Is this the year that the top 8 teams dont make it to the playoffs in the east?

[canuckslover10]

Right now the rangers have 28 points in 25 games and the bruins have 26 points in 23 games and the rangers arent in a playoff spot due to their division. So will this finally be the year where this unlikely hypothetical actually happens?

Click to read more...

 

[Bladerunner]

It's a definite possibility but unlikely #3 in Atlantic will end up worse than #9 in the East.

More likely is that the Metro will send 5 of the 8 playoffs teams in the East. Atlantic is top heavy w/Bolts, Leafs, not much divisional depth.

 

[Deficient Mode]

Could be close, but the schedule has been ever so slightly in favor of games not between teams in the same division and particularly in favor of inter-conference games. If the Metro really is that strong, the borderline teams in it will drop more points as they start playing each other more, and the third best Atlantic team will pick up more points feasting on a weaker division.

Teams 3-5 in the Atlantic currently have all played 13 or 14 out of 30 interconference games in less than a third of the season. Habs in particular have a way better record against the East and their division in particular than against the West, and will probably benefit in the standings when half their current record will no longer be interconference games.

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

Right now the rangers have 28 points in 25 games and the bruins have 26 points in 23 games and the rangers arent in a playoff spot due to their division. So will this finally be the year where this unlikely hypothetical actually happens?

All the Bruins need is 2 points in 2 games to be "tied". Odd example.

 

[canuckslover10]

All the Bruins need is 2 points in 2 games to be "tied". Odd example.

Well its still very possible for them to have less points than the rangers by season end

 

[LeafalCrusader]

No but we could see another 6th place team in the east starts with home ice playoff again.

 

[tony d]

Might happen. The Atlantic is weak this year. It's Tampa, Toronto 1-2 and then a jumble for 3rd. Should be fun to see who gets 3rd in that division and the final automatic playoff spot in the Atlantic.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Highly doubtful. The schedule for most teams so far has not had much divisional play, it picks up a lot more as the season gets closer to the playoffs. So logically if the Metro teams play each other more often, well somebody has to lose. Same goes for the Atlantic, somebody is going to start picking up the points in division play. The same thing happens every year.

 

[torirose1998]

Never know, but the wild card race is tight in the Metro. We shall see.

 

[pheasant]

Even if it doesn't happen this year, this is something that can happen far too easily. I actually hope it does happen, just so the NHL sees how silly the format is.

That along with the fact that the #1 Atlantic team will probably face a 1st round opponent with 100+ ish points, while the #2 Atlantic team will face an opponent with 95 ish. This happened last season, as the Division winning Habs were "rewarded" by playing the 102 point Rangers, where as the #2 Sens went up against the 95 point Bruins.

Winning the Division should get you an easier opponent, not the opposite.

 

[BMOK33]

Yeah I think as the Metro plays each other more thinks will balance. I want to say a Pens fan told me 2 days ago they haven't played more than maybe 1 game in the division yet

 

[Critical13]

Metro division being overrated here - the Atlantic will send 4 teams once again.

 

[sebsisles]

Metro division being overrated here - the Atlantic will send 4 teams once again.

Which 4 in your opinion?

 

[Xerloris]

Are you really a top 8 team if you're not in the top 8? You can't claim a team is one of the best just because of name recognition.

 

[Nordique]

Are you really a top 8 team if you're not in the top 8? You can't claim a team is one of the best just because of name recognition.

He didn't word it well, but what he meant was top in terms of points. Yes the Metro could have 6 of the top 8 teams in the East at the end of the season, and one of them would not be in the playoffs, which is to say the 3rd place Atlantic team could be worse than 8th overall in the East.

Yes it could happen, and if you look at points per game standings right now, we are on track for it too happen. I don't see the Islanders or Devils falling off the earth this season, and I have to believe Pitt and Wash will pick up steam. The CBJ are consistently the best team in the Metro thus far. That leaves Carolina and Philly as the 6th and 7th Metro teams.

So will both MTL and BOS finish ahead of Carolina AND Philadelphia? I don't think so.

 

[Islanders4Cups]

Right now the rangers have 28 points in 25 games and the bruins have 26 points in 23 games and the rangers arent in a playoff spot due to their division. So will this finally be the year where this unlikely hypothetical actually happens?

