Five, 6 team divisions.

The Heritage Division (containing the Original Six)

Then re-align the remaining teams geographically into...

The Patrick Division
The Adams Division
The Smythe Division
The Norris Division

One large 15 team playoff bracket featuring the top 3 teams from each division. The Presidents Trophey Winners get a first round bye. The remaining teams are seeded by total points with the Division Winners getting the top seeds.


I like one the one big bracket formula because theoretically two teams from the same division, or any two teams really, could conceivably play each other in the Cup Final...and that would be insane.
- Ogilthorpe2

Original 7 !!! Ottawa was there too! & they were winning most league titles when this league began.

I'm a Flyers fan on the west coast. Sounds good to me.
- flyler

Penguin fan on the west coast, sounds good to me!

Original 7 !!! Ottawa was there too! & they were winning most league titles when this league began.
- Erik6Karlsson5

The Original six is a term for the group of six teams that composed the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 25 seasons between the 1942–43 season and the 1967 NHL Expansion. These six teams are the Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and the Toronto Maple Leafs. All of the Original Six are still active franchises in the league.

The Original six is a term for the group of six teams that composed the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 25 seasons between the 1942–43 season and the 1967 NHL Expansion. These six teams are the Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and the Toronto Maple Leafs. All of the Original Six are still active franchises in the league.
- AGalchenyuk27

5 of them have had success since.

Won't work. People in the east, won't want to watch west coast games, with their teams involved. I also can't see the Habs being taken away from Ottawa and Toronto.

Northwest
EDM
CGY
WIN
MIN
COL

Pacific
ANA
LAK
SJS
PHO
VAN

Central
STL
CBJ
DET
CHI
NSH

Northeast
TOR
MTL
BUF
OTT
BOS

Atlantic
NYR
NYI
NJ
PHI
PIT

Southeast
TBL
FLA
DAL
WSH
CAR

Everyone plays within 1 timezone of eachother, but the East still has the travel advantage
- BigDre

Pretty good, but I would flip Dallas and Nashville.

Now compare the difference from Calgary, Edmonton and Colorado compared to Anaheim, Los Angeles and San Jose. Vancouver might be closer to the Pacific Ocean but it doesn't mean it makes sense.



The only other way it could work would be like this. But it hurts more teams than it helps.

Western Conference

Northwest
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Winnipeg Jets
Minnesota Wild
Colorado Avalanche

Pacific
Vancouver Canucks
San Jose Sharks
Anaheim Ducks
Los Angeles Kings
Phoenix Coyotes (Seattle Stickhandlers)

Eastern Conference

Southeast
Florida Panthers (Quebec Nordiques) Another problem for another day.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Dallas Stars
Carolina Hurricanes
Washington Capitals
- Two_For_Truth

Good map! Much easier to visualize the travel. Does reinforce why Nashville should be in the East and why Washington should be in the Atlantic. I don't think you can equalize travel (west is way too spread out), but I don't think overall that's an unfair advantage for the East, I think adversity can sometimes build cohesion and an us against everybody else mentality.

Actually, that's why I think Vancouver does well and is perceived as a complaining dive machine.

love it

Good thoughts on this.. .but we are talking NHL.. they don't listen to new ideas much... it'll stay east vs west because that's how its been forever.

I think the easiest would be to swap nashville and winnipeg and keep the current set up. however i would like to see the bottom teams that dont make the playoffs get to play in a playoff of their own. maybe teams 9-14 and only the bottom team from each conference dont make it. so then those team's fans get to see playoff hockey, gets more experience for those players, and keeps everything equal in the way of games played. for example in our local adult league there are 10 teams that all play each other and the top 4 play for the B championship and 5-8 play for the B- championship and the bottom two dont make it. it would keep things even so teams who dont make it dont get a huge time off and the cup winner plays an extra 20 games. I dont see how it would hurt the league at all. maybe the bottom teams play for a team bonus that they can donate to a charity of their choice or they get medals or something idk. i just think it would be good for the fans so that every team gets to have hockey most of the year instead of a long layoff

Wales Conference
Patrick Division
Boston Bruins
New York Islanders
New York Rangers
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins

Adams Division
Carolina Hurricanes
Florida Panthers
New Jersey Devils
Tampa Bay Lightning
Washington Capitals

