D.C. United added three more players to its training camp roster today via the 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft.

With the 26th overall pick, United selected midfielder Lance Rozeboom from the University of New Mexico. Rozeboom received adequate reviews at the MLS Combine earlier this month after leading the Lobos to an undefeated season in 2011, and starting every game from 2009 to the present. Rozeboom is described as a central defensive midfielder, but he was observed by Joe Mauceri pulling the strings in New Mexico's midfield, leading me to believe that he may be more of a box-to-box type player than a straight replacement for the more defensive-minded Clyde Simms. Still, if Rozeboom lives up to the potential he showed in college, he may be able to compete with Stephen King and Conor Shanosky for a place in United's 18-man roster for most matches. At the very least, Rozeboom provides a little bit more assurance that we have other options besides Kurt Morsink for when Perry Kitchen is away on international duty.

Chosen with the 45th pick, Charles Rodriguez appears to be a steal on paper. The senior defender captained the UNC-Charlotte 49ers on a surprise run to the NCAA title game while starting all but one game in his entire four-year college career. He was also named a first team All-American. Not too shabby. The 6'-0" Rodriguez was a part of one of the best defensive units in the country in 2011, and hopefully we'll be able to say the same thing about 2012. With three starter-quality center backs already on the roster, Rodriguez should be able to slot in as fourth on the depth chart.

Midfielder Matthew Kuhn was chosen by United with the 64th pick in the Supplemental Draft after finishing a highly-productive and consistent career at Drake University. Kuhn finished with double-digit points in all three of his seasons with Drake, and could be another attack-minded option off the bench for United this season.

The 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft is today, and D.C. United possesses the 26th (second round), 45th (third round) and 64th (fourth round) selections. Considering that drafting players out of college has been the main (only?) way that United has acquired new players this offseason, I’m unnaturally excited for it.

Last year, United managed to add a solid contributor via the Supplemental Draft with the selection of forward Blake Brettschneider, who will be expected to see the field even more in 2012 given the team’s current roster. If United plays its cards right, the team might be able to add a few more key contributors today.

Simon Borg of MLSsoccer.com wrote a nice primer earlier today with a list of players who could be selected early in the Supplemental Draft, including Japanese attacking prospect Kohei Yamada, young Mexican left back Gienir Garcia, and Combine standout Aldo Paniagua. Without a pick in the first round of the Supplemental Draft, these players might be off the board before United has a chance to make any selections.

We’ll be following along via the Draft Tracker on MLSsoccer.com and discussing the picks here. United still has several needs, and could especially use more depth at every position. They could help satisfy some of those needs today.

The 2012 MLS Draft was yesterday as each team added at least one player in the two-round draft, the first official MLS event of the calendar year. You've already read about D.C. United's lone draft pick Nick DeLeon, but what about the other 18 teams in the league? Here's a list of the MLS teams that we think were winners and losers yesterday, and this list doesn't wildly overrate Chandler Hoffman and Enzo Martinez like some other similar lists out there.

Winners

• Not only did the Columbus Crew manage to snag Combine standout Ethan Finlay with the 10th overall pick, which was at least two places later than he should have gone, but they also signed Ben Speas to a homegrown contract earlier in the week. Speas scored seven goals for North Carolina in 2011, including the College Cup game winner. Speas performed the rare feat of winning two consecutive championships with two different teams (he played for Caleb Porter at Akron the year before). In addition to Finlay, the Crew also added defender Austin Perry and midfielder Kevan George. If just one of those pan out, this is a great draft. It also makes that trade with United for Jed Zayner look like it didn't quite turn out in our favor, considering that United could have selected left back Hunter Jumper with the 26th overall pick.
• On the same day that FC Dallas announced the loan of George John to West Ham United of the EPL, they acquired his replacement. Dallas grabbed MLS-ready center back Matt Hedges out of UNC with their lone draft pick.
• With the addition of Clyde Simms in the Re-Entry Draft and third overall pick Kelyn Rowe of UCLA in the SuperDraft, the New England Revolution midfield is starting to look damn good. And that's in addition to Benny Feilhaber pulling the strings, Kenny Mansally and Sainey Nyassi running up and down the wings, and Shalrie Joseph going wherever the hell he feels like it. The Revolution managed to add a second Generation Adidas player in Tyler Polak, a left back with high potential.
  

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It’s been a whole year now since D.C. United was able to snag its top overall prospect Perry Kitchen with the third overall pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft at the Baltimore Convention Center. Well the 2012 MLS SuperDraft is today in Kansas City. The one MLS-related thing we actually WANT to be in Baltimore moved out west this year. Ah well.

