After a 3-1 win against Eastern Conference rivals Chicago Fire, the New England Revolution advanced to the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final for only the third time in the club’s career. Splitting their previous two appearances with a win in ’07 (against Dallas) and a loss in ’01, the Revs pose a real threat to add more hardware to their trophy case tomorrow night. Here’s why what the Revs are offering will be too much for their FC Dallas counterparts:

Card Trouble in Frisco

Five FC Dallas players saw yellow in their extra time win over the LA Galaxy. In a tournament where roster depth and flexibility is crucial, having five players walking on egg shells is not great. It’s important to remember that while the Open Cup is an important piece of hardware, FC Dallas is sitting pretty atop the Western Conference right now. They may not be as inclined to overplay regular season starters in the Open Cup as the Revs who, while only just outside the playoff picture, are more likely to divert resources and go for broke Tuesday rather than attempt to sneak into the MLS Cup Playoffs as a wild card.

Teal Bunbury, Everyone

While big names like Lee Nguyen, Diego Fagundez, and Kei Kamara may be the Revs’ leading scorers in MLS play, it has been Teal Bunbury’s 3 goals in Open Cup play that has gotten the job done in Foxborough. For any team, making deep runs in tournaments often relies on depth and the ability to get quality minutes out of the 12th through the 30th man on the roster. Teal Bunbury has made the most out of his open cup time, and his 3 goals coupled with Kamara’s 2 have made New England a threat to score both in the starting XI and off the bench. Against the New York Cosmos, Bunbury’s two-goal performance (including one in the 83rd minute for the go-ahead) was vital in getting past a crafty NASL team that for a while were going blow for blow with the Revs.

Dallas Starts Slow, Finishes Flat

FC Dallas has only scored in the first half twice throughout the entire tournament, both coming in the same game against USL side Oklahoma City Energy FC. Even then, their 37th-minute goal was a response to a 26th-minute brace by OKC’s Jordan Rideout. Since then they’ve scored all their goals in either extra time or additional extra time, sans a 64th-minute goal by Mauro Diaz against the Colorado Rapids. They’ve also never drawn first blood within the initial 90 minutes. New England’s key to victory may depend on if they can dominate the middle portion of the game, scoring before Dallas’ pistons begin to fire up early in the first half, and then protecting the lead and countering when necessary late in the second. Dallas allowed OKC to keep themselves in the game with a stoppage time goal, so while Oscar Pareja’s side has a tendency to get back into games in the second half they are equally prone to falling off before time expires.

Despite any advantages or shortcomings, Tuesday's U.S. Open Cup promises to be a fun one. Catch the action tomorrow, Tuesday, September 13th on ESPN2 and be sure to keep up with VAVEL USA's LIVE coverage!