The Pointless Realignment Outpost

[TBGKon]

Not really a realignment more than just a simple adjustment to the playoff format. I was thinking about how MLB's two wildcards in each league face off to eliminate each other in the first round, and applied that to hockey. Plus it would allow Minny to face Winny in the opening round.

Nice try, but no. You cant have the essentiall best two teams per conference (the # 1's) play eachother in Round 1. The setup they have now is pretty much perfect where it creates division rivalries until the conference finals.

[TheLAKnight]

With all of the changes for next season in the AHL, here's how I think the divisions should shake out.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division:

Albany Devils (NJ)

Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI)

Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR)

Portland Pirates (Fla)

Providence Bruins (Bos)

Springfield Falcons (Ari)

St. John's IceCaps (Mtl)

Northeast Division:

Binghamton Senators (Ott)

Hershey Bears (Wsh)

Lehigh-Valley Phantoms (Phi)

Syracuse Crunch (TB)

Rochester Americans (Buf)

Toronto Marlies (TML)

Utica Comets (Van)

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (Pit)

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Midwest Division:

Charlotte Checkers (Car)

Chicago Wolves (StL)

Grand Rapids (Det)

Iowa Wild (Min)

Lake Erie Monsters (Clb)

Manitoba Moose? (Wpg)

Milwaukee Admirals (Nsh)

Rockford IceHogs (Chi)

Pacific Division:

Bakersfield Condors (Edm)

Ontario Reign (LA)

San Antonio Rampage (Col)

San Diego Gulls (Ana)

San Jose Barracudas? (SJ)

Stockton Heat (Cgy)

Texas Stars (Dal)

Of note:

• Even conferences (15 and 15)
• Rochester, Toronto, and Utica in the East
• Alleviates isolation of the 5 California teams
• San Antonio and Texas currently in division with Charlotte, they would go to the west coast instead of east coast
• Charlotte already in the Western Conference
• Italicized teams/affiliates unconfirmed

[BrySmalls]

I find it strange that the closest team to Charlotte is in Hershey, which is 489 miles away!

[Silent Wind of Doom]

A long time ago I'd made up a football-style realignment for baseball and sent it in to Jeff Passan in response to his realignment article he'd written at the time.

To show you how long ago it was, I remarked on the AL South, which allowed either the Rangers, Royals, or Rays to get in the playoffs, something none of them had seriously done in some time. I still wanted to include a wild card, and thought they could take on the lowest seed in a one-three game set. Now we've got two wild cards and I'm unsure as to how I'd apply that, but still, here's my pointless realignment (with changes made for Houston's defection).

American League
East: New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Toronto Blue Jays

North: Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twins, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers

South: Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers, Houston Astros, Tampa Bay Rays

West: Anaheim Angels, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, Las Vegas Superstars

National League
East: New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Washington Nationals

North: Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals

South: Atlanta Braves, Florida Marlins, cincinatti Reds, New Orleans Cajuns

West: Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks

I had to make some tough choices. I felt Cubs-Cards to be more important than Mets-Braves. I kept the leagues intact, but maybe a little later I'll take another pass with whatever league alignment I want. Might as well go the whole nine yards for the hypothetical.

[2001mark]

I had to make some tough choices. I felt Cubs-Cards to be more important than Mets-Braves. I kept the leagues intact, but maybe a little later I'll take another pass with whatever league alignment I want. Might as well go the whole nine yards for the hypothetical.

I've always liked the NFL alignment best.

Anyways, feel free to play with the geography a little for rivalry's sake. We all love the Cowboys in the NFC East not West or South, & the Dolphins in the AFC East not South.

I guess what I'd do is trade your New Orleans for Montreal, move Washington into the South, Montreal the East.

[Evil G]

I'd replace New Orleans and Vegas with San Antonio and Portland.

[generalshepherd141]

This will never happen, but this would be the way I realign the NFL. (San Diego Chargers moved to Los Angeles)

AFC North:

Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers

AFC South:

Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, Tennessee Titans

AFC East:

Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots, New York Jets

AFC West:

Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Chargers, Oakland Raiders, Seattle Seahawks

NFC North:

Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings

NFC South:

Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

NFC East:

Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins

NFC West:

Arizona Cardinals, Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams

[raysox]

I was thinking about MLS expansion, NASL season, and Jurgen Klinsman and came up with a format the MLS could use when they expand to 24 teams.

