NHL & Gary Bettman Considering Major Changes to Playoff Rules After Years of Loophole Exploitation

The NHL has had an issue with teams exploiting LTIR loopholes for years, and now a report has revealed that Gary Bettman is looking to put a stop to it.

For years now, teams (mainly the Vegas Golden Knights and Tampa Bay Lightning) have been exploiting the NHL's Long Term Injured Reserve, using a loophole in the rules to add major talent to their roster for Stanley Cup runs.

The way it works is simple: a team places a player on LTIR, and with that player missing significant time, they open up salary cap space that allows the team to add another player, and when the original player returns, they now have both for the salary of just one.

That has helped several teams go on deep post-season runs in recent years, with fans continuously in an uproar that the NHL continues to allow this blatant exploitation of their rules.

Now, it appears as though Gary Bettman is finally set to do something about it, as Chris Johnston has reported that the NHL and the NHLPA are discussing some changes that could help even things out in the coming years.