What if the NHL Already Realigned for the Week of March 18, 2013

By Vincent Witel

NJDevsBlog.com

Vinnie Witel

Here are the current NHL Standings under the current alignment. Just going by 1-15 and not by division. Division winners are automatically seeded 1,2,3. Top 8 teams qualify for the playoffs. These are the standings after games played on March 17, 2013.

       Eastern Conference

1. Pittsburgh 44- Atlantic
2. Montreal 42- Northeast
3. Winnipeg 32- Southeast
4. Boston 41
5. Ottawa 36
6. Toronto 32
7. New Jersey  32
8. Carolina 31
9. New York Islanders 29
10. New York Rangers 28
11. Philadelphia 27
12. Tampa Bay 25
13. Washington 25
14. Buffalo 24
15. Florida 20

       Western Conference

1. Chicago 49- Central
2. Anaheim 44- Pacific
3. Minnesota 32- Northwest
4. St. Louis 34
5. Detroit 33
6. Los Angeles 32
7. Vancouver 32
8. San Jose 30
9. Phoenix 30
10. Edmonton 28
11. Nashville 28
12. Columbus 28
13. Dallas 27
14. Calgary 26
15. Colorado 24

Now let’s see how the standings would look under the new realignment proposal. 

Eastern Conference

Division D

1. Pittsburgh 44*

2. New Jersey 32*

3. Carolina 31*

4. New York Islanders 29

5. New York Rangers 28

6. Columbus 28

7. Philadelphia 27

8. Washington 25

Division C

1. Montreal 42*

2. Boston 41*

3. Ottawa 36*

4. Detroit 33 WC

5. Toronto 31 WC

6. Tampa Bay 25

7. Buffalo 24

8. Florida 20

Under the new proposal, the 1 seed with the most points plays the lowest-seeded wild card. The 1 seed with the second most points plays the second-lowest seeded wild card. The 2 and 3 seeds in the division will always play each other. This is the biggest quirk in divisional playoffs — as it’s not really divisional. If two wild cards come from one division, one division winner won’t play a team from its own division in round 1.

Pittsburgh vs Toronto

Montreal vs Detroit

New Jersey vs Carolina

Boston vs Ottawa

Western Conference

Division A

1. Anaheim 44*

2. Los Angeles 32*

3. Vancouver 32*

4. San Jose 30 WC 

5. Phoenix 30 

6. Edmonton 28

7. Calgary 26

Division B

1. Chicago 49*

2. St. Louis 34*

3. Minnesota 32*

4. Winnipeg 32 WC

5. Nashville 28

6. Dallas 27

7. Colorado 24

Chicago vs San Jose

Anaheim vs Winnipeg

St. Louis vs Minnesota

Los Angeles vs Vancouver