NHL Realignment

[69Z/28Camaro]

what does everyone think of the Board of Governors approving the conference realignment? i like it and am glad the Wings stayed close. seems like it alleviates the problems teams were encountering.

article if anyone wants info
http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=604852

[8cd03gro]

I don't like that the 7 team conferences make it easier to make the (semi?) play-offs for the teams in those conferences. However, I do like that post-season play will be longer or at least from what I understand that's how it's going to work. It has been apparent to me, especially with the Wings, for years now that many of the top players seem to not care about the regular season at all.

[69Z/28Camaro]

yea pretty much. it doesnt matter how well you do in the regular season as long as you make the playoffs and perform

[PfadtRacing]

I love the NHL playoffs... but man, the last thing they need is to get any longer. 3 months is more than enough.

[8cd03gro]

Originally Posted by PfadtRacing

I love the NHL playoffs... but man, the last thing they need is to get any longer. 3 months is more than enough.

The more the playoffs are expanded, the more hockey counts for the cup. I don't care if they call it regular season or playoffs, there needs to be more hockey that counts in the fight for the cup. The regular season is almost pointless to most of the regularly successful teams the way it is working now. I agree the regular season needs to count more, but expanding the playoffs will have the same effect - more intense hockey.

[8cd03gro]

Originally Posted by CC Performance

Agreed, put more emphasis on the season results to make the playoffs if you want better hockey during the season.....

But how do you do that? Less teams in the playoffs just don't discriminate based on conference? Having 4 teams from each conference go just makes it so it's super easy for, "good" teams to make the playoffs, especially in these 7 team conferences.

For example, how hard is it going to be for Washington, Pitt, and Philly to make it to the playoffs over the NY teams, the Devils, and Carolina? Easy as hellllll.

Conference D: Carolina, N.J. Devils, N.Y. Islanders, N.Y. Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington.

[8cd03gro]

Originally Posted by CC Performance

less is better in this case... seriously... like half the teams make the playoffs as it is.. PLUS the play intensifies and the injuries sometimes dictate the outcome.. I think having a few less teams would obviously put more pressure on wins in the season... but the playoffs are where the money is as far as the league goes so we all know how it will go... its unfortunate that a good team will lose a key player due to a cheap shot by a bad team who has no chance, but it happens all the time in the first and second rounds..... less is better if you ask me .. only the best teams should be in the playoffs to begin with.... based on over all pts accumulated.. takes the bad division advantage of a good team away

8cd03gro... the playoffs are to long as it is... you cant make the whole season the playoffs.. cut the number of teams making the playoffs and you get more intense regular season hockey as it should be. Playoff hockey should be a step above but not that much to the point the regular season doesnt matter.. which is where it is at for some teams now
You cant have 3+ month of playoffs.. you cant have hockey year round...LOL teams have to get ready for the next season as well... when you go all the way to the cup you have a significantly less amount of time to get ready for the next season... On a different note..The B's are playing very well right now as are the Hawks

Why would you need more time to get ready for the next season if you make it to the cup finals? Obviously if you make it to the finals you comparatively don't need months of training to prepare for the beginning of the following season. It's not like playing against the best in an opposing conference isn't good training. All of your reasoning is exactly why I like bracket setup they're going to use which has already been decided so there's no use arguing hypotheticals. . . The real meat of the playoffs will have less teams than 4 per conference. That first round is just to trim the fat. Divisional playoffs are awesome for rivalries too. They're going to have two in-conference playoff rounds, resulting in a semi-final and final. Every team will have a home and home with every other team, which is great. It's just a waste of time to have the good teams taking turns beating up on the blue jackets and the jets. I really don't think it matters if you increase the amount of games that really matter by extending the playoffs or making seasonal play more important. Either way it just makes for more competitive hockey whether it's called the playoffs or regular season.