Norris Division Returns

The Chicago Blackhawks will be part of a new conference next year that provides a similar feel that the Norris Division brought upon the league.

Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Minnesota, Nashville, St. Louis, and Winnipeg will join Chicago in the new conference that was approved on Monday evening.

The best part of the re-alignment is the fact that Detroit will remain in the new conference instead of moving to the East. Much speculation surrounded the move of Detroit to the East, which would water down the rivalry experienced by both fan bases.

According to TSN.ca:

"In the seven-team Conferences, teams would play six times -- three home, three away. In the eight-team Conferences, a bit more manoeuvering would be required.

Teams in the conferences of eight would play either five or six times per season on a rotating basis; three teams would play each other six times and four teams would play each other five times. This process would reverse each season."

The playoff format would change as well, the top four teams in each conference will qualify for post-season action giving the divisional match-ups some much needed meaning. The first place team will face the fourth place team while the second place team would face-off against the third place team.

Finally, the four Conference champions would face each other in the 3rd round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with the winners of each final battling each other for the Stanley Cup.

This new format will obviously allow each team to develop a deep rivalry giving the fans the most entertainment out of their value. In my opinion, this is the best move the NHL has made under Gary Bettman's supervision and deserves a lot of praise from the fans.

Along with that, they agreed that each team will be able to see each other in their own building at least once per year. But although the league's negotiations have come to an agreement, it's up to the NHLPA to approve of the new format, but there shouldn't be much of a problem in that category with this released statement from the NHLPA:

"Realignment requires an agreement between the league and the NHLPA," said Players' Association spokesperson Jonathan Weatherdon. "We look forward to continuing our discussions with the league regarding this matter."

The name of each individual conference is yet to be determined.