Gary Bettman and the NHL Urged to Make Changes to the Points System After Incredible Finland/Sweden Game
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman is under pressure to change the NHL overtime rules after the success of the Four Nations faceoff.
The Four Nations tournament has been nothing but exciting and full of drama as the event exceeds expectations in many ways.
Earlier today, we had another amazing game as Finland defeated Sweden in overtime, drawing a big chirp out of Patrik Laine
Because Finland won in overtime though, they only secured two points in the tournament standings.
You might be thinking to yourself, "That's normal right?" After all, two points for an overtime win is how it works in the NHL.
However, this tournament features a 3-2-1 points system in which three points are always up for grabs.
A win in regulation gets the team the full three points and the losers get nothing.
However, if the game goes past regulation, the winning team gets two points for an overtime victory and the losing team gets one point.
As NHL insider Chris Johnston points out, this is great as it incentivizes teams to push for that regulation win just a bit harder.
As things stand, both Finland and Sweden have two points in the standings with one game remaining in the round robin.
As a result, one of the teams getting a regulation victory could prove to be the difference between advancing to the finals or being eliminated.
Many NHL fans have already been asking for a 3-2-1 points system for years, and this tournament only seems to be proving their point.
Several have joined in with Johnston, saying that the league should change how the system works in the next CBA.
Of course, this would mean that there is always a guaranteed number of points available to each team in a given season.
It would also mean that playoff races probably get decided sooner, which could be helpful to teams as they make important decisions at the end of each season.
| POLL | ||
FÉVRIER 15 | 638 ANSWERS Gary Bettman and the NHL Urged to Make Changes to the Points System After Incredible Finland/Sweden Game Do you think the NHL should move to a 3-2-1 points system, with three points awarded for a regulation win and 2 for an overtime win? | ||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Tom Wilson | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Alexander Ovechkin | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Brendan Gallagher | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Anthony Cirelli | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Josh Doan | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Pierre-Luc Dubois | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Dylan Guenther | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Victor Hedman | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jack McBain | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Dylan Strome | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jake Guentzel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Brandon Hagel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Michael Carcone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Christian Dvorak | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Zemgus Girgensons | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nick Paul | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brayden Point | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cam Atkinson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| John Carlson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nick Desimone | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 56 | 39 | 14 | 3 | 81 | |
Capitals | 55 | 36 | 11 | 8 | 80 | |
Oilers | 55 | 34 | 17 | 4 | 72 | |
Stars | 55 | 35 | 18 | 2 | 72 | |
Golden Knights | 56 | 33 | 17 | 6 | 72 | |
Panthers | 57 | 34 | 20 | 3 | 71 | |
Hurricanes | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Wild | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Maple Leafs | 55 | 33 | 20 | 2 | 68 | |
Avalanche | 57 | 33 | 22 | 2 | 68 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||