Following a vote by supporters, here are the five nominees for the team’s MVP award.
Now, it’s up to season ticket holders to vote for the player who they think should take home the Giuseppe Saputo Trophy. The deadline is Friday, November 1, at 5pm.
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And the nominees are:
Patrice Bernier
Following his MVP season in 2012, Bernier continued his solid play in the team’s sophomore campaign, matching his assist totals from last year with eight, tied for the team lead. He added another four goals, continuing his clutch performance on penalty kicks, bringing his current run to 10 consecutive PK goals. Bernier was a key contributor to the team’s canon-like start to the season, scoring a goal and adding three assists in the team’s first four games.
Injuries have hampered the Brossard native as the season came to a close, but his importance to the team’s defensive and offensive play was evident all season long.
Hassoun Camara
The French defender has had a knack for scoring big and spectacular goals this season to go along with his strong and versatile play on the back line. Camara has scored three goals and added three assists in 2013 regular season play, including a spectacular bicycle kick in a 2-1 win in Portland. To top that off, he scored the Canadian Cup winning goal in the final game versus the Vancouver Whitecaps FC and he used his aerial skills to score the game winner versus the San Jose Earthquakes in CONCACAF Champions League play.
In addition to his contributions offensively, Camara played an important role defensively, having played both central defender and right back as injuries to Alessandro Nesta and Matteo Ferrari forced the team's 2011 MVP (NASL) to jump back and forth.
Marco Di Vaio
Designated Player Marco Di Vaio became just the 11th player in league history to reach the 20 goal plateau in a single season this year - five of which were game winners. With the Impact scoring 50 goals on the season, the Italian bomber was responsible for 40% of the team’s scoring and finished third overall in MLS scoring. Of the top three marksmen in MLS, he’s the only striker to score all of his 20 goals from the run of play (no PKs).
He notably scored a hat trick versus the Philadelphia Union on May 25 and added two goals in the Canadian Championship. He played in his 50th career game with the Impact in the team’s season closer.
Justin Mapp
The Impact midfielder saw a return to form in 2013, playing over 2,000 minutes for the first time since he reached that mark with the Chicago Fire in 2008. Mapp started 25 games in 2013, the third highest total of his 13-year career, scoring two goals and adding eight assists, tying Patrice Bernier and Felipe for the team lead. He scored a brace in a 2-2 draw with the San Jose Earthquakes on May 4 and was also named the Most Valuable Player of the 2013 Amway Canadian Championship, having scored one goal and added two assists in three games played.
One of the most consistent and dangerous players all-season, Mapp’s name had been bantered about by American journalists during the summer in consideration for a US national team call-up during World Cup qualification.
Troy Perkins
The Impact keeper played in all but one regular season game in 2013. A calming force in front of goal, Perkins was the busiest keeper in Major League Soccer, topping the league with 110 saves and tied for first in shots faced with 158. The former US international goalkeeper finished in seventh spot in save percentage with 69.2% and was tied for third overall in wins with 14. His 8 shutouts have him sitting just outside the top 10.
During his first full season with the Impact, Perkins reached a number of career milestones. He is now tied for 9th in MLS goalkeeping history with 48 career shutouts and 10th with 70 wins, 192 games played and starts, 17,257 minutes of play and 647 saves.
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