from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe,

---the NHL is a fine business, a tremendous sport, still evolving now a century after its naissance, and yet it can’t let go of its loser point, a modern-day version of games ending in a tie. For those still having trouble deciphering NHL standings — and a few of you e-mail me each season for help — it’s the ‘O’ that follows the ‘W’ and the ‘L’. Wins. Losses. Overtime losses (a.k.a. loser point).

The breakdown: 2 points for the W, zero points for the L, and 1 point for the O, which is the team that loses in overtime. The team that won in overtime banks 2 points, and if you’re fortunate enough to have access to an advanced set of NHL standings, separate columns will help you find how often teams won in regulation time and how often they won after the 60-minute mark (be it in the five-minute OT or via the Ice Cube-like 3-on-3 shootout).

If you successfully followed all that math, then congrats, you’ve just been admitted to MIT, class of 2021.

It would seem the mere fact that a casual sports fan often struggles to figure out the NHL standings would be cause enough for a change. Nonetheless, the loser point lives on . . . and on . . . and on.

more

from Fluto Shinzawa also of the Boston Globe,