There are some unique issues facing the New York Rangers
The NHL Owners and the NHL Players Association have a tentative agreement on a Return to Play plan, pending an approval vote. With a plan set for a 56 game season beginning on January 13, it will affect various teams in different ways. Here’s how it impacts the Rangers.
A tough division
The divisional structure is set, although there are still issues in Canada. Right now, the Rangers will be in an eight team division with Boston, Buffalo, New Jersey, Islanders, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Washington. It’s acknowledged through the hockey world that this is the toughest of the four divisions.
To make matters even harder, only one team will come of the the division to make the Stanley Cup Semi-Finals. There appears to be no plan for expanded playoffs, it will be a dogfight to make it into the top four of each division followed by another dogfight to be the team that comes out of the division.
If the Rangers can make it to the final four, they will deserve it. In the meantime, it’s a division replete with longtime rivalries and there will be a lot of great hockey to watch. The Rangers will play each team eight times, four home and four away.
The last time teams played as many as eight times against any one team was in the 2007-08 season when the Blueshirts played teams in the Atlantic Division eight times.
The only question is in Canada where the NHL will have to get permission for teams to play and also travel between provinces. If that doesn’t happen, the Canadian teams will likely relocated to markets in the United States.
The Toronto Blue Jays played their home games in Buffalo this summer and the Raptors will be based in Tampa. That’s due to the restrictions on teams traveling into Canada. In the NHL’s case the league will need to get permission from local authorities in five provinces (Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec) for them to play games.
If that doesn’t happen, the league will have to tear up the proposed divisional structure and start from scratch.