Ranking System Details

Why Do We Use This Ranking System?

In the Fall of 2013, we implemented a new ranking that more accurately ranks teams against other teams in the league. Prior to Fall 2013, if a team won a game, they received 2 game points towards their record – regardless of what team they played. There was no consideration for the strength of the opponent. Our new system rewards teams who win or tie against teams with stronger records. The goal of our ranking system is to motivate teams to grow within the sport, and reward teams for successfully competing in a challenging schedule.

“A” vs. “B” Teams

All teams (new and returning) are categorized as either an “A” team or a “B” team. A full team can be an “A” or “B” team and an Honorary team can be an “A” or a “B” team. The A/B split is only used for ranking purposes.

“A” Teams: > 1.4 average game points per game from the previous fall season*
“B” Teams: ≤ 1.4 average game points per game from the previous fall season*

OR a team that played less than 5 games in the previous fall season
OR a new team to the league

*Note: the cutoff may change each year, depending on the number of teams in each category

The purpose of categorizing teams is so that we can assign different game points (for a win/loss/tie) based on the type of opponent you play. If you play and win/tie against an “A” team will earn you more game points (towards your current fall season ranking) than if you play and win/tie against a “B” team. Instead of the traditional 2 points for a win and 1 point for a tie, your team will be awarded a certain number of game points toward winning percentage according to whether you played and won/tied against an “A” or “B” team. Losses are always zero no matter which team you play.

How We Categorize Teams

Using the historical data from the previous year’s fall scores, all teams are ranked and their average game points per game are calculated.
Only teams that played 5 or more games in the previous season were analyzed when determining the split between A/B divisions. We did this because we felt we couldn’t accurately “rank” a team that played 4 or fewer games.
All new teams are categorized as a “B” team because we have no past scores for them.

Game Points Awarded

Teams are ranked by their average game points per game. Average game points per game is derived by taking the total number of points and dividing that by the total number of games played. Points are assigned as follows:

Teams will receive 3 game points if they beat an “A” team and 2 game points if they tie an “A” team.
Teams will receive 2 game points if they beat a “B” team and 1 game point if they tie a “B” team.
Losses are always zero no matter which team you play.
Forfeit wins are 2 points regardless of your opponent. Forfeit losses are 0 points.
All points would be divided by the number of games played.
All tie-breakers remain the same.

Examples of How This Can Affect a NFHL Team’s Record

Below are examples of how rankings can be affected by the ratio of A/B teams played, and whether a team wins, ties or loses to those teams.

In Example #1 below, both Team 1 and Team 2 have the same record, 5 wins, 2 losses and 1 tie. However, Team 2 won three games against “A” teams, while Team 2 only had two wins against “A” teams. Team 2 received more total game points because they had more wins against “A” teams. Because they had more total game points for the season, Team 2 had a higher average game points per game, even though they played the same number of games as Team 1. This ultimately gives Team 2 a higher NFHL regular season ranking than Team 1.

Example #2 below is with the same teams. Both Team 1 and Team 2 played the same number of games and have the same record. However in this example, Team 1 had a tie against an “A” team, rather than a A Team as in the previous example. A tie against an “A” team gave them an extra game point for that game, bringing their total game points to 14. This is the same total game points that Team 2 received, and because they played the same number of games in the season, their average game points per game is the same, 1.75. This means that they are tied for the same NFHL rank, and their final ranking will be determined by tiebreakers (average goal differential, etc.). The details on the order of tiebreakers can be found below.

Ranking

The top 16 teams in the league will advance to the Fall Championship. 1st place goes to the team with the highest average game points per game. Average game points per game is derived by taking the total number of game points and dividing that by the total number of games played.

If there is a tie between teams, then the following is applied until the tie is broken:

Average Goal Differential – average goals scored for the season minus average goals allowed for the season
Average Goals Scored for the season – total number of goals scored divided by the total number of
games played.
Average Goals Allowed for the season – total number of goals allowed divided by the total number
of games played.
Head to Head – the two teams who are in a tie will have their games viewed for the season. Whichever team has the highest number of points in that outcome wins. For example, if Team A beats Team B during the season, in the event of a tie between Team A and Team B, Team A would advance.
Average Goals Scored for the season – total number of goals scored divided by the total number of
games played.
Average Goals Allowed for the season – total number of goals allowed divided by the total number of
games played.

Find A/B Teams

Ranking System