The draft kicks off at 12:00 today, and United will use the No. 7 pick in the first round to hopefully grab a player who can both fill a need and contribute right away. The team will have options, and we’ve spent the last week outlining who those options are. We missed a few, but read the first-hand reaction of So-Cal resident johnjahafanclub on the pair of UCLA guys. With the assumption that Akron forward Darren Mattocks and Duke defender/midfielder Andrew Wenger will be the first two players off the board, the list of guys that United might be choosing includes:

* Proven goalscoring senior Casey Townsend of Maryland
* Highly rated and highly productive GA forward Chandler Hoffman of UCLA
* Versatile attacker and Combine destroyer Ethan Finlay of Creighton
* Similarly skilled forward/midfielder Nick DeLeon of Louisville
* Small but creative GA playmaker Enzo Martinez of North Carolina
* High scoring attacking midfielder Luis Silva of UCSB
* All-around complete GA midfielder Kelyn Rowe of UCLA
* Big and established MLS-ready center back Matt Hedges of North Carolina
* Potentially great GA left back Tyler Polak of Creighton

Follow the draft live and give us your reactions as it happens, but before you do, let’s hear your thoughts on how D.C. United should select at No. 7. Jump below for the poll.

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D.C. United owns the No. 7 overall pick in the 2012 MLS Draft. We're reviewing some of the top college soccer players who might be worth Ben Olsen's consideration in the first round.

By consensus, D.C. United has four areas of need that they could potentially look to address during tomorrow's 2012 MLS SuperDraft. In a rough and debatable order of priority, they are:

1. Striker
2. Left back
3. Attacking midfield depth
4. Center back depth

University of North Carolina midfielder Enzo Martinez would address the third priority in a big way.

But we have another requirement: that the player to be drafted seventh overall should be able to start right away. Martinez might not fit that requirement. The verdict is out.

What's for sure is that he's productive, scoring nine goals and 10 assists as a junior in 2011, good enough to earn him a Generation Adidas contract. Three visits to the College Cup ain't bad either.

Martinez was born in Uruguay and has the creative attacking flare to prove it. He came to the United States at age 10, so may or may not be able to assume that he wouldn't require an international roster spot. Or we might not care afterall since United only has two international players on the roster right now anyway.

Martinez was responsible for some fantastically attractive goals for the National Champions last year. But how will he do when things speed up at the next level. He won't have the same amount of space or time. Martinez is listed as 5'-7" and 145 lbs, so everything will look bigger at the next level too.

For United, Martinez would fill a need in that he'd be a great attacking player option off the bench. If Chris Pontius is hurt again, or Andy Najar is with his national team, or Branko Boskovic is sent back to Montenegro, or Dwayne De Rosario is whining about his contract, attacking midfielder would suddenly become our biggest priority. Adding a player at least one more player that fits that role is vital for D.C. this offseason.

But Martinez might not be that guy, as No. 7 might be too high for a guy that is less of a sure-thing than other players expected to be available at that spot.

D.C. United owns the No. 7 overall pick in the 2012 MLS Draft. We're reviewing some of the top college soccer players who might be worth Ben Olsen's consideration in the first round.

There was, at one point, reason to believe that Creighton senior Ethan Finlay would last until the late first round or early second round in tomorrow's 2012 MLS SuperDraft. Despite finishing as the runner-up for the MAC Hermann Trophy - college soccer's MVP award - the fact that Finlay wasn't a Generation Adidas player, combined with the sheer number of attack-minded wide midfielders and forwards in the 2012 MLS Draft, some figured to see him drop out of the top 10.

That was before he did his best Dwayne De Rosario impression. After missing the combine's first set of games to be at the Hermann ceremony, Finlay essentially stepped off the plane, got a ride to the field, and scored a hat trick in just 17 first-half minutes (link includes highlights).

So that killed any hopes of teams picking late in the first round, but should those hopes have even existed? We're talking about a guy who was just named the 2nd best player in college soccer. Finlay is a two-time NSCAA All-American, College Soccer News First Team player coming off of a 14 goal/6 assist season (24 appearances) for one of the top college programs in the country. In other words, the hat trick only confirmed what good scouts already knew: Finlay is going to be a success as a pro.

