Rumor: Offseason Rumors Thread #1 | Trade Milan, Milan So Far Away?

[Little Fury]

With expansion the NHL will re-align like the NFL. Four divisions of four teams each per conference. Pacific will be split into NW - EDM/CAL/VAN/SEA with the new Pacific being SJ/ANA/LA/VGS

Don't think Arizona relocates at least not until Seattle is in the league and settled. You are correct that the Coyotes franchise leaves what is the current Pacific Division to what is now the Central Division. New Central is probably split into ARI/COL/DAL/WPG and MIN/CHI/DET/STL.

Pacific: SJ/ANA/LA/VGS
NW - EDM/CAL/VAN/SEA
Central-ARI/COL/DAL/STL
North central-WIN/MIN/CHI/DET
Mason-Dixon-NSH/CAR/TBL/FLA
East-CBJ/PIT/PHI/WSH
Metro-BUF/NJ/NYI/NYR
Northeast-MTL/TOR/OTT/BOS

 

[FlameChampion]

Todd Nelson not coming. Didn’t think so. Custance is as good as they come as well.

Sucks I would like to see Nelson running the PP with the potential of being head coach if TM fails.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

Pacific: SJ/ANA/LA/VGS
NW - EDM/CAL/VAN/SEA
Central-ARI/COL/DAL/STL
North central-WIN/MIN/CHI/DET
Mason-Dixon-NSH/CAR/TBL/FLA
East-CBJ/PIT/PHI/WSH
Metro-BUF/NJ/NYI/NYR
Northeast-MTL/TOR/OTT/BOS

That would actually be really cool. Playoffs I imagine would be Div winners plus next top 4 in each conference. Arizona possible move to Houston doesn’t change Div alignments.

Would have to get NHLPA approval of course.

Edit - StL would fight this tooth and nail LOL

 

[FlameChampion]

It's been said a few times now, but wow Drai's deal is looking better a lot faster than I expected it would. I always knew it'd be fine by the mid point of the deal, but if Kane got 7x7 other players far worse than Drai are going to be grabbing similar salaries in no time. Jeez.

I think Draitsaitl will live upto his contract. At this point hes probably overpaid by 1mil - 1.5 mil (hard to say for sure since he basically has no help when hes running his own line). But he still has his prime years and he has shown the ability to grow every year. I am not worried about his contract.

But if anything it just shows that Kanes deal is a bad one. It could work out but its very risky. If anything this gives me hope that one day Lucic could be moved if he was ever willing to waive his nmc.

 

[backhandsauce]

This is how I see our top 6 this year.

Nuge-McDavid-Grabner
Lucic-Drai-Vanek

 

[shoop]

Pacific: SJ/ANA/LA/VGS
NW - EDM/CAL/VAN/SEA
Central-ARI/COL/DAL/STL
North central-WIN/MIN/CHI/DET
Mason-Dixon-NSH/CAR/TBL/FLA
East-CBJ/PIT/PHI/WSH
Metro-BUF/NJ/NYI/NYR
Northeast-MTL/TOR/OTT/BOS

I think you are close with that. Only question marks are north central and central division.

I agree with @Night Witch about St. Louis freaking out in your proposal so I'd switch Winnipeg and St. Louis.

Playoffs could be interesting. Go with a heavy divisional schedule, six or eight games per team in division. Then go with 1-2 in each division and seed the four winners from there?

I'd also like to return to using the old school division names. Change your NW to Smythe. Northeast to Adams. North central to Norris. East to Patrick. Mason-Dixon is bad as a division name on so many levels. Pacific, Central and East are ok for division names, but the league could look at other names to respect the history of the game? Howe? Orr? Gretzky? Pocklington? j/k

 

[joestevens29]

I read that somewhere too, that NFL style divisional alignment. Might be real interesting and cut down on travel.

I sure hope that doesn't mean we are playing 3 teams way more than we should be

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

I think you are close with that. Only question marks are north central and central division.

I agree with @Night Witch about St. Louis freaking out in your proposal so I'd switch Winnipeg and St. Louis.

Playoffs could be interesting. Go with a heavy divisional schedule, six or eight games per team in division. Then go with 1-2 in each division and seed the four winners from there?

I'd also like to return to using the old school division names. Change your NW to Smythe. Northeast to Adams. North central to Norris. East to Patrick. Mason-Dixon is bad as a division name on so many levels. Pacific, Central and East are ok for division names, but the league could look at other names to respect the history of the game? Howe? Orr? Gretzky? Pocklington? j/k

NHLPA would probably kick back on that playoff setting as weaker teams may get in ahead of stronger teams. It is why we have a wild card now, to prevent that and was an NHLPA demand to agree to the current alignment.

If they went with this proposal I think it would be Div winners and then next 4 no matter which division.

Also I don’t think they’ll ever go back to the old Div names as the younger crowd do not identify with it and would stick with geographical names.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

I sure hope that doesn't mean we are playing 3 teams way more than we should be

We’d probbaly have a steady diet of Flames Canucks and Seattle (insert name here). Meaning we can beat on the Flames a lot more!

 

[Jamin]

No to the increased divisional games. I still have ptsd thinking about playing minny 8 times a year. It's just too many game imo, even made battle of Alberta borinf

 

[The Hound]

This is how I see our top 6 this year.

Nuge-McDavid-Grabner
Lucic-Drai-Vanek

Hopefully Pulju is in our top 6

 

[FlameChampion]

Hopefully Pulju is in our top 6

Yeah I would hope its more like

Nuge - McDavid - Puljujarvi
Grabner - Draisaitl - Vanek
Lucic - Strome - XXX

assuming the players mentioned above. I personally dont think they will get either Vanek or Grabner though. And I hope Lucic is gone, but yeah I am dreaming.