Howe Conference
Lemieux Division
Chicago Blackhawks
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues

Gretzky Division
Buffalo Sabres
Detroit Red Wings
Montreal Canadiens
Ottawa Senators
Toronto Maple Leafs

Campbell Conference
Smythe Division
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Minnesota Wild
Vancouver Canucks
Winnipeg Jets

Norris Division
Anaheim Ducks
Colorado Avalanche
Los Angeles Kings
Phoenix Coyotes
San Jose Sharks

Conference champions seeded 1-2-3. Thirteen remaining playoff openings awarded by regular season points, with no regard to conference/division alignments. Re-seeding after each round, until the true NHL champion is revealed. The Stanley Cup can then truly be awarded to the league champion.

This alignment also pays respect to the heritage of the game, and departs from the unimaginative NBA-style geographical conference/division naming scheme.

Maybe even have a playoff for the bottom eight teams. Bettman Cup, anyone?

Wales Conference
Patrick Division
Boston Bruins
New York Islanders
New York Rangers
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins

Adams Division
Carolina Hurricanes
Florida Panthers
New Jersey Devils
Tampa Bay Lightning
Washington Capitals

Howe Conference
Lemieux Division
Chicago Blackhawks
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues

Gretzky Division
Buffalo Sabres
Detroit Red Wings
Montreal Canadiens
Ottawa Senators
Toronto Maple Leafs

Campbell Conference
Smythe Division
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Minnesota Wild
Vancouver Canucks
Winnipeg Jets

Norris Division
Anaheim Ducks
Colorado Avalanche
Los Angeles Kings
Phoenix Coyotes
San Jose Sharks

Conference champions seeded 1-2-3. Thirteen remaining playoff openings awarded by regular season points, with no regard to conference/division alignments. Re-seeding after each round, until the true NHL champion is revealed. The Stanley Cup can then truly be awarded to the league champion.

This alignment also pays respect to the heritage of the game, and departs from the unimaginative NBA-style geographical conference/division naming scheme.

Maybe even have a playoff for the bottom eight teams. Bettman Cup, anyone?
- Rliable

Three conferences doesn't work. The format is completely out of whack. The playoffs would be an absolute nightmare too. Teams would have ridiculous travel schedules if you had the seeding fall a certain way. Imagine a 1st round match-up between the Canucks and the Panthers. You have two teams going across the country three or four times just to play each other in the 1st round of the playoffs. Same goes for the regular season travel schedule. Horrendous for the players and something the NHLPA would instantly deny.

I agree that maybe the divisions should have more historical names but they have to be accurate and fitting. Adams Division without the Bruins? A Lemieux Division without the Penguins? Gretzky Division without the Oilers? Smythe Division without the Leafs? They just don't make sense as they are.

And screw Wales. They don't even know hockey exists. Why name a whole conference after it?

Brilliant!






















[URL=http://soundfrost.org/ ]youtube converter[/URL]Brilliant!

Three conferences doesn't work. The format is completely out of whack. The playoffs would be an absolute nightmare too. Teams would have ridiculous travel schedules if you had the seeding fall a certain way. Imagine a 1st round match-up between the Canucks and the Panthers. You have two teams going across the country three or four times just to play each other in the 1st round of the playoffs. Same goes for the regular season travel schedule. Horrendous for the players and something the NHLPA would instantly deny.

I agree that maybe the divisions should have more historical names but they have to be accurate and fitting. Adams Division without the Bruins? A Lemieux Division without the Penguins? Gretzky Division without the Oilers? Smythe Division without the Leafs? They just don't make sense as they are.

And screw Wales. They don't even know hockey exists. Why name a whole conference after it?

When is the last time the Leafs were in the Smythe Division? I'll give you a hint: they were never in the Smythe Division. When I think of the Smythe Division, Edmonton immediately pops into my mind, not Toronto. Your beloved Leafs did, however, join the Norris Division in the Campbell Conference in 1981.

The divisions as I've laid them out make make almost perfect sense. They are arranged geographically so as to limit travel to the greatest extent possible during the regular season. Northwestern cites in a division together. Southwestern cities in a division together. Northern central cities lumped together. Southern central lumped together. Northeastern cities together. Southeastern cities together. Of course, there are limited exceptions, but for the most part, the divisions make geographical sense, with minimal deviation from current alignment.

