FRANCHISE POOL RULES
This document should be used as a guide on the rules of the Franchise Pool. Any rules already in use and/or passed that are not contained within this document will be considered equally valid to the rules contained within.
General Manager(s) will be referred hereinafter as GM(s) and will be used interchangeably with the term team(s).
Year refers to the beginning of trading in this Pool before the start of the National Hockey League (hereinafter referred to as NHL) season until the end of that season.
1. Prizes and Entry Fees
1.01 – Entry Fees will be as follows:
a. Starting at $100 per GM in Year 1, the entry fee will increase by $50 per GM every odd numbered Franchise Year.
Year 3 $150
Year 5 to $200
Year 7 to $250
Year 9 to $300
A vote will be held in Year 9 to determine entry fees beyond Year 10.
b. Starting in Year 11 the entry fee will increase by $25 per GM every odd numbered Franchise Year.
Year 11 to $325
Year 13 to $350
Year 15 to $375
Year 17 to $400
A vote will be held in Year 17 to determine entry fess beyond Year 18.
c. Starting in Year 19 the entry fee will increase by $25 per GM every odd numbered Franchise Year.
Year 19 to $425
Year 21 to $450
Year 23 to $475
Year 25 to $500
The Entry Fee will be capped at $500 and there will be no more increases thereafter.
1.02 – These fees are due by e-transfer 7 days before the Draft each year. Money collected from these fees will be put in full into the jackpot prize money.
1.03 – There is a $10 per GM charge payable at the Draft each year to Nick for his role in maintaining and updating documents, providing such documents through email and/or website upkeep, sending franchise updates through email and/or phone, taking trades made from other GMs into the records and distributing such trades to everyone through email, and a variety of other tasks needed for the continued upkeep of this pool. These fees are considered administrative charges and are not to be included in the jackpot.
1.04 – There will be two cash prizes awarded each year for the GMs who finish in the top two places. The jackpot prize money will be divided so that the 1st Place winner receives 60% of the jackpot, and the 2nd Place winner receives 40% of the jackpot. (See Sections 2.04c and 2.04d in cases of ties)
1.05 – There will be two designation prizes awarded each year for the GMs who finish in the top two places. The team who finishes 1st will be designated “Champion” and the team who finishes 2nd will be designated “Finalist”. (See Sections 2.04c and 2.04d in cases of ties)
1.06 – Any costs associated with the pool, including (but not limited to) using online pool managers and our pool website hosting, will be paid for evenly between the two Winners at the end of the pool season. This will be done by deducting these costs from their prize money.
2. Scoring of Points
2.01 – The top (most points) 15 players consisting of the top nine forwards, top four defensemen and top two goalies on each team will be used to calculate total points for each team based on the NHL regular season.
2.02 – Points will be awarded based on the following:
a. Goal = 1 point
b. Assist = 1 point
c. Goalie win = 2 points
d. Goalie shutout = 5 points
e. Goalie tie = 1 point (no longer used with the elimination of ties)
2.03 – Statistics provided by NHL.com will be considered the official and final source for determining points.
2.04 – In the case of a tie between two or more teams, the following tiebreaker will be used to determine the order of teams in the standings.
a. For each player who was part of the top 15 for each tied team, their points for that season will be prorated for 82 games for forwards and defensemen, and 72 games for goalies. Points for each player will be rounded up to the nearest hundredth (example. 72.1454 = 72.15) and one team must beat another by one full point (not rounded up) to be declared the higher standing team.
i. if a forward or defenseman has played over 82 games (ex. he was traded to a team that had played less games at the time of the trade), his full points will be used, that is, his points won’t be prorated for a 82 game schedule.
ii. if a goalie has played over 72 games his full points will be used, that is, his points won’t be prorated for a 82 game schedule.
iii. in a shortened seasoned, the amount of full games for each team for that shortened season will be used.
b. If there is still a tie between teams after the tiebreaker, both teams will be considered as having finished in the same place in the standings.
c. If the teams tie for 2nd place, they will split the 2nd place prize money equally and they will be designated Finalists.
d. If the teams tie for 1st place, they will split the total jackpot prize money equally and they will be designated Champions. In this case, there will be no 2nd place Finalist(s).
