League | National Hockey League |
---|---|
Sport | Ice Hockey |
Founded | 1967 |
Ceased | 1974 |
Replaced by | Campbell Conference |
Most titles | Chicago Black Hawks (3) |
The West Division of the National Hockey League existed from 1967 until 1974 when the league realigned into two conferences of two divisions each.
In 1967 the NHL doubled in size, going from six teams to twelve. The Original Six, as the pre-1967 teams became retroactively known, were grouped into the East Division, while the expansion teams were placed into the new West Division. This was done in order to keep teams of similar competitive strength in the same division, regardless of geographic distance,[1] and to ensure playoff revenue for the new franchises.
When the NHL expanded again in 1970, the two new teams, the Vancouver Canucks and Buffalo Sabres, were placed into the stronger East Division. In an effort to create more balanced competition, the Chicago Black Hawks were transferred into the West Division. When the NHL expanded again in 1972, each division was given one of the expansion clubs, with the New York Islanders joining the East Division and the Atlanta Flames joining the West Division.
By 1974, another two teams (the Washington Capitals and Kansas City Scouts) entered the league, and the league underwent a major overhaul. The East and West Divisions were renamed the Prince of Wales and Clarence Campbell Conferences, respectively, composed of nine teams each. The conferences were further divided into two divisions: the Norris and Adams Divisions for the Wales Conference; the Patrick and Smythe Divisions for the Campbell Conference. Because the Conferences were not composed based on geography, the league opted to name the conferences and divisions after notable persons associated with the NHL.
Contents |
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold
All six teams in this division are added in the expansion.
1967–68 | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Philadelphia Flyers | 74 | 31 | 32 | 11 | 73 | 173 | 179 | 987 |
Los Angeles Kings | 74 | 31 | 33 | 10 | 72 | 200 | 224 | 810 |
St. Louis Blues | 74 | 27 | 31 | 16 | 70 | 177 | 191 | 792 |
Minnesota North Stars | 74 | 27 | 32 | 15 | 69 | 191 | 226 | 738 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 74 | 27 | 34 | 13 | 67 | 195 | 216 | 554 |
Oakland Seals [2] | 74 | 15 | 42 | 17 | 47 | 153 | 219 | 787 |
1968–69 | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
St. Louis Blues | 76 | 37 | 25 | 14 | 88 | 204 | 157 | 838 |
Oakland Seals | 76 | 29 | 36 | 11 | 69 | 219 | 251 | 811 |
Philadelphia Flyers | 76 | 20 | 35 | 21 | 61 | 174 | 225 | 964 |
Los Angeles Kings | 76 | 24 | 42 | 10 | 58 | 185 | 260 | 698 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 76 | 20 | 45 | 11 | 51 | 189 | 252 | 677 |
Minnesota North Stars | 76 | 18 | 43 | 15 | 51 | 189 | 270 | 862 |
1969–70 | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
St. Louis Blues | 76 | 37 | 27 | 12 | 86 | 224 | 179 | 876 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 76 | 26 | 38 | 12 | 64 | 182 | 238 | 1038 |
Minnesota North Stars | 76 | 19 | 35 | 22 | 60 | 224 | 257 | 1008 |
Oakland Seals | 76 | 22 | 40 | 14 | 58 | 169 | 243 | 845 |
Philadelphia Flyers | 76 | 17 | 35 | 24 | 58 | 197 | 225 | 1123 |
Los Angeles Kings | 76 | 14 | 52 | 10 | 38 | 168 | 290 | 969 |
Chicago Blackhawks moved in from the East Division.
1970–71 NHL season | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 49 | 20 | 9 | 107 | 277 | 184 | 1280 |
St. Louis Blues | 78 | 34 | 25 | 19 | 87 | 223 | 208 | 1092 |
Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 28 | 33 | 17 | 73 | 207 | 225 | 1060 |
Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 28 | 34 | 16 | 72 | 191 | 223 | 898 |
Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 25 | 40 | 13 | 63 | 239 | 303 | 775 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 21 | 37 | 20 | 62 | 221 | 240 | 1079 |
California Golden Seals | 78 | 20 | 53 | 5 | 45 | 199 | 320 | 937 |
1971–72 | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 46 | 17 | 15 | 107 | 256 | 166 | 844 |
Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 37 | 29 | 12 | 86 | 212 | 191 | 853 |
St. Louis Blues | 78 | 28 | 39 | 11 | 67 | 208 | 247 | 1150 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 26 | 38 | 14 | 66 | 220 | 258 | 978 |
Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 26 | 38 | 14 | 66 | 200 | 236 | 1233 |
California Golden Seals | 78 | 21 | 39 | 18 | 60 | 216 | 288 | 1007 |
Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 20 | 49 | 9 | 49 | 206 | 305 | 719 |
An expansion team, the Atlanta Flames, are added.
1972–73 | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 42 | 27 | 9 | 93 | 284 | 225 | 864 |
Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 37 | 30 | 11 | 85 | 296 | 256 | 1756 |
Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 37 | 30 | 11 | 85 | 254 | 230 | 881 |
St. Louis Blues | 78 | 32 | 34 | 12 | 76 | 233 | 251 | 1195 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 32 | 37 | 9 | 73 | 257 | 265 | 866 |
Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 31 | 36 | 11 | 73 | 232 | 245 | 888 |
Atlanta Flames | 78 | 25 | 38 | 15 | 65 | 191 | 239 | 852 |
California Golden Seals | 78 | 16 | 46 | 16 | 48 | 213 | 323 | 840 |
1973–74 | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 50 | 16 | 12 | 112 | 273 | 164 | 1750 |
Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 41 | 14 | 23 | 105 | 272 | 164 | 877 |
Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 33 | 33 | 12 | 78 | 233 | 231 | 1055 |
Atlanta Flames | 78 | 30 | 34 | 14 | 74 | 214 | 238 | 841 |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 28 | 41 | 9 | 65 | 242 | 273 | 950 |
St. Louis Blues | 78 | 26 | 40 | 12 | 64 | 206 | 248 | 1147 |
Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 23 | 38 | 17 | 63 | 235 | 275 | 821 |
California Golden Seals | 78 | 13 | 55 | 10 | 36 | 195 | 342 | 651 |
The league was reformatted into two conferences with two divisions each:
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