After discussing potential tweaks to three-on-three overtime at Monday's general managers meetings, the NHL appears content to leave things as is.

League executive Colin Campbell revealed in November that GMs are exploring changes to the current overtime format to prevent teams from continuously exiting the offensive zone with puck possession. Possible solutions included a shot clock or implementing an over-and-back line, but the ideas apparently haven't gained much traction.

"I think it's working," New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello said of the system in place, per NHL.com's Nicholas J. Cotsonika. "I don't think there's any need to make changes. I think if the regroups were causing it to go into a shootout, then you'd have to."

Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill said potential changes could overcomplicate OT.

"All of a sudden, now I've got the puck at center ice, and you come and poke it. Did it go over the line? Did it not go over the line? Do we have a video replay on that? It just opens up a can of worms," Nill said.

"Now we're going to have another clock? It's not worth it."

The NHL is on pace to have 70% of its games this season end in overtime, which would mark a new record. In 2014-15, the final campaign before the league implemented three-on-three, 44% of games finished in the extra frame.

"We've looked at it, and we've looked at the percentage, and it hasn't been a problem, we think," Campbell said. "And we think it's exciting."

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Troubles for Elias x2! Lindholm and Pettersson get the spotlight from Matt and Blake as offensive struggles continue for the two Swedish centres, especially in the wake of back to back letdown losses for the Canucks.

Jeff Paterson stops by from Rinkwide Vancouver, and points out that the Canucks have blown leads, and very early leads, too often of late and aren’t able to finish the games right now. The nine-game homestead is only 30 percent done, but the Canucks do need to stay above 500 the rest of the way to fully ensure the Oilers don’t catch them, what can Rick Tocchet do to make sure that happens?

The boys also take a look at the farm, with Abby post a big win on the weekend. Plus, the Whitecaps remain undefeated and the NFL quarterback carousel continues! Presented by Applewood Auto Group.

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Troubles for Elias x2! Lindholm and Pettersson get the spotlight from Matt and Blake as offensive struggles continue for the two Swedish centres, especially in the wake of back to back letdown losses for the Canucks. 

Jeff Paterson stops by from Rinkwide Vancouver, and points out that the Canucks have blown leads, and very early leads, too often of late and aren’t able to finish the games right now. The nine-game homestead is only 30 percent done, but the Canucks do need to stay above 500 the rest of the way to fully ensure the Oilers don’t catch them, what can Rick Tocchet do to make sure that happens?

The boys also take a look at the farm, with Abby post a big win on the weekend. Plus, the Whitecaps remain undefeated and the NFL quarterback carousel continues! Presented by Applewood Auto Group.

Follow us on social (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok & YouTube). Powered by The Nation Network.

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Find year-round coverage of betting news and insights for all sports by visiting our Betting section and subscribing to push notifications.

We're in the throes of March Madness elsewhere in the sports world, while the NHL is truthfully a little sleepy, with a wild-card race that hasn't been turned all the way up yet.

So, while we wait for next month's Stanley Cup Playoffs, let's have some fun and play a "What if" for the NHL, while simultaneously checking in how each team is playing down the stretch.

If the NHL had a midseason tournament like the NBA, only it was one-and-done style like the NCAA Tournament, what would it look like?

Let's find out. Our theoretical bracket's based on the standings through March 17, and we'll use a different core element of hockey handicapping to advance teams in our made-up tournament.

Below are the 16 first-round matchups for what we're calling "Ice Insanity." Like the Stanley Cup Playoffs, teams need to come in playing "playoff-style hockey," since we're picking this round's winners based on teams playing the best since the All-Star break, using a tried and true metric: even-strength expected goals share (ES xG%).

The Red Wings advance thanks to getting one of two matchups that would give them a better xG% since Feb. 1. The Kings and Jets weren't so lucky, as they suffered the biggest theoretical upsets in this not-real exercise. The 2-seed Rangers probably should have suffered the type of upset the actual Stanley Cup Playoffs are known for, but their 46.4% expected goals share was good enough to get past the Ducks. The Golden Knights, the defending Cup champions, weren't so lucky, unable to get away with recent lackluster play.

With the playoffs only a month away, this exercise shines light on teams that may be vulnerable early relative to the betting market, depending on the matchup.

On Friday, we'll look at the Sweet 16 matchups, asking teams: "Is your recent play sustainable beyond a good first-round matchup?"

The cheat sheet

The betting world's dirty little secret is that while there are no bad bets at the right price, the process of discovering a good price is hidden.

Each week, we balance market information from regular-season point totals and in-season advanced metrics - with an even-strength focus - to determine the win probability for each team and the moneyline needed to bet on either side. The idea is to remove the cognitive bias of win-loss records, which can be skewed by outliers like special-team results, poor goaltending performances, and other unreliable events.

You can use whatever parameters you like to decide how much of an edge you need to trigger a bet, but here are mine:

• True line favorite of -111 or longer: 1%
• True line between -110 and +110: 2.5%
• True line underdog of +111 or longer: 4%

I also have a 5% win probability consideration for a team playing the second game of a back-to-back with travel and a 3% consideration for the second leg of a home back-to-back. For injured players, the player's impact on their team's win probability is estimated.

When the betting markets open up the night before, you can compare prices with our "price to bet" column to see if you're getting any value with either side's moneyline. There's a possibility that a moneyline moves into a bet-friendly range at some point between the market opening and puck drop.

Matt Russell is the lead betting analyst for theScore. If there's a bad beat to be had, Matt will find it. Find him on social media @mrussauthentic.

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Wayne Simmonds announced his retirement from the NHL on Monday.

Simmonds, 35, will sign a one-day contract with the Philadelphia Flyers on April 13, the team announced. He played eight years with the Flyers, racking up 203 goals and 378 points in 584 games.

"It's hard to describe my emotions on a day like this, but one of my very first thoughts as I look back is my life in Philadelphia and playing for the Flyers," Simmonds said. "Taking the ice in a Flyers sweater is a special feeling and it's one that I'm truly proud of. The history of this franchise and standard of being a Flyer that was set is unique and one that I hold in the highest regard.

"Perhaps the biggest reason for that is the way the fans embrace this team. It was a thrill to play for you all these years, and you mean so much to me."

The Scarborough, Ontario native spent the last three seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was an unrestricted free agent and hadn't played a game this campaign.

Simmonds was a lethal presence on the Flyers' power play in his prime. From 2011-12 through 2017-18, only Alex Ovechkin scored more than Simmonds' 86 power-play goals.

The power forward eclipsed the 30-goal mark twice and reached a career-high of 60 points on two occasions. His best campaign came in 2015-16, when he scored 32 goals, 60 points, and racked up a career-most 147 penalty minutes.

Simmonds was drafted 61st overall in 2007 by the Los Angeles Kings. After three seasons in L.A., he was dealt to the Flyers in the Mike Richards trade.

His Flyers tenure ended in 2019 when he was traded to the Nashville Predators before the deadline. Simmonds signed with the New Jersey Devils that offseason and was moved to the Buffalo Sabres at the 2020 trade deadline.

Simmonds finished his career with his hometown Maple Leafs. He played 128 games with Toronto over three seasons, totaling 12 goals, 27 points, and 190 penalty minutes.

Over his 1,037-game career, Simmonds accumulated 263 goals, 526 points, and 1,313 penalty minutes. He won the Mark Messier Leadership Award in 2019.

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