NHL Postseason: Explaining the Stanley Cup Playoffs

@NHL/x

The brackets are set. It's go time.

16 teams are now ready to battle for the ultimate prize: the iconic Stanley Cup. 

If you know anything about hockey, you know just how important it is for teams, players, and fans to win the Cup. But, what are the playoffs? How does the postseason work? Don’t worry about it, we've got you covered.

16 out of 32 teams make the playoffs each year. Meaning those left out get to enjoy a longer off-season. They can use that time to train, relax or simply regroup and strategize for the next season. 

For the 16 teams who make it, it’s a fight to find the ultimate winner. Where anything can happen and the underdogs can become victorious.

The Bracket System 

The NHL playoffs are divided in two main conferences: Eastern and Western. Based on those, they have two divisions on each side. The Pacific and Central make up the West, while the Atlantic and Metropolitan constitute the East. 

The three teams with the most points in each division secures a playoff spot. Though that only accounts for 12 teams, when there are in fact 16 teams made the playoffs. This is when the wild card spots come in.

Each conference gets two wild cards, adding four more teams to the mix. Those spots are determined by the next two highest placed teams in each conference, after the ones who have already clinched a place in the playoffs. 

Best of 7 games 

How do the teams move forward?

The answer is simple: the first team to get four out of seven wins, moves on.

In the first round, the first team in the division plays the wildcard team. Then the second and third teams in the division face off against each other.

Whoever wins those games move on to the second round, where the final four teams will fight for a title in the Conference Finals.

The two best teams in each division play in the Conference Finals. The final two teams will be crowned as the best of the Eastern and Western conferences. 

Those final two teams then play in an intense series where the winner gets to do what every hockey player has dreamt of doing: lifting the Stanley Cup.

With the playoffs officially starting and 16 teams facing off, who will win the cup?