Tater

March 14th, 2013 at 1:11 PM ^

This is the first decision the league has made involving the Wings that doesn't require them to bend over since the 1950's.  Maybe they have finally forgiven Ted Lindsay for whatever he did to piss off the NHL power structure.

JeepinBen

March 14th, 2013 at 1:17 PM ^

Ted was one of the most instrumental players when it came to forming the Players Association. Jack Adams hated him for it, and Glenn Hall as well, that's why Trader Jack shipped them both to Chicago.

My old goalie coach wrote Hall's authorized biography, http://www.amazon.com/Glenn-Hall-They-Call-Goalie/dp/0970917015 and I recently re-read it. Big section on Ted and Glenn's time in Detroit.

Glenn Hall: The Man They Call Mr. Goalie

Michiganfootball13

March 14th, 2013 at 1:18 PM ^

I completely agree.  The NHL has used the Wings to hold up so many Western Conference teams in the past with their popularity and really have bent the Wings over in every decision.  Now the Wings can play in their own time zone, against teams that actually have fan bases. 

GoWings2008

March 14th, 2013 at 1:12 PM ^

I just hope that the Wings don't get lazy...I've thought for a long time that the West was generally speaking the stronger conference.  Agreed that come playoff time, the times are good and if they can keep their talent level where it always has been, they should have a slightly easier path through the playoffs. 

I am looking forward to a Wings/Tampa Bay (Stevie Y) rivalry.

JeepinBen

March 14th, 2013 at 1:14 PM ^

I feel alone. It was good when we had each other to remember the Original 6 by...

In general, this is a good move for the NHL. It's about time they figured out a way to have every team do a home and home.

SAvoodoo

March 14th, 2013 at 1:15 PM ^

While I'm generally in favor of this, part of me will miss the late night starts.  Every once in a great while I loved staying up way too late drinking beers and watching the wings, knowing full well the next morning would be terribly painful.

Michiganfootball13

March 14th, 2013 at 1:16 PM ^

I am very happy with the realignment!  No more 10:30pm playoff games and now with a ton more Origional 6 games, I think this will really help the interest in hockey.

Kermits Blue Key

March 14th, 2013 at 1:21 PM ^

I was always curious how many more miles the Red Wings travelled during the last 15 years than other hockey teams but was too lazy to do the research. I'm guessing they went to the moon and back 2x more than the next team, playoffs included.

outwest

March 14th, 2013 at 7:16 PM ^

Miles Traveled      

 

                              2011-2012            2010-2011

 

 Detroit Red Wings

42,865                      39,793  

 

 

Just for comparison

 

Los Angeles Kings 55,591                         40,430    

Source: http://www.ontheforecheck.com/2011/6/23/2240779/nhl-travel-miles-by-team-super-schedule

Gobgoblue

March 14th, 2013 at 1:58 PM ^

as (I believe) the team that has to do the most travelling in the league, I'm excited to be able to watch the Wings play at some normal hours of the night.

UMGooch

March 14th, 2013 at 2:32 PM ^

I checked out the other divisions:

 

Division A* Division B*
Anaheim Chicago
Calgary Colorado
Edmonton Dallas
Los Angeles Minnesota
Phoenix Nashville
San Jose St. Louis
Vancouver Winnipeg
Division C* Division D*
Boston Carolina
Buffalo Columbus
Detroit New Jersey
Florida New York Islanders
Montreal New York Rangers
Ottawa Philadelphia
Tampa Bay Pittsburgh
Toronto Washington

I'm totally loving this move. We get to play Toronto and Boston way more often (two original 6'ers), and I get to see more Wings hockey down in Florida!

 

Don

March 14th, 2013 at 4:41 PM ^

but I'd rather stick Columbus in Division B and put the Black Hawks in with the Wings. Then we'd have something we haven't had in many decades: all the original 6 in one conference.