Goalkeeper Chris Brady was 13 when the Fire last played in an MLS playoff game.
Along with his academy teammates, Brady was in the stands in Bridgeview on Oct. 25, 2017, when the Fire lost 4-0 to the Red Bulls to end what looked to be a resurgent season after they had brought in international star Bastian Schweinsteiger and challenged for MLS’ best record.
Instead, it was a mirage, and the Fire soon returned to the MLS wasteland.
Eight years later, the Fire finally are back in the postseason and will host Orlando City in the Eastern Conference wild-card game Wednesday in Bridgeview.
‘‘It’s crazy to think that [2017] would have been the last time up until now we’d appear,’’ said Brady, now 21, one of the best goalies in MLS and a contender for playing time with the U.S. national team. ‘‘That little bit of realization is crazy to me, that now I’m in this position where I can help this team and this club do something incredible. But the fact that we’re here, [I’m] very proud to be a part of it.’’
With a victory against Orlando, the Fire would book a matchup with the Supporters’ Shield-winning Union in the next round of the playoffs. They also would erase more of their recent history, which has been mostly unremarkable or negative.
The Fire, one of the dominant teams in the league in their first decade of existence, haven’t won a playoff game since the 2009 season, when they came within a penalty shootout of winning the Eastern Conference and reaching MLS Cup. Because of the dry spell, the main theme around the Fire has been how to unlock their potential, something a handful of coaches and executives failed to accomplish.
In his first season at the helm, former national-team coach Gregg Berhalter has made significant strides. The Fire set team records for most road victories, most goals and most road goals. Yet Berhalter knows those are just steps toward where he wants to take the team.
‘‘There’s a lot to be proud of,’’ Berhalter said. ‘‘But, having said that, there’s still a ways to go, and we still want to keep improving. I mentioned early on that I see this club as a sleeping giant, and I really believe that. We have more to show and there’s more to come, but I’m certainly proud of the work rate of the players, of the desire, the attitude throughout this whole season, and it’s really helped us achieve some of our objectives.’’
One of those objectives was to be a competent, steady and well-run MLS team. The Fire finally look the part. Brady has noticed the change under Berhalter.
‘‘I really appreciate the work that he’s done so far,’’ Brady said. ‘‘I’ve grown quite a bit playing for him. It’s crazy to look at when you compare where we were to where we are now, then also where we could be in the next few years.’’
That’s why Brady prefers to look to the future and not back to 2017. Though what happened eight years ago is part of the Fire’s history, there are few links between that group and the players and franchise that will play against Orlando.
‘‘For those of us who have been here long enough to remember that [2017 match], we definitely want to make sure that something like that doesn’t happen,’’ Brady said. ‘‘We’re not looking back too much. We’re looking forward.’’