How Will The 2021 NHL Playoffs Work?

The NHL playoffs are always an exciting time for hockey fans, but this year will be different. Here’s how the 2021 NHL playoffs will work.

Introduction

The NHL playoffs are upon us and there is a lot to be excited about. But before we get into the nitty-gritty of who is playing whom and where, let’s take a step back and answer some common questions about the playoffs.

How many teams make the playoffs?
In a normal year, 16 teams make the playoffs – eight from each conference. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 playoffs will feature 24 teams – 12 from each conference.

How are the playoffs structured?
The playoffs are a single-elimination tournament. The first two rounds (the Qualifying Round and First Round) are best-of-five series, while all subsequent rounds are best-of-seven series.

What is home ice advantage?
Home ice advantage means that the team with the better regular season record will have home-ice advantage in any playoff series. In a best-of-seven series, this means that team will have Games 1, 2, 5 and 7 at home. Home ice advantage can be very important – since 2003, teams with home ice advantage in the Stanley Cup Final have won 13 out of 17 times.

When do the playoffs start and end?
The 2021 NHL playoffs will begin on May 15th and run until early October (if necessary).

What Happened in 2020?

The 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs were supposed to begin on April 11, 2020, but were ultimately postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The playoffs were eventually held in a bubble format in Edmonton and Toronto, with the Stanley Cup Finals taking place in September and October.

The Tampa Bay Lightning ended up winning the Stanley Cup, defeating the Dallas Stars in six games.

What’s Different for 2021?

The NHL has announced some changes for the 2021 playoff format due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The biggest change is that the playoffs will be played in a “bubble” format, with all games taking place in either Edmonton or Toronto.

There will also be some changes to the qualifying round and the first round of the playoffs. The qualifying round will now be a best-of-three series, while the first round will remain a best-of-seven series. Lastly, there will be no bye for division winners in the first round and all teams will be reseeded after each round.

These changes should create an exciting and unpredictable playoff tournament, so make sure to tune in!

How Will the Playoffs Work?

The National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs are an elimination tournament held after the regular season to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, the oldest professional sports trophy in North America. LCS and LEC will have different formats in the 2021 Spring Playoffs.

NHL playoffs typically involve 16 teams, eight from each conference (Western Conference and Eastern Conference), but this may change in upcoming years due to COVID-19 pandemic. The top four teams in each conference will qualify for the playoffs. The first two rounds of the playoffs are best-of-seven series; all subsequent rounds are best-of-five.

The NHL has not yet announced how the 2021 playoffs will work, but they have said that they are considering a variety of options. One option is to have a play-in tournament for the bottom four seeds in each conference, similar to what was done in last year’s NBA playoffs. Another option is to seed all 16 teams based on their regular season record and then have them play a best-of-five series in the first round.

It is also possible that the NHL could decide to not have any playoffs at all this year if they feel that it is not safe to do so. This would be a very controversial decision, as it would mean that teams would not have a chance to compete for the Stanley Cup.

What About the Stanley Cup?

The playoffs will have a different look in 2021.

First, the NHL is expanding the playoffs to include 24 teams instead of the usual 16. That means there will be a total of 56 games played in the first two rounds this year.

Second, the league is resetting the playoff seedings so that the top four teams in each conference will play each other in a round-robin tournament to determine seeding for the first round of the playoffs.

The other 16 teams will compete in best-of-five series to advance to the traditional 16-team playoff format.

Finally, all playoff games will be played in two hub cities that have yet to be determined.

So how will it all work? Let’s break it down.

There are four rounds of playoffs in the NHL: The qualifying round, first round, second round, and conference finals.

The qualifying round and first round are best-of-five series, meaning that the team that wins three games first advances to the next round. The second round and conference finals are best-of-seven series, meaning that the team that wins four games first moves on.

The Stanley Cup Finals are also best-of-seven, and they’re played between the winners of the Eastern and Western Conference finals.

In a normal year, 16 teams make the playoffs: The top three teams in each division plus two wild card teams from each conference (for a total of eight wild card spots).

That’s how it would work this year if we just took the 2020 standings and used them for 2021 seedings. But as we mentioned before, things look different this year because of COVID-19.

Because there wasn’t a full regular season played in 2020-21, the NHL has decided to expand the playoffs to include 24 teams instead of 16. That means there will be a total of 56 games played in just the first two rounds this year.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the NHL playoffs are a best-of-seven series played between the top four teams in each of the two conferences. The first two rounds are played within the conference, while the conference finals and Stanley Cup Final are played between the two conference winners. The Stanley Cup Final is a best-of-seven series.