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New York Rangers: Overtime doesn’t matter, but it should

By Steve Paulus

NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 11: The New York Rangers celebrate after a game winning goal in overtime by Brady Skjei #76 against the San Jose Sharks at Madison Square Garden on October 11, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Jared Silber/NHLI via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 11: The New York Rangers celebrate after a game winning goal in overtime by Brady Skjei #76 against the San Jose Sharks at Madison Square Garden on October 11, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Jared Silber/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NY – JANUARY 1: J.T. Miller #10 of the New York Rangers celebrates his game-winning overtime goal with Mats Zuccarello #36 and Kevin Shattenkirk #22 against the Buffalo Sabres during the 2018 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Citi Field on January 1, 2018 in New York, New York. The Rangers won, 3-2.(Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – JANUARY 1: J.T. Miller #10 of the New York Rangers celebrates his game-winning overtime goal with Mats Zuccarello #36 and Kevin Shattenkirk #22 against the Buffalo Sabres during the 2018 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic at Citi Field on January 1, 2018 in New York, New York. The Rangers won, 3-2.(Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Overtime history

You have to give credit to the NHL for eliminating ties and going to overtime.  They did it for the fans and it has worked. The overtime periods have been thrilling and the shootout works the crowd into a frenzy.   However, as exciting as it is, the bottom line is the extra show has little effect on the standings.

Most fans are not old enough to remember that the NHL used to use a ten minute overtime if a game was tied after 60 minutes.  In 1942 the ten minute OT was eliminated due to wartime restrictions.  It wasn’t until 1983-84 that the NHL re-instituted a five minute overtime period.

In 1999-2000 the league went to a four-on-four overtime period with a bonus point for winning in overtime.    In 2005-06, the NHL added the shootout and went to the three-on-three overtime format in 2015-16.

Should they keep it?

Of course they should.  The fans like it and if a team is smart, it will take advantage of the bonus point by practicing  three-on-three hockey.  With so many teams so close in the standings, a better record in OT would be huge.   The fact that the Blue Jackets are 7-3 while the Penguins are 5-6 means that Columbus is in second place and the Pens are barely in a wild card slot.

In the West, swap the overtime records of Winnipeg (7-2) and Colorado (1-8) and the two teams would have the same number of points.  Instead, Colorado trails the Jets by 12 points.

This season there have been 153 overtime games out of 764 games played.  That’s 20% of the games this season.   If a team went undefeated in 20% of 82 games, that’s an additional 16 points.

Do the Rangers practice three-on-three play or is it a matter of throwing out two thirds of the top line every time they get to overtime?  Do they have set plays and breakouts that they work on in practice? Considering the impact of the “bonus” point for winning in extra time, they should.  And don’t forget the shootout.  Practicing the skills competition or even having one or two experts in the shootout could be the difference between playing in the post-season and watching it.

Next. The Zuccarello trade talk heats up. dark

So let’s agree to stop talking about the loser or pity point for what would have been a tie and recognize the bonus point for what it really is, a bonus point for winning a game that would have been worth a single point.

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