Soon, the tinkering will begin.
The Vancouver Whitecaps headed home to potential change Friday after losing a historic playoff game a night earlier.
The Major League Soccer club faces roster alterations designed to help them avoid a repeat of Thursday's heartbreaking first-round playoff loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy.
Captain Jay DeMerit said the 2-1 loss, which came after Vancouver held a 1-0 lead until the 69th minute, showed the quality of the Whitecaps. But it also demonstrated their need for improvement.
"In order to beat the best, you have to be the best," said DeMerit following the game.
The setback, he said, was another case of the White-caps being unable to hold on to a lead. Vancouver needs such experiences to make it a better team.
Before the end of the year, the Caps are expected to hold a postseason evaluation camp at which the future of a number of players will be decided. Such camps are common in Europe, and Vancouver held a similar one heading into the last off-season.
Coach Martin Rennie used the camp to make extensive changes to the expansion team that finished last overall in 2011 - both before and during the just-concluded campaign. Fewer changes to the club's core are expected this time, but some moves will still be significant.
Midfielder John Thorrington said the Whitecaps must become more consistent. Although the team suffered from a dire lack of scoring at times, Thorrington said he would not single out offensive players. The increased consistency must be evident in all areas of the pitch.
"It's frustrating, because we were so close to a huge victory for our franchise and to really help define the future of our franchise," Thorrington said late Thursday.
Although the win was not to be, the Caps must remember how close they came to beating the defending MLS champions.
"Unfortunately, it didn't happen," he said. "But the progress we've made from last year to this year, if we continue this progress, the organization is going to go places."
The Whitecaps finished fifth with an 11-13-10 record and became the first Canadian team to qualify for the MLS postseason.
