The NHL’s absurd “sometimes two, sometimes three” answer to “What is an NHL game worth?” creates eternal mental loops as you try to digest seemingly simple concepts like “.500,” and “loss.”
You end up being grateful when “losses” yield points — you know, because the teams actually tied the game in regulation, but it has been decreed that North Americans (and their broadcasters) are intellectually incapable of accepting ties, so a watered-down bonus competition is played and a “winner” and “loser” must be declared.
Grateful for “loser” points (they’re more accurately “regulation” points), yes, but points streaks in the NHL are both a way to hang around the race and yet also a path to ruin.