Reconfiguring the NHL Playoffs? (Split)

BlackCats101 · Post by **BlackCats101** » Wed Mar 15, 2006 10:20 am

You can't have more than 16 teams in the play-offs...can you?
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Post by **archibalduk** » Wed Mar 15, 2006 10:42 am

Increasing it to 20 teams would cheapen the whole competition, to be honest. They may as well do away with the regular season and just have playoffs instead

Post by **E5150_ca** » Wed Mar 15, 2006 2:37 pm

16 is fine, if there was any rule regarding play-off eligibility that I wanted to change, it would be the 'top of the division gets top of the standings' rule.

Post by **Minstrel** » Wed Mar 15, 2006 5:45 pm

E5150_ca wrote:16 is fine, if there was any rule regarding play-off eligibility that I wanted to change, it would be the 'top of the division gets top of the standings' rule.

That one kind of bothers me as well but not as much as a playoff system that basically makes the NHL into a bracket of two leagues and if you win your league you then match up to see if you can beat the winner of the other league. After the first round teams should be reseeded by overall points that would pretty much deal witht he "automatic in" system of division leaders and balance things so if teams from one conference are stronger they don't have to knock each other out in the second or third round in a matchup better than the Cup final.

I'm a big time tradition guy but I don't see anything wrong with having two teams from the same conference or even division meet for the Cup if they prove to be the two best teams...

Post by **E5150_ca** » Wed Mar 15, 2006 5:56 pm

Minstrel wrote: That one kind of bothers me as well but not as much as a playoff system that basically makes the NHL into a bracket of two leagues and if you win your league you then match up to see if you can beat the winner of the other league. After the first round teams should be reseeded by overall points that would pretty much deal witht he "automatic in" system of division leaders and balance things so if teams from one conference are stronger they don't have to knock each other out in the second or third round in a matchup better than the Cup final.

I'm a big time tradition guy but I don't see anything wrong with having two teams from the same conference or even division meet for the Cup if they prove to be the two best teams...

Eh, I disagree, I like the East vs West for the Cup.

It just irks me too see teams like Edmonton and Montreal struggle for play off sports, when if they were in any other division but the north, they would be tearing it up.

You think if Montreal got to play Atlanta, Flordia and Washington 8 times a year they wouldn't have 90 points?

What about Edmonton? If they didn't have to play the Flames, Avs, and Nucks 8 times this year, they would have have 90ish points too.

Post by **Minstrel** » Wed Mar 15, 2006 6:34 pm

E5150_ca wrote:You think if Montreal got to play Atlanta, Flordia and Washington 8 times a year they wouldn't have 90 points?

What about Edmonton? If they didn't have to play the Flames, Avs, and Nucks 8 times this year, they would have have 90ish points too.

And if "if's" and "but's" were candies and nuts we'd all have a merry Christmas...

If you want to retain the East V West then you're kind of arguing against your own point aren't you? You think those teams should have to prove who is better by playing each other to get to the Cup but you don't think it's fair that they have to play each other so much during the season...

If you can't win enough to prove you are one of the top eight teams in your Conference with liek you said playing those teams so often you've proven you aren't good enough to beat the teams that are ahead of you in that race; the other Conference doesn't enter into it really. They may have more or less points overall but in relation to the teams they are battling to make their side of the Conference vs Conference playoff bracket they proven over 82 games that they deserve their place among the top teams in their Conference and they make the playoffs no matter how many or few points that accomplishment represents...

As team power shifts around the league the only true balancing that allows the intergrity of fighting with your conference for 82 games to gain a playoff birrth to be upheld and also considers that after that point teams are fighting for a league championship not a conference championship + bonus game is to put those teams into even consideration for seeding. If the West teams happen to stronger one year then they colectively will play the lesser point gathering east teams and then fight it out amongst themselves or vice versa. Removing division champs making hte playoffs cheapens the regular season. East v East and West v West until the last game cheapens the Cup Final as it isn't the two best teams in the league battling for the league championship.

Post by **E5150_ca** » Wed Mar 15, 2006 8:16 pm

While East vs West Stanely CUp final game might not always result in the two best teams dukeing it out, I think it still provides the most excitement in my mind. Whats the fun in seeing Colorado and Vancover duke it out for the 15th time that year? I'd rather see Vancover and Ottawa go at it, two teams that rarely meet each other all year have 7 games to pull it all together.

I like the East vs West, but I don't like how it is further broken down into 3 more divisions. Montreal is a better team then Tampa this year, but because for every game Montreal has to play against Ottawa or Buffalo, Tampa gets to play Flordia and Washington. Which almost guarntees a playoff spot for Tampa, Montreal will have to struggle to a birth.

Same thing in the West, Calgary is a much better team than Nashville, but for every game Calgary has to play against Vancover, Edmonton and Colorado, Nashville gets to dominate Columbus, St. Louis and (:-p) Chicago. This results in Nashville getting a higher seed in the playoffs, and most likely, home advantage.

I think that if every team in each conference played each other an even amount of times, the cup final would be the best of the west versus the best of the east, which is what I want too see.