The current playoffs format is BROKEN

[Puikiou]

This is flawed. Tampa and Washington would be in the same division under the old format and the schedules would be different. Those wouldn’t be the match-ups.

Divisions can remain in the regular season if the NHL insists on building rivalries, but they make very little sense in the playoffs.

Divisions + one to eight reseeding in the post-season could basically be the compromise.

You have to beat the team in front of you, regardless of who it is and who they played. The format has changed many times throughout the history of the game. This is not an intelligent conversation.

Why have a playoffs format at all? Perhaps matchups should be determined by a lottery like draft.

Anyways, thanks for your input. We're done here.

 

[Pablo El Perro]

Divisions can remain in the regular season if the NHL insists on building rivalries, but they make very little sense in the playoffs.

Divisions + one to eight reseeding in the post-season could basically be the compromise.


Why have a playoffs format at all? Perhaps matchups should be determined by a lottery like draft.

Anyways, thanks for your input. We're done here.

Glad we're done

 

[KingsFan7824]

Why did things change from 1 to 8 playoff seeding to what is now divisional playoffs?

Time zones. Doesn't matter in the East, but one size must fit all for some reason.

Bettman was the one who brought in 1-8 in the first place because he had that when he was in the NBA.

Divisional playoffs have traditionally been the format with the NHL before 1-8.

Not quite tradition. O6, there was only one division. 67 expansion, for some reason they guaranteed an expansion team a trip to the Final for 3 years. Which is worse than anything Bettman has ever done. And in 1967, real hockey men were running the league. Then multiple years of 1st rd byes for a couple teams. Then it was 1-16 for a couple years. Then it went to a strict top 4 per division.

 

[NYRnine94]

during playoffs should be 1v16 2v15 etc.

So dumb so have a western and eastern team for the finals , people want the best.

These would be the matchups under that format.

1 Winnipeg-16 Devils
2 Washington-15 Calgary
3 Vegas-14 St Louis
4 Toronto-13 Minnesota
5 Dallas-12 Ottawa
6-Kings-11 Florida
7-Tampa Bay-10 Carolina
8 Colorado-9 Edmonton

If that's what you meant

 

[colchar]

People cry and want to change the format because Florida is beating everybody.

No, people don't like the format because it is f**king stupid. It should be 1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, etc.

 

[BagHead]

The whole point of the format is precisely to get the same match-ups more frequently in order to foster rivalries and story lines.

This thread seems like much ado about nothing. Either way, the team that wins the Cup is getting through a gauntlet of decent to great teams, who gives a damn what order it was done in as long as it gets done?

These would be the matchups under that format.

1 Winnipeg-16 Devils
2 Washington-15 Calgary
3 Vegas-14 St Louis
4 Toronto-13 Minnesota
5 Dallas-12 Ottawa
6-Kings-11 Florida
7-Tampa Bay-10 Carolina
8 Colorado-9 Edmonton

If that's what you meant

Worth it to see a Leafs - Wild series. Somehow both teams would lose.

 

[NYRnine94]

No, people don't like the format because it is f**king stupid. It should be 1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, etc.

But it's not like that so no point in complaining about it. Teams need to get better and deal with the format how it is

 

[colchar]

The whole point of the format is precisely to get the same match-ups more frequently in order to foster rivalries and story lines.

And has that actually happened?

 

[colchar]

But it's not like that so no point in complaining about it. Teams need to get better and deal with the format how it is

It has nothing to do with teams getting better - the best teams should be rewarded with series against weaker teams in the early rounds.

 

[Pablo El Perro]

But it's not like that so no point in complaining about it. Teams need to get better and deal with the format how it is

It's one of those silly hypotheticals that assumes if the format going in changes the regular season doesn't change. As is, of the remaining teams, Dallas has the best record, being the 5th best team in the regular season. They all beat the teams they were matched up with. Maybe just move Toronto to the Metro and see where they finish.

 

[NYRnine94]

It has nothing to do with teams getting better - the best teams should be rewarded with series against weaker teams in the early rounds.

But you have to beat better teams eventually. Get better so nobody can beat you instead of whining about the format. If Toronto beat Florida and went up 3-0 on Carolina, you wouldn't make a peep about the format. stop it

 

[Booker T]

It has nothing to do with teams getting better - the best teams should be rewarded with series against weaker teams in the early rounds.

