Why a 24-team playoff format means your team is winning the Cup

It sure sounds like we’re doing this, huh?

Nothing is official, and we may still be weeks away from any kind of formal plan being locked down. But recent reports have made it increasingly clear where the NHL is leaning: towards an unprecedented 24-team playoff, one involving a shorter play-in round and (maybe) some round-robin games before that.

Is that the right plan? Everyone has an opinion and plenty of questions. I’ve heard fans pushing for everything from a leaguewide tournament to a traditional 16-team format to just scrapping the whole thing and starting over with a new season when we know it’s safe. There’s validity to all of those ideas. But at this point, it sure seems like the NHL…