3. Team Composition
3.01 – At the start of trading each year, each team will be given 10 Draft picks (one per round) for the Draft that will be conducted two years later. (Therefore, between the start of trading each year until that year’s Draft, each team will have three years of Draft picks. From the time the Draft is completed until the end of trading for that year, each team will have two years of Draft picks).
3.02 – Draft Picks minimums and maximums.
a. At all times each team must have a minimum of five Draft picks for each year.
b. There is no maximum to the amount of Draft picks a team may have for any specific year or in total for all years combined.
3.03 – Roster minimums and maximums.
a. For each stage below, there is no minimum or maximum for players at each position for each team.
b. From the time trading starts each year until the time of the Protection Lists for that year, each team must have a minimum of 10 players. There is no maximum.
c. From the time after the Protection Lists are due until the start of the Draft for that same year each team must have a minimum of eight players. However if you have eight players you must also have at least seven Draft picks for that same year; if you have nine players you must also have at least six Draft picks for that same year. There is no maximum aside from individual Protection List rules.
d. From the time of the Draft until 11:59 pm on the final day of trading, each team must have a minimum of 15 players. There is no maximum.
e. From the time trading ends, each team’s final roster will carry a minimum of 15 and a maximum of 26 players into the NHL regular season.
f. In addition to the 26 players maximum, each GM is allowed three additional final roster spots for Future Prospects (see Sections 4.01a and 4.02b for criteria).
g. If a team has more than the 26 players maximum after trading ends, the GM will have until Noon of that day to submit their list to Nick (by either phone or email) specifying which players are to be dropped from the final 26 player roster. If this is not submitted in time,
i) the 4th Future Prospect and beyond will be dropped first from the roster, based on reverse order of Drafted in that year, then to those protected by other GMs that year and were traded. The same process will then be applied to the previous year and so on if need be. If the roster still exceeds 26, then
ii) the 5th goalie and beyond will be dropped, based on the previous year’s points per game for each player (worst PPG dropped first, and so on). If the roster still exceeds 26, then
iii) the 8th defenseman and beyond will be dropped, based on the previous year’s points per game for each player (worst PPG dropped first, and so on). If the roster still exceeds 26, then
iv) forwards will be dropped, based on the previous year’s points per game for each player (worst PPG dropped first, and so on).
h. Once a final maximum 26 players is established for the team, if the GM still has more than three Future Prospects, then the extras will be dropped first based on reverse order of Drafted in that year, then to those protected by other GMs that year and were traded.
4. Protection Lists
4.01 – On September 15th of each year (date may change by a day or two either way for reasonable circumstances), each GM must provide his Protection List consisting of 10 players. Any combination of player positions is allowed.
4.02 – In addition to the 10 players on the Protection List, each GM is allowed to protect on their list three additional players as Future Prospects if those players meet the following criteria:
a. A forward or defenseman who has played 50 or less NHL regular season games in his career, or a goalie that has played 25 or less NHL regular season games in his career.
b. Player must be 26 years old or under as of September 15th of that year.
c. A player may not be protected as a Future Prospect more than three times in total.
4.03 - Protection Lists must be given to Nick by either phone or email. Once submitted, they are deemed “official and final” on that end and may not be changed.
4.04 – There will be a two-hour “window period” for each GM to submit his team on the day of the Protection Lists.
4.05 – Trading is suspended for the four hours that precede the start of this window period.
4.06 – Nick must give his Protection List to someone immediately before the window period begins.
4.07 – Any GM wishing to declare their Protection Lists any time or day before the window period may do so but his list will be made available immediately to every other GM. Submitting a list early does not preclude someone from the “official and final” rule contained in Section 4.03. Furthermore, any GM submitting his Protection List early will be prohibited from trading again until all Protection Lists have been submitted.
4.08 – Protection Lists not submitted on time by a GM will result in the automatic submission of a list for that team by the Executive Board. The list will consist of the top six forwards, two defensemen and two goalies for that team based on the previous year’s points per game for players. Up to three Future Prospects will also be automatically submitted (if the delinquent GM has any).
4.09 – Trading commences again once all Protection Lists have been submitted and then distributed by email to everyone.
5. Draft
5.01 – The Draft will be held on the first Saturday or Sunday after the Protection Lists are submitted (date subject to change to due reasonable circumstances). If there are conflicts for GMs on both days, Sunday will be the date chosen.
