MLS Stats Zone: Midweek mania and a jam-packed Eastern Conference playoff race

Major League Soccer gifted its fans a full slate of games on Wednesday, and the playoff race - particularly in the Eastern Conference - has only become more chaotic.

Five points separate the bottom of the East from ninth place - the last playoff spot - and just two points separate the teams from ninth to 13th place.

Out West, one of the teams currently in line for the Wild Card round beat the conference leaders, and the team occupying the last playoff spot lost yet again.

Here, we'll get into the fascinating statistical trends from recent matches that could play a role in shaping the postseason.

A tale of two goalkeepers in New York

The Philadelphia Union headed north to face New York City FC at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, and the visitors were without veteran goalkeeper - and three-time MLS Goalkeeper of the Year - Andre Blake yet again.

Blake has appeared in just nine of the team's 29 games played this season due to various injuries, and heading into Philly's matchup with NYCFC, the team was 4-7-9 without him. Andrew Rick, an 18-year-old academy product, stepped into the lineup for a goalie duel against former Union and current NYCFC 'keeper Matt Freese.

This game was Rick's sixth start of the season. In the five games he played before, the team was 0-1-4. But, he played by far his best MLS game in a 5-1 Union win.

Rick saved seven of eight shots on target faced, which were worth a total of 2.7 post-shot expected goals (PSxG), which takes into account the location and quality of a shot on target to measure the likelihood of scoring. If Rick can sustain this level, Philly will not miss Blake nearly as much as it did just a few weeks ago.

On the other side, 26-year-old Freese had one of the worst matches of his career. He faced seven shots on target - worth 2.8 PSxG - and he allowed five goals. He saved just two shots, caught none of the Union's 13 crosses, and made a mistake leading directly to a goal.

Teams on the bubble make Eastern Conference playoff race interesting

Two points separate the Union, DC United, Atlanta United, Nashville SC and CF Montreal in the Eastern Conference standings after Wednesday's games, and all five teams have played 29 games.

Nashville stars Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge combined to lead the team past the Chicago Fire - who are on 29 points and would've helped their playoff chase with a win - by a 1-0 score on Wednesday. Nashville has scored 29 goals in as many games and is the least prolific team in the league.

Atlanta United, now in 11th place, fought to a draw with league-leaders Inter Miami in the midweek slate. The Five Stripes combined through the wide areas, with right-back Brooks Lennon assisting right-winger Aleksei Miranchuk and left-back Pedro Amador assisting left-winger Saba Lobzhanidze.

On the road against the fifth-placed New York Red Bulls this Saturday, Atlanta are +375 underdogs.

DC United, tied with the Union on 33 points, had the matchday off. Star striker Christian Benteke has carried the team at times, posting 19 goals and four assists in 25 appearances, and the team has not won this season with Benteke out of the first 11.

As mentioned, Philly beat NYCFC 5-1. Of the five teams competing for the final playoff spot, the Union are the only one with a positive goal difference.

DC visits Philadelphia on Sunday, with the visitors +260 underdogs and the hosts -118 favorites.

Portland, Minnesota move in opposite directions for West Wild Card

While ninth-placed Minnesota United, after a hot start to the season, has been doing almost everything it possibly can to miss the playoffs, the eighth-placed Portland Timbers have been picking up points against quality opponents.

The eighth- and ninth-placed teams in each conference face each other in a one-off match in the Wild Card round less than a week after the regular season ends, which makes it extra important for these teams to finish the campaign strong.

Minnesota has won three of its last six games, but two of those were against the league-worst San Jose Earthquakes and the other was against the league's joint-second worst team, St. Louis City.

The Loons lost six games in a row in June and July after they began the campaign with six wins in their first 10 games. In their most recent loss, to second-placed Eastern Conference team FC Cincinnati, Minnesota got crushed in duels for possession, winning just 41.7 percent of tackles and 39.3 percent of aerial duels.

Minnesota enters this weekend's match against Sporting Kansas City as +260 underdogs, despite SKC sitting three places and eight points below the Loons.

The Timbers, contrarily, have beaten a number of good teams in recent matches. The most notable win came against the West's first-placed side, the LA Galaxy, 4-2 on Wednesday thanks to lethal counter attacking.

Industrious midfield play was also a key in that Timbers win over the Galaxy. Starting defensive midfielders David Ayala and Diego Chara combined for 11 ball recoveries, three tackles won and seven interceptions.

Portland also enters its match against second-placed Real Salt Lake as the underdog at +290.

Odds displayed within this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.