The NHL playoffs consist of 16 teams competing in a series of elimination rounds to win the Stanley Cup. The playoffs have four rounds:
- First Round
- Second Round
- Conference Finals
- Stanley Cup Finals
Each round is a best-of-seven series, meaning the first team to win 4 games advances to the next round or wins the championship in the final round. Since each series can have between 4 and 7 games, the total number of games played in the playoffs varies depending on how many games each series lasts
. In total, there are 15 series in the playoffs:
- 8 series in the First Round
- 4 series in the Second Round
- 2 series in the Conference Finals
- 1 Stanley Cup Final series
So, the maximum number of games possible in the entire NHL playoffs is 15×7=10515\times 7=10515×7=105 games, and the minimum is 15×4=6015\times 4=6015×4=60 games, depending on how many games each series lasts
. The 2025 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs began on April 19, 2025, and will conclude by June 23, 2025, with the Stanley Cup Finals
