Best-Within-Range Format Example 1
The top 16 teams league wide always earn playoff berths, for example:
The matchups are decided by sequences of the top or bottom team remaining drawing an opponent, with priority given to teams within the same Division, or if not, within the same time zone, or if not, from the closest time zone possible within a range of the four lowest teams (for the highest seed) or four highest teams (for the lowest seed).
So, #1 overall Pittsburgh is able to play any of the #13-#16 teams, as shown, while #16 Columbus is able to draw #1-4. Priority of which one draws an opponent goes to the top seed, then to the bottom seed if the top seed draws a different opponent:
In this case, #1 and #16 are from the same Division, so they draw each other:
When a team at the top and bottom draw each other, priority goes back to the top seed, otherwise, it would switch to whichever of these two did not draw an opponent. This time, the top seed does not draw the bottom seed, but they do have an opponent from the same time zone (no Division rivals) in the range, so #2 Anaheim is prioritized and draws #14 Arizona:
Removing Arizona from eligible opponents expands the range by one more team for the top seed (now #3 Tampa Bay). Since the top seed drew an opponent and the bottom seed did not, priority goes to the bottom seed. However, the top and bottom seeds are again Division rivals, so they draw each other:
Priority returns again to the top seed, as the top and bottom drew each other. Again, the top seed has a Division rival within range:
Now, the priority is given to the bottom seed, and the top seed is not a Division rival, so #13 Detroit draws #6 Toronto:
Priority goes back to the top seed, and #5 St. Louis has a Division rival in #9 Minnesota to match up with:
Now, priority returns to the bottom seed, however, #11 Washington does not have a Division rival, or team within the same time zone remaining. Since the top seed, #7 Los Angeles, does have a Division rival remaining, they get the matchup instead:
As the only two remaining teams, #8 Colorado and #11 Washington draw each other. A random, high in time zone travel matchup like this tends only to involve teams near the middle of the seeding, which is appropriate given that higher seeds should have the opportunity to have more favourable opponents for travel, and the lower seeds must be their opponents:
Assume that the faded teams have lost their first round matchups, and the remaining 8 teams move on to the second round:
Now, the process repeats for the second round, but since there are now only 8 teams, the range is 3 instead of 4. Both Pittsburgh and Boston do not have a Division rival in their range, so they draw each other, being in the same time zone:
Next, #2 Anaheim and #13 Detroit both have no Division rivals in range (#7 Los Angeles just misses), and no opponents in the same time zone, with the next closest being one time zone away. This results in Anaheim drawing Colorado first:
Now, first priority goes to the bottom seed, after a draw by the top seed, but Detroit’s priority is overruled because the new top seed, #4 Chicago, has an opponent in range in the same Division, leaving Detroit with Los Angeles as their opponent:
Assume the faded teams have lost their second round matchups, and the remaining 4 have moved on to the third round:
The process repeats for the third round, but since there are now only 4 teams remaining, the range is 2:
So, in this, time zone travel is minimized, and a Division rivalry is prioritized, but fairness takes a hit, as the top team (Anaheim) draws a much higher team than the second highest (Chicago). Usually, this format gravitates more towards fairness.
The winners of the third round series face each other in the Stanley Cup Finals:
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