Post by mainstreet on Aug 7, 2017 4:40:01 GMT
So the NHL now has 31 teams. For obvious reasons, this is terribly unstable. A 32nd team is inevitable.
The most frequently suggested location for a 32nd team is Quebec City. It's one of Canada's 8 major cities, and the only one that currently lacks an NHL franchise. Other sites such as Seattle have been suggested. (Obviously, the "best" site is San Diego, but I digress.)
The problem with any of these is alignments. Let's examine the current alignment:
Western Conference:
Pacific Division: Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Jose, Arizona, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Las Vegas
Central Division: Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, Chicago, St. Louis, Winnipeg, Nashville
Eastern Conference:
Atlantic Division: Tampa Bay, Florida, Detroit, Buffalo, Boston, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto
Metropolitan Division: Carolina, Washington, Columbus, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New Jersey, NY Islanders, NY Rangers
The only "open" division is the Central. There's no "Central" site really being considered here. The obvious solution would be to pick a Pacific site and punt either Arizona or one of the Alberta teams into the Central. That doesn't solve it for the best slot, though, and that can cause serious problems for a lot of the teams -- breaking up rivalries and such.
I have another idea in mind. If Quebec City is the new franchise, we now have 8 Canadian teams... hmm... divisions of eight... eight teams...
Let's throw out the idea of conferences. Just have four divisions, and seed the Stanley Cup Semifinals based on regular-season record, 1-4.
Proposed Alignment, with Quebec City:
Canada Division: Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City
Western Division: Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Jose, Arizona, Las Vegas, Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota
Central-South Division: Chicago, St. Louis, Nashville, Tampa Bay, Florida, Carolina, Detroit, Columbus
Northeast Division: Boston, Buffalo, Washington, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New Jersey, NY Islanders, NY Rangers
The only "oddball" here is Minnesota in the West, but I think that's probably fine. This allows for less crossing of borders, and might slightly reduce travel. This also guarantees a Canada team in the final four.
For balance, without the conferences, I recommend expanding to a 90-game schedule. 2 games against each team outside your division (1 home 1 away) and 6 games against each team in the division (3 home 3 away).
I'm not exactly a hockey expert, but this is an option I haven't heard yet, so I'll post this to throw it out there. Looking forward to feedback.
The most frequently suggested location for a 32nd team is Quebec City. It's one of Canada's 8 major cities, and the only one that currently lacks an NHL franchise. Other sites such as Seattle have been suggested. (Obviously, the "best" site is San Diego, but I digress.)
The problem with any of these is alignments. Let's examine the current alignment:
Western Conference:
Pacific Division: Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Jose, Arizona, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Las Vegas
Central Division: Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, Chicago, St. Louis, Winnipeg, Nashville
Eastern Conference:
Atlantic Division: Tampa Bay, Florida, Detroit, Buffalo, Boston, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto
Metropolitan Division: Carolina, Washington, Columbus, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New Jersey, NY Islanders, NY Rangers
The only "open" division is the Central. There's no "Central" site really being considered here. The obvious solution would be to pick a Pacific site and punt either Arizona or one of the Alberta teams into the Central. That doesn't solve it for the best slot, though, and that can cause serious problems for a lot of the teams -- breaking up rivalries and such.
I have another idea in mind. If Quebec City is the new franchise, we now have 8 Canadian teams... hmm... divisions of eight... eight teams...
Let's throw out the idea of conferences. Just have four divisions, and seed the Stanley Cup Semifinals based on regular-season record, 1-4.
Proposed Alignment, with Quebec City:
Canada Division: Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City
Western Division: Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Jose, Arizona, Las Vegas, Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota
Central-South Division: Chicago, St. Louis, Nashville, Tampa Bay, Florida, Carolina, Detroit, Columbus
Northeast Division: Boston, Buffalo, Washington, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New Jersey, NY Islanders, NY Rangers
The only "oddball" here is Minnesota in the West, but I think that's probably fine. This allows for less crossing of borders, and might slightly reduce travel. This also guarantees a Canada team in the final four.
For balance, without the conferences, I recommend expanding to a 90-game schedule. 2 games against each team outside your division (1 home 1 away) and 6 games against each team in the division (3 home 3 away).
I'm not exactly a hockey expert, but this is an option I haven't heard yet, so I'll post this to throw it out there. Looking forward to feedback.