5.02 – Trading is suspended for the 24 hours that precede the declared start time of the Draft until the actual start time of the Draft.
5.03 – Trading resumes once the Draft begins.
a. Trades will be submitted to Nick with the specifics and with each GM involved in the deal having signed it. Trades will be evaluated and approved and/or vetoed after the Draft is completed in the order they were submitted. A trade made during the Draft that is subsequently vetoed may affect the validity of other trades submitted after it during the Draft.
b. Trades done during the Draft are considered Post-Draft trades and all applicable restrictions will apply.
Example. Team A trades the 41st pick for that Draft to Team B. It is actually the player that Team A is trading to Team B, not the Draft pick. Team B selects player XXX with that pick. If Team B has a current restriction from acquiring player XXX in a trade, the trade will be vetoed.
c. Each GM is responsible to be aware of any restrictions they have with other GMs. As with all other trades submitted, the GMs are solely accountable for any trade made during the Draft that is submitted and then vetoed by Nick based on infringements of any rules and/or restrictions. Neither Nick, nor anyone else, bear any responsibility to advise the GMs during the Draft of restrictions they have.
5.04 – The Draft will consist of 10 rounds each year.
5.05 – The order of selection will be based according to what place in the standings each team finished in the previous year. The team which finished last would get the first overall pick, the team which finished second last would get the second overall pick, and so on until the end of the 1st round (See Section 8.02 for non-played or non-valid shortened season). The order of selection would reverse for each subsequent round.
5.06 – Participants will sit at a table (or sequence of tables) in the exact order of the Draft selections from the 1st Round before the Draft Order Changes from trades. No exception will be allowed to sit outside this table area or to sit outside your spot in the Draft order.
5.07 – Each GM gets a three-minute time limit for each selection.
a. If a participant says an active player’s name when it is their turn to make a selection, that said player will be their selection for that pick if that player wasn’t already selected or protected. This will be enforced for any mention of a player’s name, inadvertently or not, even if the participant is asking about the player’s availability.
b. If a selection is not made within this time limit then the delinquent participant forfeits his pick and the next participant in line would get to pick (if the delinquent participant has another pick after the forfeited pick, the next pick would go to a different participant). Once the next participant makes a pick then it would go back to the delinquent participant to make a selection, but with half the time limit that was given before.
5.08 – Once the Draft commences, saying an active player’s name (who has not been selected yet) when it is not your turn to select is explicitly not allowed. The player’s status (healthy/injured, point projection, linemates, etc) is not relevant.
a. If a participant says an active player’s name when it is not their turn to make a selection, inadvertently or not, they will receive a warning the first time. If they do it again, they will lose their last round pick that year. Each subsequent violation will result in another pick lost, starting from the lowest round.
b. If the participant does it when they have already selected all their picks, they will lose any player they’ve already selected, starting from the lowest round.
c. A participant can’t go below 15 players in a year, therefore if any violation would make that participant go below 15 players, the pick lost will be starting from the lowest round of the next year. If that participant is or goes down to 15 players the next year, then the lowest pick will be for the year after (i.e. two years later). If that participant is already down to the minimum 15 players for all years, then they will go below the minumum for the current year.
5.09 – Once the Draft commences, player assistance between participants is explicitly not allowed. This includes, but not limited to, the sharing of player draft lists/names (sharing your list/names and/or seeking to look at someone else’s list/names) and/or sharing player information/status.
i. Sharing the same sheet of paper of names, a magazine, online device, etc. will be considered as sharing a list of players and/or player information, no exceptions made.
ii. The onus is on each participant to bring their own resources to the Draft and do their own research (if needed) during the Draft.
iii. The integrity of any Draft in fantasy sports starts and ends with each participant selecting their own players. In the spirit of this and overall fairness, this includes no help from others during the draft. In addition, the significant entry fee to join this pool and win significant prize money is jeopardized when someone assists another participant during the draft.
a. If a participant is deemed to be assisting someone else and/or seeking assistance, they will receive a warning the first time. If they do it again, they lose their last round pick that year. Each subsequent violation will result in another pick lost, starting from the lowest round.
b. If the participant does it when they have already selected all their picks, they will lose any player they’ve already selected, starting from the lowest round.
5.10 – Flagrant disregard and violation of the rules in this pool will result in removal from participation in that pool and all future pools.
