beatle11 Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 Sorry about the double post, but this is big news. http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=382065 The NHL has approved a new 4 conference re-alignment. Basically it works out that there would be 16 teams in the West and 14 teams in the East. I guess the thinking is should Phoenix move to Southern Ontario or Quebec City, that would make things easier. The other possibility is for two expansion teams in the East. Basically it would work out like this: Boston, Buffalo, Florida, Montreal, Ottawa, Tampa Bay and Toronto Carolina, New Jersey, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Washington Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Minnesota, Nashville, St. Louis, and Winnipeg Anaheim, Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Jose and Vancouver If it were me, I would have put Winnipeg with the 3 other Western Canadian Teams and put Colorado in the Central instead. Also I think it would have made more sense geographically to switch Florida and Tampa with Philly and Pittsburgh, although the way its set up here, Crosby and Ovie are in the same division. Not that I should complain that Crosby is not in the same division as the Leafs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiSab Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 Different? Yes. Better? Maybe. Will it work? Who knows. It's definitely an improvement for a lot of the teams who wanted the re-alignment in the first place. As a fan, at least this means much less of those killer West-coast road trips for the Jackets. We're not solely in the Eastern time zone like I was hoping, but I definitely think its better logistically to have 4 conferences instead of 2. But the playoffs will be a cluster, for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 ^The top 4 from each conference would make it, and play each other out for the 1st 2 rounds. It hasn't been determined yet how the final 4 would work. I like the idea of 4 conferences, but I think it could be aligned differently. How awesome would an all Canadian conference be! Obviously travel would be an issue but it would be great for the fans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 I don't like how the numbers don't match up. 7 team conferences from the east, while western teams have 1 extra team per conference to compete with for a playoff spot... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaMiTsPaT Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 ^I don't like that either. Obviously if there are going to be four conferences then two of the conferences are going to be short a team. Why not make ONE of the Western conferences at 8 and one at 7 and do the same for the East? I'm sure Detroit would have loved that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 ^The idea is that it makes it easy for Phoenix to move out East and balance the teams. If that doesn't happen, they could probably move Detroit over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 ^From what I was reading, Detroit was one of the main drivers behind this. Them being in the western conference while being in eastern time zone really hurt their TV broadcasts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiSab Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 ^Same with us in Columbus. PHX certain seems like it will be the next team to relocate, so maybe the East with fewer teams was actually done to accommodate that. Of course, if that doesn't happen, I'm sure the league could look into expanding to 32 teams within the next few years to get an even number throughout all 4 conferences. But no matter what, the new alignment is nice, since there will be fewer long-distance trips and every team gets to see every other team at home at least once a year, which is one of the better points of the proposal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 There was also mention of adding expansion teams to even out the conferences. The owners would love that and the big fat cash bonus that comes with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imawesome1124 Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 I really hate this plan. It seems like the league is overcomplicating this when they don't have to. It seems like all they would have to do is move: Columbus to SE division Dallas to CEN division Vancouver to PAC division Winnipeg to NW division It doesn't seem like they would have to have entirely new conferences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaMiTsPaT Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 ^^Adding expansion teams would be really exciting with this new four conference setup, but where would they go in the east? What major city east of columbus doesn't have an NHL team (That could support a team)? Baltimore? Who else? EDIT: How about Quebec as well for an expansion team? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 ^ Also Toronto could easily handle another team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imawesome1124 Posted December 10, 2011 Share Posted December 10, 2011 Let the hats fly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FeelTheFORCE Posted December 10, 2011 Share Posted December 10, 2011 http://espn.go.com/nhl/story/_/id/7338230/nhl-voids-hat-trick-dennis-wideman-washington-capitals Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imawesome1124 Posted December 10, 2011 Share Posted December 10, 2011 ^I don't understand why they took it away. The puck CLEARLY did not deflect off Laich or ANYONE. It should have been a hat trick and it still said he had a hat trick when I posted the video. