Around the League Thread - Playoff Edition
- Thread starter Mr. Canucklehead
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Blue and Green
Out to lunch
- Dec 17, 2017
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Crawford is almost a one-man army today for Chicago. Hopefully he can keep Vegas at bay for eight more minutes, don't want OT.
Pastor Of Muppetz
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mossey3535
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This bubble really hasn't been good for the top seeds. In a normal season I don't think a lot of these lower seeds make it like they have here.
VanillaCoke
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One of the many reasons why an asterisk is very reasonable this season.
BB06
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Svencouver
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No logical reason why this setup should benefit the worse teams more than the theoretically better ones. The better teams should try winning the games.
PG Canuck
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Last years playoffs, 5/8 series had the lower seed winning in the first round. Is there an asterisk?
Last year was a complete anomaly.
this year I thing it is a few factors. You have players like Rask who have won it, and their heart just isn’t there with Covid. You have your top teams who I am sure weren’t going full tilt in seeding vs round robin, where it was must win.
I think those are two big reasons.
this year I thing it is a few factors. You have players like Rask who have won it, and their heart just isn’t there with Covid. You have your top teams who I am sure weren’t going full tilt in seeding vs round robin, where it was must win.
I think those are two big reasons.
mossey3535
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Harder for a skill team to regain touch and chemistry than it is for a systems team with not that much talent to implement the defensive trap that is the only way they know how to win.
Of course there is variability every year but 2017-2018 8/8 teams with the better record won. In 2016-2017 the better record went 5-3. Last year was an anomaly IMO.
I am toxic
. . . even in small doses
Agreed. Tampa had massive injury issues last year, and the playoff non-officiating favours a team like Torts' Columbus. If Tampa is healthy last year they beat Torts'Columbus (and the "officiating").
Being the "Home Team" doesn't have much impact this season. No rowdy fans to enhance a team's momentum. Last change does help, but that is also dependent on the flow of the game. More whistles, then you can line match more. Fewer whistles, then it comes down to how well you change on the fly.
No travel, which helps the players, but, there are fewer off days between games/series this year. Sounds as if practice time is limited this year, which should have been a benefit along with less travel, but there are only so many rinks available to the players and coaches. Not sure if there are any facilities that the NHL could have rented out that had like 4 sheets of ice to allow teams to practice.
Shattered Dreams
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- Sep 30, 2017
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Unfortunately, since hockey skews to being more luck-driven than say, basketball for example, the better team may only advance roughly 60% of the time. Basketball has the better team go through 80% of the time, and for hockey to achieve the same rate, the series would have to be a lot more games (which isn't realistic). Although, it gives more room to have upsets and the whole "Anything can happen" slogan the league is fond of.
EDIT: It would take a best of 51 for the NHL to replicate the same success rate for the better team.
Source: Part II: Rethinking our playoff philosophy (on the role of chance in the postseason) | Statsbylopez
EDIT: It would take a best of 51 for the NHL to replicate the same success rate for the better team.
Source: Part II: Rethinking our playoff philosophy (on the role of chance in the postseason) | Statsbylopez
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bandwagonesque
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So if last year is an anomaly with no particular explanation for or conclusion drawn from it, why is this year's success of lower seeds an anomaly with a specific cause we can supposedly identify and draw conclusions from?
AwesomeInTheory
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mossey3535
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Well, it started off as an observation. I'm just speculating as to the potential reasons for that observation. Then the discussion was started comparing it to last year and I guess we started focusing on general winning trends for better teams.
I wouldn't look back and include it in any sort of historical trend due to the unique circumstances of it. If there is a 2021 season that's going to be similarly unique.
I wouldn't look back and include it in any sort of historical trend due to the unique circumstances of it. If there is a 2021 season that's going to be similarly unique.
datboichoi
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- May 26, 2020
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Good post. Basketball is a sport where the best team will win the chip almost every time barring injuries which are less likely in basketball (KD in 2019, Kyrie 2015)
Hockey is a combination of luck, health and a hot goalie.
Angry Little Elf
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