The Stanley Cup playoffs is the yearly elimination tournament that decides the winner of the Stanley Cup and consequently the National Hockey League (NHL) champion. Originating in 1892 as the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup, it was named after Lord Stanley of Preston, the Governor General of Canada. It was initially awarded to various league champions through challenge games however it became open to professional teams in 1906. Remarkably, an agreement between the National Hockey Association (NHA) and the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) in 1914 led to annual Cup matchups, ending the era of challenges.
Moreover, with the emergence of the National Hockey League (NHL) in 1917, the Stanley Cup entered a new phase. Until 1920, both NHL and PCHA teams competed for the Cup while the playoff format evolved, inheriting the NHA's system of dividing the season into halves. The NHL champion faced off against the PCHA or Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL) champions to determine the Cup winner, with rules alternating between the leagues during the Finals.
The NHL's control over the Stanley Cup solidified with the collapse of the PCHA-WCHL merger in 1926. The league playoffs became synonymous with the Stanley Cup playoffs, with formats adapting to changes in team numbers and divisions. The expansion era from 1967 to 1993 and the modern era from 1993 onwards witnessed significant changes in playoff structures to accommodate league expansions and realignments.
NHL Playoff Teams
In the NHL, 16 teams qualify for the playoffs out of the total 32 teams in the league. These 16 teams, eight from each conference (Eastern and Western), compete in a seeded bracket format to determine the Stanley Cup champion.
The NHL playoffs consist of 16 teams out of the 32 total teams in the league. These 16 teams are the ones that finish the regular season with the highest point totals in their respective conferences. Moving forward, the playoffs are divided into four rounds: the first round, the conference semifinals, the conference finals, and the Stanley Cup Final.
NHL Playoff Format
The NHL playoffs feature a four-round, best-of-seven series format, with each series played in a 2–2–1–1–1 format. This means that the team with home-ice advantage hosts games one, two, five, and seven, while their opponent hosts games three, four, and six. Games five, six, and seven are only played if necessary. To qualify for the playoffs, eight teams from each conference are cut. The first, second, and third-place teams from each of the four divisions automatically qualify, along with two additional wild card teams from each conference based on their point totals.
In the First Round, teams are split into two brackets by conference. Each bracket includes the top three divisional qualifiers and one wild card team. The lower-seeded wild card faces the division winner with the best record, while the other wild card faces the other division winner. The other two series match the second and third-place teams from the divisions. The winners of the First Round series move on to the Second Round, with reseeding from the previous format discarded. The winners of these series then advance to the Conference Finals, and the two Conference Finals winners proceed to the Stanley Cup Finals.
The home-ice advantage is crucial throughout the playoffs. In the first two rounds, it goes to the higher-seeded team regardless of their point record. From the Conference Finals onward, home-ice advantage goes to the team with the better regular season record, with tie-breaking procedures applied if necessary. The team with home-ice advantage hosts games one, two, five, and seven, while the opponent hosts games three, four, and six.
NHL Playoff Rules
The NHL playoffs feature 16 teams competing in a best-of-seven elimination tournament to determine the Stanley Cup champion. The top three teams from each division and four wild card teams, based on regular-season point totals, make the playoffs. Moreover, seeding is determined by various tiebreakers including regulation wins, overall wins, and goal differentials.
In NHL playoff tiebreaker rules, several criteria are employed to break ties in standings at the end of the regular season. The first tiebreaker is Regulation Wins (RW), which favors the team with the greater number of wins in regulation play. Following that, Regulation and Overtime Wins (ROW) are considered, excluding shootout victories. If teams are still tied, Total Wins, including shootout wins, come into play. Head-to-head performance is then examined, comparing points earned in games between the tied clubs. Goals For (GF) is considered next, with the team scoring the most goals during the regular season ranked higher. Finally, if all other tiebreakers fail, a One-Game Playoff is held under Stanley Cup playoff rules to determine the final standings.
In the playoffs, however, a full 20-minute overtime period of 5-on-5 hockey is played if the game is tied after regulation. Similar to the regular season, playoff overtime is sudden-death style, with the first team to score winning the game. If no team scores during the first 20-minute overtime period, the game continues into additional overtime periods until a team scores, ensuring a thrilling and decisive conclusion to each playoff match. In NHL playoff overtime rules, the format differs between the regular season and playoffs. During the regular season, teams play a five-minute overtime period of 3-on-3 hockey, employing a sudden-death style where the first team to score wins. If no team scores during overtime, the game proceeds to a shootout, where the winner is determined after three rounds. If the shootout remains tied, it continues in a sudden-death format until one team scores.
FAQ's On NHL Playoffs
A. In the NHL, 16 out of the total 32 teams qualify for the playoffs, with eight teams from each conference (Eastern and Western) competing in a seeded bracket format.
A. The NHL playoffs consist of four rounds of best-of-seven series, played in a 2–2–1–1–1 format. Home-ice advantage rotates between teams, with games five, six, and seven played if necessary.
A. Tiebreakers in the NHL playoffs include criteria such as Regulation Wins (RW), Regulation and Overtime Wins (ROW), Total Wins, Head-to-Head Performance, and even a One-Game Playoff if necessary.
A. In the NHL playoffs, overtime consists of full 20-minute periods of 5-on-5 hockey until a team scores. It follows a sudden-death format, ensuring an intense and decisive conclusion to each game.
A. The Stanley Cup playoffs originated in 1892 as the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup, named after Lord Stanley of Preston, the Governor General of Canada. Initially awarded through challenge games, it became open to professional teams in 1906, and annual Cup matchups began in 1914 with the emergence of the NHL.
