The New York Rangers’ playoffs hopes just took a big hit

With a COVID-19 related realignment of the NHL, the odds of the New York Rangers making the playoffs took a big hit

Just when it looked like the balance of power was shifting in the Metropolitan Division, giving hope to a possible playoff appearance for the New York Rangers, it looks like there will a realignment of the NHL and the Blueshirts will end up in the toughest division in hockey.

Greg Wyshynski first reported it, Elliotte Friedman confirmed it.  Here is what the 2020-21 NHL will look like:

East Division:

• New York Rangers
• Boston Bruins
• Buffalo Sabres
• Carolina Hurricanes
• New Jersey Devils
• New York Islanders
• Philadelphia Flyers
• Washington Capitals

Canadian Division:

• Calgary Flames
• Edmonton Oilers
• Montreal Canadiens
• Ottawa Senators
• Toronto Maple Leafs
• Vancouver Canucks
• Winnipeg Jets

Central Division:

• Chicago Blackhawks
• Columbus Blue Jackets
• Detroit Red Wing
• Florida Panthers
• Nashville Predators,
• Pittsburgh Penguins
• St. Louis Blues
• Tampa Bay Lightning

West Division:

• Anaheim Duck
• Arizona Coyotes
• Colorado Avalanche
• Dallas Stars
• Los Angeles Kings
• Minnesota Wild
• San Jose Sharks,
• Vegas Golden Knights

How they compare

The difference in quality between these division is startling. Here are the points percentage for the four divisions:

• East Division:    .593
• Central Division:  .554
• Canada Division:  .541
• West Division:  .540

Eight teams in the NHL had a points percentage over .600.  Three are in the East, three in the Central, two in the West and none in Canada.   Five of the top 11 teams in the NHL are in the East.

Looking ahead at 2020-21, arguably, Buffalo is one of the most improved teams in the NHL and could be considered a playoff contender in the Atlantic Division.  The only team in the new East that could have been considered a lock to miss the playoffs were the New Jersey Devils.

In the new  Central, Detroit is awful and teams like Columbus and Pittsburgh are declining.   The West boasts three of the worst teams in the NHL.    The Canada division doesn’t feature a single team that finished with a .600 points percentage.  The best percentage belongs to Edmonton whose .585 percentage was 12th best in the NHL.

It gets worse

You think that’s bad?  It gets worse. Right now it appears that  teams will only play teams within their own divisions in a 60 game season. That means eight games or more against teams in your division.   Yes, Tampa gets to play Detroit eight times.   The Rangers get to play Boston and Washington eight times.

It’s going to be great for rivalries, but the absence of any balance in the makeup of these division is glaring. Face it, in this format, the Rangers are going to be screwed.

Can they fix it?

If the NHL goes with the standard playoff format it will be totally unfair.  That would put the top three teams in each division in the playoffs with two additional wild card teams.   The NHL needs to scrap this completely and try to make playoff participation equitable.  How they do that will be difficult.

A solution would be to forget about geography and the East-West alignment.  Put the Canada Division into a Conference with the East.  Put the Central and West Divisions together.  Then,  allow the top two teams in each division in the playoffs, and then pick the wild card teams from the best of the rest in their conference.

Even that won’t work that well. The Rangers could finish fifth in the East, but lose out on the wild card because the fourth place team in the Canada Division has a better record against weaker competition.

The only solution

The only answer is another expanded post season with a Stanley Cup Qualifier round.  Even in that scenario it’s possible that the worst teams in the East will be better than playoff teams in the other divisions, but their records will be worst due to the level of competition.  Would it be more fair to expand the pool beyond the top 24 teams?

A tough situation

No matter how you look at it, if this divisional alignment is what is adopted, the Rangers are in for a tough season.  They will play more games against better teams than the teams in other divisions.  The only good news is that their cohorts in the East will be in the same boat.

Chalk it up to another consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Now it will be up to coach David Quinn and his players to see if they beat the odds and overcome the challenges presented by what looks like will be almost impossible odds.  Can they do it?  Absolutely.  Just another story line that will make this season the most fascinating in franchise history.