Your argument about having to travel cross-country during the playoffs doesn't hold much water, either. Is it not possible for Vancouver and Florida to meet in the Stanley Cup finals? What's the difference if they have to travel cross-country in the first round or the last round? As far as travel during the regular season, nothing really changes under this format. Do teams not already travel to other cities across the continent? Unless you eliminate inter-conference play during the regular season, it's unavoidable.

As far as some teams not being in their "traditional" divisions: you can't have it all. Those divisions didn't always make perfect sense, either. And who made the rule that says Edmonton must be in the "Gretzky Division" and Pittsburgh in the "Lemieux Division?" If you want, I'll put the Leafs in the Smythe - ain't like they're gonna win anything, anyway, regardless of which division they are in. Unless you think the Bettman Cup as suggested is a good idea...they are the odds on favorite to win that.

Here's a radical suggestion: since the general unbalance in travel is an east-west one, why not have a proportionately higher number of inter-conference games be hosted by the western conference team? It could be a small skew, and maybe only happen every second or third season so it would be barely noticeable but be a small measure of equalization. Thoughts?
- Morris

Makes the most sense!

2 conferences 4 Divisions:

Cambell Conference:

Smythe Division:
Phoenix
Anaheim
LA
San Jose
Vancouver
Edmonton
Calgary
Col.

Norris Division:
Winnipeg
Minnesota
Chicago
Detroit
Nashville
St. Louis
Dallas

Prince of Wales:

Patrick Division:
Columbus
Pittsburgh
Philadelphia
Washington
NJ
NYR
NYI

Adams Division:
Florida
Tampa
Carolina
Buffalo
Toronto
Ottawa
Montreal
Boston

This is 2 fold, one is travel, all teams travel is minimal in their own division. It also tries to keep major rivialries together.

Problem with the north south set up is that equalizing travel for all teams falls second place to minimizing total league expenses.

I like the football idea with the eight divisions. The problem is dividing hockey's greatest rivalries. But hockey does not have 32 teams, yet, so it's premature.

They're going to do the four-conference thing again, and it'll probably be the exact same set-up they had last year. That set-up got the votes from the board of governors.

Tess! How could you do this to me?!
I've been following your blogs for a couple years. Good job.
You've done well covering the Jets, (especially since you stopped using the antiquated old logo).
THEN, you quote Frank Zappa! YOU are my hero! Its best most people dont know of Uncle Frank, they wouldnt be able to handle him.
And now you want North/South divisions?
Poor form.
Internal body clocks make east/west schedules impractical.
I routinely wake @ 5:30-6am CST, that becomes a hassle when I'm in Van, not so much T.O. but to imagine professional atheletes would have to make 3 hour adjustments to their schedules and still compete at the top of their game would be optimistic to say the least.
I think the borders have to be drawn north/south, based on time zones which in turn should help foster rivalries because of the TV exposure.
It sucks when i cant stay awake long enough to watch the late HNIC game when my team is playing cuz I've been up for 17 or 18 hours by then, how would the players do it?

Tess! How could you do this to me?!
I've been following your blogs for a couple years. Good job.
You've done well covering the Jets, (especially since you stopped using the antiquated old logo).
THEN, you quote Frank Zappa! YOU are my hero! Its best most people dont know of Uncle Frank, they wouldnt be able to handle him.
And now you want North/South divisions?
Poor form.
Internal body clocks make east/west schedules impractical.
I routinely wake @ 5:30-6am CST, that becomes a hassle when I'm in Van, not so much T.O. but to imagine professional atheletes would have to make 3 hour adjustments to their schedules and still compete at the top of their game would be optimistic to say the least.
I think the borders have to be drawn north/south, based on time zones which in turn should help foster rivalries because of the TV exposure.
It sucks when i cant stay awake long enough to watch the late HNIC game when my team is playing cuz I've been up for 17 or 18 hours by then, how would the players do it?
- dodgebreath

Thanks for the thoughts and compliments. I'll be sure to add some more Zappa quotes.

It's about the schedule- Detroit and Columbus and Nashville are all doing this now. It's how you get in and get out. Swings out east and west would not be one offs they would be 5 game runs and then home.

It's an idea and I have loved the discussion so far.

Thanks again.

