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What are the overtime rules for the playoffs and the finals in the NHL Stanley Cup?

With two teams so evenly matched, heading to overtime in the Stanley Cup is a thing of beauty. We look at how the overtime rules change for the NHL finals

Jeffrey May
Update:
With two teams so evenly matched, heading to overtime in the Stanley Cup is a thing of beauty. We look at how the overtime rules change for the NHL finals
BRUCE BENNETTAFP

Hockey is an exciting game to watch, no matter what the situation, and of that excitement, the most thrilling is when a game moves to overtime. This year’s Stanley Cup Final gave hockey fans a whiff of this excitement during the Colorado Avalanche’s overtime win over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 4.

With penalty power plays, the normal three-on-three play can be tilted so one team has an extra player, for a four-on-three, or even a five-on-three in exceptional circumstances. When combined with the sudden death element, it is one of the most adrenaline-filled times in all of sports.

But this is the Stanley Cup Final, so to win on such an uneven field, on a penalty shootout even, would feel like a technicality. Determining the overall champion of a season is no time for technicalities. So the NHL have devised a separate set of overtime rules for the playoffs and finals.

For the Stanley Cup Finals and the playoffs, the first difference is the number of players on the ice. All overtimes in the finals are five-on-five. Neither team will gain an advantage or feel that they are hampered by lack of personnel.

The regular season overtime is only five minutes long, whereas the playoffs and finals have a 20 minute overtime period. Play can develop at a normal pace rather than simply trying to take blind, wild, slap shots in the direction of the net.

Play is still sudden death, but if neither team scores at the end of the overtime period, there is no penalty shootout. In the finals, the overtime period is simply repeated, with another 20 minute period to follow, and so on, until someone wins. In between periods, there will be a full intermission to allow teams to recover and regroup.

This format of play means that whoever wins the Stanley Cup in the end is truly the season’s champion. No amount of asterisks can overcome the fact that you stood toe to toe with your opponent and didn’t blink. And in the end, that is what a true champion is all about.

Here’s everything you need to know to catch 2022 Stanley Cup Finals Game 6.