Overtime Losses OTL
OTL stands for overtime losses in hockey. Games lost in overtime or a shootout. The team still takes a point in the standings, which is why the column exists at all.
How OTL is calculated
Counted since 1999-2000, when a team losing in overtime began keeping a point; the shootout replaced ties in 2005-06. A regular-season game now plays five minutes of 3-on-3 overtime, then a shootout.
In the standings OTL is the third number of a record — 53-22-7 is 53 wins, 22 regulation losses and 7 overtime losses, worth 2 × 53 + 7 = 113 points.
What counts as a good OTL?
Half of the 2 qualified NHL players in 2026-27 were at or below 2. The tenth with the most were above 2.8, which is where the number stops being a good sign.
- Median
- 2
- Top 10%
- 2.8
- Leader
- 3
Qualified: 15+ games, non-zero, 2026-27 regular season.