The NHL's Return to Play format will likely rob hockey fans everywhere of another chapter in the Battle of Alberta. (EricFrancis)
As enticing as a Winnipeg-Calgary play-in series will be, it’s not the all-Canadian matchup hockey fans were hoping for.And while the creative, 24-team playoff structure has plenty of merit and storylines, it drastically reduces the chances that hockey’s most delicious rivalry will be revisited in this summer’s heat.
Not only do both Alberta teams now have to get into the playoffs first, by winning their best of three play-ins, they’d also have to hope for significant upsets all around them to set up a second-round clash with one another, regardless of whether the league decides to re-seed teams every round or go with a bracket system.
“From a fan’s perspective I can see how that would be disappointing,” said Oilers-turned-Flames winger“But from a player’s standpoint, for me, it doesn’t matter who you play and what your journey is to get there, just as long as you get there.”
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