Music: {allcanada} IMPACT BEGINS TO TAKE SHAPE FOR INAUGURAL MLS SEASON

MONTREAL -- Warm boots and a winter coat topped the shopping list of defender Zarek Valentin as the Impact returned to training in snowbound Montreal on Wednesday after 12 days in Mexico.

Finding an apartment to share with his buddy from childhood, No. 1 overall draft pick Andrew Wenger, was another.

"I'll probably be the housewife, from past experiences," Valentin joked after a 90-minute indoor practice at Marie Victorin College. "I'll make sure his underwear is folded and do the cooking. I'm comfortable in that role."

As mundane as the to-do list seemed, it was a sign that the Impact's move into Major League Soccer is a step closer than when the team first assembled on Jan. 17.

Another sign was that individual tickets went on sale for the team's first six matches, which will be played indoors at Olympic Stadium while work continues on expanding their home field, Saputo Stadium, to the league-required 20,000 seats.

While season-ticket sales have been slower than expected at 7,000 so far, team president Joey Saputo is hoping for 50,000-plus spectators at the home opener March 17 against Chicago. They play their first MLS game March 10 against the Whitecaps in Vancouver.

After more than 15 years of fielding top teams and setting attendance records in lesser leagues, the Impact begin a new life as the 19th franchise in MLS this season.

The top task rests with coach Jesse Marsch, who has two months to mould a collection of players picked up mostly from other MLS clubs into a team of their own.

After their two-day meet-and-greet in Montreal in mid-January, Marsch took them all to a camp near Guadalajara, Mexico, where they played four exhibition games against club and university teams. They posted two wins and two ties and outscored opponents 9-1.

What Marsch liked best was that "it looked like a team, for a group of guys that had only been together for days,

"Most guys fit in about where we thought they would and now it's just pushing things along and seeing what kind of team we'll be."

Recruiting for the inaugural season isn't finished, but so far their top names are former Inter Milan defender Nelson Rivas, veteran goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts from the Los Angeles Galaxy, long-time Kansas City midfielder Davy Arnaud, former Houston Dynamo scoring ace Brian Ching and Montreal native Patrice Bernier, repatriated from Denmark.

Help on attack appears to be the priority, as all the potential international stars the club has looked into signing as designated players thus far have been forwards, including Alessandro Del Piero, Luca Toni and Michael Ballack.

Saputo said he is ready to spend on the "right" designated player.

It will be tougher now that the transfer window in most of Europe has closed until summer, but Marsch said there were still ways to bring in players from clubs looking to shed salary.

Bernier said it normal for a team to look first for a goal-scorer.

"Most teams look for someone up front who has pedigree, maybe a brand mark, and experience," he said. "A guy you can count on for 15 goals or more a year.

"Right now, the most important thing is to solidify the defence, to be organized, to be a good team unit. Then the people in charge will look at the final piece of the puzzle."

Marsch said an offer was made to the Philadelphia Union for striker Sebastien Le Toux, who ended up being traded earlier this week to the Vancouver Whitecaps.

"We knew he was available, but in the end, Vancouver put in a higher offer," said Marsch.

The Whitecaps are vigorously rebuilding after struggling through their first MLS season in 2011. Marsch hopes to have the Impact competitive from the start, based on players with MLS experience.

"We wanted to build this thing from inside the league and then add pieces from outside to complement it the right way," he said. "Now we have guys who understand what kind of games we'll be part of."

Saputo said he was impressed with the demand for tickets to games at the Big O, which can seat more than 55,000. The club sold 55,571 for a CONCACAF Champions League quarter-final against Mexico's Santos Laguna in 2009.

After Chicago, the Impact's opponents at Olympic Stadium will be Toronto FC on April 7, Portland on April 28, Los Angeles on May 12 and the New York Red Bulls (and striker Thierry Henry) on May 19. There is also an Amway Canadian Championship game May 2 against Toronto.

The team has priced tickets at the Big O between $15 and $85, but on Wednesday made an offer on Twitter of all six games for $69. Single tickets for Saputo Stadium have yet to go on sale.

After four workouts at home, the Impact head to Carson, Calif., on Monday for 18 days. There, they'll get a better idea of where they stand as a team in pre-season games against Houston, Portland and L.A. Beginning Feb. 24, they will take part in a pre-season tournament in Orlando, Fla.