Playoff Format

[rfournier103]

For the sake of this thread, this would be the playoff matchups if we had the old 1-8 format.

(1) WSH - (8) MTL
(2) TOR - (7) NJ
(3) TB - (6) OTT
(4) CAR - (5) FLA

(1) WPG - (8) STL
(2) VGK - (7) MIN
(3) DAL - (6) EDM
(4) LA - (5) COL

As you can see, both 1v8 matchups and VGK-MIN would stay the same. I miss when the playoffs were in this format.

I loved the 1-8 format myself and think they should go back to that. I do love the Toronto-Ottawa matchup, though. I can’t wait for that.

 

[The Panther]

What does everybody think of tweaking the playoff format to get some variety & intrigue?

The format from 1981-82 through 1997 or whenever it was, was fine. Four divisions, and in the playoffs the top-4 in each division make it in. First two rounds of playoffs are always intra-divisional -- fourth place plays first place, and then the winners of round one face off for the division in round two. Conference championship in round three (like now). Conference vs. conference in the Final.

People moaned about it a lot starting from 1987-88 because, that season, the Leafs had 52 points and made it into the playoffs while the NY Rangers had 82 points and didn't make it in (!). That was unfortunate to be sure, BUT nothing remotely like that could ever happen nowadays -- it's just impossible. Any really crappy club simply won't be close to the top 4 in any division since there are 32 (soon to be more?) clubs and only 50% of teams make it in.

The great thing about that format was the rivalries. But to make it work better, the League should get back to more intra-divisional games. When I was kid, Edmonton and Calgary played one another in pre-season once or twice, eight times in the regular season, and then possible another four-to-seven times in the playoffs. (For example, they faced each other about 17 times during the 1985-86 season, counting pre-season.) In recent years, the Oilers / Flames had to wait 31 years (!) to meet again in the playoffs (1991 to 2022), and nowadays they play one another THREE times during the regular season. This is asinine.

So, I personally do not really want more variety in the playoffs. Variety has its place, but I'd rather have more 'meaningful', intra-divisional games during the season and then have more bitter playoff rivals during the post-season.

 

[KingsFan7824]

They did the current system to cut down on cross time zone travel(also why the 80's format came after 1-16). That doesn't matter in the East, but Eastern teams cried about Winnipeg being there for a couple years. Dal/Col, or LA/Edm, if it's 1-8, the time zones are the same, but if LA and VGK, Wpg and Dal get to the 2nd rd, the travel gets cut, instead of Wpg/LA and VGK/Dal.

This is why I say the two conferences, if they must remain separate(because 1-16 is the ideal), should have different formats if wanted. The East can do 1-8, because they're all in the same time zone so it doesn't matter they do, and then let the Western teams vote on what they want before the year starts. If they want 1-8, strict top 4 per division, wild card, it's up to them. Because Western teams are the only teams, before the Final, that have to care in any way about travel and time.