The Florida Panthers need a miracle, but they still have a shot at the playoffs. A whole lot of things have to go right, but the NHL has just made an announcement that may have some Panthers fans excited: A possible 83rd game if they end up tied with the Philadelphia Flyers in the points column alongside meeting some weirdly specific stipulations.

The tiebreakers, as they stand, go by points, regulation plus overtime wins (ROW) and goal differential. As of now, the Flyers have 96 points, a ROW of 39, and a goal differential of +3. The Panthers, meanwhile, have 92 points, a ROW of 39, and a goal differential of -1. While the Flyers have 81 games played, the Panthers have 80.

All of this to say, for a decisive Game 83 to occur, the Flyers need to lose by two goals to the Rangers in regulation on Saturday, and the Panthers must win Saturday and Sunday's games against the Sabres and Bruins in shootouts. So expect to see Florida play some pretty boring hockey over the course of its next few games, unless it gets down.

Predators fans, of course, may be eyeing this with a modicum of spite after they lost a goal against the Panthers that arguably kept the Panthers in the race. They won the President's Trophy on Thursday, so maybe that sting is gone, but it was still a frustrating play for the fans.

The last time the mere possibility of this scenario occurred was in 2000, when the Sabres and Canadiens found themselves in a similar situation at the end of the season. The Sabres would finish with 85 points to the Canadiens' 83, negating the need.

A tiebreaker would be played on either the Flyers or Panthers' home ice after a draw by the league on Thursday, April 10, the day before the playoffs start. Also of note, the game would be played with playoff rules, which means no 3v3 overtime.

While regular season tiebreakers haven't been played by the NHL, we have seen some Game 163's in the MLB. Most recently, the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Texas Rangers 5-2 in 2013. In the hockey world, the now-defunct World Hockey Association had a one-game playoff in 1973, when the Minnesota Fighting Saints beat the Alberta Oilers 4-2.

This is a pretty absurd scenario, and it's highly unlikely. The Flyers, of course, can stave off this entire conversation with a win on Saturday. If it does happen, however, the idea of a play-in NHL game is certainly an exciting one.