I really didn’t like the split season the NASL announced a few years ago. I felt like there’s too few of teams and the fact a team leading the standings 1/3rd through the season makes the playoffs. But the break is nice when there are European teams doing tours in the US and Canada, and you could fill that time with training matches and new signings. The MLS wont have pro/rel or one table anytime soon. So I suggest a 34 game season, with a month break for training, friendly matches, and international call ups. The season would be split into 17 games each, with games against each team in your conference, and 6 from the other. You'd play home/away against your conference and 3 home and 3 away interconference games eachhalf. The best 6 teams or whatever in each conference after 34 games would make the playoffs, lasting until November, and making an 11 month soccer calendar and making JK happy.

[2001mark]

So will the Los Angeles Raiders & Los Angeles Chargers be sharing the AFC West for long?

Seems like a bit unbalance for all the other crybaby owners. How about flip the Chargers into the NFC West & throw the Seahawks back into the AFC West?

[raysox]

I was thinking about Indycar, and how uninteresting it is anymore. I feel like too many of the courses are street circuits, and they keep creating gimmicks that cheapen the sport. I say rework the current chasis to handle both road courses and ovals. They would also need to put some limits on the number of drivers in a race and drivers on a team. I feel like this is too inconsistant, and top heavy. So here is my plans. 16 race season with half ovals and half road courses. 22 Full time drivers, no subs for races like the 500. The most drivers on a single team can be 3, except for the Indy 500, where teams can field an extra ride for the 33 car race.

[2001mark]

Quickly on IndyCar, because I know there's already a thread, it sorely needs a greater sense of structure.

As it is, I couldn't tell you when most races are, usually until it's too late & I've missed them.

I admire that they changed the cars up a few years ago now, except road racing looks so awkward. Maybe it's just an illusion based on design, I dunno.

Also - the Indianapolis 500 needs to re-embrace the series & not big time the circuit so much. The 500 field after all is mainly comprised of IndyCar racers, & its results factor into the circuit. Alas, media have done a truly, & I mean truly, piss poor job promoting IndyCar via the Indy 500. How's anyone supposed to get buzz when the 500 treats itself as the Super Bowl of racing... when casual viewers couldn't name more than 1-2x drivers if their lives depended on it, if that.

No IndyCar participation? Guess what Indianapolis... what'cha got now??

To be fair, in my perfect fantasy world, the Indianapolis 500 would command & demand drivers & teams from each IndyCar, NASCAR, & esp. F1.

That would make it the single most unique racing event on the planet. As it was way back in the day, & as it should be... Daytona & Monaco be damned.

[jlog3000]

Here's a silly realignment idea based on a pro basketball league called the 'Liga de Baloncesto Superior Nacional' (or 'National Superior Basketball League' in English). That's how some of current Puerto Rican greats like Carlos Arroyo & J.J. Barea came from before heading to the NBA. So far, it consists of 12 teams, but has like a total of 20 to 30 teams history-wise (most of them either being dormant or no longer active). But anyways, here's the current 2015 league list of teams competing:

Capitanes de Arecibo

Vaqueros de Bayamón

Maratonistas de Coamo

Brujos de Guayama

Mets de Guaynabo

Caciques de Humacao

Atenienses de Manati

Indios de Mayagüez

Leones de Ponce

Piratas de Quebradillas

Atléticos de San Germán

Cangrejeros de Santurce

Then there are a dozen of many other past teams within the league's history such as the following:

Polluelos de Aibonito

Conquistadores de Aguada

Tiburones de Aguadilla

Taínos de Cabo Rojo

Criollos de Caguas

Indios de Canóvanas

Gigantes de Carolina

Toritos de Cayey

Cariduros de Fajardo

Gallitos de Isabela

Titanes de Morovis

Ganduleros de Villalba

Suddenly, by mixing both parts, I would create a super-like BSN league with at least 24 teams, divided in 2 conferences (with 2 divisions each).

1.) BSN Atlantic Conference

1.1.) BSN Atlantic - North Division

Capitanes de Arecibo

Vaqueros de Bayamón

Mets de Guaynabo

Atenienses de Manati

Titanes de Morovis

Cangrejeros de Santurce

1.2.) BSN Atlantic - West Division

Conquistadores de Aguada

Tiburones de Aguadilla

Taínos de Cabo Rojo

Gallitos de Isabela

Piratas de Quebradillas

Indios de Mayagüez

2.) BSN Caribbean Conference

2.1.) BSN Caribbean - East Division

Criollos de Caguas

Indios de Canóvanas

Gigantes de Carolina

Toritos de Cayey

Cariduros de Fajardo

Caciques de Humacao

2.2.) BSN Caribbean - South Division

Polluelos de Aibonito

Maratonistas de Coamo

Brujos de Guayama

Leones de Ponce

Ganduleros de Villalba

Atléticos de San Germán

Any thoughts guys? Oh, to know more about this sports league, check out its website at http://bsnpr.com