5.11 – There will be a minimum 10 minute break after the conclusion of the 5th round. This can be waived in any given year if there is a unanimous vote to do so.
6. Trading
6.01 – Trading of players, Draft picks and conditions is allowed, however there are rules and restrictions. Due to the potential collusion and/or loopholes that can arise with trading, it is Chairman Nick’s sole discretion to limit, suspend, change or even cancel trading and/or its rules if it is deemed to jeopardize the integrity and/or long-term success of this pool. Such steps would only be taken after serious deliberations with the other Board members and the other GMs.
Collusion is most evident in, but not limited to, the following situations:
a. When two or more GMs agree to combine their efforts/assets to improve one of their teams with the intent that team competes/wins so they can share the prize money.
b. During the course of a trading period or any time before it, when two or more GMs talk about, propose or agree to a deal or even the outline/structure/type of a deal for the following trading period (i.e. next year).
This would entail a (scumbag) deal between two or more GMs in a trading period with the knowledge that they will be able to exchange back to each other very similar assets the following trade period.
Example. Team A trades two very good players to Team B for four Draft picks. The initial deal on its own is not an issue if one GM’s strategy is to “go for it” and the other GM’s strategy is to build for the future.
It becomes a form of collusion when there is an “understanding” between both GMs that they will make a deal with each other the following year in which Team A gets similar good players back and Team B gets similar Draft picks back.
6.02 – Trading period starts normally each year on the last or second to last Saturday in July. This can change depending on reasonable circumstances.
6.03 – Trading period ends each year on the midnight before the NHL regular season begins. This can change depending on reasonable circumstances.
6.04 – All trades must be phoned in to Nick (or left on his voicemail) by all the GMs involved in each deal in order to confirm the particulars of the transaction. All trades by Nick and the other GM(s) involved in each deal must be phoned in to either Avraam or Thalas (or left on their voicemail) to confirm the particulars of the transaction.
6.05 – For each trade, the GMs involved must call in within one hour window of each other to make the proposed deal valid. If the GMs are in agreement with each other to extend the one hour window, the first GM calling it in may state so. The maximum window allowed is 12 hours.
6.06 – When each GM phones in to confirm a deal it is official on that end and the GM may not withdraw from the deal thereafter.
6.07 – Nick has reasonable time after the GMs have called in the trade to examine it. The trade is subject to a veto if it has infringed any trade rules and restrictions. The trade is also subject to a veto if, after consultation with Executive Board members Avraam and Thalas, it is unanimously deemed collusion.
6.08 – Once a trade is approved and becomes official it will be made available to everyone by email (subject to reasonable time and access to a computer and email).
6.09 – Any vetoed trade due to infringements on rules and/or restrictions will be made public by email to every other GM (subject to reasonable time and access to a computer and email).
6.10 – Restricted Players.
A GM that trades a player may not reacquire that player through trade for the remainder of that year nor the following two years. This includes reacquisition either directly from the GM that the player was first traded to (even if this GM dropped this player and reacquired him through the Draft), or indirectly from another GM who acquired the player through a trade or Draft. The only way a GM can reacquire a player he traded away during this restriction period is by selecting the player in the Draft if the player has been left unprotected.
6.11 – Restricted Draft Picks and Drafted Players.
a. A GM that trades any 1st to 5th round future pick to a GM that finishes lower than him in the standings in that same franchise year (standings to be determined at the end of the season), that first GM who traded the pick is prohibited from getting back from that same GM any pick that is in the same round and year that the initial traded pick was based on.
Example. It’s 2004 and Team A trades a 2005 1st round pick and a 2006 4th round pick to Team B. At the end of 2004 season, if Team A finishes higher in the standings that Team B, Team A is restricted from receiving any 2005 1st round picks or 2006 4th round picks from Team B (this includes picks in that round that Team B acquired from other GMs).
b. A GM who is restricted from receiving a Draft pick from another GM based on the rule above, is also not allowed to receive any player Drafted from that restricted round from the other GM. The restriction on that player will be lifted the following year.
Example. Based on the example above, any player that Team B selects in the 1st round of the 2005 Draft may not be traded to Team A for the remainder of that year.
c. Furthermore, any restrictions in Sections a. and b. that involve 1st round picks will be transferred to any other parties that deal in 1st round picks with either of the restricted teams.
