![]() This format also raised the possibility of the strongest teams in the regular season being forced to meet in the early playoff rounds. In both cases, this usually left the other two teams to fight it out for the final playoff spot. In the Patrick Division, the Washington Capitals only missed the playoffs once, the New York Islanders three times, and the Philadelphia Flyers four. In the Adams Division, the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens never missed the playoffs in this format, while the Buffalo Sabres only missed twice. In this format, the division standings tended to be somewhat static, though not quite as static as in the Campbell Conference. The first-round winners met in the Division Finals, and the division final winners met in the conference finals. In the playoff system introduced in 1982, the top four teams in each division made the playoffs. Under this system, the Wales Conference champion, and therefore the winner of the Prince of Wales Trophy, was the team that finished with the best regular season record in the conference.Įver since the introduction of the Conference Finals in 1982, the Prince of Wales Trophy has been presented to the Wales/Eastern Conference playoff champions. As a result, two teams from the same conference could meet in the Stanley Cup Finals, as happened in 1977, 1978, and 1980. Playoff teams were seeded regardless of conference. Prior to 1982, the NHL had a unique playoff system compared to the NFL, NBA. The NHL's playoff system has changed over the years. This divisional realignment will be revisited and possibly altered following the 2015–16 season. The Atlantic Division name was retained, while a new Metropolitan Division was formed. With another realignment prior to the 2013–14 NHL season, the Eastern Conference currently comprises 16 teams in two divisions. Realignment in 1998 added a third division, the Southeast. When the names of conferences and divisions were changed in 1993, the Eastern Conference's divisions became the Atlantic and Northeast. The Wales Conference originally consisted of the Adams Division and the Patrick Division. In 2005, following the lockout, Gary Bettman changed the Eastern Conference logo (along with the Western Conference and NHL logos) to its current form. However, the trophy awarded to the conference champion, the Prince of Wales Trophy, retains some connection to the heritage of the league. Then-new NHL commissioner Gary Bettman made the change to help non-hockey fans better understand the game, as the National Basketball Association, National Football League, and Major League Baseball all use geographic-based names for their conferences and divisions. The names of conferences and divisions were changed in 1993 to reflect their geographic locations. ![]() The conferences and divisions were re-aligned in 1981 to better reflect the geographical locations of the teams, but the existing names were retained with the Wales Conference becoming the conference primarily for the NHL's eastern teams. From 1928 to 1937 the trophy went to the American Division champion, and from 1967 to 1974 it was presented to the East Division champion. During the years when the NHL had no divisions, (i.e., 19 to 1967), the Prince of Wales Trophy was presented to the league's regular-season champion (analogous to today's President's Trophy). (Until 1926, the Stanley Cup was presented to the winner of a post-season playoff between the NHL and Western Hockey League champions.) Since 1926–1927, the Stanley Cup has gone to the NHL's playoff champion. It was originally given to the NHL's champion. The Prince of Wales Trophy dates back to 1925, when it was donated to the League by the then-current Prince of Wales, who later became King Edward VIII. The conference was instead named for the Prince of Wales Trophy. Because the new conferences and divisions had little to do with North American geography, geographical references were removed. Previously known as the Prince of Wales Conference (or Wales Conference for short), it was created in 1974 when the NHL realigned its teams into two conferences and four divisions. Its counterpart is the Western Conference. The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League (NHL) used to divide teams.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |