A Tiebreaker is the method of deciding placement of two or more teams that are tied in the standings after a league's season or after completion of a round in a tournament.
Several different formulas are used to break ties including the following:
- Head-to-head records (which teams have earned more standings points in games involving the tied teams)
- Head-to-head goals scored
- Wins in all games (What team has won the most games among the tied teams)
- Goal differential (Goals scored minus goals allowed)
- Most goals scored
- Goal Ratio (goals scored plus goals allowed divided by goals allowed)
- Strength of schedule (who played the tougher schedule (usually used when teams don't play the same schedule more often associated with American football)
- Regulation/Regulation and Overtime wins (number of games won that were decided outside of a shootout)
- Fewest Penalty minutes
- what team scored the first goal in head to head meeting(s)
- Fewest games played (usually used in the middle of the season, but; can be used if not all of the games are played on the schedule)
- Fewest loses
- Fewest goals allowed
- Away goals (usually used in a two-game-total-goal series)
- Penalty shot shootout (usually used in single elmination tournaments that have a fixed overtime period duration)
- Coin flip
- Tiebreaker game
Many leagues revert to the first step of their tiebreakers if any teams are eliminated during the subsequent tiebreakers.
In addition to determining playoff seeding tiebreakers can also be used to determine placement in the league's next entry draft, dispersal draft or positioning to claim players that become available on waivers.