The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be either a single game, a series of games, or a tournament, and may use a single-elimination system or one of several other different playoff formats. Playoff, in regard to international fixtures, is to qualify or progress to the next round of a competition or tournament.
Throughout its history, the National Football League (NFL) and other rival American football leagues have used several different formats to determine their league champions, including a period of inter-league matchups to determine a true national champion.
An athletic conference is a collection of sports teams which play competitively against each other in a sports league. In many cases conferences are subdivided into smaller divisions, with the best teams competing at successively higher levels. Conferences often, but not always, include teams from a common geographic region.
There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in sports and games to determine an overall champion. Some of the most common are the single elimination, the best-of- series, the total points series more commonly known as on aggregate, and the round-robin tournament.
The Baseball-Bundesliga is the professional elite competition for the sport of baseball in Germany. In it, the men's German championship is determined annually. Like most European sports leagues, the Bundesliga uses a system of promotion and relegation. The highest division of the Bundesliga currently consists of thirteen teams in two divisions, with each team playing four games against each other team. The league is regulated by the German Baseball and Softball Federation (DBV).
A wild card is an invitation to a tournament or playoff awarded to a team or individual that does not qualify through an automatic bid. In some events, wildcards are chosen freely by the organizers. Other events have fixed rules. Some North American professional sports leagues compare the records of teams which did not qualify directly by winning a division or conference.
The Premier Volleyball League (PVL) is the top-level professional women's volleyball league in the Philippines organized by the Sports Vision Management Group, Inc. The PVL was established in 2004 as the inter-collegiate Shakey's V-League (SVL) until it rebranded to the current entity in 2017. Prior to becoming a full-fledged professional league in 2021, the PVL was open to participation of corporate owned semi-professional clubs and non-collegiate teams backed by local governments.
The season structure of the National Hockey League (NHL) is divided into the pre-season, regular season, and the Stanley Cup playoffs. In the pre-season, which is generally held during the last two weeks of September, each team plays several not-for-the-record exhibition games. In the regular season, which generally runs from early October through early April, teams play 82 games which determine their standings. The three highest-placed teams in each division and two wild card teams per conference enter the playoff elimination tournament to determine the Stanley Cup champion.
The Seattle metropolitan area in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States is home to several professional and amateur sports teams. They include seven teams in major leagues, several in minor leagues, and collegiate programs for two National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I universities and one NCAA Division II university.
The Stanley Cup playoffs is the annual elimination tournament to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, and the league champion of the National Hockey League (NHL). The four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held after the NHL's regular season. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs based on regular season points totals. The final round is commonly known as the Stanley Cup Finals, which matches the two conference champions.
The 2015 FIVB Women's World Cup was held from August 22 to September 6 in Japan. The tournament was a qualification process for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Yuki Ishikawa is a Japanese male professional volleyball player from Okazaki City, Aichi Prefecture. He is the captain of the Japan men's national volleyball team, and plays as an outside hitter. At club-level, he currently plays for Sir Susa Vim Perugia at the SuperLega.
Sachi Minowa, commonly known as Jaja Santiago, is a Philippine-born Japanese volleyball player who plays for JT Marvelous of Japan's V.League.
Yuji Nishida is a Japanese left-handed volleyball player. As of July 2024, Nishida plays for Panasonic Panthers at club level.
U Sports women's volleyball is the highest level of amateur play of indoor volleyball in Canada and operates under the auspices of U Sports. 43 teams from Canadian universities are divided into four athletic conferences, drawing from the four regional associations of U Sports: Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CW), Ontario University Athletics (OUA), Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ), and Atlantic University Sport (AUS). Following intra-conference playoffs, eight teams are selected to play in a national tournament to compete for the U Sports women's volleyball championship.
U Sports men's volleyball is the highest level of amateur play of men's indoor volleyball in Canada and operates under the auspices of U Sports. Thirty-one teams from Canadian universities are divided into three athletic conferences, drawing from the three of the four regional associations of U Sports: Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CW), Ontario University Athletics (OUA), and Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ). The Atlantic University Sport (AUS) formerly featured men's volleyball as a U Sports championship sport, but it was removed following the 2017–18 season. The 31 participating teams compete in a regular season and following intra-conference playoffs, eight teams are selected to play in a national tournament to compete for the U Sports men's volleyball championship.
The 2021–22 ECHL season was the 34th season of the ECHL. The regular season was scheduled to run from October 21, 2021, to April 17, 2022, with the Kelly Cup playoffs to follow. Twenty-seven teams in 20 states and two Canadian provinces were each scheduled to play 72 games. The Florida Everblades were the 2022 Kelly Cup champions when they defeated the Toledo Walleye in five games in the Kelly Cup championship.
Tsubasa Hisahara is a male Japanese former Volleyball player who played for Panasonic Panthers in V.League Division 1. He used to be the captain of Japanese youth national team and was a part of Japan men's national volleyball team.
2024 NVA season 
