Kansas City Wizards 2004

The 2004 Wizards were led by forward Josh Wolff, who logged 10 goals and seven assists. Forward Davy Arnaud followed closely behind, scoring nine goals and assisting in eight in a breakout year. In 2004, the Wizards won another of U.S. Soccer's most coveted trophies, claiming the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup with an overtime win versus the Chicago Fire at Arrowhead with Mr. Hunt in attendance. The Wizards also returned to the MLS Cup final, where they fell 3-2 in dramatic fashion to D.C. United.

The team accumulated an impressive 14-9-7 record in front of both Tony Meola and Bo Oshoniyi, with Oshoniyi capably filling in when Meola went down with injury. The Wizards finished first in the Western Conference, but lost out on the Supporters' Shield to the Chicago Fire on the second tie-breaker, head-to-head performance.

2004 marked the first Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title for the Wizards; the team won the final 1-0 over the Fire on an Igor Simutenkov goal at Arrowhead. Kansas City could not be stopped in the MLS Cup playoffs either, and advanced to the MLS Cup game against D.C. United. The game was hard-fought, and eventually the Wizards suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat in one of the most memorable finals yet played. However, winning the Western Conference Championship title and the U.S. Open Cup made 2004 a successful year to remember.

REGULAR SEASON RECORD: 14-9-7 (1st in Western Conference)

PLAYOFF FINISH: Lost in MLS Cup

KEY ACQUISITIONS: Shavar Thomas (Trade)

TEAM AWARDS

MVP: Josh Wolff. Golden Boot: Josh Wolff. Defender of the Year: Jimmy Conrad. Humanitarian of the Year: Jimmy Conrad

LEAGUE AWARDS

MLS Best XI: Jimmy Conrad, Kerry Zavagnin.MLS All-Stars: Jimmy Conrad, Josh Wolff, Kerry Zavagnin