Realignment Assignment

Yes, the title rhymes, big whoop, wanna fight about it??

Anyway, stupid Eric Francis was on last night's Hockey Night in Canada Hot Stove segment (what'd he have to do to get that??) and he said that should the Atlanta Thrasher relocation-- not only would they have three weeks to do it, that the Detroit Red Wings wouldn't be moving to the East because it would take a Board of Governors vote and he claims that they wouldn't be able to do it in time for next season.

First off, stupid Francis doesn't realize this is the NHL-- they can do whatever they want, whenever they want and in as little time as possible. If they want to move the team, they'll have to have a vote on that, right?? Why wouldn't you actually vote on conference change as well?? Moron.

Secondly, I'll never understand why the Red Wings should be in the Eastern Conference. Sure, their fans would love it because the Western Conference is a tough conference, not just in competition, but also because of the fact of the travel isn't that rough. It's much easier for the Wings to have a field day in the East and be in contention every year. However, if the Red Wings leave, you put the Blackhawks as the only Original Six in the West and that rivalry will diminish slightly because of the infrequency of meetings.

For me, and I've said this on here and on The Show, the Columbus Blue Jackets should be moved over to the East. This way, I think they can compete a little better because the Jackets are a young team and follow into the Eastern "style", as it were. Not to mention, they're geographically closer to the Eastern Conference teams than the Red Wings; the fact they would have a hope at a playoff shot, would get the likes of Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby go into their barn more frequently (bringing the people in), and could be more desirable to a player who wants to be in the East, but with a team who has a chance of making the playoffs. The Jackets have a lot of cap room and plenty to build on.

You can read more about the ripple effect this could cause from other aspects on Pro Hockey Talk, but still-- I think if Atlanta moves and Winnipeg is the destination; Columbus goes to the East in the Atlantic, Philadelphia goes to the Southeast; Winnipeg to the Central. Logistically, it makes sense and I think it could very well go off without a hitch, but PHT does tease other things and is worth the read.

In the end, the Red Wings shouldn't be left as the only Eastern Time Zone team in the West, but at the same time; there's so many rivalries they have out West to pick from with the Wings-- it'll take a hit when it comes to Western rivalries.

Friday Five: Lingering Over the Panic Button

It was kind of a slow week writing on TSOoA, but that's the breaks some week. Luckily, we can round out some of the stories in one fine package here with the F5.

1. Lou Lamoriello said that John MacLean doesn't have to worry about getting fired. Coming from Lou, how worried are you about this vote of confidence??

The "Vote of Confidence" is almost always a death kiss for some coaches, but I think this could be genuine for MacLean....at least from Lamoriello. He's the guy who really put MacLean in a roster squeeze with his deals. Plus, he's a first year guy still trying to get the hang of this thing, so to fire him after 10 games seems a bit extreme. Not saying that owner Jeff Vanderbeek couldn't overrule and get rid of them both, but it'd be pretty crazy to do that knowing how rough it is to deal with a team that's flying so close to the salary sun on paper wings...or something.

2. If not MacLean, who would be the first coach in the hot seat for being replaced??

There's not one coach out there who I think could be in-danger, but not saying a team couldn't pull one out of left field. There's a lot of guys who are under pressure, but I don't know if 10 games is really the starting point to be threatening jobs. That said, I believe that after ten games, the kid gloves are going to be taken off and that the coaches are going to have to adjust on the fly very quickly and start to produce results or else risk getting the ax.

3. As it stands right now, all the Central Division teams are in the playoffs in the West. How long can this hold up for this division??

You have to expect the Columbus Blue Jackets to really drop off if any of the Central teams drop off, but they have a strong division. Home of the Cup champion Blackhawks, the Blues are looking like a team off the fringe loop with Jaro Halak in net now, the Red Wings-- regardless of age-- always seem strong, and the first-place Predators seem to have found their stride and really look like they are going to make a strong run, if they can stay healthy. With a lapse in other divisions, you can say that the Central is the hardest division to play in right now.

4. Is there ever going to be a chance where all five teams from a division make it into the playoffs??

It could happen this year, if the Blue Jackets can keep stride for stride, but it's a difficult task. The other teams definitely have to really tank out in a conference for a single division to run the table and have over 50% of the playoff teams. If that does happen, you have to wonder if the NHL would worry-- they want parity and having all teams in a division in the playoffs-- I don't see that as having too much parity. Of course, that division could rightfully claim the best division in the league-- so that's something.

5. With some people claiming victory in the Tyler Seguin/Phil Kessel trade; when can you actually declare victory in any deal??

It's definitely silly to battle on a trade after one game, but in the long-run the overall numbers could be a factor, but you should have to factor in head-to-head in all of that. Luckily, both Seguin and Kessel are young enough and will face-off against each other a lot while being in the same division, but I don't know how you can truly gauge a trade unless you use WhatIf Sports in order to put them in different scenarios with the team they would have been on if the trade didn't happen; but it's tough to definitely value a trade like that.

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That's another week in the books, if you have any topics or whatever, email Scotty.Wazz@Gmail.com to put your two-cents in or something. Like I say, if you don't like these topics and didn't contribute.....well, you should have done more to contribute. Jerkstores.

Bubble Boys-- Central Division

John B. L. Soule coined the phrase, "Go West, Young Man" and we shall with this gimmick, as we get back to the bubble players, now in the Western Conference, but still going East to West. That's why we start with the Central Division.

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS: While many are split on what to do with Kyle Beach, he could be challenging for the final left wing spot, just to add an antagonist to the line-up. However, will the headache of Beach's past be worth giving him a spot, regardless of how good he plays in training camp. Another match-up to look to in the later months will be between Troy Brouwer and Jack Skille, who will be trying to get into the everyday line-up when Marian Hossa comes back into the fold, especially since Adam Burish is done for six months with an ACL tear.

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS: While the team may be set, especially with the addition of Sami Pahlsson, the battle for the last center spot will be down to Andrew Murray and Michael Blunden, the latter performing well last year in the minors and could be doing enough to get an everyday spot. The rest of the line-up seems pretty set, though Grant Clitsome could get some time defensively with the big club, which would be fantastic for jersey sales of his.

DETROIT RED WINGS: With the departure of Marian Hossa and Mikael Samuelsson, it's finally the time for Justin Abdelkader time. Also known as "Afro Gator," Abdelkader played solidly in the playoffs for the Wings and will be the energy guy for the Wings in years to come. Newcomers Kris Newbury and Jeremy Williams will be duking it out for the final spot on the left-hand side, while Jimmy Howard could be looking over his shoulder at Daniel Larsson or some other free agent for the back-up spot to Chris Osgood.

NASHVILLE PREDATORS: Kevin Klein could be on the hot-seat back on the blue line with Jonathan Blum, Cody Franson, and Alexander Sulzer coming up through the ranks and seem to be ready right now. Though Klein was a regular, the Preds may not be ready to hold them back. Also, I wouldn't be surprised to see Cal O'Reilly challenge Jerred Smithson for the final center slot on the everyday line-up.
ST. LOUIS BLUES: It could be time for Alex Pietrangelo to crack the line-up, which could spell curtains with Roman Polak or Mike Weaver. Of course, they have to hope Pietrangelo can stay out of harms way, unlike last season, and he should be fine. In the opening of the card, you can bet that Cam Janssen and B.J. Crombeen will be duking it out to be the enforcer for the Blues. Ben Bishop could challenge Ty Conklin for the back-up role; but it's not likely he'll be successful, even though he could be legally classified as a giant.

Next stop, Northwest Division because the next closest team is in said division. Fantastic.