Getting rid of the tie was the best thing the NHL ever did

[WolvesAndWings]

Ties were fine, better than the loser point.

Being pragmatic and knowing that 3 v 3 OT + the Shootout is here to stay because it's exciting for casuals and good for TV, I wouldn't mind seeing a W-L-T record with shootout record only serving the purpose of being regular season standings tiebreaker.

The preference would be W-OTW-OTL-L (3-2-1-0) but they would never do that because they currently wrongly believe that they've already solved tanking (lmfao) and it would likely increase tanking, and of course it creates separation within the standings, which they don't want either.

 

[JianYang]

The league has been grappling with how to figure out a good way to break ties since the early 90s, and they still haven't figured it out. Perhaps after 35 years of grappling with this is showing that there is no good way to do it?

The most popular game in the world has draws, and there has never been a demand to change that. I'm old enough remember ties in the nhl too, and it wasn't a talking point in Canada either.

To me, ties never felt empty. They usually felt like a loss or win depending upon the matchup, and whether you were the underdog or favourite.

 

[Toby91ca]

The league has been grappling with how to figure out a good way to break ties since the early 90s, and they still haven't figured it out. Perhaps after 35 years of grappling with this is showing that there is no good way to do it?

The most popular game in the world has draws, and there has never been a demand to change that. I'm old enough remember ties in the nhl too, and it wasn't a talking point in Canada either.

To me, ties never felt empty. They usually felt like a loss or win depending upon the matchup, and whether you were the underdog or favourite.

This is how I feel as well....ties were never an issue....of course, there were no discussion boards back then either...but I can tell you it was NEVER a topic of discussion amongst my circle of friends.

 

[Sniper99]

which means every game has a loser.

and thats how it should be. f*** ties. Does baseball have ties? Nope thank god, basketball? nope, thank God. Football you might see one or two at most in a season at most, it is what it is there.

 

[HockeyVirus]

Another opportunity to say the only reason to like ties is if you have nostalgia and can't see how trash they are.

You know what's worse than having an awesome game go to a shootout? Having it abruptly end with no conclusion. There should be a winner every night

 

[Ianturnedbull]

and thats how it should be. f*** ties. Does baseball have ties? Nope thank god, basketball? nope, thank God. Football you might see one or two at most in a season at most, it is what it is there.

This gets awfully disturbing when one poster says "ties=kissing your sister", and now you're saying "f*** ties"?

I feel awkward...

 

[bobholly39]

I agree, I hate ties.

That being said, after almost ~20 years with the current point system, I think it's time for the NHL to try and improve the current point systems. We've all heard of many different suggestions, here's what my own preference would be:

Regulation win - 3 points
Overtime win - 2 points
Shootout win - 1 point
Loss - of any kind - 0 points

A lot will feel that is too drastic, and won't like the imbalance created by the fact that some games are worth 3 points, some 2 points and some only 1 point.

My counter is - this promotes teams/players always trying for a win, instead of being complacent and being satisifed by keeping a tie score. No more playing boring "safe" hockey in the 3rd just to make it to OT - instead, you go all out for a win, all the time. And in OT too, because an OT win is worth more than a shootout win.

 

[MessierII]

I disagree because it made way for the dumb 3rd point.

 

[Big Z Man 1990]

The NFL should follow suit and get rid of ties too by adopting college OT rules which are far more safe than what the NFL does.

 

[Toby91ca]

Another opportunity to say the only reason to like ties is if you have nostalgia and can't see how trash they are.

You know what's worse than having an awesome game go to a shootout? Having it abruptly end with no conclusion. There should be a winner every night

Your opinion. I didn't say I liked ties, simply suggested it was never an issue. Of course having a winner would be preferred, but I simply dislike deciding such a winner by shootout more than I dislike ties.

Same thing can be said....2 teams have an awesome, hard fought game and then only one wins simply because they wont the shootout.

Comparing to basketball is stupid....there is normally more than 200pts scored in a basketball game....much easier to get to a winner than a sport where there is normally less than 6 goals scored. I know you didn't make the comparison.....

 

[Leksand]

I agree, I hate ties.

That being said, after almost ~20 years with the current point system, I think it's time for the NHL to try and improve the current point systems. We've all heard of many different suggestions, here's what my own preference would be:

Regulation win - 3 points
Overtime win - 2 points
Shootout win - 1 point
Loss - of any kind - 0 points

A lot will feel that is too drastic, and won't like the imbalance created by the fact that some games are worth 3 points, some 2 points and some only 1 point.

My counter is - this promotes teams/players always trying for a win, instead of being complacent and being satisifed by keeping a tie score. No more playing boring "safe" hockey in the 3rd just to make it to OT - instead, you go all out for a win, all the time. And in OT too, because an OT win is worth more than a shootout win.

I have a strong baseline for equal points for each game, but if not this has some appeal in promoting offense and more open play.

I guess one side effect would be that the disparity in play style between regular season and the playoffs would be even bigger.

 

[Kevinsane]

I’m 62. I started watching the NHL when I was six, the first year post-Original Six (who weren’t even the O6, but whatever). What we kids talked about was how our team rallied for a tie, or how our team blew a lead and had to settle for a tie, or how both teams sucked. A tie could feel VERY MUCH like a win or a loss.

The idea that ties prevented the NHL from reaching new fans is ludicrous. Baseball doesn’t drop an outfielder in extra innings. Football doesn’t drop two linemen. If you like the sport you’re watching you watch, plain and simple.
3 on 3 has devolved into skating the puck backward on a line change, and watching an otherwise blazing fast skater go two miles an hour on a wide arc before triple deking a shot into the goalie’s chest in a shootout is boring as hell to see if it’s your first game.

The NHL keeps chasing this ridiculous “new fan” demographic instead of respecting what the game and its history mean to long time followers. They keep repainting a classic car with a blown head gasket.

 

[Machinehead]

Nobody likes ties. The reason they put up with them in soccer is because most soccer leagues actually award significant trophies based on season play.

As long as the regular season doesn't really matter in the NHL (and it doesn't, really), I don't see why we can't give the people a decision.

I would prefer extending the 3v3 to have less shootouts, and adjusting the 3v3 rules to deter the conservative over-and-back shit teams are doing now.

 

[CTHabsfan]

and thats how it should be. f*** ties. Does baseball have ties? Nope thank god, basketball? nope, thank God. Football you might see one or two at most in a season at most, it is what it is there.

I don't like ties either, I'd prefer a system like the NFL's overtime rather than what the NHL has. Play a full sudden death period and it's a tie if no one scores. I think there's nothing wrong with a four period regular season game ending in a tie and there would not be a lot of games ending this way (or is that a Trumpian Boomer take, or a whiny liberal Biden-like take?).

 

[Alienblood]

Bring back the good old tie

 

[NYRfan85]

I had no problem with ties. It just means it was an evenly-matched game, or one of the goalies stood on his head and stole a point.

What needs to happen is that every game is worth the same amount of points. If they insist on keeping the shootout and no ties, they need to make it like this. It incentivizes teams to win in regulation, and makes every game a 3 point game, regardless of outcome.

3 points = regulation win
2 points = OT/SO win
1 point = OT/SO loss
0 points = regulation loss

 

[Allie Kitsune]

I don't really like ties, but I also don't want to play into the "ugly American" stereotype of "Americans aren't sophisticated enough to appreciate a well-played match without a winner".

I guess I'm just going to say that since they're already gone, I don't see a pressing need to bring them back.

 

[MikeyMike01]

The NFL has ties and no one minds

 

[Lshap]

I have bad news for those who hate ties: The current system does nothing to reduce them. If 60 minutes of real hockey ends in a draw, you've just watched a tie. In fact, tie games happen at least as often as ever. What happens after those 60 minutes – a contrived 3-on-3/SO contest – doesn't change the results of the hockey game you spent two hours watching.

Yes, OT/SO gives you a result, but it doesn't tell you which team won the hockey game, it just tells you who won a 5-minute contest. OT/SO is like 'kissing your sister' – you couldn't score during 60 minutes of real hockey, so let's engineer a fake way of getting a "W".

If you sincerely believe a regular-season OT/SO gives you a legit "W", then why not have it in the playoffs? What's the point of watching playoff overtime, which feels like an endless tie, when we can skip ahead to the result you crave?

 

[nturn06]

I love how some people hate ties, yet they love a system which rewards ties.

In the current system we have 2 points for a win a 3 points for every tie....

 

[Hockey Outsider]

To quote myself from another thread:

Here's my radical idea for how points should be awarded:

• Regulation win - 5 points
• Overtime win - 4 points
• Shootout win - 3 points
• Shootout loss - 2 points
• Overtime loss - 1 point
• Regulation loss - 0 points

Here's why the idea makes sense:

• Teams are rewarded more for situations that more closely resemble playoff hockey. The point of the regular season is to determine seeding for the playoffs. A regulation win consists of five-on-five hockey (excluding powerplays obviously), and this gives teams the biggest reward. Overtime (presuming it's three-on-three or four-on-four) isn't quite the same as playoff hockey, but it's pretty close, so a win is only worth a bit less. Shootouts have no place in the playoffs, so a win in that situation is worth still less.
• No ties. Like I said above, I don't have any problem with ties, but if the majority of current/prospective fans do, this eliminates that problem.
• Every game is worth the same number of points (5). It's nonsensical that some games are currently worth more points than others; this system eliminates that issue.
• It incentivizes winning in regulation time. For obvious reasons.

The main objection is a team's record will no longer be directly comparable to previous seasons. (For example, a solid playoff team might end up with 240-250 points, instead of 95-100). My response is teams' records already aren't comparable over time. Obviously, the threshold for a playoff team (or division champion), in a league with 82 games and points for losing in OT/SO, are much higher than the threshold when there were frequent ties and the season was only, say, 70 games long.

 

[banks]

Ties were fine. The current format is fine.

I like the shootout.

 

[MadLuke]

It's nonsensical that some games are currently worth more points than others; this system eliminates that issue.

Many soccer league have that (more points than others), 3 pts for a win, 1 pts for a tie system.

I imagine people have less issues when it games with a win that are worth more than ties.

Not sure if getting rid of tie > allowing forward pass

 

[EverTheCynic]

If I owned an NHL team and missed the playoffs because of shootouts, I would not be a happy camper.

I think you just roll 3on3 for a full 20. You'll almost never see a tie.

Functionally solves the problem without the silly shootout. Which should not be determining who does and doesn't get into the playoffs. But it does.

 

[JPeeper]

Everyone is so upset over the third point that gets created in OT games, but realistically since it's inception I can't name one team that got in the playoffs over someone because of loser points (and the team missing had more wins). Flames had an un-Godly amount of loser points this year and still missed by 3? points.