THE NEW LOOK
Governors adopt radical realignment plan
Monday, 12.05.2011 / 9:52 PM
/ News
By Dan Rosen
- NHL.com Staff Writer
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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- The NHL's Board of Governors on Monday approved a radical realignment plan, eliminating the current two-conference, six-division setup in favor of a configuration that features four conferences based primarily on geography. Two conferences will have eight teams and the other two conferences will have seven teams.
CONFERENCE (7 TEAMS)
New Jersey Devils
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins
New York Rangers
New York Islanders
Washington Capitals
Carolina Hurricanes
CONFERENCE (7 TEAMS)
Boston Bruins
Montreal Canadiens
Toronto Maple Leafs
Ottawa Senators
Buffalo Sabres
Florida Panthers
Tampa Bay Lightning
CONFERENCE (8 TEAMS)
Detroit Red Wings
Columbus Blue Jackets
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues
Chicago Blackhawks
Minnesota Wild
Dallas Stars
Winnipeg Jets
CONFERENCE (8 TEAMS)
Los Angeles Kings
Anaheim Ducks
Phoenix Coyotes
San Jose Sharks
Vancouver Canucks
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Colorado Avalanche
The Board authorized Commissioner Gary Bettman to implement this proposal in Monday evening's vote, pending input from the National Hockey League Players' Association.
The vote, which required a two-thirds majority of the League's 30 governors, passed on the first of two days of meetings here at The Inn at Spanish Bay. The League's new structure will go into effect starting next season.
The four conferences are designed to alleviate geographic concerns among several current Western Conference teams that had been unhappy about their extensive travel through one, two, and sometimes even three time zones. Some of those teams argued that the late start of road games in the Pacific time zone were affecting fan interest, especially among younger fans.
The new alignment also enables the NHL to create a balanced schedule in which all teams will play each other at least twice every season, once at home and once on the road, giving fans a chance to see every team and superstar in the League. The remaining games will be played within the conferences.
In the seven-team conferences, teams would play six times -- three home, three away. In the eight-team Conferences, teams would play either five or six times in a season on a rotating basis; three teams would play each other six times and four teams would play each other five times. This process would reverse each season: An eight-team Conference member that plays an opponent six times in one season would play it five times the following season.
The top four teams in each Conference qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The first-place team would play the fourth-place team; the second-place team would play the third-place team. The four respective Conference champions would meet in the third round of the Playoffs, with the survivors playing for the Stanley Cup.
FOUR CONFERENCES
The makeup of the yet-to-be-named four conferences is as follows:
CONFERENCE (7 TEAMS)
New Jersey Devils
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins
New York Rangers
New York Islanders
Washington Capitals
Carolina Hurricanes
CONFERENCE (7 TEAMS)
Boston Bruins
Montreal Canadiens
Toronto Maple Leafs
Ottawa Senators
Buffalo Sabres
Florida Panthers
Tampa Bay Lightning
CONFERENCE (8 TEAMS)
Detroit Red Wings
Columbus Blue Jackets
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues
Chicago Blackhawks
Minnesota Wild
Dallas Stars
Winnipeg Jets
CONFERENCE (8 TEAMS)
Los Angeles Kings
Anaheim Ducks
Phoenix Coyotes
San Jose Sharks
Vancouver Canucks
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Colorado Avalanche
The vote, which required a two-thirds majority of the League's 30 governors, passed on the first of two days of meetings here at The Inn at Spanish Bay. The League's new structure will go into effect starting next season.
The four conferences are designed to alleviate geographic concerns among several current Western Conference teams that had been unhappy about their extensive travel through one, two, and sometimes even three time zones. Some of those teams argued that the late start of road games in the Pacific time zone were affecting fan interest, especially among younger fans.
The new alignment also enables the NHL to create a balanced schedule in which all teams will play each other at least twice every season, once at home and once on the road, giving fans a chance to see every team and superstar in the League. The remaining games will be played within the conferences.
In the seven-team conferences, teams would play six times -- three home, three away. In the eight-team Conferences, teams would play either five or six times in a season on a rotating basis; three teams would play each other six times and four teams would play each other five times. This process would reverse each season: An eight-team Conference member that plays an opponent six times in one season would play it five times the following season.
The top four teams in each Conference qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The first-place team would play the fourth-place team; the second-place team would play the third-place team. The four respective Conference champions would meet in the third round of the Playoffs, with the survivors playing for the Stanley Cup.
