, and Olave won it.

“I was pretty pumped about it,” he said. “This is a huge award, and it's a great accolade for me personally, to be in my third year here in this league. ... I put a lot of hard work into going into this year, and the hard work paid off, and I'm just really excited and happy that I won this.”

Gonzalez, a first-round draft pick in 2009 out of Maryland, made an impact from his first day in the league, with his size and earnestness, but under Berhalter's and the Galaxy staff's tutelage he has evolved into a multilayered defender whose physical tools have been amplified by a growing facility with the ball -- he and Berhalter worked together on technical areas during the offseason -- and a broader understanding of the game and its tactics.

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A few hours before the Galaxy and Real Salt Lake kick off at Home Depot Center, the Houston Dynamo and Sporting Kansas City battle for the Eastern Conference title and the other berth in the Nov. 20 MLS Cup in Carson.

You've got questions? We've got answers.

Who are these guys? How did they get here?

Eastern regular-season champ Sporting (15-9-12 including playoffs) won just one of its first 10 games, all on the road, while waiting for the final touches on its glorious new stadium. Since then, the ex-Wizards have been lights-out, going 14-3-9 behind a vibrant attack featuring Mexican star Omar Bravo, South Bay product Kei Kamara and breakout star Graham Zusi. They've won four in a row, with two 2-0 decisions over Colorado in the first round of the playoffs, and are unbeaten in their last seven.

Houston (14-9-13), which won MLS Cup titles in 2006 and 2007 -- the first two seasons after relocating from San Jose -- battled injuries most of the year, then got hot as it got healthy. With MLS assist leader (and MVP hopeful) Brad Davis creating from the left and Geoff Cameron bolstering a solid defense, the Dynamo are 6-0-1 in their last seven games, a run that led to the No. 2 seed in the East.

What's going to decide this one?

How well Houston handles Sporting's blistering speed and league's-best athleticism will be telling. K.C. attacks in waves, making good use of the flanks to get the ball up top to rising star Teal Bunbury and Rookie of the Year slam-dunk C.J. Sapong, who have ample pace. Cameron and Bobby Boswell are a solid central tandem in the back for the Dynamo, which has in Davis and veteran striker Brian Ching potential difference-makers.

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HOUSTON -- The game had long been over, since Bobby Boswell's shot inside the right post less than three minutes into the second half provided the dominant Houston Dynamo a two-goal cushion, but the Galaxy found something to like -- to really, really like -- near the finish of a 3-1 defeat in their regular-season finale Sunday night.

Rookie forward Jack McBean, a 16-year-old high school junior making his first Major League Soccer appearance -- in the starting XI, no less -- took a square ball from Chad Barrett, following Michael Stephens' through ball, with a virtually open net staring him down.

He took a touch, lined up, and fired into the net.

There are a lot more goals due from the teen sensation from Newport Beach, but most of them are still a few years off. This one wasn't beautiful and it meant nothing in terms of the result, but McBean is going to remember this night the rest of his life. So might his teammates.

McBean's strike in the 88th minute was the most visible reward for L.A. (19-5-10) in a match that mattered little but offered a big opportunity to rest key players in advance of next weekend's playoff opener and give some youngsters some first-team action.

Gregg Berhalter called it “something special” and said everyone was “ecstatic on the bench,” and fellow rookie Dan Keat, a midfielder who was impressive in his first MLS start, agreed.

“It's fantastic,” Keat said. “He's a great kid, and he's worked hard since he's come in. Seeing him play in his first game and getting a goal, it's great for him. And, hopefully, he keeps pushing on from here and uses it as a building block for a long career.”

McBean, of course, was thrilled.

“I took that touch, which if I'd missed it, it could have been not the best decision, but, thankfully, it went in,” he said. “I was happy to score, but bittersweet because we didn't get the win.”

McBean has played in MLS Reserve League games and for the Galaxy's Academy sides, and he said playing at the league's top level was “obviously a lot different from the level I'm used to playing in. The atmosphere, the players, everything was a lot more intense, a lot more physical play. It's going to take me awhile to get used to, but to get out there was a lot of fun.”

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There are pluses and minuses to so congested a schedule, the Galaxy says, and how well they manage their roster now -- before things turn ugly -- could determine what riches await in the fall.

The Galaxy faces the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday night at Home Depot Center, the middle game of their third “three-in-a-week” stretch of the season since the second week of April, and head coach Bruce Arena has decisions to make on whom to “rotate” from his roster.

The idea is to keep everyone fresh for a brutal finish to the season, with 28 games over the final four months (one or two less with a quick U.S. Open Cup exit) -- or one every 4.32 days from June 25 to Oct. 23. Followed by playoffs.

“We knew from the beginning that this was going to be a very demanding year for us,” said forward Juan Pablo Angel, 35, who could get a rest against the Dynamo. “There's a number of competitions [in which] we're going to be involved, and we got to be prepared. The guys that aren't playing that much are going to be recalled, and they're going to be needed for the team. It's important to have that.”

One starting job certainly opens, with David Beckham “resting” -- he instead played 90 minutes, double the supposed max, in Tuesday's Gary Neville testimonial in England and will join up with the team before Saturday's game at New England.

Arena also could choose to give a break to a backline player (Frankie Hejduk has seen little playing time, new signing Kyle Davies is available, and Gregg Berhalter needs to be introduced to the mix at some point) or give reserve players some valuable time (and not just Michael Stephens and Chris Birchall, but Bryan Jordan and Hector Jimenez).

“More than anything, it's a great opportunity for guys to play, who haven't played, and we'll see [against Houston] a few guys that haven't played as much,” said Galaxy captain Landon Donovan, who could miss nearly a month while away for the CONCACAF Gold Cup -- providing an opportunity for somebody to play.

“That's the beauty of this team … as Bruce puts together a team where he's confident putting anybody into the lineup at any time and knowing he'll do well.”

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