from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe,
So, why not a lottery to determine first-round matchups?
Every league loves a TV event, and what would be better than another bounce of the ping-pong balls on the final Sunday of the season? A ratings bonanza, for sure, across Canada and the 24 NHL-loving cities of the US.
Does it run contrary to the tried-and-true current system? Of course. But what’s the point of tried-and-true when the four best teams are all melting ice at the end of Round 1? If a lottery produced the same outcomes, well, it’s no worse than the 0 for 4 tried-and-true. At least there would be some suspense, hand in hand with some fun programming.
For the sake of discussion, keep the regular-season chase the same, and even lock in Round 1 home ice for the four division winners.
Beyond that, make the matchups a scramble, even to the point that home ice for the other four series isn’t automatically awarded to the team that would have earned it on the outcome of the regular-seasons standings.
more and other topics too...
Create an Account
In order to leave a comment, please create an account.