CanPL Power Rankings: Who's hot (and who's not!) as CPL playoffs kick off?
The marathon is over. Now, the sprint begins.
After 28 matchdays of CPL action, the final table is set, as we now know which five sides will compete for the North Star Cup when the playoffs kick off this week.
It literally came down to the last day - there, Pacific snatched spot #5 in the table, joining #1 Forge, #2 Cavalry, #3 Atletico Ottawa and #4 York United in the postseason.
Now, however, there won’t be much time for them or the other four postseason participants to reflect on their journey to get to this point, but they’ll be pleased that they’ve reached this point of the campaign still standing.
At the end of the day, that’s all they can ask for, as it’s never easy to navigate the ups and downs of a regular season and pick up results, and they’ll know that very well as they now get set for the toughest stage of them all in the playoffs.
With that in mind, here are the final Power Rankings of the 2024 regular season, presented by tonybet. 
>They were unable to repeat as CPL Shield winners, but Cavalry will enter the playoffs on a high note, as they were the hottest team in the CPL over the last month. Undefeated in six games (4W-2D-0L), they’ve won three straight ahead of the playoffs, allowing them to book a top-two spot and giving them a chance at advancing directly to the final. Having lost just four times in 28 games this season, they’ll feel good about their chances heading into that match, too - they’ve done well to keep games close enough to get points in almost every game, and even when they’ve lost, they haven’t been blown out - all four of those losses have been by one goal. Ahead of their playoff opener against Forge, they’ll feel confident they can do what they didn’t do last year and get an early berth to the final, which will also be hosted by the winner of this #1 vs #2, which is a big advantage. Unfortunately for Cavalry, however, it’s worth noting that Forge has been the one team that has caused them the most problems this year, which is understandable (Forge are the CPL Shield winners, after all), but is reflected in the fact that they’re responsible for two of Cavalry’s four losses. Between that and Cavalry’s past playoff struggles against Forge, that’ll put pressure on Cavalry to overcome that in this game. Based on their form, they’re more than capable of that but they will want to prove that on the road in Hamilton next weekend.
GOLDEN BOOT GOAL ✨
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) October 19, 2024
Tobias Warschewski moves to No. 1 in the top-scoring race for the 2024 #CanPL season as he scores his 12th goal, this one from the penalty spot ⭐️@CPLCavalryFC go up 2-1 on @ValourFootball 👀
🔴 Watch The Outcome! presented by @tonybet_Canada on OS YouTube pic.twitter.com/FJWlRU6sFO
>Having managed to clinch the CPL Shield with two games to spare, the last two weeks haven’t been as planned for Forge, who fell to Atlético Ottawa 2-0 at home on the day they officially lifted the Shield, and then lost 1-0 to Pacific on the final weekend. Heading into the playoffs on the low is always a worry, as one typically wants to head into these high-stakes matchups in the best form possible. For Forge, however, they won’t be worried - they also lost the last two matches of the 2023 regular season and then went on to win the North Star Cup, so they’ve proven that they know how to dial things up for the postseason. As four-time North Star Cup winners, they’ve earned the benefit of the doubt in that regard. Now, however, they must find a way to shake off the late-season slump and dial things up for the playoffs, using the fresh legs they’ve also been able to rest over the last few weeks to their advantage. A side that always seems to thrive in these big playoff matches, they’ll want to continue showing that big-game mentality as they tackle this postseason. Plus, it’s worth noting that these playoffs will have some extra meaning for Forge - the last time they finished first in the regular season, they lost in the final back in 2021, which also denied them a three-peat. This year, they’ll be looking to become the first CPL team to win the double, and are looking for the three-peat again, so keep an eye out on that. A team that loves to be “Forever First”, those two milestones will be at the top of their mind as they chase their latest North Star Cup.
>After looking like favourites to finish top two for most of the season, Atlético Ottawa have slipped to third place ahead of the playoffs, which puts them in a tough position. Now, to win the North Star Cup, they’ll need to beat either Pacific or York United at home, and then beat one of Cavalry or Forge on the road in the semi-final and the other one of Cavalry or Forge on the road in the final. Yet, this has been coming for a while now, as after their hot start to the season, which saw them go undefeated in nine games and amass a record of 7W-4D-1L (25 PTS) in their first 12 games, they’ve only picked up 19 points in their last 16 games (4W-7D-5L). In particular, their last 10 games were what held them back in the push for a top-two spot, as they finished the year with just three wins in those nine matches, drawing six of those games. The good news for them? They can also look at that 10-game stretch and see they only lost once - that’s good heading into the playoffs, where teams that draw still have a chance at winning. Yet, for a team that seemed to pick up wins with ease earlier on, they’ve struggled to get them over the line as of late, and that’ll be tough to switch ahead of matches against the likes of Forge and Cavalry. Before they look there, however, they’ll need to get past York or Pacific, so look for them to use that #3 vs #4/#5 quarter-final as a game to build some momentum as they look to prove why they were a popular preseason pick to bring home some hardware.
UNREAL SCENES IN OTTAWA!
