DraperFan MN 0 Report post Posted May 20, 2007 I just started a thread about an idea I have for realignment, check it out.... http://www.letsgowings.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=43397 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livediehockey80 0 Report post Posted May 21, 2007 The only way Detroit moves East is either: 1. NHL expands again with cities in the Western US. If the league adds say Salt Lake City and Kansas City, then there is a chance that the Wings might shift to the Northeast Conference. The odds of the NHL expanding to 32 teams in the near future doesn't look good though. 2. Relocation of existing franchises. Even though the Pens are locked into Pittsburgh now, there are other NHL franchises that continue to struggle financially. The Atlanta Thrashers and Florida Panthers are in big trouble with gate receipts and overall income from merchandise sales and local TV revenue. If the Thrashers and Panthers head West...the Wings might move East along with Columbus. The Washington Capitals also bear watching because this franchise has almost the lowest attendance (paid seats) figures in the NHL. Don't rule out the Caps leaving DC some day too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skiiiman 0 Report post Posted May 21, 2007 I just started a thread about an idea I have for realignment, check it out.... http://www.letsgowings.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=43397 I like the new divisions and especially the Great Lakes Division. The opportunity to rekindle old rivalries ie: Toronto and Montreal is a no brainer. What would be most interesting for Wings fans are the match ups between Ottawa, Buffalo, and Pittsburgh, possibly new rivalries. All venues are certainly within driving distance for most die hard fans. I think you would be hard pressed to find any tickets for these divisional games. This would make for an exciting season!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
w00p33 2 Report post Posted May 21, 2007 (edited) Good plan. I've never been a fan of East/West, I've always favored the way MLB and NFL are set up. I'd be in favor of splitting the Original 6 between Conferences. i.e. Detroit, Toronto, and NYR in one; Montreal, Chicago, and Boston in the other. super long, so bare with Brilliant, how does the NHL make it work? I've gone through like 10 different aligments in my head but they all end up with Chicago as the only O-6 team in the west and (though they have been a non-entity lately) that makes no sense. Geographically it would work out better to be Detroit, TO, Montreal in one division and New York and Chicago in another. That's still a ton of travel. Detroit is the only logical O-6 team to face Chicago. The only alternative I see is Detroit/Chicago/Toronto in 1 division and Boston/Montreal/NY in another. Detroit is to Chicago as Montreal is to Boston. NY's natural rival isn't U-6 teams, it's the Isles and the Devs. Montreal's rival is Boston and the 2 Canadian teams. Detroit's rival is Nasvhille, Colorado, and Chicago, deeper in histroy it's Toronto. Unfair as it may seem travel-wise, Detroit's biggest enemies are mostly still in the west. some things to remember -it's a fact. Big cities are more widely spaced in the west than in the east. Why do you think CA is the only state in the west with 3 teams? -Detroit travels west a lot but they are GAINING time. The only time the lose it is coming back home. -teams in the west also travel a lot so chances are about 50/50 that they catch a team on the road right after they also got done travelling. -Fans complain more about the travel and late games than Detroit's players do. When's the last time you heard travel as an excuse for a Detroit loss? -Regardless the complaining, the current schedule is a 3-year cycle. NOTHING will get changed until after this coming season and that's that. Cope with it guys... -there are only a limited number of cities left with populations to support a hockey team. Wisconsin is a hockey state yet there's only 1 big college and 1 AHL team because no city in WI is big enough for an NHL team. -Expansion takes time. I don't see anything coming for at least 2 more years. I think the most likely team for relocation is Florida because they simply have s*** for attendance. (Phoenix would be 2nd on that list if it wasn't for the new arena.) -I am not the first person to say this but Colombus is more likely to get moved east than Detroit due to geographical position and.... (next point) -As I said before, if Detroit moves east, Chicago is the only O-6 team left in the west, and their most natural rival. The league would not take away the one game several times per season that draws the biggest crowd to a struggling Chicago franchise. Bottom line it would be easier to move TO west than Det. east because Detroit is used to the travel, realignment won't come until 2008, West needs a powerhouse team like Detroit, another team is more likely, expansion is not as close as some people think, and Chicago would remain alone. Get over it. Detroit stays in the west unless expansion or a team move forces it, and even then I think it will take 2 teams moving or added, not just one. I also agree that Detroit is better off in the west as they get better competition there. Edited May 21, 2007 by w00p33 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
w00p33 2 Report post Posted May 21, 2007 2. Relocation of existing franchises. Even though the Pens are locked into Pittsburgh now, there are other NHL franchises that continue to struggle financially. The Atlanta Thrashers and Florida Panthers are in big trouble with gate receipts and overall income from merchandise sales and local TV revenue. If the Thrashers and Panthers head West...the Wings might move East along with Columbus. The Washington Capitals also bear watching because this franchise has almost the lowest attendance (paid seats) figures in the NHL. Don't rule out the Caps leaving DC some day too. I don't see the Thrash moving, they've had good attendance. Caps aren't going any anytime soon, any team with that big a core of young talent will stay where they are (case in point, Pitts. I'm positive chances are astronomically higher a chance of them not getting the arena deal without Crosby/Malkin/Staal). If Ovechkin and comrades move on though, that future is much more bleak. Panthers I already mentioned. Even though they aren't talked about much as players in the moving game (It was all Nashville and Pitts. this last season), I still am amazed nobody brought up Florida for a move. Not that this has much bearing on Detroit's alignment, I still would predict CBJ realligned before Detroit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
