NHL

I rag on the NHL a lot, some would say rightfully so, but the weirdest thing they do is allow teams to have losses without actually registering those losses AS LOSSES.

Case in point:

The Wild have a WIN on their record this year AGAINST the Blackhawks, BUT, conversely, if you look at the Blackhawks record you will see that this team is 18-0-3. That's right, they have NO losses even though the Wild BEAT them.

How is that even possible?

It's simple, and as much as I see stupidity in just about everything the NHL does, I personally think this idea, which was implemented a few years ago, is pure genius.

The genius? If a game ends in a tie, each team is given at least one point, officially giving both teams at least a tie on their record. A first goal scored in O.T. or the most goals in the shootout gives one of those teams a win.

I've been saying for years that more games in all sports should be allowed to end in ties, but the NHL has figured out a way of crediting a team with success for playing a team EVEN while at the same time giving one of them the win for the extra effort in O.T.

If more NFL  games were allowed to end in ties you wouldn't NEED stupid OT rules except in the playoffs. And teams that got ties would be credited with them instead of having to take heartbreaking losses. It would also make it easier to figure out the playoff picture at the end of the season.

Ties would mean that a team that's 10-5-1 would make the playoffs over a team that's 10-6. THAT extra measuring stick sure makes more sense than figuring out who had the tougher schedule or scored the most points or whatever other nonsense the league currently uses as a metric to determine playoff eligibility.

And BASEBALL REALLY NEEDS ties. I wish they'd do it more like the NHL. IF you make it through the ninth inning tied each team gets half a win. You play up to two more innings and if neither team leads at that point, both end with credit for half a victory. If one team is ahead after 10 or 11 innings THEY get credit for a full win.

No team should have to play 14, 18, or more innings just to determine a FINAL absolute winner. The season is long enough and bullpens shouldn't need to be depleted like that. You say fans DEMAND a winner? I say LOOK at the stands at the end of one of these marathon evening games. They don't demand a win, they just want to go home and go to bed. There was a 20 inning game a couple of years back where you literally could COUNT the number of fans left in the stands accurately in just a few seconds.

I don't demand it. I HATE IT when the Twins lose in extra innings on the road, especially when I stay up for the game. I would much rather see them eek out a tie and call it a night. Since  a walk-off homerun or score is one of the coolest things in baseball, it would still be possible in the ninth, tenth, or eleventh inning. That wouldn't change. The only thing that would change is that team that played another team even for a regular game would get credit for that even play.

It's win, win situation AND play-off teams  would also be easier to determine. A team with 9 ties throughout the season that played a lot of games close and even would get credit for those efforts rather than missing the playoffs to a team that won a couple more but didn't have any ties.

Some may complain initially, but it would be accepted pretty quickly, and fans could actually stay up to watch games finish KNOWING an end is ALWAYS in sight.

I should suggest this to the players association. If the union wanted it for safety reasons (worn out bullpens forced to pitch beyond what they should be forced to) it would be ratified pretty quickly.

Ties are good things. We just have to get used to the idea. And they are WAY better than a loss.

Oh, and the Wild lost last night 3-2, late. I just didn't want another headline like that.