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
2012–13 Hong Kong Season Play-off position between 2nd and 5th inclusively guaranteed places in the play-off. Qualified teams: The winners of the Senior Challenge Shield guaranteed a place in the play-off. Winners: The winners of the FA Cup will guarantee a place in the play-off. Winners: Note: Since Kitchee won the FA Cup champions, the 4th place in the league (i.e. Southern) is guaranteed a place in the play-offs, as Kitchee have qualified to the play-off. MATCH OFFICIALS MATCH RULES MATCH OFFICIALS MATCH RULES MATCH OFFICIALS MATCH RULES The scorers in the 2013 Hong Kong AFC Cup play-offs are as follows: 2 goals 1 goal