No Plan to Change Playoff Format - Bettman

I'm a cord cutter. I do pay for ESPN Plus, because my team is out of my TV market, so I can get the games that way. A couple games I think have been on Max (which I also pay for, but for reasons unrelated to hockey). Been able to watch every Utah game with those two subscriptions that I can recall, up until Tuesday's game in Edmonton, which was on ESPN, and only ESPN. Considering we got blown out 7-1, maybe that was for the better, but it was annoying that I couldn't watch it with any subscription that you can pay for, being a cord cutter.

Once the playoffs start, unless there's some kind of package out there that I'm unaware of, I'll be completely out of luck. I'd legitimately be willing to pay up to like $200 for some kind of streaming package to watch the playoffs, but is something like that available? Nope, not that I'm aware of. Stupid NHL.
You'll have to hope for Amazon Prime in future contract for next National broadcast deal for the playoff package. They truly have done a great job with the Prime on Monday Night hockey this season. I enjoyed their coverage.
 
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I see your ^that, and raise you:

(same schedule format)

1: ANA, LAK, SJS, VGK
2: VAN, SEA, CGY, EDM
3: UTH, COL, DAL, STL
4: WPG, MIN, CHI, NSH
5: DET, TOR, BUF, CBJ
6: BOS, MTL, CAR, OTT
7: PIT, WSH, NJD, PHI
8: NYI, NYR, TBL, FLA
Perfect realignment and I would suggest, 8 games each for Divisional match-up and 2 games for rest of the league with divisional focused type of schedule. All of the sudden, every teams in the league has about the equal travel distance and first round, just 1v2 match-up and Round 2, 1v8, 2v7, etc.
 
I'm a cord cutter. I do pay for ESPN Plus, because my team is out of my TV market, so I can get the games that way. A couple games I think have been on Max (which I also pay for, but for reasons unrelated to hockey). Been able to watch every Utah game with those two subscriptions that I can recall, up until Tuesday's game in Edmonton, which was on ESPN, and only ESPN. Considering we got blown out 7-1, maybe that was for the better, but it was annoying that I couldn't watch it with any subscription that you can pay for, being a cord cutter.

Once the playoffs start, unless there's some kind of package out there that I'm unaware of, I'll be completely out of luck. I'd legitimately be willing to pay up to like $200 for some kind of streaming package to watch the playoffs, but is something like that available? Nope, not that I'm aware of. Stupid NHL.
My friend you must sail the forbidden streams
 
I think they should just change it to 2 conferences. East and West. This is what the NBA and MLS do.

No need for the divisional breakdown anymore with 32 teams and 82 games, where it's required that each team plays each other at least twice. The math just doesn't math, but Gary doesn't get it.
What? The NBA has divisions- they play each other ~4 times a year, and have home and homes with every team in the opposite conference. Like exactly what the NHL does.
 
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The format is pathetic.

It rewards those in weak divisions and punishes teams who are not. That's really not how professional sports should work.

1-8 is way better.
 
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I think the only way it goes back to 1-8 is through bargaining for the next CBA negotiations. If players want it, they'll have to concede something to get it.
 
I see your ^that, and raise you:

(same schedule format)

1: ANA, LAK, SJS, VGK
2: VAN, SEA, CGY, EDM
3: UTH, COL, DAL, STL
4: WPG, MIN, CHI, NSH
5: DET, TOR, BUF, CBJ
6: BOS, MTL, CAR, OTT
7: PIT, WSH, NJD, PHI
8: NYI, NYR, TBL, FLA
Um, why on earth is Carolina with Boston, Montreal and Ottawa?
 
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Um, why on earth is Carolina with Boston, Montreal and Ottawa?
Originally, I proposed one alignment that was meant to be as low-travel as possible, even at the expense of rivalries (like PIT-PHI) being down to 2 games per year and in separate brackets. This one is a hybrid, keeping more of the bigger rivalries, but CAR can't be in the same division as TB / FLA or NJ/WSH without pushing one of PIT, PHI, NJ, NYR, NYI or WSH out of this bracketed group (and into the TOR/DET/MTL/BOS bracket). Or you replicate the current alignment and push TB/FLA out of that group, but the point is to balance travel with rivalries, so I moved CAR and CBJ instead, putting CBJ with DET (CBJ's other big-market rival), and CAR with BOS and MTL, who are both big markets and have a history with them (though it's been a while). Not perfect, but nothing is :dunno:
 
