A recent report from ESPN stated that a proposal is in the works for realignment of divisions in the National Hockey league.
The proposal, if agreed upon by the NHL Players’ Association, would create four divisions, two in each conference, and would institute a playoff wildcard round, according the report.
Realignment is necessary for the NHL right now, especially after the Atlanta Thrashers moved to Canada and are now the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets are currently playing in the Eastern Conference, making travel time to play conferences foes high. But the proposed plan would definitely hurt the playoff chances going forward for the Colorado Avalanche.
The Avalanche would be put into the Mid-West Division if the plan were implemented. Along with the Avs, the division would also have the Nashville Predators, Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues, Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars and the Winnipeg Jets. That would put the Avalanche in a division with three of the best teams in the NHL (Chicago, St. Louis and Nashville), and two teams that are on the verge of resurgences (Minnesota and Dallas). That does not bode well for a teams like the Avalanche that are still trying to rebuild.
Colorado has struggled this season to find consistency, and with the shortened season due to the lockout, appear set to miss the playoffs for the third year in a row. They are trying to build upon a core of young talent like Gabriel Landeskog, Matt Duchene and the recently resigned Ryan O’Reilly. The squad shows promise, but the realignment by the NHL would throw a wrench in its plans.
The new division setup would see the top three teams from each division automatically qualify for the playoffs, followed by the two teams in each conference with the best records outside the top three in each division going in as wildcards. With three powerhouses already set to be in the Mid-West Division, partnered with the fact that they would have to play these teams more regularly than they do now, the Avalanche would have a serious fight on their hands to even secure a wildcard slot.
Some might say that to be the best you have to play the best, and there is truth to that sentiment. But in order to build confidence with young teams, it is not as effective to throw them into the grinder every night.
The proposal could go into effect as early as next season, so the Avalanche will need to build some momentum this season if they want to keep up in potentially treacherous Mid-West Division.
