NHL Realignment: Why the NHLPA Rejection Is a Terrible Idea

Friday night, the NHL announced "it will not move forward with implementation of the Realignment Plan and modified Playoff Format recently approved by the NHL Board of Governors for the 2012-13 NHL season because the NHLPA has refused to provide its consent" (NHL.com).

Since the details of the plan were revealed, it had received a great deal of support from the hockey community as a whole. Players and fans alike seemed keen to the idea.

However, with this news, it seems that the likelihood of having a new alignment and playoff format next season is waning. While the League is still evaluating its legal options, the NHLPA's decision will likely mean that the current alignment and playoff format will stick around for next season.

But what does that mean for the NHL?

First and foremost, it throws out any possibility of minimizing travel time. Under the Realignment Plan, teams would play the majority of their games within their conference. This would help minimize the coast-to-coast travel for teams.

The Western teams will still have it bad, as far as travel goes: they are so geographically spread out that travel is inevitable.

Not all Eastern teams have it easy, though. For example, the Southeast Division teams still have to travel to Winnipeg a few times every season. The Realignment would fix that little issue and put Winnipeg in the right place.

In a time where the NHL is littered with injuries, one would think that the NHL would want to help the players in any way they can. 

Realignment can also capitalize on drama among the teams and players. Rivalries generate ratings and money, no matter the sport. As it stands, there are plenty of NHL rivalries that would only be intensified with the Realignment Plan.

Under the four conference plan, each team would play their intra-conference teams five or six times in a season. With Pittsburgh and Washington put in the same conference under the Realignment, the NHL could make the most out of one of the premier inter-divisional rivalries.

The NHL could also take advantage of some feuds which are already intra-divisional by having them play that extra game or two every season.

In a similar way, the NHL Realignment could also make hockey that much more interesting by increasing competitiveness. Teams like Anaheim, Columbus, and even the New York Islanders could definitely benefit from the four conference system outlined by the Realignment.

Some divisions, like the Central and Atlantic, are stacked with excellent teams. Changing up the alignment would make it more competitive for a lot of teams.

In addition, these teams might also have a better chance at making it to the postseason. The proposed plan outlines a postseason system that includes the top four teams from each of the four conferences.

Using the alignment to exploit the rivalries and increase the competitiveness of the game itself could do wonders for the NHL's ratings. It's things like that that make the game of hockey appeal that much more to the casual fan.

But by rejecting the Realignment Plan, the NHLPA has passed up all these perks. No, the plan isn't perfect. Some of the geographic logic leaves something to be desired.

As far as I'm concerned, the Plan has many more positive aspects than negative.