The problem is that certain divisions end up stronger than the other. All three teams from the Atlantic this year finished better than any team in the Metro. Central had the top 2 teams in the entire league. Last year, it was the Metro that got screwed.
There's no perfect scenario, but maybe it's time to go back to a straight 1-8 rating? Perhaps with the caveat that the two divisional winners get the top 2 seeds, then re-seed spots 3-8 after that regardless of division. At the very least, re-seed after round 1. The current format goes across divisions to favour the lower standing teams (ie, if 5th place in one division is 8th in the conference, they get the last spot). The league should extend that to favoring a format that goes across divisions to favour the higher performing teams as well.
Like I said, I understand why some folks don't like the division-based format, but the part that I bolded is the most significant thing. "Perfect" is in the eye of the beholder, and there's no format that will work "perfectly" every year. The division-based format allows for traditional rivalries in the first two rounds more so than a conference-based format. And why is conference-based any better than division-based? I'm not a big NBA fan, but I've heard a lot of folks complaining for a few years that the playoffs should take the top 16 teams in the league, regardless of conference.
For me, I like the division-based format because of the reason I mentioned in the prior paragraph and because it's what existed when I became a fan of the NHL. I thought it was "weird" when they got rid of the Smythe, Norris, Patrick and Adams Divisions and the Campbell and Wales Conferences. When the NHL re-aligned back into four divisions, I was hoping they'd revert back to those names, but alas.
Ultimately, my (meaningless) vote is to stop tinkering.
Topic: Official 2017-2018 NHL Thread v. Break the Ice (Read 95142 times)