Who cares. 9/10 times first in the conference plays 8th and 2nd plays 7th. 3-6 who cares who play who
 
Originally, I proposed one alignment that was meant to be as low-travel as possible, even at the expense of rivalries (like PIT-PHI) being down to 2 games per year and in separate brackets. This one is a hybrid, keeping more of the bigger rivalries, but CAR can't be in the same division as TB / FLA or NJ/WSH without pushing one of PIT, PHI, NJ, NYR, NYI or WSH out of this bracketed group (and into the TOR/DET/MTL/BOS bracket). Or you replicate the current alignment and push TB/FLA out of that group, but the point is to balance travel with rivalries, so I moved CAR and CBJ instead, putting CBJ with DET (CBJ's other big-market rival), and CAR with BOS and MTL, who are both big markets and have a history with them (though it's been a while). Not perfect, but nothing is :dunno:
I think this is very balanced in terms of travel and rivalries, with no team being too far from any other team in its division.

CAR - FLA - TB - WAS
TOR - BUF - MTL - OTT
NYR - NYI - BOS - NJ
DET - CBJ - PHI - PIT

VAN - EDM - CGY - SEA
LA - VGK - ANA - SJ
WPG - COL - MIN - UTH
DAL - STL - NSH - CHI
 
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I think this is very balanced in terms of travel and rivalries, with no team being too far from any other team in its division.

CAR - FLA - TB - WAS
TOR - BUF - MTL - OTT
NYR - NYI - BOS - NJ
DET - CBJ - PHI - PIT

VAN - EDM - CGY - STL
LA - VGK - ANA - SJ
WPG - COL - MIN - UTH
DAL - STL - NSH - CHI
Uhhhhh.... :help:

Aside from the obvious, the problem with this one is, which divisions are bracketed? To keep MTL/BOS together, you'd have to put NJ/NYI/NYR with TOR/MTL/BOS, which puts all the biggest markets together in one bracket instead of spreading them out, not to mention, breaks up the NY teams from PHI/PIT/WSH.
 
The format is pathetic.

It rewards those in weak divisions and punishes teams who are not. That's really not how professional sports should work.

1-8 is way better.
In any sports with divisional structure true and division schedules you are going to ctrstr things like hie good us a team really.

You could argue some years some division teans are feeding off 3 rebuilding teams in their div pumping up 1-3 place records while the other div has all 8 teams wanting the nake playoffs dragging down their 3rd-6th place teams

Its more pronounced in the nfl where 8 games come from divisions they face. In a year where a decent div plays 2 weaker ones you can have teams have 7-1 records while the other div playing 2 stronger ones and they go 2-6 which can have big differences in standings.

This was part of the reason why NFC north had the records they did.

Sure they could drop auto bids to just top 2 teams
 
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Uhhhhh.... :help:

Aside from the obvious, the problem with this one is, which divisions are bracketed? To keep MTL/BOS together, you'd have to put NJ/NYI/NYR with TOR/MTL/BOS, which puts all the biggest markets together in one bracket instead of spreading them out, not to mention, breaks up the NY teams from PHI/PIT/WSH.
The brackets are:
CAR - FLA - TB - WAS
TOR - BUF - MTL - OTT

NYR - NYI - BOS - NJ
DET - CBJ - PHI - PIT

VAN - EDM - CGY - SEA
LA - VGK - ANA - SJ

WPG - COL - MIN - UTH
DAL - STL - NSH - CHI

If you must absolutely have Boston with Montreal you could switch Boston and Buffalo. But I wouldn't split Buffalo and Toronto, and I absolutely wouldn't split Toronto and Montreal.
Also with 4 team divisions, you can't have PHI/PIT/WSH with the New York teams, unless you split up one of NYR/NYI/NJ. I see in your divisions you separated NJ from the New York teams, but geographically that makes no sense given how close those three are.
 
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On one hand, any format should motivate teams to finish higher in the standings. On the other hand, this format (for the most part) is giving teams a tough draw no matter what.
man I love playing Boston or Tampa literally every single round 1

Maybe the Leafs should have a better regular season.
 
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1-8 makes the most sense, but the current format isn't atrocious. Just don't expand the playoffs. 16 teams is more than enough. Any more than that and it cheapens the importance of the regular season too much. The playoffs are enough of a war of attrition as is.
 
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