How to Run an NHL Playoff Pool

The Stanley Cup playoffs are two months of best-of-seven drama, which makes them ideal pool material – but the series format breaks the weekly pick'em template that works for football. The format that fits hockey best is the series confidence pool: before the playoffs begin, members pick the winner of every playoff series and rank all fifteen series by confidence. This guide covers the rules, the scoring variants, and how to run the pool from the first round through the Cup final.

How a series confidence pool works

• Fifteen series, one board. The NHL playoffs contain exactly 15 series: eight first-round, four second-round, two conference finals, and the Stanley Cup Final.
• Pick every series winner. Each round, every member predicts the winner of all series in that round – where they must project who advances.
• Rank by confidence. Each series gets a unique confidence value from 15 (surest) down to 1. A correct series pick earns its assigned points.
• Highest total after the Cup is awarded wins. Standings move after every series-clinching game, and the leaderboard typically stays alive into June.

Scoring decisions to settle up front

1. Tiebreaker. Most correct series.

The commissioner's timeline

1. Last week of the regular season: invite the group. The playoff bracket is not set until the final games, so entries cannot open yet, but interest peaks now.
2. Bracket set (usually the day after the regular season ends): open picks. Members have until the first playoff game – typically two to three days.
3. First puck drop: picks lock either for the entire round, or for series that start - your choice. As with every pool, the deadline must be enforced automatically, and picks stay hidden until lock so late entries cannot copy the leaders.
4. After each clinching game: update standings. Series results resolve one at a time over two months, which makes hockey the lowest-maintenance pool of the year if scoring is automatic, and a two-month chore if it is not.

Strategy notes to share with your members

The skill in a series confidence pool is knowing where the real uncertainty lives. Two notes worth sharing when you send the invite:

• First-round upsets are the format's signature. The NHL has the most competitive playoff field in pro sports – lower seeds win first-round series constantly. The 15 and 14 confidence values usually belong on your conference-final and Cup picks, not on a first-round series between two 100-point teams.
• Goaltending beats standings. The regular-season point gap between playoff teams is a weaker predictor than people assume; a hot goalie flattens it. That is why the format stays interesting – the "obvious" board rarely wins.

Winners

Most pools award the top two or three finishers after the Cup final SimplySportsWare charges only a hosting fee and never collects or distributes entry fees.

Running it online

SimplySportsWare has hosted NHL playoff confidence pools since 2005: members rank all fifteen series online before the deadline, series results are scored automatically, and standings update as each round unfolds. Pools start at $9.95 including your first 10 members, with customizable scoring and a free trial. Start your hockey pool.

Frequently Asked Questions