Dramatic changes are on the way for the NHL, officials approved a realignment plan Monday that will see four conferences instead of six divisions and guarantee more home and home series.
The new plan puts more teams in the same time zone, and will see Eastern Conferences teams go West more, while cut down on travel for some Western Conference teams.
Realignment was necessary after the Atlanta Thrashers moved to Winnipeg in the summer, and will be implemented next season.
The playoff format will also undergo changes, and will be similar to the divisional format last played in 1992-93. The top four teams in each conference will make the post season, the first seed plays the fourth and second takes on third. From there, the four conference champions will meet in the third round and then the final two square off in the Stanley Cup final.
Listed below is the "new conferences";
Conference A
Anaheim, Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Jose, Vancouver
Conference B
Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Minnesota, Nashville, St. Louis, Winnipeg
Conference C
Boston, Buffalo, Florida, Montreal, Ottawa, Tampa Bay, Toronto
Conference D
Carolina, New Jersey, NY Islanders, NY Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington
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