Kickoff is at 6 p.m. on ESPN from Home Depot Center, where ticket demand is strong enough that the club has reportedly begun selling tickets to the grass berm.

Forecast: 61 degrees at kickoff and dropping four degrees during the game.

Staff Writer Phil Collin has the game story.

Sounders striker Eddie Johnson has started the mindgames, putting the onus on the Galaxy. Here’s the Sounders perspective from The Seattle Times.

Galaxy midfielder Mike Magee says just the opposite, of course.

Here’s the Galaxy man on flipping fire.

Galaxy midfielder Christian Wilhelmsson is listed as questionable with right quad tightness, while central defender A.J. DeLaGarza remains out.

Sounds like Sounders midfielder Mauro Rosales (R hamstring strain) will be a gametime decision for Sigi Schmid, who must find a replacement at left back for Marc Burch, suspended by MLS Saturday evening for a homophobic slur:

MLS Commissioner Don Garber has suspended Burch for three games and fined him an undisclosed amount for using unacceptable and offensive language towards an opponent in the 75th minute of the game against Real Salt Lake on Thursday, Nov. 8th.

 

Commissioner Garber also mandated that Burch attend diversity and sensitivity training. This is in addition to the training that all MLS clubs attend at the beginning of each season.

 

Burch will serve the suspension during the next three Seattle Sounders FC matches which include the two 2012 Conference Finals games against the LA Galaxy. Should Seattle advance to MLS Cup 2012, Burch will serve the final game of his suspension during that match.  If his team does not advance to MLS Cup 2012, he will be suspended for the first game of the 2013 season.

 

The Eastern Conference final kicks off at 1p.m. on NBC Sports Network. Preview.