Minnesota United's recent three-match winning streak has boosted the club's playoff chances from negligible to at least a long shot. FiveThirtyEight.com's projections now give the Loons a 13 percent chance of reaching the Major League Soccer postseason in just their second year.

An upcoming stretch of six away matches out of seven total will tell much of the story of United's season, but for now we are allowed to revisit the possibility that yet another Minnesota major professional sports team will reach the playoffs.

Starting with the Lynx and Twins last summer, followed by the Vikings, Wild and Wolves, it's been quite a run for local pro teams at least qualifying for the postseason.

United's season was the next to start in that chain, and the Loons could make it a clean sweep for all six franchises if they can stay on a roll and overcome some long odds.

Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.