So who is this kid? I prefer to describe him as an "attacker" because Finlay is the kind of player who makes things happen on offense from either flank as well as playing up front. His speed is probably in the B/B+ range, but he's very quick and shifty with the ball at his feet. Finlay also has a strong sense of timing, which allows him to put himself in scoring positions frequently. On a team that rewards goal-scoring wingers like United, he'd fit right in. Plus, his positional versatility would address our lack of depth on the flanks and up front.

I linked to the SB Nation mock draft earlier, where Finlay somehow fell to No. 22. I was thisclose to taking him at No. 7 instead of Nick DeLeon, and in both cases I felt like I was getting a steal. Since then, I've flipped between which player I'd prefer enough times to call it a tie. On my draft list, at least, the only players I'd list higher than Finlay would be Darren Mattocks and Andrew Wenger.

D.C. United owns the No. 7 overall pick in the 2012 MLS Draft. We're reviewing some of the top college soccer players who might be worth Ben Olsen's consideration in the first round.

Over the past few years, playing for Sasho Cirovski's Maryland Terrapins soccer program has become more or less the surest way to end up making a living playing soccer in the United States. This is great news for D.C. United, since it takes less than half an hour to get from RFK Stadium to Ludwig Field. At one point last season, United's roster had no fewer than four recent Maryland products listed, and Cirovski has been a regular figure on CSN Washington's MLS broadcasts.

That brings us to Casey Townsend, the only big name coming out of College Park this year. The Traverse City, Michigan native finished his NCAA career with some stellar numbers. In 85 appearances, Townsend has 43 goals and 12 assists. His senior season was particularly impressive, as he managed 17 goals and 2 assists in just 21 games. That added up to being shortlisted for the Hermann Trophy and being named to the All-ACC First Team for the second straight year, which is no easy feat given the ACC's consistent strength.

Townsend has a lot of skills that will translate in MLS. He is something of a goal-poacher, but works very hard off the ball (both to get open when his team is in possession and also defensively). He is tough to mark, a good finisher, and is outstanding in the air despite not being built like a prototypical big man (5'11", 161 lbs). That's down to equal parts leaping ability - Townsend is one of those guys that just seems to hang in the air for an extra second - and timing.

Unlike Darren Mattocks, Townsend could possibly be available at No. 7. In fact, he's often the player most mock drafts see us selecting. Everyone in MLS knows we're in need of strikers, and Townsend is probably the best senior striker in the draft pool. With Generation Adidas players likely to fly off the board quickly, selecting Townsend would make a lot of sense.

If Townsend does join the ranks of Maryland players to suit up for United, look for him to push Blake Brettschneider for playing time immediately. They aren't quite the same player - Brettschneider's size gives us more of a traditional back-to-goal target man, while Townsend would push up higher and get into the box more often - but the plus would be allowing Olsen to have more options and better competition in training. If possession is more important against a given opponent, Benny could call on BlakeBrett. If, however, it looks like we're going to be in a game that features lots of chances, Townsend is probably the better option due to his superior finishing.

Bottom line: Townsend would be a good acquisition for United, and is probably among the top three or four most likely selections Thursday.

D.C. United owns the No. 7 overall pick in the 2012 MLS Draft. We're reviewing some of the top college soccer players who might be worth Ben Olsen's consideration in the first round

Tyler Polak is a 5'-8" hard-working sophomore left back. He helped lead the Creighton Blue Jays to the College Cup Final Four last year, and earned a Generation Adidas contract with MLS. He isn't necessarily rated as an immediate starter by some of the top scouts, but you might say that Daniel Woolard isn't really an MLS starter either.

Taking Polak would mean an investment in the future. He's fast, he's steady, and he likes to get forward to contribute to the attack. Polak had one goal and five assists this season while starting every match for Creighton and playing all but seven minutes the entire year. But he probably won't be the best defender available at the time that D.C. United is picking. He might not even be the best left back available, as Hunter Jumper of UVA has really impressed this week. Just in terms of having an awesome name, I would take Jumper over Polak hands down!

Polak's so-called struggles at the MLS Combine have him plunging down the board in some mock drafts. Jason Saghini even has him falling out of the first round, meaning that he's either putting way too much stock into the Combine, or he didn't pay much attention to Creighton during the year. Not that any of us really did either. Polak has the potential to be a long-term solution at the position that has been the greatest concern for United for the last decade. That potential deserves some consideration at the No. 7 pick.

The 19-year old Polak was a major contributor for the United States at the 2009 U-17 FIFA World Cup. He has 35 caps at that level. And that experience will help him at the next level. Maybe it will help him for D.C. United.