Example. Based on the examples above, if Team C receives a 1st round pick or a 1st round Drafted player for 2005 from Team B, Team A now is also restricted from receiving any 1st round picks or 1st round Drafted players for 2005 from Team C.
Example 2. If Team D trades a 1st round pick or 1st round Drafted player for 2005 to Team A, Team D now is also restricted from receiving any 1st round picks or 1st round Drafted players for 2005 from Team B (the same Team that Team A is restricted from).
6.12 – Teams are allowed to trade a maximum of two players from their Protected List each year. The two protected players may be traded at any of three stages of each trading year:
a. Pre-Protection List, that is, making a deal where one team would protect a player for another team. The second team gets this player’s rights after all the Protection Lists are submitted. A protected player whose rights have been traded is considered as a traded player from the moment the deal is made and thus is considered a restricted player (Section 6.10) for the GM trading his rights. The GM acquiring his rights may trade this player’s rights to any other GM even though the initial GM is still protecting the player.
b. Between the Protection List and Draft period; if a team trades a protected player at this stage that team must have in addition to their five Draft picks that year one Draft pick or Future Prospect for each protected player traded.
c. After the Draft.
Furthermore, trading a player that has been protected by another team that year also counts towards a team’s maximum two rule as mentioned above.
6.13 – Teams are allowed to trade a maximum of two players from their Future Prospects Protection List. The two Future Prospects may be traded at any of three stages of each trading year (see Sections 6.13a,b,c).
Furthermore, trading a Future Prospect that has been protected by another team that year also counts towards a team’s maximum two rule as mentioned above.
6.14 – There is no maximum to the amount of Protected Players or Protected Future Prospects an individual GM may acquire in trades with other GMs.
6.15 – Teams are allowed to make trades with “conditions”. As it is virtually impossible to create beforehand the rules for many of the conditions that may arise, each condition will be looked at individually as it is submitted to determine whether or not it is something detrimental to the integrity of the pool. The decision on each condition will be written as a rule and will be used as a precedent to judge future trades with similar conditions.
Some conditions in this pool are the following:
a. Deals with the condition completely restricting a GM from trading with a specific GM or any or all GMs are not allowed.
b. Deals with the condition restricting a GM from trading a specific player to all other GMs are allowed.
i) a GM may only accept this condition on a maximum of two players from any one GM per year.
ii) a GM may only accept this condition on a maximum of 4 players in total from all the GMs per year.
iii) the restriction on trading a player under this condition can only be for the duration of the year in which the condition was applied.
c. Deals with the condition restricting a GM from trading a specific player to a specific GM(s) is not allowed.
d. Deals with the condition restricting a GM from trading a specific Draft pick to a specific GM or any or all GMs are not allowed.
e. Deals with the condition restricting a GM from acquiring a specific or any player or a specific or any Draft pick are not allowed.
f. Deals with the condition restricting a GM from Drafting a specific player, or a player from a specific position (that is, forward, defenseman or goalie) are allowed. However, the restriction on Drafting a player from a specific position can only be made on 1st round selections. Furthermore, conditions like this may be accompanied by another condition that states that if the GM wishes to trade his pick that has the attached conditional restrictions, he must transfer the restrictions to all subsequent GMs who might posses this restricted conditional pick.
g. Deals with the condition on what player a GM must Draft are not allowed.
h. Deals with the condition of which player a GM must protect on his Protection List (other than deals mentioned in Sections 6.12 and 6.13) are not allowed.
i. Deals with the condition of which player a GM must leave unprotected from his Protection List (i.e. drop) are not allowed.
j. Deals with a condition on a Draft pick based on how a specific player produces and/or how many games he plays and/or how he places on a GM’s team are allowed. If a minimum of at least one conditional Draft pick can’t be assured, the GM potentially getting the conditional Draft pick must also get a specific player and/or Draft pick beyond the conditional Draft pick. Furthermore, conditional Draft picks will be temporarily deleted from the Draft Pick Possessions of the GM trading those picks and those conditional picks will be applied against the 5 Draft picks minimum rule (Section 3.02). The conditional Draft picks will not be added to the Draft Pick Possessions of the GM potentially getting those picks. Therefore, conditional Draft picks may not be dealt until the results of the condition are known.
k. In general, deals with a condition voiding the conditions of a previous deal between the same GMs is allowed. However, each new, unique condition and the voiding of it will have to be judged on a case-by-case basis.
