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The 7 - Hockey - Proposed Realignment Register and log in to post!
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Texas Kelly
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#1 Posted on 22.12.06 1815.25
Reposted on: 22.12.13 1815.42
New set-up would keep teams closer to home (sports.espn.go.com)

    The NHL has floated the idea of realigning its six current divisions into four, mainly aligned with time zones, according to a story on TSN of Canada's Web site.

    According to the report, six club executives met with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman this week to consider potential plans. They're taking ideas from those talks back to their teams, TSN reported.
In other words, nothing's set in stone yet.

Here's what it would essentially boil down to:
  • One eight-team and one seven-team division in each conference.
  • Top two teams in each divisions would be locked into #1-#4 seeds, with the rest determined by points.
  • The Northeast (Canadiens, Senators, Maple Leafs, Sabres, Bruins) would remain intact and be joined by the Penguins and one of the Southeast teams (my guess would be the Capitals since they would be the closest travel-wise).
  • The other Eastern division would include the New York-area teams (Rangers, Islanders, Devils), the Flyers, and the other four Southeast teams (Thrashers, Hurricanes, Lightning, Panthers).
  • One Western division would include all teams in Pacific or Mountain time zones (Canucks, Flames, Oilers, Ducks, Kings, Sharks, Avalanche & Coyotes).
  • The other Western division would include all Western teams in Central or Eastern time zones - this would include the Central (Predators, Red Wings, Blackhawks, Blue Jackets, Blues) plus the Wild and the Stars.
It doesn't sound like such a bad idea to me - the only major rivalry that would really be broken up under this plan would be Flyers/Penguins, and even then, that might get destroyed anyway if the arena situation in Pittsburgh doesn't work itself out somehow. (And if the Kansas City rumors turn into actual action, then you just swap 'em with Columbus and you're none the wiser geographically, if totally sporting a big hole tradition-wise for the short term).

This also gives the NHL the opportunity to schedule fewer inter-conference matchups (there are too many of them now, IMO), and gives you two obvious openings for future expansion should the league ever get its act together financially.

What's everyone else's take on this?
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kwik
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#2 Posted on 22.12.06 2136.24
Reposted on: 22.12.13 2137.41
    Originally posted by Texas Kelly
    New set-up would keep teams closer to home (sports.espn.go.com)

      The NHL has floated the idea of realigning its six current divisions into four, mainly aligned with time zones, according to a story on TSN of Canada's Web site.

      According to the report, six club executives met with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman this week to consider potential plans. They're taking ideas from those talks back to their teams, TSN reported.
    In other words, nothing's set in stone yet.

    Here's what it would essentially boil down to:
    • One eight-team and one seven-team division in each conference.
    • Top two teams in each divisions would be locked into #1-#4 seeds, with the rest determined by points.
    • The Northeast (Canadiens, Senators, Maple Leafs, Sabres, Bruins) would remain intact and be joined by the Penguins and one of the Southeast teams (my guess would be the Capitals since they would be the closest travel-wise).
    • The other Eastern division would include the New York-area teams (Rangers, Islanders, Devils), the Flyers, and the other four Southeast teams (Thrashers, Hurricanes, Lightning, Panthers).
    • One Western division would include all teams in Pacific or Mountain time zones (Canucks, Flames, Oilers, Ducks, Kings, Sharks, Avalanche & Coyotes).
    • The other Western division would include all Western teams in Central or Eastern time zones - this would include the Central (Predators, Red Wings, Blackhawks, Blue Jackets, Blues) plus the Wild and the Stars.
    It doesn't sound like such a bad idea to me - the only major rivalry that would really be broken up under this plan would be Flyers/Penguins, and even then, that might get destroyed anyway if the arena situation in Pittsburgh doesn't work itself out somehow. (And if the Kansas City rumors turn into actual action, then you just swap 'em with Columbus and you're none the wiser geographically, if totally sporting a big hole tradition-wise for the short term).

    This also gives the NHL the opportunity to schedule fewer inter-conference matchups (there are too many of them now, IMO), and gives you two obvious openings for future expansion should the league ever get its act together financially.

    What's everyone else's take on this?


Going by the TSN article (http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=189350&hubname=), Atlanta and Columbus would flip conferences. So, if I'm reading it right, here's what the alignment would look like:

East Conference

North Division
Toronto
Montreal
Ottawa
Boston
Buffalo
Pittsburgh
Columbus

South Divison
NY Rangers
NY Islanders
New Jersey
Washington
Tampa Bay
Florida
Carolina
Philadelphia

West Conference

Central Divison
Detroit
Chicago
St. Louis
Minnesota
Dallas
Atlanta
Nashville

West Division
Vancouver
Calgary
Edmonton
Los Angeles
San Jose
Anaheim
Phoenix
Colorado

The schedule would break out to 6 games against divisional opponents, 3 or 4 games against the other division in the conference, and 1 game against the opposing conference

20 teams need to support the proposal for it to take effect.

It looks fine to me, though I don't know why you flip Atlanta and Columbus, taking Atlanta away from the Florida teams.

(edited by kwik on 22.12.06 2243)
JayJayDean
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#3 Posted on 22.12.06 2310.00
Reposted on: 22.12.13 2310.43
I think they should just have two fifteen-team conferences. They might as well be different if they are going to change it up, and they could manage the travel if they decided to make it a priority.
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