Could a 68-game rollback be the fairest way to determine who gets into the playoffs?

If (and that's a big if) hockey returns in 2019-20 but there isn't enough time to finish the regular season, determining who's in and out of the playoffs will certainly be a difficult task. While a playoff including all 31 teams might be an option, the reality is that if the regular season can't be finished, there likely won't be time for a lengthy playoffs involving every time either. So, with teams finishing anywhere from 68 to 71 games before play was suspended, how would it be determined who gets into a 16 team playoff if that is the scenario the NHL is facing? TSN Insider Frank Seravalli believes he might have a solution.

In his latest article, Seravalli pitches the idea of a 68-game rollback. In other words, any games played past the 68 game mark don't count. Every team is rolled back to the position they were in after 68 games as that is the least amount any team had played before play was suspended on March 12th, and that determines who's in and out. Here's what the situation would look like:

Central Division

1 Colorado vs. WC2 Vancouver

2 St. Louis vs. 3 Dallas

Pacific Division

1 Vegas vs. WC1 Nashville

2 Edmonton vs. 3 Calgary

Metropolitan Division

1 Philadelphia vs. WC1 Carolina

2 Washington vs. 3 Pittsburgh

Atlantic Division

1 Boston vs. WC2 Islanders

2 Tampa vs. 3 Toronto

The idea would produce some interesting first-round matchups, including Sidney Crosby vs Alex Ovechkin and a Battle of Alberta series.

The idea comes from the Ontario Hockey League. As Seravalli writes: "Since all of the OHL's teams had played at least 61 games when the season was cancelled, their priority draft lottery standings were formulated using each's teams accrued point total through 61 games."

It's an interesting idea. The bottom line is, no solution will please everyone and it's a safe bet that every player and owner would prefer to finish the regular season if at all possible to level the playing field. That said, radical times call for radical measures.

Source: TSN.ca

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