The NHL has officially made realignment a go. The NHL Board of Governors approved the four-division plan and it will be implimented next season.
Both the NHL and NHLPA had a say in the plan to make it more ‘travel-friendly’ for players, however the ‘Eastern Conferences’ will boast 16 teams between the two of them, and the ‘Western Conferences’ only 14. It’s a little unbalanced and teams in the West have better odds to make the playoffs in a smaller division. The top 8 teams from East and West (top four from each division) will make the playoffs with four wild card teams (one per division).
According to TSN, the new plan will ensure that all 30 teams get a chance to play one another in all 30 rinks for the first time since 1997-98. The plan is to be re-evaluated in 2015-16.
What really bugs me about this is the fact that this leaves expansion open in the West. I’m not against putting a team in Portland or Seattle, but I’d rather relocate a struggling team like Columbus or Florida and ship the franchise out to a new area. Expansion will thin an already thinned talent pool in the NHL, which could lead to more injuries when you have players that aren’t NHL caliber filling rosters. But that all remains to be seen.
Another thing that bothers me is the layout. I love that the Caps are once again linked to the old Patrick Division rivals, but why are the two Florida teams in the same division as Ottawa, Boston Toronto, Detroit, Montreal and Buffalo? It just doesn’t make no sense.
What is awesome is that the Washington Capitals are back in the ‘Patrick Division’ with the Penguins, Rangers, Islanders, Devils, and Flyers. Toss in the Hurricanes and newly appointed Blue Jackets and this will be an interesting challenge for the Caps.
The Divisions aren’t named yet and if Gary Bettman has any class in his bones, he will give tradition back to the NHL and use old division names like Patrick, Smythe, Adams, and Norris. Bring some class back to the NHL by dipping into the deep traditions of the game. No other sport has as rich a history as the NHL and I think the league needs to honor that especially after this last lockout.
Courtesy: NHL
All-in-all, I think it’s pretty exciting for the league as the old set up was getting stale. This plan should re-create old rivalies and make the playoffs much more exciting. There will be tweaks and hiccups no doubt, but hopefully this plan will remain intact for a good while.
Division A: Anaheim Ducks, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, Phoenix Coyotes, San Jose Sharks and Vancouver Canucks.
Division B: Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets.
Division C: Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Division D: Columbus Blue Jackets, Carolina Hurricanes, Washington Capitals, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins.
More to come…
