About the NHL Algorithm

The NHL Algorithm scores teams based on opponent strength, margin of victory, and whether the game was played at home or on the road. Each game produces a performance score for both teams based on those inputs. A team's rating is the average of all of those game values. The calculation is then iterated through until a steady state is found and each team’s rating changes by less than 1e-7.

Table Glossary

• Rank: The team’s ranking according to their Rating
• Team: The team’s name
• Rating: The team’s rating using the system described above
• Overall Record: The team’s record across all games played in the season
• Regular Season: The team’s record for Regular Season games
• Post Season: The team’s record for Post Season games
• OT Record: The team’s record in games that went into overtime
• Shootout Record: The team’s record in games that went into shootouts
• OT Period Record: The team’s record in overtime where each non-shootout overtime period is considered separately. For example, if a team wins in 3OT, they would have naturally drawn the first two overtime periods and won the third, so their record would be 1-0-2 (1 win, 0 losses, 2 draws).
• Offensive Goals/G: How many goals per game the team scores (excl. shootout goals)
• Defensive Goals/G: How many goals per game the team gives up (excl. shootout goals)

Last Updated: 2025-11-03 14:58:49