If the Kitchener Rangers, Chicoutimi Sagueneens and Everett Silvertips all finish the round-robin at 2-1, the tiebreaker reduces to goals-for percentage excluding games against the Kelowna Rockets.
Round-robin records entering final games
Kitchener holds a 2-0 mark after four games while Everett and Chicoutimi sit at 1-1 each. Kelowna stands at 0-2. Kitchener has already eliminated any chance of a tiebreaker game for itself. Kelowna cannot earn a bye to the final regardless of results.
The final round-robin matches pit Kitchener against Chicoutimi on Tuesday and Everett against Kelowna on Wednesday. A Rangers victory guarantees them the top seed and a direct path to the final.
Everett and Chicoutimi each control their own playoff positioning with wins on their respective nights. A loss for either drops that club into potential tiebreaker math.
Three-team 2-1 deadlock formula
Should Kitchener, Chicoutimi and Everett all reach 2-1, the tiebreaker applies goals-for percentage calculated after removing the result against Kelowna. The formula takes a team’s total goals scored plus total goals allowed, then divides total goals scored by that sum to produce the percentage.
In one example a club that scored 15 goals and allowed 14 overall but defeated Kelowna 2-1 would recalculate using 13 goals for and 13 against, yielding exactly 50 percent. The highest percentage among the three clubs earns the bye to the final. The remaining two clubs meet in the semifinal.
Kelowna finishes 0-3 in this outcome and its tournament ends after the round-robin. The same percentage method applies if Chicoutimi and Everett both lose their final games, except the excluded result shifts to the game against first-place Kitchener.
Alternative outcomes without three-team tie
If Chicoutimi defeats Kitchener on Tuesday while Everett loses to Kelowna on Wednesday, Chicoutimi advances directly to the final on the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Rangers. Kitchener drops to the semifinal. Everett and Kelowna then contest a tiebreaker game hosted by the Rockets.
A Chicoutimi loss paired with an Everett win sends the Rangers straight to the final while Chicoutimi and Everett advance to the semifinal. Everett earns home-ice advantage in that semifinal because the Silvertips defeated the Sagueneens 5-3 during the round-robin.
Kitchener controls its destiny with a Tuesday victory. Any other combination still leaves all four clubs mathematically alive entering the final two days of round-robin play.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
Par Mike Jonderson
Mike Jonderson is a passionate hockey analyst and expert in advanced NHL statistics. A former college player and mathematics graduate, he combines his understanding of the game with technical expertise to develop innovative predictive models and contribute to the evolution of modern hockey analytics.