In 2016, Futbol Club Cincinnati clinched a United Soccer League Eastern Conference playoff berth with two games left in the regular season.

Now's a good time to appreciate that accomplishment because the club is unlikely to achieve the same thing this year. In fact, few teams anywhere in the standings will be afforded that kind of breathing room in the upcoming conclusion to the 2017 playoff race.

As FC Cincinnati prepares to embark on a seven-game stretch to decide its USL playoff fate, head coach Alan Koch is preparing for an exciting, albeit nervy and intense, run of games to finish the regular season.

FC Cincinnati on Saturday will host the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in a match that will help kick off a fascinating closing period in the USL season. Of the up to 13 teams that will scrap for a playoff spot, only eight will emerge.

Along the way, the tightly bunched Eastern Conference will see some desperate battles and plenty of talented sides end up empty-handed.

USL playoff picture:FC Cincinnati's road to the USL playoffs

Koch isn't a prognosticator. He hasn't expended much effort calculating how many points or wins will get FC Cincinnati across the finish line. Unsurprisingly, he's applying his usual one-match-at-a-time, every-game's-a-cup-final mentality.

"This is the exciting time of the season because it is close and there is a log jam," Koch said Tuesday. "I have not even bothered with how many points we need from these games. Pittsburgh is another huge game. When we played Ottawa, it was a cup final. When we play Pittsburgh, it's another cup final. As the season's gone along, I've always maintained every game is just as important as the others, but as the season goes along, three points become more and more significant because you get to the end."

Koch in March forecast the USL would see widespread parity and that's proven to be true, as evidenced by the quantity of clubs involved in the ongoing playoff race and the slim margins separating them.

The parity escalated with the influx of spending on players when the league jumped in the offseason to second division status, just below Major League Soccer. The parity is especially prevalent in the East, where first-place clubs Louisville City FC and Charlotte Independence (44 points) are 23 points ahead of last-place Toronto FC II (21 points).

In the Western Conference, first-place Real Monarchs SLC (55 points) is 45 points up on 2-18-3 (nine points) Portland Timbers 2.

"It just means you've got to show up every single week," Koch said. "I think we've given ourselves a platform after the performance against Ottawa."

Koch said he doesn't anticipate any significant separation between the teams battling for playoff positioning in the East. That could set up for some tense moments very late in the season.

A clean bill of health

FC Cincinnati doesn't have any significant injury concerns at the moment. The roster, which has been trimmed by the exits of Omar Cummings and Eric Stevenson, is as healthy as it's been since early in the preseason.

Marco Dominguez was allowed an extra day off before making a Tuesday return to the FC Cincinnati camp. Dominguez used the extra day to tend to a personal matter, Koch said.

Monday's training session was the first for the team following its four-day break from team activities. Koch said he was impressed with his side upon returning from the break.

Tuesday saw the club run 11-versus-11 scrimmages. Players up and down the roster impressed, leaving Koch and his staff with positive impressions before the team returns Thursday to training.

USL Team of the Week honors

Jimmy McLaughlin and Tyler Polak received Tuesday USL Team of the Week nods for their performances in the 3-1 win over Ottawa Fury FC last week.

More:FC Cincinnati exhales with 3-1 win vs. Ottawa

Polak notched two assists in the contest, while McLaughlin enjoyed a typical buccaneering performance out on the flanks and scored his fourth goal of 2017.