The best team in the NHL this season was the Washington Capitals.
They had 55 wins.
A goal differential of + 81.
They won 53 games in regulation or shoot-out. (The NHL oddly has a stat called ROW that classifies overtime wins with regulation wins and not shootout wins, which is odd, misleading and stupid. But it is becoming increasingly clear to me that things that are odd, misleading and stupid this is the NHL's M.O).
The Capitals have a +23 goal differential over the next best team.
They are the best team in the NHL by a mile.
And only a few other teams are in their class.
(And after how they played for six games, the Maple Leafs deserve entry into this class. Let it be known that the Caps did not play badly - the Leafs played well.)
The Second best team in the NHL - at least when fully healthy - is the Pittsburgh Penguins.
After the Penguins, all the other 50 win teams are eliminated.
The next best team is the Ducks, and they are coached by Randy Carlyle so they don't count.
That means after the Caps and Penguins eliminate one of themselves in the SECOND ROUND the next best team is the................wait for it.................Edmonton $$%^&& Oilers.
Those guys.
So the Stanley Cup is essentially being played this week. In Washington, and then in Pittsburgh.
Whoever wins gets to face two more less qualified, less deserving teams for the right to hold a trophy.
But that's arbitrary.
We all know who is the real winner.
That's how it works, right?
It's clear the NHL - in order to make the 82 grind of the regular season matter for anything other than raising money to pay exorbitant salaries - should adopt a 1 vs 16 seeding system.
There is no flaws in such a system.
Sure, a little extra travel will be required, but everyone has private planes and we're - at worst - five years out from teleportation, so let's just get it done.
The best team gets the best draw.
This year, the best team got the hardest draw. Toronto followed by Pittsburgh is not a very fair reward for winning the President's Trophy.
It's actually quite unfair.
The regular season is rendered meaningless by this absurd farce of a seeding system.
The Stanley Cup is devalued because the climax is coming in round two and not round four.
If you don't think that's a problem, ask your girl.
Washington Capitals Blogger • 
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