My Proposed 2012-2013 NHL Division Alignment

Now I know some of the changes I made are a little extreme. I did separate a few rivalries but sometimes it makes those games a little more important when they're played fewer times. I also included the return of the old time division names of the Smythe, Norris, Patrick and Adams. I feel the old names bring a nice old time feel to hockey and it feels more creative than the sport standards of West, East, North and South. I thought about going with the old conference names and while I'd love to do it, I think it might be a bit overboard.

The divisions are separated by no more than one time zone. The entire Eastern Conference is in the Eastern Time Zone. Only one team in the Norris Division is not in the Central Time Zone.

The league has a great opportunity to capitalize on the Pens-Caps rivalry by placing them in the same division while also putting two of the league's premier players in Sun Belt arenas more often, potentially boosting attendance in those cities.

The Penguins and Flyers are divided because while they are intrastate rivals they're also much further than anyone else in the Patrick Division. You can't always get what you want.

Detroit would've made the East cut if it weren't for Columbus being further east. (Columbus is only 167 miles from Pittsburgh or about half the distance between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.)

It was also very hard to keep Toronto and Montreal considering Ottawa is closer to the rest of the Patrick Division. Buffalo and Toronto are just too close together to separate.

Boston and New York in the same division, enough said.

The entire West Coast is finally in the same division again. The brewing Canucks-Kings rivalry will be allowed to blossom with more games between each other.

Dallas will play more games in the Central Time Zone. None of their Pacific division rivals are in the same time zone as them.

Is it 20 years too late to make a Minnesota-Dallas rivalry?

The Smythe Division will truly be a gauntlet as it once was. On top of travel, five of the eight teams in the division made the playoffs last season. Two of them played for the Western Conference championship.

The conferences are as follows:

Eastern Conference

Patrick Division
Bruins
Canadiens
Devils
Flyers
Islanders
Rangers
Senators

Adams Division
Blue Jackets
Capitals
Hurricanes
Lightning
Maple Leafs
Panthers
Penguins
Sabres

Western Conference

Smythe Division
Avalanche
Canucks
Coyotes
Ducks
Flames
Kings
Oilers
Sharks

Norris Division
Blackhawks
Blues
Jets
Predators
Red Wings
Stars
Wild

Game Seven

Game seven of a championship series seems like a fairy tale. It's talked about so often but only a chosen few ever get to experience it first hand. Every kid dreams of playing in one. Regardless of what sport you're playing, it's the first thing you imagine in the driveway. Hitting a walk-off home run, scoring the game winning goal in overtime or hitting that buzzer beating shot, it's a fantasy. Only a handful of people are allowed the joy (and stress) of playing in a game seven while the rest of are left to watch. Two teams battling with courage and desperation as one is left with the agony of defeat and the other is left with shear joy. The difference in the feelings is immense. One team, goes home the victor, reaching the top of their sport. The other is left with one question, "What if?" Some never make it back, some go many times, but it's not always the same. The journey to that point is long and hard but it's hard to imagine that after all of it, it comes down to one game, one night. In front of the entire world you put your heart, your spirit and your body on the line for that chance to take home the ultimate prize. Nothing can prepare you for it, not even your driveway dreams.