Red Bulls Could Miss 2 in Battle for No. Red Bulls striker Thierry Henry will probably not make the trip to the West Coast to face Seattle on Sunday. The Red Bulls are likely to face the Seattle Sounders on Sunday night without two of the club's top players - striker Thierry Henry and defender Jamison Olave. Coach Mike Petke, speaking during his weekly telephone conference call Tuesday, said: "Both those guys are huge question marks. I would probably lean toward more no, they would not be going. The Red Bulls are riding a four-game winning streak that has taken them to the top of the overall standings in Major League Soccer with 51 points. Seattle is No. 2 over all with 50 points and the match, which will be televised nationally by ESPN2 (9 p.m. Eastern) is likely to draw a large crowd to CenturyLink Field. The Red Bulls have never led the race for the league's Supporters Shield, which goes to the No. 1 team in the regular season, this late in a campaign. The shield winner also earns an automatic berth in next season's Concacaf Champions League. Henry's absence for what is shaping up to be the biggest game of the regular season really is not that surprising because he rarely plays games on artificial turf, the playing surface in Seattle. He played on turf once this season, in the opening game at Portland, but did not play at New England. In past seasons, Henry's absence on turf has been attributed to his chronic problems with an Achilles" tendon. "I haven't had a direct conversation with him about it yet, but going by history, it would appear that he wouldn't be available," Petke said. It's very easy for supporters, even media, to say it's a huge game and that it's ridiculous or whatever. But you have to go with the doctors, talk to the doctors. It's not something that he doesn't like turf. He has a chronic issue with the Achilles. And if it's a situation where I am told by the doctor that it can be damaged, then it's a situation. Or you going to sacrifice to take that risk for one game, no matter what the significance is, when there are still four more left, three more left to play in the regular season and hopefully the playoffs. Henry also missed a game that the Red Bulls played on grass at Columbus in early August. "It is a big game, but the health of him as one of our key players is extremely important," Petke said. I wouldn't 100 percent rule him out, but going by history, I wouldn't hold out a ton of hope that he would be playing on turf this weekend. But you never know. Olave, who has been a mountain in the center of the Red Bulls" defense, has been dealing with a tender knee for much of the season. Last Sunday during the Red Bulls" 1-0 victory over Dallas, Olave spent several minutes on the turf at the end of the first half but returned and finished out the match. "It could be he could go through all 90 minutes," Petke said. Or it could be one bad turn on the turf and you lose him for the whole season. You go back to yes, it is an important game, but is it important enough to risk a key defender for the remainder of the year? In addition to the turf issue, there is the prospect of making a cross-country trip, tough for anyone, but particularly for a 35-year-old striker and a 32-year-old defender.