What happens when the best regular season teams always collapse come playoff time?

 

[colchar]

67 expansion, for some reason they guaranteed an expansion team a trip to the Final for 3 years. Which is worse than anything Bettman has ever done. And in 1967, real hockey men were running the league.

That isn't what happened. All of the original teams were put in the east and all expansion teams were put in the west, and they had east vs. west for the Cup.

It changed when they added Buffalo and Vancouver and some realignment took place with the Hawks going into the western division. They then played for the Cup that year.

Funnily enough, Vancouver was originally in the east.

 

[KingsFan7824]

That isn't what happened. All of the original teams were put in the east and all expansion teams were put in the west, and they had east vs. west for the Cup.

It changed when they added Buffalo and Vancouver and some realignment took place with the Hawks going into the western division. They then played for the Cup that year.

Funnily enough, Vancouver was originally in the east.

So it's literally what happened? In 1968, an expansion team was going to be in the Final. Followed by 2 more years of one of the 67 expansion teams being in the Final.

 

[ChaoticOrange]

“The lopsided Kings-Oilers series”

Uh, Buddy the kings had more points than the Oilers during the regular season. Edmonton was the underdog

 

[T REX]

Imagine the NFL doing this stupid divisional garbage.

LOL. Best marketing people in the world. Someone call the NFL stupid. Go ahead.

Or how about the College Football Playoffs...it's all about matchups not storylines LOL

The NHL is a joke on so many things. Their marketing dept is the worst in NA...possibly the world.

 

[Mr Nogatco]

I do not understand this comment. Divisions do matter. Top two get auto bids then go by record.

This internal match up thing is stupid. The metro sucks and has for years.

I trust you were equally passionate about this issue when the Atlantic was bad

 

[T REX]

I trust you were equally passionate about this issue when the Atlantic was bad

See my above comment then come back at me.

 

[Tkachuk4MVP]

Florida has quite a bit of off ice incentive to attract quality players. Can't say the same for many other NHL teams.

Florida, even with all of their “off ice incentive,” was a laughing stock until about four or five years ago. They drafted well and made some shrewd moves to build the culture they have now.

 

[HabsWhiteKnightLOL]

If we don't care about travel, we should play the same number of games vs. every team in the regular season. 31 other teams, play each 3 times, 93 game regular season, listen to fans bitch about travel schedules being unfair.

not at all. Just make it during playoffs. Who cares about those fans crying about fatigue , that's a mentality of losers. Florida been completely wrecking playoffs and they won the cup last season . Also with all the millions of dollar the players get and living in luxury hotel while on the road and having all services available 24/7.

I mean are people really loving the same 3 matchup every years? They don't even build rivalty anyways. The old times when the league had less teams is not happening anymore .

NHL needs to stop living in the past and go on.

 

[KrisLetAngry]

If divisions don't matter, change the regular season schedule and the standings look a bit different.

They really don't right now you play 4 or 3 games.

Oilers and Flames was it last season only played 3 games?

Keep divisions for 3 each and 2 wild but remove this dog shit playoff format

 

[BagHead]

And has that actually happened?

Of course not, but what would the old format foster? I watched more years of that than the current format, and it seems to be six in one hand half-dozen in the other. The best teams tend to win the Cup or get close to doing so regardless of the format.

 

[NYRnine94]

Say what you want about the format. If it was your team dominating like that, nobody would say anything.

 

[Fish on The Sand]

Bettman was the one who brought in 1-8 in the first place because he had that when he was in the NBA.

Divisional playoffs have traditionally been the format with the NHL before 1-8.

It should also be noted that fans bitched non-stop for like 20 years when it was changed.

 

[RedRocking]

I do not understand this comment. Divisions do matter. Top two get auto bids then go by record.

This internal match up thing is stupid. The metro sucks and has for years.

What about last decade where the East ran through the Metro? The ECF was often played in RD2 between the Caps and Pens. I don’t recall complaining that the system needed to be changed so Ovi would have an easier path to a Cup.

These things are cyclical. The Atlantic is better now (mostly just the 2 FL teams really), but that will shift.

Bottom line: if you’re an Atlantic team, then figure out how to beat the Cats in the playoffs (just like the Caps had to against the Pens).