Interesting i like the possibility. But don't thing it could works because :

1- it won't be good for the TV ratings with many games at 10PM or 4pm.
2- More expense for Eastern teams.
3- No less expense for Western teams.

But you are right that the NHL should explore every possibilities.

Your argument about having to travel cross-country during the playoffs doesn't hold much water, either. Is it not possible for Vancouver and Florida to meet in the Stanley Cup finals? What's the difference if they have to travel cross-country in the first round or the last round?
- Rliable[/i

Having to travel cross-continent for the finals is one thing, having to do it before you play another three rounds is a different scenario altogether. It's probably a 7 hour flight, 6 easily. These teams would have a distinct disadvantage in the next round.

When is the last time the Leafs were in the Smythe Division? I'll give you a hint: they were never in the Smythe Division. When I think of the Smythe Division, Edmonton immediately pops into my mind, not Toronto. Your beloved Leafs did, however, join the Norris Division in the Campbell Conference in 1981.
- Rliable

Never said they were in the Smythe division but you're naming divisions after key figures in certain organizations without having those organizations in that division. Just seems odd. And you're also naming divisions after players instead of naming awards after them. Usually, players get awards while owners and builders get divisions.

The divisions as I've laid them out make make almost perfect sense. They are arranged geographically so as to limit travel to the greatest extent possible during the regular season. Northwestern cites in a division together. Southwestern cities in a division together. Northern central cities lumped together. Southern central lumped together. Northeastern cities together. Southeastern cities together. Of course, there are limited exceptions, but for the most part, the divisions make geographical sense, with minimal deviation from current alignment.

Three conferences makes no sense at all much less perfect sense. New Jersey is in a horrible division. All their rivalries are taken away from them. And geographically, it doesn't make much sense either. Dallas also doesn't make any sense where it is.

Your argument about having to travel cross-country during the playoffs doesn't hold much water, either. Is it not possible for Vancouver and Florida to meet in the Stanley Cup finals? What's the difference if they have to travel cross-country in the first round or the last round? As far as travel during the regular season, nothing really changes under this format. Do teams not already travel to other cities across the continent? Unless you eliminate inter-conference play during the regular season, it's unavoidable.

It actually holds a lot of water. Traveling across the country in the 1st round is stupid. It should only be done if absolutely necessary and should be avoided as much as possible. You may not want to believe it but the NHLPA would deny it instantly.

Geographically, it doesn't make sense. How long does it take to fly from Vancouver to Phoenix compared to Winnipeg?
- Two_For_Truth

It Does make sense since the team won't be losing two hours to rest going to Manitoba.its a half hour flying time difference.fans can watch the game instead of missing the first period.

Northwest
EDM
CGY
WIN
MIN
COL

Pacific
ANA
LAK
SJS
PHO
VAN

Central
STL
CBJ
DET
CHI
NSH

Northeast
TOR
MTL
BUF
OTT
BOS

Atlantic
NYR
NYI
NJ
PHI
PIT

Southeast
TBL
FLA
DAL
WSH
CAR

Everyone plays within 1 timezone of eachother, but the East still has the travel advantage
- BigDre

This one Actually makes sense from a time zone and convenience perspective.

Wales Conference
Patrick Division
Boston Bruins
New York Islanders
New York Rangers
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins

Adams Division
Carolina Hurricanes
Florida Panthers
New Jersey Devils
Tampa Bay Lightning
Washington Capitals

Howe Conference
Lemieux Division
Chicago Blackhawks
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues

Gretzky Division
Buffalo Sabres
Detroit Red Wings
Montreal Canadiens
Ottawa Senators
Toronto Maple Leafs

Campbell Conference
Smythe Division
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Minnesota Wild
Vancouver Canucks
Winnipeg Jets

Norris Division
Anaheim Ducks
Colorado Avalanche
Los Angeles Kings
Phoenix Coyotes
San Jose Sharks

Conference champions seeded 1-2-3. Thirteen remaining playoff openings awarded by regular season points, with no regard to conference/division alignments. Re-seeding after each round, until the true NHL champion is revealed. The Stanley Cup can then truly be awarded to the league champion.

This alignment also pays respect to the heritage of the game, and departs from the unimaginative NBA-style geographical conference/division naming scheme.

Maybe even have a playoff for the bottom eight teams. Bettman Cup, anyone?
- Rliable

You need to swap Colorado and Vancouver