Man with all this relocation and expansion talk, why not have an NHL First Division and Second Division and relegate and promote the bottom 3 and top 3 clubs every year.
The entire pool of players are part of the same union and the two divisions operate under the same CBA, but the salary floor is lower for 2nd division clubs. The first division can have 24 clubs and the 2nd division can have 16 clubs and you have 40 clubs total.
I'm certain places like Saskatoon, Hamilton, Surrey and Halifax would be happy to be eternal 2nd divisioners, whereas places like Kansas City, Seattle, Portland, Vegas and Quebec City would consider it a failure each year if they weren't promoted. I'm sure you could even throw in another Texas team and a few in the North East. The drama of watching a potential small town club hoist a Stanley Cup while a traditional big market like the Rangers languish in the 2nd division would be amaze balls if you ask me.
It would sure solve the tanking and lottery issue in a jiffy.
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