Real Salt Lake had a bad Saturday, to say the least

Three-quarters through a whirlwind travel marathon, one that has seen Real Salt Lake post a 1-2-0 mark and get outscored 10-5, you could argue that it looks pretty bleak.

Then again, that one win is unquestionable the biggest of the season for the Claret-and-Cobalt, while those two losses have come to Eastern Conference-leading D.C. United and Western Conference-leading Vancouver.

Sure, that loss on Saturday was embarrassing, especially after Salt Lake unraveled after decent start to the match, but nothing – not even the final 4-0 scoreline – is a negative compared to the positive of the breakthrough in the CONCACAF Champion’s League Group Stage match at Municipal earlier in the week. That 1-0 decision, provided that RSL handles business in its two home matches has Real in prime position to advance out of group play for the second time in franchise history.

“(The travel) didn’t help, but I’m not going to blame it on the travelling, I’m not going to blame it on anything. We’ll take responsibility,” said Real Salt Lake boss Jeff Cassar after Saturday’s north-of-the-border drubbing. “We had a very tough game in D.C., tough game in Guatemala, and to have a third one in quick succession was not going to be easy no matter what. If we can turn around and get a result against Kansas City in the Open Cup semis – we get an opportunity to be hosting the final in our building and that’s where we put our focus on.”

Cassar is exactly right.

Let’s face it, the chances of Real Salt Lake qualifying for the Major League Soccer postseason for an eighth consecutive year are slim. It’s a longshot at best, even with a pair of key upcoming home contests over the next two weeks.

That leaves two critical competitions remaining for RSL this season – the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and Champions League.

Salt Lake is a combined 4-0 in those two competitions, dispatching Sounders 2, Portland and Los Angeles in its first three Open Cup matches at Rio Tinto, as well as the international road win over Municipal last Tuesday in Guatemala City.

On Wednesday, RSL will head to Kansas City, Kansas, to meet up with Sporting Kansas City for the fourth time this year – and third in the last seven weeks – in the Open Cup semifinals, aiming for a chance to play in the domestic championship tournament final for the second time in three years. A win against SKC could potentially give Salt Lake the right to host the final if Philadelphia defeats Chicago at home in Wednesday’s other semifinal.

With the long-shot odds the franchise faces in making the MLS Cup playoffs, turning its full attention to winning the Open Cup for the first time is a worthy goal, as the winner receives both a $250,000 cash prize and an automatic berth in the 2016-17 iteration of the CONCACAF Champions League.

And, most importantly, it makes a seemingly pedestrian season-to-date seem far less so.

You can contact Justin Johnson by email at justinjohnson801@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @jjohnson801.