My proposed solution to reduce travel is to have three 10-team conferences based on geography. The three conferences would be named Western, Central and Eastern. Each conference would be further divided into two 5-team divisions. The divisions would separate northern and southern teams. Below is a strict geographically-based alignment. The Western Conference would closely match the current Northwest and Pacific Divisions with the Winnipeg Jets replacing the Minnesota Wild in the Northern Division. The other conferences and divisions are vastly different from the current alignment.
| Western Conference | |
|---|---|
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Calgary Flames Colorado Avalanche Edmonton Oilers Vancouver Canucks Winnipeg Jets | Anaheim Ducks Dallas Stars Los Angeles Kings San Jose Sharks Phoenix Coyotes |
| Central Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Buffalo Sabres Chicago Blackhawks Detroit Red Wings Minnesota Wild Toronto Maple Leafs | Columbus Blue Jackets Nashville Predators Pittsburgh Penguins St. Louis Blues Tampa Bay Lightning |
| Eastern Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Boston Bruins Montreal Canadiens Ottawa Senators New York Islanders New York Rangers | Carolina Hurricanes Florida Panthers New Jersey Devils Philadelphia Flyers Washington Capitals |
This is a start, but there are several improvements to be made. One adjustment that is obvious to me is swapping the Tampa Bay Lightning who ended up in the Southern Division of the Central Conference with the Philadelphia Flyers who were in the Southern Division of the Eastern Conference. This change maintains intrastate rivalries by matching the Flyers with the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Lightning with the Florida Panthers.
| Western Conference | |
|---|---|
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Calgary Flames Colorado Avalanche Edmonton Oilers Vancouver Canucks Winnipeg Jets | Anaheim Ducks Dallas Stars Los Angeles Kings San Jose Sharks Phoenix Coyotes |
| Central Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Buffalo Sabres Chicago Blackhawks Detroit Red Wings Minnesota Wild Toronto Maple Leafs | Columbus Blue Jackets Nashville Predators Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins St. Louis Blues |
| Eastern Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Boston Bruins Montreal Canadiens Ottawa Senators New York Islanders New York Rangers | Carolina Hurricanes Florida Panthers New Jersey Devils Tampa Bay Lightning Washington Capitals |
That alignment still seems odd. The alignment below has four team revolving divisions. The New Jersey Devils move from the Southern Division in the Eastern Conference to the Northern Division. The Ottawa Senators get bumped from the Eastern Conference to the Northern Division of the Central Conference. The Chicago Blackhawks move to the Southern Division of the Central Conference, and the Nashville Predators move to the Southern Division of the Eastern Conference.
| Western Conference | |
|---|---|
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Calgary Flames Colorado Avalanche Edmonton Oilers Vancouver Canucks Winnipeg Jets | Anaheim Ducks Dallas Stars Los Angeles Kings San Jose Sharks Phoenix Coyotes |
| Central Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Buffalo Sabres Detroit Red Wings Minnesota Wild Ottawa Senators Toronto Maple Leafs | Chicago Blackhawks Columbus Blue Jackets Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins St. Louis Blues |
| Eastern Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Boston Bruins Montreal Canadiens New Jersey Devils New York Islanders New York Rangers | Carolina Hurricanes Florida Panthers Nashville Predators Tampa Bay Lightning Washington Capitals |
That alignment is almost there, but I think one last tweak is needed. In order to have the three eastern Canadian teams in the same division, I swapped the Montreal Canadiens and the Buffalo Sabres. All three teams in the state of New York plus the New Jersey Devils would also share the same division.
| Western Conference | |
|---|---|
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Calgary Flames Colorado Avalanche Edmonton Oilers Vancouver Canucks Winnipeg Jets | Anaheim Ducks Dallas Stars Los Angeles Kings San Jose Sharks Phoenix Coyotes |
| Central Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Detroit Red Wings Minnesota Wild Montreal Canadiens Ottawa Senators Toronto Maple Leafs | Chicago Blackhawks Columbus Blue Jackets Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins St. Louis Blues |
| Eastern Conference | |
| Northern Division | Southern Division |
| Boston Bruins Buffalo Sabres New Jersey Devils New York Islanders New York Rangers | Carolina Hurricanes Florida Panthers Nashville Predators Tampa Bay Lightning Washington Capitals |
Based on this alignment, the NHL would maintain a 82-game schedule. Teams would play eight games against each divisional opponent for a total of 32 games and six games against each team in the other division in the same conference for a total of 30 games. The remaining 20 games of the schedule would be one game against each team in the other two conferences.
I think establishing and agreeing on a postseason structure based on this alignment would be a bit of a challenge. I believe a 16-team playoff tournament should be maintained to decide the winner of the Stanley Cup. Obviously, the team with the best record in each division should make the playoffs and get one of the top six seeds. I also think the top team from each conference should be guaranteed one of the top three seeds. The remaining ten spots would be seeded by record.
Deciding which teams to select for the remaining ten seeds might be a more difficult matter. Simply picking the remaining ten teams with the best records would be the most straightforward method, and I would not disagree with that solution. However, it might be desirable to ensure that three or four teams from each conference or at least two teams from each division make the playoffs. I would even suggest that the top two teams in each division make the playoffs along with the best of the two third-place teams in each conference. That would result in five teams in the playoffs from each conference for a total of fifteen teams. The sixteenth team would simply be the remaining team with the best record.
