What if the NHL Divisions Were Based on TV Markets?

What if the National Hockey League shook things up, not for geography, travel, tradition, or us fans, but instead purely for television ratings?

Back when there was still the possibility of an all-Canadian Stanley Cup Final (not to mention the chance of a semifinal featuring 3 of the final four clubs based up north), I got to thinkin’ about how the NHL (and more specifically, their U.S. television rights holders) would probably not be too keen on such a scenario.

“So,” I wondered, “is there a way to lay out the league in a way that guarantees various markets/regions or fanbases made it deep into the Stanley Cup Playoffs while eliminating the chances of a market over-representation?” I didn’t know, so I decided to find out.

While we read, let’s remember that those who write fantasy realignment articles do not necessarily endorse the mock realignments they present. Toss your tomatoes elsewhere, Tommy.

For my concept, I created four divisions of eight teams each: two divisions (one east, one west) comprised entirely of the top TV markets in well-established NHL markets, one division made up of the teams in Canada, and finally, one division that was the eight most recent NHL markets. This gives us a final four of Big Market East, Big Market West, Canada/North, and “Newer” NHL Market every year.

BIG MARKET EAST: Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals

The “Big Market East” Division (we’ll probably need a better name for these) lines up all those East Coast TV market heavyweights: the New York Rangers, New York Islanders, and New Jersey Devils represent the New York City area, with Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington, and Detroit serving as suitable backup plans in case the NHL doesn’t get a team from NYC in there.

BIG MARKET WEST: Anaheim Ducks, Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues

Over in “Big Market West,” you’ve got the lucrative TV markets in the L.A. and Bay Areas, plus Chicago and Dallas-Fort Worth, making up over half of the possible teams to make it into the final four. The other three represent Denver, Minneapolis-St. Paul and the St. Louis markets, which aren’t exactly terrible options. This is when we start to see some less-than-ideal travel options, such as Chicago-Los Angeles, but if you thought that travel was bad, just wait, it gets worse…

NORTHERN MARKETS: Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets

What do we do about only seven teams in Canada? Despite it eliminating a 100% guarantee of a Canadian team in the final four, I guess I had to toss Buffalo in there to keep the divisions Even Stevens (or, you could swap them with Detroit, or you could move Buffalo to a nine-team Big East and keep Canada at seven teams — you can do whatever you want, this is just fantasy after all). This division would undoubtedly make the folks over at Sportsnet quite happy after they just coughed up $11 billion for the NHL’s northern TV rights. Travel starts to really get to be a headache here – Montreal to Vancouver? Eek.

“NEWER” MARKETS: Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Seattle Kraken, Tampa Bay Lightning, Utah Mammoth, Vegas Golden Knights

That leaves a final division of the NHL’s “newer” markets (yes, I’m aware some of these markets are over three decades old, hence the quotes; I had to tag it with something). A “Newer” Market division guarantees at least half of the eight recent markets to join the league and get into the playoffs, and that one will make it to at least the third round — not a bad way to continue to increase interest in these always-growing fanbases. But, more here than in any other division, the travel is a nightmare. Who’s ready for multiple Florida-to-Seattle road trips each season? Yikes!

Using the success of the teams in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs as a guide, we could’ve ended up with a final four of Dallas (Big Market West), Edmonton (Northern), Washington (Big Market East), and then let’s say Florida (“Newer” Market). Is that better, TV-ratings-wise, than what we have IRL with Carolina, Dallas, Edmonton, and Florida? I really don’t know; at this point, I’m just trying to pad the article to justify the timesink.

**A theoretical 2025 Stanley Cup Playoff bracket using the TV market realignment**

Looking at the theoretical 2025 bracket, using these divisions but with actual 2024-25 NHL point totals, we would see a second New York team added to the postseason along with Detroit, but at the expense of St. Louis and Montreal.

No, the NHL isn’t planning this, but if the league ever decides to go all-in on officially making this game a TV-first product, a realignment like this might be the way to do it. Of course, a truly TV-first league would also require new teams to be located in Atlanta, Houston, Phoenix, and maybe even a second in Toronto, which would likely move us into an eight-division league and throw this whole thing into further chaos.

Pretend you’re a TV executive for a second, how do you feel about this plan? Share your thoughts or your adjustments to this plan in the comments.