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In ice hockey, the point statistic has two contemporary meanings. As a personal statistic, points sum the total goals and assists scored by a player. As a team statistic, points are awarded to a team to assess standings or rankings.
A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In the National Hockey League (NHL), the Art Ross Trophy is awarded to the player who leads the league in points at the end of the regular season.
Points are also awarded to assess standings or rankings. Historically, NHL teams were awarded two points for each win, one point for each tie, and no points for a loss. [1] Such a ranking system, implemented primarily to ensure a tie counted as a "half-win" for each team in the standings, is generally regarded as European in origin, and as such was adopted by the NHL which was founded in Canada where leagues generally used ranking systems of British origin. Awarding points in the standings contrasts with traditional American ranking systems favored in sports originating within the United States where today the majority of NHL teams are based. Leagues in sports of US origin, which traditionally placed a greater emphasis on rules intended to make ties uncommon or impossible, generally rank teams by wins or winning percentages.
There are no longer ties in the NHL as a result of rule changes after the 2004–05 NHL lockout. A rule that was instituted in the 1999–2000 NHL season states that when a team loses in overtime, they shall earn one point. The rule includes shootouts, which were instituted after the aforementioned lockout. Points awarded to teams losing in overtime and shootouts are sometimes pejoratively labelled "loser points" or, often also intended in a pejorative sense, "Bettman points" [2] after the NHL commissioner who introduced them to the league. Supporters of the current point structure argue that the point for an overtime or shootout loss is not a point for losing but, rather, a point earned for the initial draw with teams that winning in overtime or a shootout receiving an additional "bonus" point.
Many European leagues (although not the Kontinental Hockey League), IIHF tournaments, and the Professional Women's Hockey League [3] use a system that awards three points for a regulation win, two for an overtime or shootout win, one for an overtime or shootout loss, and none for a regulation loss. This system replicates the ranking system used in soccer (three points for a regulation win and one for a regulation tie) in addition to the overtime or shootout "bonus point" used in the NHL. Supporters of this format contend it gives teams a greater incentive to win in regulation time and reduces the relative value of the "loser point" and also ensures the same number of points (i.e. three) are awarded for each game. As of 2021, the NHL and KHL have not adopted this format.
When a team is in the offensive zone, the area near the blue line and the boards is referred to as "the point". When a team is on the power play, its defencemen usually take up positions at the point. The name is taken from the former names of the defence positions, point and cover point, as first developed in the 19th century, the earliest days of ice hockey's development.
The following are statistics commonly tracked in ice hockey.
In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of matches played. A draw counts as a 1⁄2 win.
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.
Three points for a win is a standard used in many sports leagues and group tournaments, especially in association football, in which three points are awarded to the team winning a match, with no points awarded to the losing team. If the game is drawn, each team receives one point. Many leagues and competitions originally awarded two points for a win and one point for a draw, before switching to the three points for a win system. The change is significant in league tables, where teams typically play 30–40 games per season. The system places additional value on wins compared to draws so that teams with a higher number of wins may rank higher in tables than teams with a lower number of wins but more draws.
In a group tournament, unlike a knockout tournament, there is no scheduled decisive final match. Instead, all the competitors are ranked by examining the results of all the matches played in the tournament. Typically, points are awarded for each match, with competitors ranked based either on total number of points or average points per match. A special type of group tournament is the Round-robin tournament, in which each player plays against every other player.
The 2004–05 AHL season was the 69th season of the American Hockey League. Twenty-eight teams played 80 games each in the schedule. The Rochester Americans finished first overall in the regular season. The Philadelphia Phantoms won the Calder Cup, defeating the Chicago Wolves in the finals.
The Professional Inline Hockey Association (PIHA) is an "incorporated for-profit association" which operates an inline hockey league, with two conferences, of 11 franchised member clubs, all of which are currently located in the United States. Headquartered in Middletown, Pennsylvania, the PIHA is considered to be one of the premier inline hockey leagues in the United States. The Founders Cup Finals is held annually to crown the league playoff champion in the Pro and Minor divisions at the end of each season. PIHA also offers divisions for teens, & adults 35-and-over.
Major League Roller Hockey (MLRH) is a limited liability company which operates multiple inline hockey leagues and tournaments. Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, MLRH is one of the only full-contact inline hockey competitions in the world.
The 1976–77 Montreal Canadiens season was the Canadiens' 68th season. The team is regarded to be the greatest NHL team ever composed. The Canadiens won their 20th Stanley Cup in 1976–77, taking the NHL championship. Montreal set new records for most wins (60) and points (132) in a season. Those records were not broken until the re-introduction of regular season overtime and the extension of the schedule to 82 games. The 1976–77 Canadiens continue to hold the all-time records for regulation wins as well as points per game (1.650). They outscored their opponents by 216 goals, a differential average of 2.7 goals per game.
The 2012–13 KHL season was the fifth season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The regular season began on 4 September with the Lokomotiv Cup between last year's finalists Dynamo Moscow and Avangard Omsk. The league consisted of 26 teams from 7 countries for the first time. Dynamo Moscow successfully defended their title after beating Traktor Chelyabinsk in the Gagarin Cup finals.
The 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season began in October 2018 and ended with the Frozen Four in April 2019. This was the 72nd season in which an NCAA ice hockey championship was held, and United States college ice hockey's 125th year overall.
