New wild card playoff format

[calumniate]

This may be old news to some of you but I'd just like to confirm. Seems like the top two from each division get into the playoffs, and then the top two point getters from each conference get in. At first I thought that the wild card would be cross-conference, but apparently it's not!

Therefore if you're not in the top two in the division, you have a 2/8 chance to get in if you're from the western conference, and a 2/10 chance if you're in the east. Correct?

[Freeway]

Originally Posted by calumniate

This may be old news to some of you but I'd just like to confirm. Seems like the top two from each division get into the playoffs, and then the top two point getters from each conference get in. At first I thought that the wild card would be cross-conference, but apparently it's not!

Therefore if you're not in the top two in the division, you have a 2/8 chance to get in if you're from the western conference, and a 2/10 chance if you're in the east. Correct?

Top three from each division, then the best two remaining teams from that conference, regardless of division.

[calumniate]

Oh thanks.. that's what I meant, woops!

[Phaneufenstein]

So then how are the playoff match-ups determined?

2v3 in each division
division winner with more points plays the lower wildcard, while the division winner with less points plays the higher wildcard?

Is that correct?

[Oil Stain]

Originally Posted by Phaneufenstein

So then how are the playoff match-ups determined?

2v3 in each division
division winner with more points plays the lower wildcard, while the division winner with less points plays the higher wildcard?

Is that correct?

1 versus 4. 2 versus 3.

There may not even be a wildcard making the playoffs.

If there is then one division would look like.

1 versus 5 (from other division) 2 versus 3.


I'm wondering if they stay with the division seedings in the second round or do they reseed based on records?

[TurnedTheCorner]

Originally Posted by Oil Stain

1 versus 4. 2 versus 3.

There may not even be a wildcard making the playoffs.

If there is then one division would look like.

1 versus 5 (from other division) 2 versus 3.

I don't think any of this is right.

Phaneufenstein had it right.

Originally Posted by NHL.com

The Stanley Cup Playoffs will still consist of 16 teams, eight in each conference, but it will be division-based and a wild-card system has been added.

The top three teams in each division will make up the first 12 teams in the playoffs. The remaining four spots will be filled by the next two highest-placed finishers in each conference, based on regular-season points and regardless of division. It will be possible, then, for one division to send five teams to the postseason while the other sends three.

The seeding of the wild-card teams within each divisional playoff will be determined on the basis of regular-season points. The division winner with the most points in the conference will be matched against the wild-card team with the fewest points; the division winner with the second-most points in the conference will play the wild-card team with the second fewest points.

The teams finishing second and third in each division will play in the first round of the playoffs. The winners of each series will play for berths in the conference championship series.

The winners of the conference championships advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

Doesn't sound like there will be re-seeding, from that. Winner of 2 vs. 3 plays winner of div. winner vs. wc. In both divisions. At least that's what I take away.

[Phaneufenstein]

Originally Posted by Oil Stain

1 versus 4. 2 versus 3.

There may not even be a wildcard making the playoffs.

If there is then one division would look like.

1 versus 5 (from other division) 2 versus 3.


I'm wondering if they stay with the division seedings in the second round or do they reseed based on records?

From what I understand: Wildcards don't have to be from different divisions, but two wildcards make playoffs no matter what.

[Oil Stain]

Originally Posted by Phaneufenstein

From what I understand: Wildcards don't have to be from different divisions, but two wildcards make playoffs no matter what.

I missed that part earlier. Its kind of odd.

You could have four teams from each division making it and still have a crossover by the way it is written on nhl.com.

[TurnedTheCorner]

Originally Posted by Oil Stain

I missed that part earlier. Its kind of odd.

You could have four teams from each division making it and still have a crossover by the way it is written on nhl.com.

Yes, that's right. Because only the top six teams in the playoffs for each conference are division based.

[TurnedTheCorner]

NHL.com is the only website I've seen that shows the standings in a meaningful way due to the playoff format change.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/standings.htm...d=nav-stn-conf

[Phaneufenstein]

Originally Posted by Oil Stain

I missed that part earlier. Its kind of odd.

You could have four teams from each division making it and still have a crossover by the way it is written on nhl.com.

You're right, that is weird.
I thought it was designed to promote intra-division playoff rivalry

[Poe969]

I thought it was when the runningback threw the ball.....

As for the playoffs, I like that they're changing it a little. Something had to be done to fix it a little bit, hopefully this solves more problems then it causes.

[TurnedTheCorner]

I imagine the unbalanced conferences weighed heavily on the wildcard format. Plus I'm sure some teams hated four teams from every division making it, given that historically there have been many cases of teams with better regular season records missing out of the playoffs due to division alignment.

I'm glad two WC teams will make it in the East, as opposed to four from the stinky Metro division.

[#-3]

As I understand it.

Lets Assume;
SJ wins the Confrence
Chi wins the Central
Cgy is the Higher Wild Card
Nas is the Lower Wild Card

Round 1
Series A
SJ vs Nas (confrence champ vs lower wild card, regardless of Division)
Series B
Chi vs Cgy (other div champ vs higher wild card)
Series C
Pacific 2 Vs 3
Series D
Central 2 Vs 3

Round 2
A vs C (Because SJ is from the Pacific their series will be in the pacific bracket)
B vs D

Round 3
Last two teams standing.

[The Swedish Flame]

I've not been paying attention. Wild cards? Is this baseball?

[GirlySports]

So let's say 5 teams in the Pacific gets in and 3 from the Central.
If the Central Division winner has less points then the Pacific Division winner, does the 4th placed Pacific team crossover to the Central instead of the 5th placed team?

[RM14]

Round 1 - Division Semis (with top 3 in division guaranteed) + wild card from same conference
Round 2 - Division Finals (Does wildcard remain in this bracket through round two?)
Round 3 - Conference Finals (west: Central vs Pacific, east: Metro vs Atlantic)
Round 4 - Stanley Cup Finals (West Conf Champion vs East Conf Champion)

[getbak]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

So let's say 5 teams in the Pacific gets in and 3 from the Central.
If the Central Division winner has less points then the Pacific Division winner, does the 4th placed Pacific team crossover to the Central instead of the 5th placed team?

Yes.


I believe they really need to add a clarification to it that if the two wild card teams are from different Divisions, they will remain seeded as the 4th place team in their Division and play their own Division's winner. It should be that only if both wild card teams are from the same Division will the team rankings be used to determine the first round match-ups.

Otherwise, it defeats the purpose of going to Division-based playoffs if half the series can feature inter-Divisional match-ups. There should only be the possibility of one first-round series per Conference being inter-Division.

[Iniggywetrust]

Originally Posted by #-3

As I understand it.

Lets Assume;
SJ wins the Confrence
Chi wins the Central
Cgy is the Higher Wild Card
Nas is the Lower Wild Card

Round 1
Series A
SJ vs Nas (confrence champ vs lower wild card, regardless of Division)
Series B
Chi vs Cgy (other div champ vs higher wild card)
Series C
Pacific 2 Vs 3
Series D
Central 2 Vs 3

Round 2
A vs C (Because SJ is from the Pacific their series will be in the pacific bracket)
B vs D

Round 3
Last two teams standing.

Playoffs?! You're talking about playoffs?!

[#-3]

Originally Posted by Iniggywetrust

Playoffs?! You're talking about playoffs?!

A guy can dream.

And it is the standing they are in right now.