7. Expansion
7.01 – When an opportunity arises in which we can add a new GM who is deemed to be a secure and long-term addition, then it would be in this pool’s best interests to expand. The new expansion GM must have a reasonable opportunity to build a successful team from their first year of entry.
7.02 – Any expansion must be declared a full year before the expansion GM enters the pool. Expanding on less than a year’s notice requires a unanimous approval of all the GMs.
7.03 - An expansion GM may begin trading on the first day of trading when he enters the pool.
a. Even if an expansion GM acquires players and keeps them heading into the Expansion Draft, he will not lose his any of his expansion Draft picks.
b. The expansion GM will receive 10 Draft picks (one per round) for each of the next three Drafts when he enters the pool.
c. The 1st overall pick in the Draft in an expansion year will always be given to the expansion GM.
d. The rules governing the Draft, Draft picks and the trading of Draft picks will also be applicable to the expansion GM.
7.04 – Approximately two weeks after trading begins in any expansion year, each GM must provide (exception described in Section 7.06c) his Expansion Protection List consisting of seven players and up to one Future Prospect. Rules contained in Sections 4.03 to 4.09 pertaining to the Protection Lists will also apply to the Expansion Protection Lists (the part of Section 4.08 which describes the type of players automatically submitted by the Executive Board is the exception. In this case, it will be the delinquent GM’s top four forwards, one defenseman and two goalies).
7.05 – After all the Expansion Protection Lists are submitted to Nick, he will email the lists to everyone and at that point the expansion GM has up to 48 hours to submit his Expansion Draft.
a. During this time trading is only allowed with the expansion GM (i.e. trades between existing GMs is not allowed).
b. If the Expansion GM does not submit his selected players within this time frame, each existing GM is allowed to protect one more player on his Expansion Protection List, and then another player for every 12 hours the Expansion GM is late.
c. The expansion GM must select one unprotected player from each existing team. All Drafted players must be submitted at the same time.
d. Once the Expansion Draft is complete, Nick will email it to everyone and at that point full trading may begin again.
7.06 – Pertaining to the Expansion Protection Lists and Expansion Draft:
a. A player selected by the expansion GM in the Expansion Draft is not to be classified as a Restricted Player (Section 6.11) and thus can be reacquired by trade by the same GM who “lost” that player in the Expansion Draft (exception in deals described in Sections 7.06c,d).
b. Any deal between an expansion GM and an existing GM that states which player the expansion GM must select from the existing GM’s team, and/or states which player(s) an expansion GM may not select from the existing GM’s team, and/or states which player(s) an existing GM must protect, and/or states which player(s) an existing GM must leave unprotected (i.e. drop), will be allowed.
c. If there is a deal between the expansion GM and an existing GM stating which player the expansion GM must choose from that existing GM’s team (i.e. trading the player’s rights), then that existing GM is exempt from submitting an Expansion Protection List. Furthermore, in deals like this the player is considered as a traded player from the moment the deal is made and thus is considered a Restricted Player (Section 6.11) for the GM trading his rights.
d. If there is a deal between the expansion GM and an existing GM stating which player(s) an existing GM must leave unprotected (i.e. drop), and the expansion GM selects one of these players, the player is considered as a traded player from the moment the selection is made and thus is considered a Restricted Player (Section 6.11) for the GM trading his rights.
e. Deals between an expansion GM and an existing GM that state which player the expansion GM must select from another GM’s team will not be allowed.
f. An expansion GM may not trade any expansion Draft picks, but may trade the player(s) once he has selected them.
7.07 – After the expansion Draft, the expansion GM may trade but may not go below a nine player minimum at any time.
7.08 – Pertaining to the Supplemental Draft:
a. An expansion GM has the option of protecting either nine or 10 players when the Protection Lists are due. If he decides to protect nine players only, a Supplemental Draft will occur on the same day (but just before) the Draft at which point he would choose a 10th player.
b. Only players that were on a GM’s roster that year and were then left unprotected may be selected.
c. The supplemental Draft pick can not be traded, but the expansion GM is allowed to trade the player selected with that pick.