[DarkJourney]

This would have been the match-ups if they seeded the NBA playoffs 1-16 on record:

(1) Golden State vs. (16) Boston

(8) Portland vs. (9) Chicago

(4) L.A. Clippers vs. (13) New Orleans

(5) Memphis vs. (12) Washington

(3) Houston vs. (14) Oklahoma City

(6) San Antonio vs. (11) Toronto

(2) Atlanta vs. (15) Milwaukee

(7) Cleveland (10) Dallas

[RoughRiders99]

I have a few concepts of what the league would look like if the Astros stayed in the National League, while one of the following three teams swapped leagues: Rockies, Diamondbacks or Brewers.

Brewers

AL East

Baltimore Orioles

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

Tampa Bay Rays

Toronto Blue Jays

AL Central
Chicago White Sox

Cleveland Indians

Detroit Tigers

Milwaukee Brewers

Minnesota Twins

AL West

Kansas City Royals

Los Angeles Angels

Oakland Athletics

Seattle Mariners

Texas Rangers

NL East

Atlanta Braves

Miami Marlins

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

Washington Nationals

NL Central

Chicago Cubs

Cincinnati Reds

Houston Astros

Pittsburgh Pirates

St. Louis Cardinals

NL West

Arizona Diamondbacks

Colorado Rockies

Los Angeles Dodgers

San Diego Padres

San Francisco Giants

Rockies

AL East

Baltimore Orioles

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

Tampa Bay Rays

Toronto Blue Jays

AL Central
Chicago White Sox

Cleveland Indians

Detroit Tigers

Kansas City Royals

Minnesota Twins

AL West

Colorado Rockies

Los Angeles Angels

Oakland Athletics

Seattle Mariners

Texas Rangers

NL East

Atlanta Braves

Miami Marlins

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

Washington Nationals

NL Central

Chicago Cubs

Cincinnati Reds

Milwaukee Brewers

Pittsburgh Pirates

St. Louis Cardinals

NL West

Arizona Diamondbacks

Houston Astros

Los Angeles Dodgers

San Diego Padres

San Francisco Giants

Diamondbacks

AL East

Baltimore Orioles

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

Tampa Bay Rays

Toronto Blue Jays

AL Central
Chicago White Sox

Cleveland Indians

Detroit Tigers

Kansas City Royals

Minnesota Twins

AL West

Arizona Diamondbacks

Los Angeles Angels

Oakland Athletics

Seattle Mariners

Texas Rangers

NL East

Atlanta Braves

Miami Marlins

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

Washington Nationals

NL Central

Chicago Cubs

Cincinnati Reds

Milwaukee Brewers

Pittsburgh Pirates

St. Louis Cardinals

NL West

Colorado Rockies

Houston Astros

Los Angeles Dodgers

San Diego Padres

San Francisco Giants

[Evil G]

What if the NFL doubled the amount of teams?

• AFC East

  • Brookyln Atlantics (2024)

  • Buffalo Bills

  • Hartford Hurricanes (2040)

  • Miami Dolphins

  • New England Patriots

  • New York Jets

  • Raleigh Racers (2048)

  • Orlando Citrus (2032)

• AFC North

  • Baltimore Ravens

  • Chicago Blitz (2024)

  • Cincinnati Bengals

  • Cleveland Browns

  • Columbus Cannons (2032)

  • Hampton Roads Colonials (2044, formerly Virginia Colonials 2040-2044)

  • Indianapolis Colts

  • Pittsburgh Steelers

• AFC South

  • Austin Artisans (2036, formerly in NFC West)

  • Houston Texans

  • Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Louisville Friars (2040)

  • Nashville Titans (2028, formerly Tennessee Titans 1999-2027)

  • New Mexico Diablos (2048)

  • Oklahoma City Oilers (2032)

  • San Antonio Marshalls (2024)

• AFC West

  • Denver Broncos

  • Fresno Mountaineers (2048)

  • Kansas City Chiefs

  • Los Angeles Raiders

  • Los Angeles Stars (2032, formerly Los Angeles Chargers 2015-2031)

  • San Diego Chargers (2032)

  • Silicon Valley Visionaries (2024)

  • Utah Hornets (2040)

• NFC East

  • Berlin Thunder (2044)

