A Look at the East and Supporters’ Shield standings with 6 matches to play for Union

The race for the Supporters’ Shield is heating up, and the eastern conference is much closer than things may seem with only six weeks left in the 2022 season! The Union is just three points behind LAFC no for the Supporters’ Shield and holds a five-point lead in first place in the eastern conference. Could we see this Philly team make some major history?

Union keeping pressure on LAFC; they stay top of the east

This past weekend, the results continued to fall Philadelphia’s way. They scored six goals in a win over Colorado (the fourth time they’ve done this in their last 10 games!) and LAFC lost for the second week in a row. Philly’s chances to win the Shield are real, now more than ever! With their win, Philadelphia stays five points ahead of the pack in the eastern conference!

Three of the top four in the east win

The race for the east may not be for the top spot anymore. Philly’s form and five-point cushion on Montreal could mean that the fight will be for who will win second place. Montreal is holding that spot over NYCFC, but Red Bull isn’t too far behind!

Philly is ahead of the pack and can be the first team from the east to clinch a playoff spot. A win tonight vs Atlanta would secure the playoffs for this Union team. Their first asperation was to win MLS Cup this season, securing a playoff spot with five matches to play moves them ever-so closer to that goal.

Montreal hosts New York Red Bulls in a match with huge playoff implications. For Montreal, they can make a real impact on the standings with a win. A win would keep them securely in second heading into a rivalry match on the weekend.

NYCFC has been in free-fall since the start of August. The defending MLS Cup champions have lost four of their last five matches, but they get an ultimate “get-right” tonight in DC. NYCFC needs to get a multi-goal win tonight if they want to get out of this slump, less than that, or a draw/loss would be damning for this side.

Red Bull has a very tough week that will show if they’re a playoff contender or not. They go to Montreal tonight and then host Philly on the weekend. If they can get three or more points from those matches, then it might just prove that this team could be a dark horse in the east come playoff time.

While the east is a fun race to watch, it’s not as close or as nail-biting as the Supporters’ Shield race!

LAFC falls to Austin, Philly’s three points behind

The Supporters’ Shield race has taken a turn towards a bonkers final six weeks! An LAFC loss to Austin has opened the door for Philly and the Verde and Black to feel like they could actually steal the Shield from what felt like an inevitable LAFC side!

LAFC is on a two-game losing streak, and their stars have struggled to mesh in this late summer stretch. Tonight they go to struggling Houston, but it will be a hot and humid night. Could Houston muck the game up and make things difficult for LAFC and take points from them? We’ll see, but this game won’t be a 6-0 win for Los Angeles

Speaking of 6-0 wins, the Union has shown that ability at home and tonight they get to face a struggling Atlanta side at a place where they haven’t lost this season. While Philly might not win this goal by the outrageous margins we’ve seen recently, this team should get the job done once again. If they don’t, they might just have to kiss their Shield hopes goodbye.

Austin has beaten LAFC twice but is still six points behind Los Angeles for the race for the west and the Shield. This team is damn good and is my pick to make it to MLS Cup from the west. Could we see them take on a scrappy Portland side and get another win at home, certainly; but could they also falter after the hugely emotional win this past weekend, that also seems possible.

Montreal and NYCFC are still alive in the Shield race, but they would almost have to win out and hope the hot teams above them start leaking goals and results. After these midweek and these weekend matchups, we may have to remove them entirely from this group of teams.

The race is on for the Supporters’ Shield is on, and something to keep track of tonight!

All of these teams play tonight!

All of the teams fighting for the top of the east and the top of MLS are in action this Wednesday night! If you’re now fully invested in this late-season drama, there are five games for you to pay attention to! The hours between 7 pm and 11 pm will be a fun time tonight!

Philly vs Atlanta | 7 pm ET
Montreal vs Red Bull | 7:30 pm ET
NYCFC vs DC | 8 pm ET
Houston vs LAFC | 8:30 pm ET
Austin vs Portland | 9 pm ET

We’ll be keeping an eye on all of the action tonight from the Soob, and then afterward with all of the other matches that have meaning tonight. Make sure you keep up with us on Twitter on the @Doopbyriverpod and on my personal handle @Tim_Lovenguth for live updates from all the action tonight!