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FeelTheFORCE Posted December 10, 2011 Share Posted December 10, 2011 Wideman was the one that brought attention to it. But anyway, I thought this video was pretty funny. http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?id=141219&cmpid=nhl-rxl-fb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imawesome1124 Posted December 10, 2011 Share Posted December 10, 2011 ^ Lol. Yeah that was a good one. Ran over the ref, which every fan everywhere loves, and had the class to apologize. On the topic of Ovechkin, he has been looking more and more like the old Ovi for the last few games. That goal in Ottawa the other night was incredible, and he came this close to scoring last night as you can see from this video: http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=35&id=141207 He is showing the determination and grit he showed his first few seasons, he just hasn't been able to "put the biscuit in the basket Joe B" as Craig Laughlin would say. I think he is starting to break out. He is back to getting 7,8,9 shots a game. It may not be this season, maybe not even next season, but eventually he will be back to getting 50+ goals and 100+ points in the season. And I know every hockey fan, whether they admit it or not, wants that to happen. Especially Caps and Pens fans, cause the Crosby/Ovi rivalry isn't the same when only one of them is scoring. I truly think that bringing in Hunter was a smart move. I think we have finally gotten his system down and we are playing much smarter in all 3 zones. We just need to tighten up our "around the crease" defense and our goalies need to patch up all the holes in them so the pucks can't get through as much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imawesome1124 Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 This kid has a very bright future with the Red Wings. I am really looking forward to seeing more of him. For some reason the embed isn't working so I just have a link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 Wow...that organization is a mess. Kinda sad really, even though I'm a Leafs fan. He's probably disappointed, but after this, I'm sure Cammalleri will be glad to get out of that gong show. http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=384922 CANADIENS TRADE CAMMALLERI TO FLAMES FOR BOURQUE One day after Mike Cammalleri made disparaging remarks about the current status of the Montreal Canadiens, the Habs decided to part ways with the veteran forward. On Thursday night, Montreal traded Cammalleri, as well as goaltender Karri Ramo and fifth round pick in the 2012 NHL Draft to the Calgary Flames for forwards Rene Bourque, Patrick Holland a second round pick in the 2013 NHL Draft. Cammalleri was pulled midway through the Canadiens game against the Boston Bruins on Thursday and sent back to the hotel amid reports of the potential trade. The sudden move came after Cammalleri's comments on Wednesday when he said he was tired of the team's losing attitude. "We prepare for our games like losers. We play like losers. So it's no wonder why we lose," Cammalleri said in response to questions about the repeated failures of the Canadiens. This season, Cammalleri has nine goals and 13 assists for 22 points in 37 games. “Mike Cammalleri is a dynamic player who enjoyed great success playing in Calgary,” Flames General Manager Jay Feaster said in a statement. “We believe Cammalleri will help our offensive production, solidify a second scoring line, bolster our power play, and bring another strong veteran voice to our room. We are confident that a return to Calgary will be good for Mike and good for our continued pursuit of a playoff berth.” Ramo, a native of Asikkala, Finland, has spent the last three seasons with Omsk Avangard in the Russian KHL. He was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the sixth round of the 2004 NHL Draft. Bourque, who is currently serving a five-game suspension for an elbow to the head, has 13 goals and 16 points in 38 games this year. The 30-year-old winger has posted 27 goals each of the last two seasons with Calgary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 ^ Except he's going to a team which really isn't much better. Calgary is on the verge of a re-build. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Thrill Dragster Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 I'm willing to bet this won't be the last trade involving Cammalleri this season. If Calgary does go into full rebuild mode they could get some decent prospects and picks if they trade him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenA07 Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 ^ Except he's going to a team which really isn't much better. Calgary is on the verge of a re-build. Flames have been on the verge of a re-build for a while now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
molemaster43 Posted January 14, 2012 Share Posted January 14, 2012 You know what I love in the NHL that makes it great? Fights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imawesome1124 Posted January 14, 2012 Share Posted January 14, 2012 ^ That's just one of the many reasons why it is by far my favorite sport. Fighting isn't as big a part of hockey as it used to be though. Speaking of fights, even though he might have gotten the losing end of it, I'm glad to see Alzner stepping up against someone like Downie. There's a lot of stuff to talk about concerning the Caps right now. Ovechkin's heating up, the power play's clicking, Wideman's making his first All-Star appearance, Brouwer got his first career hatty. I'm looking forward to next season when we get to see Evgeny Kuznetsov. Hopefully he can provide us with that second-line center we've been looking for for quite some time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Dear Kings: It's great that you are collecting points game after game, but it would be real nice if you could actually win a game in OT/Shootout every now and then... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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