  • Dallas Cowboys

  • Dublin Orangemen (2028)

  • Edinburgh Claymores (2036)

  • London Knights (2020)

  • New York Giants

  • Philadelphia Eagles

  • Washington Warriors

• NFC North

  • Anchorage Gold (2044)

  • Chicago Bears

  • Des Moines Speed (2036)

  • Detroit Lions

  • Grand Rapids Lakers (2028)

  • Green Bay Packers

  • Minnesota Vikings

  • St. Louis Stallions (2020)

• NFC South

  • Arkansas Boulders (2036)

  • Atlanta Falcons

  • Birmingham Bulls (2020)

  • Charlotte Panthers (2048, fomerly Carolina Panthers 1995-2048)

  • Memphis Music (2028)

  • New Orleans Saints

  • Richmond Royals (2044)

  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers

• NFC West

  • Arizona Cardinals

  • Honolulu Tikis (2044)

  • Las Vegas Aces (2048)

  • Los Angeles Rams

  • Portland Pioneers (2028)

  • Sacramento Redwoods (2020)

  • San Francisco 49ers

  • Seattle Seahawks

[2001mark]

Well, you're forgetting the likes of Monterrey, Mexico City, Toronto, Havana, San Juan, Paris, Montreal, Vancouver.... some of which are larger more lucrative markets that some you've added.

[Evil G]

I can get behind the Mexican cities/Havana/San Juan but I don't know, I only wanted 4 Europe teams, and good luck with NFL in Canada (y'know, since there's a CFL).

[Geoff]

You think Canadian fans wouldn't embrace the NFL because the CFL exists? lulz

[TheLAKnight]

With all of the changes for next season in the AHL, here's how I think the divisions should shake out.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division:

Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI)

Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR)

HERSHEY BEARS (Wsh)

LEHIGH VALLEY PHANTOMS (Phi)

Portland Pirates (Fla)

Providence Bruins (Bos)

Springfield Falcons (Ari)

WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON PENGUINS (Pit)

Northeast Division: North Division:

ALBANY DEVILS (NJ)

Binghamton Senators (Ott)

Rochester Americans (Buf)

ST. JOHN'S ICECAPS (Mtl)

Syracuse Crunch (TB)

Toronto Marlies (TML)

Utica Comets (Van)

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Midwest Division: Central Division:

Charlotte Checkers (Car)

Chicago Wolves (StL)

Grand Rapids (Det)

Iowa Wild (Min)

Lake Erie Monsters (Clb)

Manitoba Moose (Wpg)

Milwaukee Admirals (Nsh)

Rockford IceHogs (Chi)

Pacific Division:

Bakersfield Condors (Edm)

Ontario Reign (LA)

San Antonio Rampage (Col)

San Diego Gulls (Ana)

San Jose Barracuda (SJ)

Stockton Heat (Cgy)

Texas Stars (Dal)

Of note:

• Even conferences (15 and 15)
• Rochester, Toronto, and Utica in the East
• Alleviates isolation of the 5 California teams
• San Antonio and Texas currently in division with Charlotte, they would go to the west coast instead of east coast
• Charlotte already in the Western Conference

Not bad. Only 5 teams (ITALICIZED) flipped from original post. Most still make sense, except St. John's but they really don't fit anywhere well.

[DS729]

Contracted NBA (minus Charlotte, Memphis, Minnesota, New Orleans, Orlando, and Toronto)

Atlantic Division:

Boston Celtics

Brooklyn Nets

Miami Heat

New York Knicks

Philadelphia 76ers

Washington Wizards

Central Division:

Atlanta Hawks

Chicago Bulls

Cleveland Cavaliers

Detroit Pistons

Indiana Pacers

Milwaukee Bucks

Pacific Division:

Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Lakers

Phoenix Suns

Portland Trail Blazers

Sacramento Kings

San Francisco Warriors

Southwest Division:

Dallas Mavericks
Denver Nuggets

Houston Rockets

Oklahoma City Thunder

San Antonio Spurs

Utah Jazz

66 game season

-4 games versus each divisional opponent (2 home, 2 away) 20 games.

-2 games versus all teams outside of your division (home, away) 36 games.

-2 additional games versus 5 random opponents outside of your division (home, away) 10 games.

8-team Playoffs, dropped conference alignment, guaranteed spot for any division winner but can be any seed.

Reduces over-saturation of player pool and pulls plug on some of the more financially-troubled teams in the league, none have any championships or have existed before the NBA-ABA merger. Those contracted teams could serve as expansion for the D-League, a place where no one cares about player quality.