Lion Links: 9/8/16

Happy Thursday, y’all. Wednesday night featured plenty of action for Orlando City. All three Orlando teams were in action.

There was some good and there was some bad, as the Orlando teams went 1-1-1. The Lions looked dominant against Montreal. The Pride should have escaped with a win, but settled for a draw. OCB got hammered by the Hammerheads. Let’s get to your links.

Orlando City Blows Past Montreal Impact

The Lions were fresh off a big three points against NYCFC, and they kept it rolling last night in Montreal. On the strength of a second consecutive brace from Kaká, Orlando City blew past the Impact, 4-1, without two of its better players in Cyle Larin and Kevin Molino, who are away for international duty. Brek Shea and Carlos Rivas scored the other two goals, while Rivas chipped in with two assists in a big night for the Colombian up front. Orlando is back in the playoffs, for now. Here’s all the match info you need:

• Scott Crumbly has your complete match recap.
• Jeremy Croston provides the player grades and Man of the Match.

And check back here later as Andrew Harrison will have his five takeaways from the match.

Orlando Pride Concedes Late Equalizer in 1-1 Draw

Alex Morgan opened things up with an excellent goal, but the Pride were unable to hold on in the late stages of the match and settled for their first ever draw, 1-1 against Sky Blue FC. Sam Kerr managed to net one for Sky Blue in the 81st minute, dishing out a gut punch for the Pride.

Orlando City B Falls to Wilmington Hammerheads

OCB had a big chance to fortify its playoff position on Wednesday but was unable to get it done against the trailing Hammerheads. Wilmington ran away with this one by a final score of 3-0, so OCB has now made things harder on itself to stave off Wilmington and other challengers after failing to show up in what amounted to a six-point fixture.

Time Change for Orlando City-Philadelphia Union Match

The kickoff for the Oct. 16 match between Orlando City and the Union has been moved from 5 p.m. ET to 3 p.m. ET, the Union's website wrote.

There’s no reason given on the website for the time change, but all five Eastern Conference matches that day were moved up. Not that a 5 p.m. kickoff would have played havoc with deadlines anyway, but the extra two hours are certainly music to sports editors’ ears.

Forbes: Orlando City 5th Most Valuable MLS Franchise

Forbes released valuations for every MLS team, and Orlando City ranks fifth with a value of $240 million. OCSC is valued at less than Seattle, LA Galaxy, NYCFC, and Toronto. The Lions also tied for fifth in the league in 2015 revenue, bringing in $36 million.

Also in the Forbes story are the highest paid players in MLS. To no one’s surprise, Kaká is the league’s top earner at nearly $9.5 million. Kaká’s $7.4 million salary is the highest in the league. His $2 million in endorsements is tied for third in the league, behind Americans Tim Howard and Clint Dempsey and England’s Steven Gerrard.

That’s it for a busy Thursday morning of Orlando soccer. Have a good one, Lions, the weekend is not far away.