Nostalgic Hockey Divisions

I saw something pretty cool the other day.  It was a 2022 Stanley Cup playoff bracket with vintage logos for all 16 teams.  For some teams, the logos they used were similar to something you'd see at a Winter Classic or Heritage Classic.  But they went way back with some of the others.  Dallas was the Minnesota North Stars.  For Calgary, they had an Atlanta Flames logo.  They even had those wonderful Quebec Nordiques and Hartford Whalers logos for Colorado and Carolina. 

That got me feeling a little nostalgic.  So did the fact that Edmonton and LA are currently playing in a playoff series...just like they did seemingly every year when they were Smythe Division rivals.  The Smythe Division, of course, is one of the NHL's classic divisions, but it was also the oddest.  It was the "Western" division...which, until San Jose joined the league in 1991-92, was the Kings and four teams from Western Canada!

The NHL ditched the four classic divisions in 1993-94, when they switched to geographic names.  There's been expansion, franchise relocations and several rounds of realignment since then.  But what if there hadn't been?  What if the NHL had still expanded and franchises had still relocated, but the four classic divisions still remained?  What would those divisions look like today?

For the sake of this exercise, we'll go back to what those four divisions looked like at the end of the 1992-93 season, which was the last of Adams, Patrick, Norris and Smythe.  There were 24 teams in the NHL then.  There's 32 now.  So, by adding two of them to each division, we'll still get to the current four divisions of eight.  The alignment would definitely look different, though.

Those division are pretty much intact to an extent.  The Adams is the Atlantic, the Patrick is the Metropolitan, the Norris is the Central and the Smythe is the Pacific.  But, again, I'm keeping teams in their original division even after they've moved, so that's definitely gonna change things.

As a reminder, here's what those four divisions looked like 30 years ago:

Adams: Boston, Buffalo, Hartford, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec
Patrick: New Jersey, Islanders, Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington
Norris: Chicago, Detroit, Minnesota, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Toronto
Smythe: Calgary, Edmonton, Los Angeles, San Jose, Vancouver, Winnipeg

Quebec has since moved to Colorado, Hartford to Carolina, Minnesota to Dallas and Winnipeg to Arizona.  And, let's not forget, the current Jets relocated from Atlanta, so their division assignment will be based on where the Thrashers would've been placed.

We'll assign the remaining eight teams in order based on when they joined the league, starting with the 1993-94 expansion clubs--Anaheim and Florida.  The Ducks obviously go to the Smythe.  Where else would you put them?  The Panthers, meanwhile, I don't have going to the Norris, even though that would be the natural fit with Tampa Bay.  However, that would create uneven conferences, so the Panthers go to the Patrick Division instead.

Up next is the Nashville Predators, the first of that four-team expansion over three years in the late 90s.  Nashville's currently in the Central Division, and the Norris has an open spot, so they go there.  The only division missing a team when Atlanta joined the following season was the Adams, so that's where the Thrashers get placed.  And, since we're not changing divisions as teams move, they're still there in Winnipeg.

In 2000, it was Columbus and Minnesota's turn.  The Wild were a replacement for the North Stars after they moved to Dallas.  The North Stars were in the Norris Division, so it makes sense for the Wild to join them there.  Columbus, meanwhile, could really go in either the Adams or Patrick.  The Blue Jackets are currently in the Metropolitan Division, which is the only criterion I'm using to place them in the Patrick.

Now's where it gets interesting.  Both of the NHL's newest franchises are out west.  But I've gotta put one of them in the Adams Division and what is, effectively, the Eastern Conference.  I'm choosing Vegas because the Adams Division would already have Colorado, so that would give the Avalanche somebody at least somewhat near them in their division.  Which leaves that last spot in the Smythe for the Kraken.

So, that would create this modern-day alignment using the classic divisions:

Adams: Boston, Buffalo, Carolina, Colorado, Montreal, Ottawa, Vegas, Winnipeg
Patrick: Columbus, Florida, New Jersey, Islanders, Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington
Norris: Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Minnesota, Nashville, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Toronto
Smythe: Anaheim, Arizona, Calgary, Edmonton, Los Angeles, San Jose, Seattle, Vancouver

While the Adams Division covering four time zones is obviously and totally ridiculous, the others are completely realistic.  I'd also be willing to bet that when the Knights joined the league, they would've insisted on being put in the Smythe.  And that likely would've meant the 32nd team was placed in Quebec, not Seattle, since that would make more geographic sense.

Take a look at those divisions, though.  Then take the three teams from the Norris Division in the Eastern time zone (Detroit, Tampa Bay and Toronto) and swap them with the three in the Adams that aren't (Colorado, Vegas and Winnipeg).  Those divisions look awfully familiar, don't they?  So, even though they have different names, as it turns out, we're looking at divisions that are awfully similar to the NHL's classic four.  Whether we realize it or not.