Game seven
The decisive final game of a tied best-of-seven series.
A game seven is the final game of a best-of-seven series, occurring when the series is tied 3–3. It is played in the postseasons of Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the National Hockey League (NHL), as well as in other leagues worldwide. The game is generally held at the site of the team holding home advantage across the series. Because the winner takes the series and either advances or wins the championship, game sevens add an element of drama to their sports.
- World series game sevens through 2025
- 41 decisive game sevens; visiting teams have won 22
- Non-decisive world series game sevens (b
- 4 (1903, 1919, 1920, 1921); none went to a game nine
- Stanley cup final game sevens with 1–0 s
- None
- Teams that have come back from 0–3 to wi
- 5 instances
- Players on two 0–3 comebacks
- Mike Richards and Jeff Carter (2009–10 Philadelphia Flyers, 2013–14 Los Angeles Kings)
- Teams that forced a game seven after 0–3
- 16 instances
- Team that twice forced a game seven afte
- New York Islanders (1975 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals won, 1975 Semifinals lost)
Lore & Background
The game seven is comparable to a final or to a single game in a single-elimination tournament. A championship series' game seven is equivalent to the Super Bowl in the National Football League in that the winner is the league's champion. In the NHL, the Stanley Cup became the league's de facto championship trophy in 1926, and the league instituted the best-of-seven series starting in that season. No Stanley Cup Final game seven has ever ended with a 1–0 score.
In baseball, the Chinese Professional Baseball League's Taiwan Series has seen nine series decided in game seven. In the NBA, all playoff rounds are best-of-seven, so all rounds can have a maximum of seven games. The KHL playoffs' final series, the Gagarin Cup Final, has seen five series decided in game seven. Liiga playoffs also allow game sevens in all rounds except wild-card rounds.
Comebacks from a 3–0 deficit are rare. In only ten instances (five in major North American sports leagues) has a team won a series after being down 0–3. More common are teams that force and win a seventh game after being down 3–1. The New York Islanders are the only team to have twice fallen behind 0–3 and forced a game seven in the same postseason.
Reader's Guide
The game seven holds a unique place in sports as the ultimate test of a best-of-seven series. Its decisive nature means that every play carries heightened importance, and the pressure on players and coaches is immense. The drama of a game seven is amplified by the fact that the series has already seen six contests, allowing narratives and rivalries to build before the final showdown.
Historically, game sevens have produced memorable moments across leagues. In the World Series, 41 decisive game sevens have been played through 2025, with visiting teams winning 22 of those. The rarity of comebacks from a 3–0 deficit—only five such series wins in major North American sports—underscores the difficulty of overcoming such a large hole. Players like Mike Richards and Jeff Carter have been part of two such comebacks, with the 2009–10 Philadelphia Flyers and the 2013–14 Los Angeles Kings.
The game seven also appears outside traditional sports, such as on the television game show Jeopardy! in its Tournament of Champions format since Season 38, where a player must win three games to win the final, and a 2-2-2 tie leads to a game seven. This cross-cultural presence demonstrates the broad appeal of the winner-take-all format. While some playoff rounds use best-of-five series, the game seven remains the pinnacle of suspense in best-of-seven competition.
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