NHL Standings ordered by regulation points percentage

Imagine if the NHL measured its standings by something different, like regulation points percentage. This is the percentage of an NHL team’s points accumulated during regulation as opposed to the number accumulated in the usual combo of regulation, in an overtime win, and in an overtime loss. 

So what would the NHL’s standings look like if the league sorted all 32 teams by their regulation points percentage? While they wouldn’t look incredibly different from the number of points accumulated, as is the league’s standard, there are some rather interesting discrepancies. 

While you will see familiar names at the top and bottom of the list, you will also be shocked to discover that some teams gaining an edge in the early stages of the playoff race don’t fare well in this particular metric. 

NHL standings ordered by regulation points percentage

1. Boston Bruins - 0.806
2. Los Angeles Kings - 0.735
3. New York Rangers - 0.706
4. Vancouver Canucks - 0.650
5. Vegas Golden Knights - 0.650
6. Colorado Avalanche - 0.639
7. Dallas Stars - 0.639
8. Winnipeg Jets - 0.611
9. Florida Panthers - 0.605
10. Washington Capitals - 0.594
11. St. Louis Blues - 0.556
12. Detroit Red Wings - 0.556
13. Tampa Bay Lightning - 0.550
14. Philadelphia Flyers - 0.526
15. Carolina Hurricanes - 0.500
16. New York Islanders - 0.500
17. Toronto Maple Leafs - 0.500
18. Pittsburgh Penguins - 0.472
19. New Jersey Devils - 0.471
20. Ottawa Senators - 0.467
21. Buffalo Sabres - 0.447
22. Seattle Kraken - 0.429
23. Arizona Coyotes - 0.421
24. Calgary Flames - 0.421
25. Nashville Predators - 0.417
26. Anaheim Ducks - 0.395
27. Minnesota Wild - 0.382
28. Montreal Canadiens - 0.342
29. Columbus Blue Jackets - 0.325
30. Edmonton Oilers - 0.278
31. Chicago Blackhawks - 0.265
32. San Jose Sharks - 0.184

Once again, the Boston Bruins continue to dominate in nearly every category, regulation points percentage included. Meanwhile, the Sharks, predictably, are still the worst in hockey regardless of how we rank teams in most of these metrics. 

But there are some outliers, like the Detroit Red Wings who, despite holding a 0.556 regulation points percentage that sits at fifth in the Eastern Conference, currently rank eighth in actual points. The Toronto Maple Leafs are tied for eighth at 0.500 in the East, despite the fact they are tied for fifth with 22 points before tiebreakers. 

(Metrics provided by Hockey-Reference)