BOSTON, MA - NOVEMBER 25: Calgary Flames head coach Glen Gulutzan watches from the bench during a regular season NHL game between the Boston Bruins and the Calgary Flames on November 25, 2016, at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The Flames defeated the Bruins 2-1.(Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Seemingly eons ago, Bob Hartley gained a lot of praise from fans and onlookers for his method of chopping the 82-game National Hockey League season into digestible seven game chunks. The justification was that it approximated playoff series length, and if a team wins enough seven game segments they'd be very likely to make the playoffs.