Most professional sports leagues adopt rule changes as they adapt to new generations of athletes and fans. In the NHL, changing the point system is long overdue.
What Is the 3-2-1 System?
The NHL awards two points for a win, one point for an overtime/shootout (OT/SO) loss, and zero for a regulation loss. Since two overtime losses are worth as much as a win, some teams get a boost up the standings despite having fewer wins than the teams below them. This shouldn’t be the case.
The point system also skews the coveted .500 mark. The Buffalo Sabres, who finished last season with a 39-37-6 record, won only 47.5% of their games. In theory, a team could lose 81 games in overtime, win their 82nd, finish 1-0-81, and some would consider them “above .500”. A situation that extreme won’t happen, but it shows the flaw in the system.
The 3-2-1 system would fix that, awarding three points for a regulation victory, two points for an OT/SO victory, one point for an OT/SO loss, and zero for a regulation loss. This system is already used by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and some professional leagues in Europe.
It helps to separate the better teams from the weaker ones, by rewarding regulation dominance. The Toronto Maple Leafs led the league with five shootout wins last season, giving them an added ten points. In this new system, that means they still would have left five points on the table, since that extra regulation point is no longer up for grabs. Abolishing the shootout is another matter that we won’t discuss here. Check out Mark Scheig’s convincing argument.
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Here’s what the 2023-24 NHL standings would have looked like using the 3-2-1 system:
(Regulation Wins – OT/SO Wins – OT/SO Losses – Regulation Losses)
Atlantic Division
FLA – 42-10-6-24 (152 Pts)
BOS – 36-11-15-20 (145 Pts)
TBL – 37-8-8-29 (135 Pts) ⬆1
TOR – 33-13-10-26 (135 Pts) ⬇1
DET – 27-14-9-32 (118 Pts)
BUF – 33-6-6-37 (117 Pts)
OTT – 25-12-4-41 (103 Pts)
MTL – 20-10-16-36 (96 Pts)
Metropolitan Division
NYR – 43-12-4-23 (157 Pts)
CAR – 44-8-7-23 (155 Pts)
WSH – 32-8-11-31 (123 Pts) ⬆1
NYI – 29-10-16-27 (123 Pts) ⬇1
PIT – 32-6-12-32 (120 Pts)
PHI – 30-8-11-33 (117 Pts)
NJD – 33-5-5-39 (114 Pts)
CBJ –…
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