 

[McTonyBrar]

Todd Nelson not coming. Didn’t think so. Custance is as good as they come as well.

Oilers already have their assistants picked

 

[shoop]

NHLPA would probably kick back on that playoff setting as weaker teams may get in ahead of stronger teams. It is why we have a wild card now, to prevent that and was an NHLPA demand to agree to the current alignment.

If they went with this proposal I think it would be Div winners and then next 4 no matter which division.

Also I don’t think they’ll ever go back to the old Div names as the younger crowd do not identify with it and would stick with geographical names.

I hear you about the NHLPA pushing back, but the counter argument is more divisional play. More divisional play means less travel which matters a lot in the Western conference. Tradeoff is it really sucks if there are two really crappy teams in their division which unfairly advantages the other teams in the division.

I would love to be in the room for the negotiations on this stuff.

 

[joestevens29]

We’d probbaly have a steady diet of Flames Canucks and Seattle (insert name here). Meaning we can beat on the Flames a lot more!

No to the increased divisional games. I still have ptsd thinking about playing minny 8 times a year. It's just too many game imo, even made battle of Alberta borinf

Minny was the first thing I thought of. The other thing I don't like is if you do have a weak division you are going to get a lot better playoff seeding.

The thing is at the end of the day the teams that usually have a lot of travel will have their travel cut down by having Seattle games thrown into their schedule. Will cut down for not only the CDN western teams, but the Cali teams that usually have long miles to go as well.

 

[joestevens29]

I hear you about the NHLPA pushing back, but the counter argument is more divisional play. More divisional play means less travel which matters a lot in the Western conference. Tradeoff is it really sucks if there are two really crappy teams in their division which unfairly advantages the other teams in the division.

I would love to be in the room for the negotiations on this stuff.

Travel effects 6 or 7 teams. Potential of too many matchups against crappy teams and unfair advantages effects all teams

 

[Little Fury]

I think you are close with that. Only question marks are north central and central division.

I agree with @Night Witch about St. Louis freaking out in your proposal so I'd switch Winnipeg and St. Louis.

Playoffs could be interesting. Go with a heavy divisional schedule, six or eight games per team in division. Then go with 1-2 in each division and seed the four winners from there?

For playoffs, they should just go with straight seeding IMO. 1-8 each conference.

I'd also like to return to using the old school division names. Change your NW to Smythe. Northeast to Adams. North central to Norris. East to Patrick. Mason-Dixon is bad as a division name on so many levels. Pacific, Central and East are ok for division names, but the league could look at other names to respect the history of the game? Howe? Orr? Gretzky? Pocklington? j/k

I agree, but it'd be tough to find names that wouldn't annoy some people. Would you want the Oilers playing in the Fleury Division? Would you name the Oilers' division after Gretzky when it would fit with the California teams too? Tough call.

 

[CycloneSweep]

This is how I see our top 6 this year.

Nuge-McDavid-Grabner
Lucic-Drai-Vanek

Don't think we have the money to land both

 

[shoop]

Travel effects 6 or 7 teams. Potential of too many matchups against crappy teams and unfair advantages effects all teams

Probably 10 teams realistically. All four Canadian teams west of Ontario. Seattle, the California teams, Vegas, Phoenix.

How much of the league is the NHLPA going to ignore? That's almost a third of their membership.

You are right the league probably goes with four division winners and four wildcards. There is certainly an argument for top two in each division. It would be fun to see an actual division winner determined in the playoffs and would certainly help build rivalries.

 

[joestevens29]

Probably 10 teams realistically. All four Canadian teams west of Ontario. Seattle, the California teams, Vegas, Phoenix.

How much of the league is the NHLPA going to ignore? That's almost a third of their membership.

You are right the league probably goes with four division winners and four wildcards. There is certainly an argument for top two in each division. It would be fun to see an actual division winner determined in the playoffs and would certainly help build rivalries.

The league tried to go with actual division winner's and people didn't like that this year when NSH-WPG or Bos-TB went head to head.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

Probably 10 teams realistically. All four Canadian teams west of Ontario. Seattle, the California teams, Vegas, Phoenix.

How much of the league is the NHLPA going to ignore? That's almost a third of their membership.

You are right the league probably goes with four division winners and four wildcards. There is certainly an argument for top two in each division. It would be fun to see an actual division winner determined in the playoffs and would certainly help build rivalries.

Depends too if the NHL wants to stay married to its bracket format. With legalized gambling now all ok I bet they do (no pun intended).

More gambling means more revenue means more salary cap means more money for players so maybe the NHLPA would not kick back as hard as I think.

Brackets would mean top 2 in each division make it as it’s the only way it really works in an 8 division alignment.

But I like it. So long as we aren’t playing the divisional teams 8 times like in the past. It does get repetitive.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

The league tried to go with actual division winner's and people didn't like that this year when NSH-WPG or Bos-TB went head to head.

I think I heard as much pro as con. The ones that don’t like it will always be more vocal but those matchups were all very good.

Round one was a sleeper and Was TB is excellent.

 

[Little Fury]

I think I heard as much pro as con. The ones that don’t like it will always be more vocal but those matchups were all very good.

Round one was a sleeper and Was TB is excellent.

The problem wasn't so much the quality of matchups, but that they were happening too soon. Wash/Tampa is a great conference final. A beat up Winnipeg versus Vegas less so.

 

[backhandsauce]

Kane at 7x7 is way worse that the Lucic contract.

 

[backhandsauce]

Would anyone be on board with giving Hemmer a PTO? IF he doesn't make the team and wants to call it quits, sign him to a 1 day deal and retire an Oiler. Hate to see him retire as a Hab.