The NHL standings 2026–27 page is a live record, so the first question is not who is first: it is what snapshot and view you are reading. NHL.com can show league, conference, division or wild-card tables. Each view answers a different question about a club’s position. Check the selected date, games played and the table filter before comparing teams, especially early in the regular season when clubs may have played an uneven schedule.

The official 2026–27 regular season began in late September. A standings page can update as games finish, so an older screenshot will not match the live table. The NHL’s dated standings page includes columns such as GP, W, L, OT, PTS, P%, RW, ROW, GF, GA and DIFF. Understanding the abbreviations makes it easier to separate earned points from tie-break details.

What GP, W, L, OT and PTS mean

GP is games played. W is wins, L is regulation losses and OT records losses in overtime or a shootout. PTS is the standings point total. Under the NHL points system, a team receives two points for a win, one for an overtime or shootout loss, and none for a regulation loss. That is why a club with more wins can sometimes be close to another club that has collected several points after overtime losses.

Before comparing points, check GP. A team that has played one more game may appear ahead simply because it has had another opportunity to earn points. Points percentage, shown as P%, provides a way to compare points earned against the maximum available from games played. It is calculated as points divided by two times games played. This is a useful normalisation, but it is not the official standings order and should be labelled as a comparison tool.

RW and ROW are not interchangeable

RW generally means regulation wins; ROW includes wins in regulation and overtime but excludes shootout wins. These columns matter in tie-break procedures, but they do not replace the PTS column. If two clubs are tied in points, use the league’s published tie-breaking procedure for the current season. Do not assume that a single win column decides a tie or that a third-party sorting order is definitive.

GF is goals for and GA is goals against. DIFF is the difference between those totals. These figures describe scoring output and defence over the games shown. A positive differential can provide context for a club’s results, but it does not automatically move the team above another club in the table. Tiebreak rules govern the official position. Home and away records, last-ten form and streak may be useful additional views, but each is a different slice of the season.

Division, conference and wild-card views

A division table compares clubs within one division. A conference table puts the divisions in that conference together. The league view compares all teams, while the wild-card view focuses on playoff-position races under the NHL format. A club’s rank in one view is not necessarily its rank in another. Look at the tabs or filters above the table and note the view in your analysis.

A wild-card marker in October is not a prediction of the final playoff field. It is a visual indication of where the team sits in the current standings snapshot. There are many games remaining, and a postponed match, hot streak or injury can change the order quickly. Use the page’s date and GP column to understand how current the race is. A team shown just outside a marker may have played fewer games than the team above it.

For Canadian fans following the league locally, the schedule and standings should be read together. The NHL schedule identifies dates and matchups; the standings show the cumulative points after completed games. When games are postponed or moved, the standings can temporarily have uneven GP. Comparing rank alone misses that calendar context.

How to compare two clubs fairly

Start with the same date and table view. Record GP, PTS and P%, then look at RW, ROW, GF, GA and DIFF. If the clubs have played different numbers of games, report that difference rather than hiding it in a rank comparison. If you want to compare recent form, choose the same number of games for each club and keep it separate from the full-season standings.

Check whether the source has applied its latest update after a completed game. A delayed data feed can temporarily disagree with a live score or another statistics provider. If the final order matters, check NHL.com’s standings and the current tie-breaking procedure. Avoid using predictions or a projected standings table as if it were the official record.

Common NHL standings mistakes

  • Comparing PTS without checking games played.
  • Treating P%, RW and ROW as if they were all standings points.
  • Reading a wild-card table as the full conference ranking.
  • Using an old screenshot after a game has been completed.
  • Assuming goal differential alone resolves a points tie.

A clear standings review records the date, filter, games played and points before discussing rank. Find more league-data explainers in the match-analysis hub and on the Canadian BetSigy blog. For a current-season view, use the official NHL standings snapshot and the league’s 2026–27 schedule announcement.

The NHL table changes after games and reflects only the date shown. Historical positions do not guarantee future results.