Season structure of the NHL Season structure of the NHL The season structure of the National Hockey League (NHL) is divided into the regular season and the Stanley Cup playoffs. In the regular season, which generally runs from early October through early April, teams play 82 games which determine their standings. The three highest-placed teams in each division and two wild card teams per conference enter the playoff elimination tournament to determine the Stanley Cup champion. Since the 1995–96 season, each team in the NHL plays 82 regular season games, 41 each of home and road. In all, 1,271 games are scheduled (480 of them
NHL Foundation Player Award Petersburg, Florida. Fifteen players won the NHL Foundation Player Award during its exsitence. Kelly Chase was awarded the inaugural NHL Foundation Player Award in . No player has ever won the award twice. The Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames and the Detroit Red Wings are the only teams to have been represented twice by winners. The award is closely related to the King Clancy Memorial Trophy, as both are awarded to a player who has made a significant humanitarian contribution to his community. German Olaf Kolzig, Swede Henrik Zetterberg and Americans Ryan Miller and Dustin Brown are the only non-Canadian winners,