I'd like to revive this discussion and possibly change the rules this time (we have another week before season 10 starts). I've written down a proposal, even though I'm not 100% sure I like it myself. Honestly I'm just fine with the way it is, just suggesting this because I like the idea of listening to people.
lead | leader requires | challenger requires |
0 - 0.5 | 3 | 3.5 |
1 - 2.5 | 3 | 4.5 |
3 - 4.5 | 3 | 5.5 |
5 - 6.5 | 2.5 | 6 |
7+ | 2 | 6.5 |
It would of course still be an uphill battle for whoever is behind, but not as impossible as it sometimes has been with the current set of rules.
Would you consider this an improvement?
This is basically the first to X (double CM) proposal with a cap on total possible games (8) and a bit more advantage to the leader to avoid ties. This is what it looks like if you make it a little more precise:
0: Leader (3), Challenger (3) - If regular season tie was broken by head-to-head Leader has advantage in the Game 6 tied situation (2.5-2.5 followed by another draw; 3-2 or 2-3 would already be a win for someone); otherwise just play a Game 7 to decide it.
0.5-1: Leader (3), Challenger (3.5)
1.5-2: Leader (3), Challenger (4) - Challenger wins if they both get there Game 7. (That is, 2.5-3.5 followed by a draw. 2-4 would already be a Challenger win, 3-3 would already be a Leader win.)
2.5-3: Leader (3), Challenger (4.5)
3.5-4: Leader (3), Challenger (5) - Challenger wins if they both get there Game 8.
4.5-5: Leader (3), Challenger (5.5)
5.5-6: Leader (2.5), Challenger (5.5) - Challenger wins if they both get there Game 8.
6.5-7: Leader (2.5), Challenger (6)
7.5-8: Leader (2), Challenger (6) - Challenger wins if they both get there Game 8.
8.5+: Leader (2), Challenger (6.5)
(In the 2, 4, 6, 8 point lead situations, really after 7 or 8 games there is a tie on points with CM points doubled; I have chosen to award that to the challenger as having performed better in the championship match, and for simplicity, but you could award those to the Leader or require a tiebreaker instead. These situations would be quite unlikely to happen because of the draws required.)