The NHL Playoff Format

The NHL Playoff format differs from those of the NFL and MLB. In those leagues, the top team from each division, for the NFL, National Football Conference (NFC) and American Football Conference (AFC) and for the MLB, American League (AL) and National League (NL), receive a bye round meaning they only play once the first round is over. However, the NHL does not have a bye week, and the first-place team does not play the eighth-place team, the second-place team does not play the seventh-place and so on. Instead, the NHL is based on a one-to-four format based on the team’s divisions. For the Eastern Conference, the first-place team in the Atlantic (ATL) or Metropolitan (MET) divisions plays the second-last wild card team. At the same time, the other first-place team in those two divisions will play the first wild-card team. Leaving teams placed second and third to play each other in both divisions. Here is an example below;

• First-placed team (ATL or MET) vs. Second wild card team (ATL or MET)

• First-placed team (ATL or MET) vs. First wild card team (ATL or MET)

• Second-placed team (ATL) vs. Third-placed team (ATL)

• Third-placed team (MET) vs. Third-placed team (MET)

This playoff format change occurred just over ten years ago (2013-14), when it split teams into Eastern and Western Conferences, further subdividing them into divisions such as the Atlantic and Metropolitan divisions for the East and Central and Pacific divisions for the West. It also introduced a major game changer to the format, the wild card spot. The wild card in the divisions is awarded to the teams that finish seventh and eighth in their respective conferences, not divisions.

What exactly is wrong with this format? 

The “Wild Card” Issue

Fans argue that the current format knocks out top-seeded teams early. Meaning as early as the first round. This creates a lack of excitement for the future rounds. If the NHL adapted to another format such as the one-to-eight format, fewer higher-placed teams would be knocked out earlier. For decades, the one-to-eight format has been around for professional and nonprofessional sports leagues. The format is supposed to favour the higher-ranked teams early in the playoffs, but a lower-ranked team can pull off an upset and advance in the playoffs. 

However, this is a different case in the NHL recently, as we have seen wild-card teams upset higher-seed teams. For example, the 2019 series between the second wild card on the East, the Columbus Blue Jackets and the top seed Tampa Bay Lightning. The Blue Jackets swept the Lightning in the first round. Additionally, the 2023 second wild card on the East is the Florida Panthers, and the first wild card on the West is the Seattle Kraken. The Kraken were eliminated in the second round, but the Panthers went on to the Stanley Cup finals, only to lose to the Golden Knights. Although this is an exciting moment for the lower-seeded teams, it is easily forgotten about later in the playoffs. The only true teams that can upset the higher-seeded teams are those placed into wild-card positions; not even a second-place team vs. a third-place team is considered an upset. 

Inconsistent Matchups

Another issue is that the format frequently leads to the same teams playing each other. For the last four years, the Edmonton Oilers have faced the Los Angeles Kings, and the Tampa Bay Lightning have either faced the Toronto Maple Leafs or the Florida Panthers, the Maple Leafs have also kept going between Boston and Tampa, and that is just the first round of the playoffs. The second and third round match-ups are slightly different, but in the last five years, the Panthers have played the Maple Leafs twice; similarly, the Hurricanes vs. Rangers and Oilers vs. Golden Knights, all happened twice in the second round as well. The Oilers and Stars have faced each other twice in the third round as well. These consistent matchups bore fans instead of exciting them. This is due to the format’s repetitiveness. 

It is important to note that even though the current playoff format is not the best with matchups, the one-to-eight format can be inconsistent with its matchups as well. An example of this is the late 90s to early 2000s Dallas Stars. From 1996-97 to the 2005-06 playoffs, the Stars have faced the Edmonton Oilers five times and the Colorado Avalanche twice. This must have been a nightmare yet boring match-up for all fans involved. However, the new format was brought in to “create rivalries out of consistent matchups”, and it has done its job for several years, but fans want something new and inconsistent, something that will excite them, especially those cheering for a team like the Oilers who have seen consistent matchups since the 2000s.

So, What is The Verdict?

It is important to note that some fans will not be satisfied regardless of any choice of format that the NHL decides to make. Some do like the current format and hope it stays the same, while others like the one-to-eight format and hope the NHL changes its playoff format to that in the next few years. 

However, the NHL does need some excitement regarding the playoffs, so a playoff format change to one-to-eight would bring back that excitement. Most fans are tired of seeing the same consistent matchups in the first round. While they do serve their purpose of creating consistent rivalries, the content eventually becomes overconsumed and then dull to fans. So changing it to a classic historic format would bring at least some excitement back for fans, as well as unpredictability of matchups. 

It would also create the idea of upsets existing not just with two teams in a wild card position in each conference, but now, an additional team is added (third place vs. sixth place) to both conferences, making the wild card spots nonexistent. Although this is a small addition to upsets, it still creates some excitement for fans because who would not want to see a Cinderella story from the sixth to eighth place teams. 

Finally, it would also make the All-Star Games less confusing. The majority of NHL fans are used to seeing the Eastern vs. Western Conference All-Star Games or even the All-Star draft (ex., Team Toews vs. Team Foligno). In 2016, the NHL first introduced a 3-on-3 tournament featuring the four new divisions (Central, Metropolitan, Atlantic and Pacific) and this bored and confused fans due to the number of teams, lack of effort from players, etc. If the NHL decides to get rid of the current divisions and switch back to the Eastern and Western Conferences, it would create less confusion for fans and could possibly become more competitive again for players, depending on which type of gameplay format they choose to stay on. The 3-on-3 does create more goal opportunities, but the 5-on-5 creates a much more competitive environment and is harder to score on. But that is a conversation for another article. 

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Sources

National Hockey League. (2025, April 20). Blue Jackets defeat Lightning in historic playoff first‑round upset. NHL.com. https://www.nhl.com/news/top-first-round-upsets-in-stanley-cup-playoff-history-306598142

National Hockey League. (n.d.). Playoff formats. In NHL Records. Retrieved June 25, 2025, from https://records.nhl.com/history/playoff-formats

National Hockey League. (n.d.). Yearly playoff results: 2009–10 season. NHL Records. Retrieved June 26, 2025, from https://records.nhl.com/history/yearly-playoff-results?year=20092010

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). 2016 National Hockey League All-Star Game. Wikipedia. Retrieved June 26, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_National_Hockey_League_All-Star_Game

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). 2019 Tampa Bay Lightning–Columbus Blue Jackets playoff series. Wikipedia. Retrieved June 26, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Tampa_Bay_Lightning%E2%80%93Columbus_Blue_Jackets_playoff_series

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. Wikipedia. Retrieved June 26, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Stanley_Cup_playoffs