The North American Hockey League (NAHL) has announced the format for the 2024 Robertson Cup Playoffs and National Championship, which will be played at Fogerty Arena in Blaine, Minnesota, from May 17-21, 2024. This will be the sixth season that the Robertson Cup Championship will be held at Fogerty Arena. The Robertson Cup is awarded to the national playoff champion of the NAHL. The oldest junior hockey trophy in the United States, the Robertson Cup is named in honor of Chuck Robertson, a pioneer of junior hockey in the NAHL and youth hockey in the state of Michigan.
The 2024 Robertson Cup Playoff format will be as follows:
Play-in Series (East and South Division Only, Best of 3)
The Clubs seeded third through sixth will compete in a play-in series to advance to the division semifinals. The Club seeded third in the East and South Divisions will compete in a best-of-three series against the sixth seeded Club in their respective division. The Club seeded fourth in the East and South Division will compete in a best-of-three series against the Club seeded fifth in their respective division. The Clubs seeded one and two in the East and South Division shall receive a bye into the division semifinals. The Division Play-in Series will take place from April 12th to April 14th with all games being hosted by the higher seeded club. The first Club to win two games in the play-in series will be declared the winner of the series and advance to the division semifinals. The first Club to lose two games in the play in series shall be eliminated from further playoff competition.
Division Semifinals (Best of 5)
The Club seeded first in each division will compete in a best-of-five series with the fourth seeded Club in the same division. The Club seeded second in each division will compete in a best-of-five-series against the Club seeded third in the same division. The Division Semifinals may begin no earlier than Thursday, April 18, 2024, and must conclude no later than Monday, April 29, 2024. The Club seeded higher in each division semifinal series has the right to host up to three games and the Club seeded lower in each division semifinal series must be able to host at least two games.
For the East and South Division, the Club seeded first will compete in a best-of-five series with the lowest remaining seed from the play-in series. The Club seeded second will compete in a best-of-five series with the highest remaining seed from the play-in series.
Division Finals (Best of 5)
The two Clubs in each division that won a division semifinal series shall compete in a best-of-five series against each other. The division finals may begin no earlier than Thursday, May 2, 2024, and conclude no later than Sunday, May 12, 2024. Clubs shall cooperate to schedule division final series competition. The higher seeded Club will have the right to host up to three games. The lower seeded Club must be able to host a minimum of two games.
Robertson Cup National Championship
The four NAHL divisional playoff champions will advance to the Robertson Cup Championship in Blaine, MN. Once the four NAHL Divisional Playoff Champions are determined, clubs will be seeded 1-4 based upon their finish in the NAHL regular season standings. The game schedule will be as follows: The #1 Seed will face the #4 seed in a best-of-three semifinal series. The #2 seed will face the #3 seed in a best-of-three semifinal series. The best-of-three semifinal series will begin on Friday, May 17th. The two series winners will advance onto a winner-take-all championship game on Tuesday, May 21st to determine the Robertson Cup National Champion.
Playoff Overtime Procedure
During all Robertson Cup playoff games, if the score is tied after three periods of play the following overtime procedure shall take place. Teams shall return to their dressing room and the ice shall be resurfaced. A fifteen-minute intermission shall take place. A twenty-minute, sudden death, overtime period shall be played with five skaters a side. The game shall terminate upon a goal being scored and the Club scoring declared the winner. If no goal is scored, the same procedure as above shall be repeated until a winner has been determined.
Tie-Breaking Policy
At the conclusion of the NAHL regular season, Clubs that play an equal amount of games against their opponents and that have an equal number of points shall have their final position in the NAHL standings determined by applying the following tie breaking procedures until the tie is broken:
A. Most wins during the regular season
B. Results of head-to-head competition during the regular season
C. Total goal differential in head-to-head competition during the regular season
D. Total goal differential during the regular season
E. Coin flip