The Seattle Sounders had played 24 matches before Sunday's meeting with Orlando City, but there was something about the team's most recent match that had the feel of a season opener.

After an awful slide that saw the Sounders lose eight of nine matches and go from MLS Cup favorites to a team in jeopardy of missing the playoffs, the Sounders needed a fresh start and Sunday provided that. Obafemi Martins returned from a two-month injury absence, and newly signed Roman Torres and Nelson Valdez made their club debuts.

The result was a dominating performance against a 10-man Orlando City side that never stood a chance. It wasn't exactly the type of challenge that should have folks in Seattle chiseling the MLS Cup already, but the display was more than enough reason to rekindle optimism after a dark two months of struggles.

“I think our guys were tired of what’s been going on," Sounders coach Sigi Schmid told reporters after the win. "I think with Oba coming back and [the recent additions], there was an uplifted mood. The attitude of the guys – we talked about it before the game – ‘Hey, it’s time. It’s time.' There’s no more time to waste."

The Sounders certainly didn't waste time this summer revamping a roster that was already one of the strongest in the league. The addition of Panamanian defender Roman Torres gives Seattle one of the most formidable center back pairings in the league, and the additions of Valdez, who scored in his debut on Sunday, and Andreas Ivanschitz, suddenly gives Schmid a wealth of options in attack after two months of struggling to piece together a lineup without Martins, Clint Dempsey, Alonso and more recently suspended winger Marco Pappa.

Martins signaled his return with a two-goal effort against Orlando City, and he remains one of the league's most dangerous forwards. The Sounders attack looked as dangerous as ever, and the defense, bolstered by Torres, enjoyed a strong, if easy, day against 10-man Orlando City. Much tougher tests await for the Seattle back line in coming weeks, but Schmid still had to be happy to see his defense post a shutout after months of breakdowns.

Schmid will have a tough challenge in the final third of the season, a much different one than he has faced the past two months. He will need to figure out his best lineup and an effective player rotation, as the Sounders embark on an MLS Cup run and attempt at another CONCACAF Champions League push. The Supporters Shield won't be returning to Seattle, but you get the feeling Schmid and the Sounders couldn't care less. There are other targets on the horizon.

A new season of sorts began for the Sounders on Sunday, one with the main goal of delivering the club's first MLS Cup. Now, with the team's stars returning to health and new faces being integrated, the Sounders have the strongest roster in the club's history, and a very real chance of salvaging a season that looked lost just a week ago.

Now, instead of talking about what went wrong with the season, Sounders fans can start thinking about what could be.

SIZING UP THE MLS CUP CONTENDERS

When you have teams as busy during the summer transfer window as MLS teams were this year, and teams dealing with key injuries as often as top teams have dealt with them this season, it becomes that much tougher to use the current stands to measure just who the real MLS Cup favorites and contenders are.

In terms of strength of roster and level of play seen this year, you can argue there are six clearcut MLS Cup contenders at the moment, with the LA Galaxy and Sounders a notch above the rest.

Teams we won't include in the list of legitimate contenders are two of the league's biggest spenders. Toronto FC and New York City FC have the star power to put together strong games, but it is difficult to see either team putting together the consistency and balanced strength needed to lift an MLS Cup title.

Who else won't be lifting the MLS Cup this year? Basically any team currently not in a playoff position.

That leaves us with nine teams who could lift the trophy. Here is a breakdown of how those teams stack up:

FAVORITES (LA Galaxy, Seattle Sounders)

Adding Giovani Dos Santos and Steven Gerrard to an already stacked squad makes the Galaxy the favorites, but Seattle's work in the summer transfer window has the Sounders right there with the Galaxy. The Galaxy look to be the favorite to win the Supporters Shield, while the Sounders will be spending the final 10 matches of the regular season trying to integrate their new players. It's tough not to see these teams meeting again for the Western Conference title.

CAPABLE UNDERDOGS (Sporting Kansas City, Vancouver Whitecaps)

Having just played the game of the year in MLS, Sporting Kansas City and the Whitecaps showed in their 4-3 thriller that they're both more than capable of standing toe-to-toe with the league's best. Neither team added big-ticket players in the summer, but these two teams have played some of the best soccer in the league and will be a handful for whatever opponents they face in the West playoffs.

EASTERN CONFERENCE ELITE (D.C. United, New York Red Bulls)

D.C. United has a comfortable five-point cushion atop the East, but the Red Bulls are the hottest team in the conference. The additions of Gonzalo Veron and Shaun Wright-Phillips could give the Red Bulls what they need to close the gap. D.C. remains a veteran team that grinds out results, a team that will need Alvaro Saborio to score on a regular basis is Ben Olsen's side will have any sort of chance of winning it all.

WORTH A FLIER (New England Revolution, Columbus Crew, Portland Timbers)

The Revs came within extra time of an MLS Cup crown in 2014, and with Jermaine Jones healthy again we should see New England start to climb up the standings. There are still questions about the defense though, and the Revs probably need Juan Agudelo to find his top form in order to return to the MLS Cup Final. The Crew made some interesting defensive signings, and if Gregg Berhalter can construct a consistent back line, the Crew have the attacking weapons to make a playoff run. The Timbers are a tough team, but navigating through the stacked Western Conference is probably too tall a task. They will need new signing Lucas Melano to adapt quickly and become a goal machine this season. Otherwise, the Timbers might have to wait a year to be a serious title contender.