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) October 19, 2024
Rubén del Campo was through on goal and had the chance to score his 12th of the year and share the golden boot, but the referee ENDED THE GAME right as he was 1v1 with the goalkeeper! 😱
🔴 Watch THE OUTCOME! Presented by @tonybet_Canada on OS YouTube pic.twitter.com/D3zz7fMHxl
>Despite becoming the first team to be eliminated from the playoff race, the Halifax Wanderers managed to finish the year on a high note, beating York United at home to push them up to sixth place, ensuring they wouldn’t win the Wooden Spoon. Overall, the Wanderers have done well to pick up points to end the season, too - they’ve got a record of 3W-5D-2L (14 PTS) in their last 10 games. Unfortunately, those draws proved to be costly for them in the race for the playoffs, especially draws against Pacific, Valour and Vancouver, but they’ll be pleased with how they went out swinging. Now, as they get set for 2025, they’ll look to focus on two big themes, ones that remained from 2023 - they need to start the season better, as they started the game with just four points from their first nine games, and they’ll need to be better on the road, as they picked up a league-low six road points in 2024 after picking up what was also a league-low 11 points in 2023. In a tight table, those two things can be costly, as they’ve learned.
GOAL ⚓️⚓️@HFXWanderersFC go up 2-1 over @YorkUtdFC as Tiago Coimbra rounds the 'keeper and buries his effort... and nearly does it again seconds after the restart! 👀
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) October 19, 2024
🔴 Watch The Outcome! presented by @tonybet_Canada on OS YouTube pic.twitter.com/1LOgpxBKO6
>They left it far later than they would’ve expected, but Pacific clinched a fifth straight berth in the playoffs, as they defeated Forge on the final day to officially secure a spot in the postseason. Thanks to a run that saw them pick up 14 points (4W-2D-2L) in their last eight games, they were able to push things over the line in the end, allowing them to keep their playoff streak alive, too. Plus, they enter the postseason in good form, too, as they’ve won two straight, and have scored 13 goals in their last eight games - they only scored 14 in the first 20 games of the regular season. Now, a tough task awaits them, as they must beat the four teams above them on the table, all on the road, to dream of a second North Star Cup, but they’ll be pleased they can at least have that dream after the midseason slump they had, one that pushed them to as low as seventh in the table. After a year filled with injuries and a slumping offence, they’ll want to prove that they can take their newfound offensive confidence, healthy lineup and continued solid defensive play and make some noise in the playoffs, even if they’ll have long odds to go on a run.
GOAL 🔱
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) October 19, 2024
Dario Zanatta puts @Pacificfccpl ahead against @ForgeFCHamilton and are now in pole position to finish in the final #CanPL playoff spot ⚽️
🔴 Watch THE OUTCOME! Presented by @tonybet_Canada on OS YouTube pic.twitter.com/8UlsPjAOYT
>Despite being one of the hottest teams in the CPL in the second half of the season, Valour came up short in their quest to earn their first playoff berth. As a result, they remain the lone CPL original side without a playoff berth and have collected their second-straight Wooden Spoon as last-place finishers. After once looking like a strong candidate to sneak into the fifth spot, thanks to a run of 4W-6D-3L across 13 games from July 21st until October 13th, they fell short in their final game, a 2-1 loss to Cavalry. Yet, that Cavalry loss sums up what hurt Valour in their playoff push - they struggled to manage games. In that Cavalry match, they did well to go up early, but were unable to hold onto their lead, losing late. In a lot of those draws and losses across that 13-game run, they threw away points that could’ve pushed them up the table. So even though they finished the year strongly, one can wonder if they could’ve finished even stronger, instead of being left with another last-place finish. The good news is that it feels like this team has momentum to build off of in 2025, doing well to recover from a nightmare start compounded by them having to play their first seven games (eight in all competitions) away from home. Now, however, it’ll be fascinating to see how they tackle this offseason, where they’ll want to use that momentum while making the changes they feel are necessary to finally reach the playoffs.
>On paper, Vancouver will feel they were close to snatching a playoff berth in just their second season, as they finished four points behind Pacific. After finishing nine points behind fifth place, that’ll feel like progress in the big picture (even if they only actually have one more point this year than in 2023). At the same time, their recent results paint a different picture - they didn’t win any of their last eight games and had just three wins in their last 21 games after picking up four wins in their first seven games of the season. Having done well to put themselves in a good position early, one they held onto for a large part of the season, they were never really able to build on that, and that allowed those around them to make up ground, such as Pacific. Because of that, it’s going to make for a fascinating offseason for this Vancouver side. As they showed in those early games, they can be a fun team to watch on their day, but then they never really seemed to recapture that form. They did pick up points late, drawing four straight to end the year, but they lacked the flair they had earlier in the season. As they navigate their offseason decisions, refinding that flair will be a big goal for them.
>York United have gone cold at the worst time, as they enter the playoffs in the worst form of the five playoff-bound sides. They were still able to comfortably book their spot in the playoffs, and will host a game, but that’s something to watch, as they look to avoid falling in the #4 vs #5 match for a second straight season. Sitting with a record of 2W-2D-6L (8 PTS) in their last 10, and with four losses in their last five matches, they’ve looked far from the team that stormed up the table in the middle of the summer after Benjamin Mora’s arrival. There are reasons for that, to be fair, as they’ve dealt with a rash of injuries and suspensions, which they’ll hope to put behind them for the playoffs, but they enter as a team lacking momentum. What will give them a reason for optimism is that they’ve developed a clear identity under Mora, one they’ve done a good job of following when healthy, so they’ll want to channel that, but a tough test awaits them against Pacific in the first round. Yet, they’ll have revenge on their minds for that one, as Pacific beat them 2-1 at York Lions Stadium earlier this month, so look for York to get some revenge in this rematch - especially after Pacific scored both of their goals late to erase what seemed to be a sure York win, one that could’ve kept the Nine Stripes dreams of finishing in the top three alive heading into the final weekend.
