In Eddie Edward's perfect world, Ottawa's professional sports teams will go 1-1 on Wednesday night.

They would also go 1-1 in his worst case scenario.

While his beloved Senators are fighting to survive against Montreal in Game 4 of the NHL playoffs at the Canadian Tire Centre, the FC Edmonton defender and his teammates will be a 20-minute car ride away at the TD Park Stadium, where the will play first leg of the Amway Canadian Championship preliminary round against the NASL's Fury.

A proud Ottawa native, the 26-year-old Edward desperately wants the Senators to avoid the series sweep by beating the Habs. He's also prepared to set aside his O-Town love in order to help the Eddies overcome the Fury.

“It's my hometown team that I'm trying to beat, obviously I don't want them to do well, so it's a little awkward at times, but that's a part of the game,” said Edward, who will have a host of family and friends in the stands. “It's professional sports.”

After Wednesday's match, the Eddies and Fury will meet again in the second leg at Clarke Stadium on April 29. The winner of the preliminary round advances to play the Vancouver Whitecaps of MLS in the semi-final next month.

The Eddies are looking for a repeat of their preliminary round triumph last year, when they knocked off the Fury by drawing 0-0 in Ottawa and winning 3-1 in Edmonton. Both the Fury and FCE have started the 2015 NASL spring season 1-1-1 after picking up their first win last weekend; the Eddies 3-2 over Fort Lauderdale, Ottawa 1-0 against Minnesota

“I watched the game and I thought Ottawa were full-value for the win,” said Eddies coach Colin Miller. “They've got some real good experience in the team, they're well-prepared ... we will have to be at our best on Wednesday night.

“I'll make sure it's an old fashioned cup tie for our guys, I'll make sure the sleeves will be rolled up and we'll be going for it on Wednesday, because the carrot for both teams is a crack at a top-quality MLS side and that's enough incentive for everybody connected with both clubs to do well.”

Edward has been with FCE since 2013, a year before the Fury joined NASL He was part of the Fury's youth program several years ago, and is happy to see the team where it is today.

“They've been working hard to promote the club around the city and it's paid off,” said Edwards, pointing to the Fury's attendance (5,093) against Minnesota. “When you have a stadium like (TD Place) downtown it's going to draw attention, so I think if they keep going about it the right way then it will definitely continue to grow.”

One team that has grown to become part of the fabric in the nation's capital is the Senators, who will face off against the Habs at 5 p.m. MT on Wednesday. Kickoff between the Eddies and Fury is 30 minutes later, and both games should be culminating around the same time, at 7:30 p.m. MT.

But if the Eddies finish their match first, don't expect Edward to be dashing back to the dressing room to find the nearest TV. During the Sens' wild season, he's discovered they usually lose when he tunes in. When he doesn't, the outcome is almost always a happy one for Ottawa fans.

“I'm actually a little bit superstitious ... so I'm not going to watch that game.”

WHO TO WATCH

EDM - Sainey Nyassi, midfielder

The Eddies newcomer was named NASL Player of the Week on Monday after his explosive performance in FCE's 3-2 home victoy over Fort Lauderdale, in which he scored the game-tying goal and assisted on Tomi Ameobi's winner over a span of just five minutes late in the match. The 26-year-old , who is tied for the team lead with two assists, also drew a first half penalty kick that was missed by Frank Jonke.

OTT - Tom Heinemann, forward

The six-foot-four native of St. Louis, who turns 28 on Thursday, had the lone goal in Ottawa's 1-0 win it its home-opener against Minnesota on Saturday. It was the first goal of the year for Heinemann, who scored seven times during 20 appearances with the Fury during 2014, when he came to the NASL after spending three seasons in MLS split between the Columbus Crew and Vancouver Whitecaps.

FAMILIAR FOES

FC Edmonton and Fury met five times in 2014, once in the NASL spring season, twice in the league's fall season, and twice in the Canadian Championship, with the Eddies winning twice while Ottawa won once and two of the matches ended in a scoreless draw. FCE outscored the Fury 5-2 over the five games, getting two goals from Daryl Fordyce and one each from Hanson Boakai, Chad Burt and Lance Laing.

@SunBrianSwane

brian.swane@sunmedia.ca