8. Shortened/Non-Played Season
8.01 – At least 50% of the scheduled regular season games in a season must be played for our pool to be valid and winners to be declared that season.
a. Scheduled regular season games are whatever the NHL declares before the start of the season. It is currently 82 games per team, however the NHL may announce and plan a reduced scheduled for an upcoming season. If for example, the NHL announces a 48 game per team schedule, then 50% of that schedule must be completed for our pool to be valid that season.
b. Calculation of the 50% is multiply number of games scheduled for each team by number of teams in the league, then divide this number by two for the first total. Add the number of games each team actually completed, this total must be equal or higher to the first total (or higher to next whole number up if the first total is a fraction) for the season to be considered valid for our pool.
8.02 – If an upcoming NHL season is not played or if it is started but less than 50% of the scheduled regular season games is played, the Draft the following season in our pool is based and calculated as follows:
a. Weighted Lottery will be used based on the three factors below. Combos indicates the amount of numbered combinations each GM will receive out of 1,000 total combinations.
i) ranking in the standings from the last season considered valid in our pool.
Standings Percent Combos
12th 21.0 210
11th 18.0 180
10th 11.5 115
9th 9.5 95
8th 8.5 85
7th 7.5 75
6th 6.5 65
5th 5.5 55
4th 4.5 45
3rd 3.5 35
2nd 2.5 25
1st 1.5 15
100 1,000
There are a total of 1,000 Combos available for this weighted factor.
ii) the amount of players the GM had going into the season that eventually was not played. So each GM starts with 20 players (*10 protected and 10 drafted, not including Protected Future Prospects) and equal weighted chances/combos, however your weighted chances/combos increase or decrease incrementally as you go over or under the 20 players (depending on draft picks you had, post-draft trades).
Players* Combos
15 200
16 180
17 160
18 140
19 120
20 100
21 80
22 60
23 40
24 20
25 0
26 -20
27 -40
28 -60
29 -80
There are a total of 1,200 Combos available for this weighted factor.
iii) adjustments made if any GM enters the season short at any position, and for players drafted with almost no NHL playing history.
- Team gets +6/4/2 combos from every other team for every G/F/D you're short at a position
- Team gets +1 combos from every other team for every player they have who has played under 10 NHL regular season games (does not include Protected Future Prospects).
Therefore:
Each Goalie short = 3% more Combos
Each Forward short = 2% more Combos
Each Defenseman short = 1% more Combos
b. Each GM’s overall weighted ranking and total amount of combos is the sum of the three factors above. The amount of combos available after all three factors are added together is 2,200 in total. Each GM’s individual amount of combos is then calculated as a percent of the total 2,200. This is then calculated to a number out of 1,000 (rounded up or down accordingly, which could bring total number to 1,001).
Example. A GM finished 9th the previous season, thus based on the first factor he gets 95 combos (i.e. 9.5%). The GM enters the season that was eventually not played/valid with 20 players, thus based on the second factor he gets 100 combos. Another GM went into the season with only one goalie, thus based on the third factor our GM loses 6 combos. The GM’s sum of all three factors is 189. 189 out of 2,200 is 8.59%, which is 86 combos out of a total of 1,000 available.
c. We would use the same drawing system the NHL uses:
i) there will be 14 numbers (numbered one to 14) used in the draw, and from these 14 numbers only four numbers will be randomly drawn. The order that the four numbers are drawn is not relevant as we only check which four numbers were drawn. There are only 1,001 four number combinations possible using this method.
ii) the 1,000 combinations (or 1,001 due to rounding) will be assigned to each GM randomly. The amount of combinations each GM has is based on our weighted lottery. Before the actual draw, each GM will get an Excel document listing each of the 1,001 combinations and which GM each combination is assigned to.
Here is a video of the behind the scenes 2018 NHL Draft Lottery if anyone wants to see what the drawing system looks like.
https://www.nhl.com/coyotes/video/inside-the-draft-lottery-drawing/t-277437086/c-60176003
iii) if we only need 1,000 combinations, the extra one combination will be assigned as a “Redraw” in case it gets drawn. It will be the combination 11,12,13,14.
d. We will only draw for the top three Draft spots so no GM falls more than three spots from their overall weighted ranking. Once those three spots are drawn, the rest of the draft order is based on your overall weighted ranking (i.e. most combos has the highest draft position, and so on from there).