The dramatic NHL realignment that was to take place next season has been blocked by the NHLPA.
According to the Canadian Press, the planned realignment from six divisions to four was approved by the NHL Board of Governors in December and would’ve been set in stone if the players union approved the change as well.
However in a statement released by Friday, the union stated that no change would be made and the league would continue with its current divisional alignment and playoff format next season.
Deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league was unable to address the union’s specific concerns with the changes…
“It is unfortunate that the NHLPA has unreasonably refused to approve a plan that an overwhelming majority of our clubs voted to support, and that has received such widespread support from our fans and other members of the hockey community, including players,” Daly said in the statement.
“We believe the union acted unreasonably in violation of the league’s rights. We intend to evaluate all of our available legal options and to pursue adequate remedies, as appropriate.”
The new plan was to have two conferences with seven teams all based in the Eastern time zone: New Jersey, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, Washington and Carolina in one and Boston, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Buffalo, Florida and Tampa Bay in the other.
The third conference consisted of eight teams in the Eastern and Central time zones: Detroit, Columbus, Nashville, St. Louis, Chicago, Minnesota, Dallas and Winnipeg.
The fourth conference had eight teams in the Mountain and Pacific time zones: Los Angeles, Anaheim, Phoenix, San Jose, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton and Colorado.
This news also creates more controversy considering Winnipeg is still stuck in the Eastern Conference after their move from Atlanta this past offseason. But what may be even more troubling is these new developments will surely sour labor talks which were set to begin shortly on a new collective bargaining agreement.
The current CBA is set to expire on September 15th.
Ref: TSN.ca, Canadian Press, AP (image)