Who says they are the top 8 teams. The top 8 teams are actually the top 8 teams.

 

[aufheben]

Who says they are the top 8 teams. The top 8 teams are actually the top 8 teams.

He’s talking about the playoff format, not reputations.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

The playoff system is broken. Not only the President's trophy winning team can face the 2nd overall team in the 2nd round of the playoffs, but now a team can make the playoffs over another team that has more points.

 

[KingsFan7824]

The playoff system is broken. Not only the President's trophy winning team can face the 2nd overall team in the 2nd round of the playoffs, but now a team can make the playoffs over another team that has more points.

The first one basically happened once in the 80's(could've happened a few other times), the 2nd one almost always happened in the 80's, and everyone loves the 80's.

It's an issue of one size having to fit all. That's the reason the previous western conference had 2 divisions than spanned 3 time zones. Something no eastern team would ever put up with. The East was perfect, the West was broken. The league then tried to fix it, by evening out some of the problems, but the solution looks weird. There's no reason the East and West must look the same. As we've seen, from at least 1994, and probably from the 1981 realignment, the league has forced every team into the same mold. That's the reason divisional playoffs in the 80's ever existed. Detroit and Toronto were in what was the western conference, even though they're clearly eastern teams, and always have been.

1-16 would be the best, but fat chance eastern teams ever agree to that again. If the Rangers and Islanders are #1 and #2, and the Flyers and Ducks are 15th and 16th, it would be, why does the #1 have to go all the way across the country?

 

[b in vancouver]

First - it'll even out.
Secondly - the NHL has come a long way since the 80s when the second worst team in the league Toronto made the playoffs.
The Norris really really sucked in the 80s.

 

[KingsFan7824]

First - it'll even out.
Secondly - the NHL has come a long way since the 80s when the second worst team in the league Toronto made the playoffs.
The Norris really really sucked in the 80s.

That was mostly about 76% of teams making the playoffs. That would be 24 teams making it today. Today's % in the 80's, and it's 11 teams back then. Probably would've taken out that particular Leaf team.

The Norris had one year where not one team had more wins than losses. 4 of them made the playoffs. 1 of them was guaranteed a trip to the 3rd round. That was all pre-Bettman by the way, but we complain about loser points today as though the NHL hasn't always tried to keep more teams involved in the playoff race. They even put all expansion teams into the same division so one of them could sneak into the Final, and that was back in the 60's, when hockey players were truly men. Imagine if the SE division had had some of the luxuries teams in the 60's and 80's had.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

The first one basically happened once in the 80's(could've happened a few other times), the 2nd one almost always happened in the 80's, and everyone loves the 80's.

It's an issue of one size having to fit all. That's the reason the previous western conference had 2 divisions than spanned 3 time zones. Something no eastern team would ever put up with. The East was perfect, the West was broken. The league then tried to fix it, by evening out some of the problems, but the solution looks weird. There's no reason the East and West must look the same. As we've seen, from at least 1994, and probably from the 1981 realignment, the league has forced every team into the same mold. That's the reason divisional playoffs in the 80's ever existed. Detroit and Toronto were in what was the western conference, even though they're clearly eastern teams, and always have been.

1-16 would be the best, but fat chance eastern teams ever agree to that again. If the Rangers and Islanders are #1 and #2, and the Flyers and Ducks are 15th and 16th, it would be, why does the #1 have to go all the way across the country?

Here's what I think they should do:

East: Eliminate wild card system, do 1-8 in the 1st round and re-seed after 1st round.
West: Top 2 teams from each division qualify, the rest battle for the remaining spots. The top 2 teams pick their opponent for the 1st round, for the other teams it's 1-4. Re-seed after 1st round.

 

[bukwas]

First - it'll even out.
Secondly - the NHL has come a long way since the 80s when the second worst team in the league Toronto made the playoffs.
The Norris really really sucked in the 80s.

But it sure was fun to watch.

 

[Stealth JD]

Finish better than fifth in your own division and you won’t have a gripe.

Edit: This assumes the NHL will award the top-four in each division a playoff berth, once the league expands to 32.

 

[The Podium]

I doubt it but if 5th in the Metro is better than 3rd in the Atlantic than 1st in the Atlantic is actually at a relative disadvantage to 2nd in the Atlantic