On Tuesday, Greg Wyshynski reported that the NHL season is expected to be 56 games and begin on January 13. While there has been no official announcement from the NHL yet, it seems as if hockey will be making a return in just over a month. With that being said, there is lots to be done over the next month, including division re-alignment. Rumors have been flying around about an all-Canadian division for months, which would change the rest of the divisions as well. In this article, we will be looking at the Islanders probable division for the 2021 season.

From an NHL team exec this monrning, FWIW: "NHL is season is starting Jan 13th. Confirmed last night. We are going to be playing 56 games."

— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) December 8, 2020

The purpose of changing divisions for a season is to reduce the travel and spread of COVID-19. The NHL found success playing in the bubble, but it may be more difficult with teams heading from arena to arena, so any precautionary measure possible will be taken. Below is a map of the possible divisions we will see in the 2021 season. There are certainly some interesting things to take note of, such as Toronto and Montreal becoming Western Conference teams. Keep in mind, nothing is set in stone yet and this all remains speculation as the NHL and NHLPA have to reach an official agreement, but things are certainly trending in the right direction.

In the potential scenario above, the Metropolitan Division would look somewhat similar to what it was, with the Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres replacing the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Carolina Hurricanes. Other models have the Penguins separated from the Flyers, and the Hurricanes in the division with all the Northeastern teams. In reality, these models are all speculation. On Wednesday, Pierre Lebrun posted a set of potential divisions on Twitter, and for the Islanders, it looks similar to the one outlined in the model above.

Not finalized yet, and still subject to change, but the 2020-21 four-division re-alignment currently looks like this according to sources:

Bos-Buf-NJ-NYI-NYR-Pha-Pgh-Was

Car-CBJ-Det-Chi-Fla-Min-Nas-TB

Ana-Ari-Col-Dal-LA-SJ-STL-VGK

All-Canadian teams

— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) December 9, 2020

Regardless of what the divisions will exactly look like, there are a few main takeaways that can be drawn regarding the New York Islanders.

The Islanders will Share a Division with Familiar Foes

Since the Northeast is so densely populated, there are logically a lot of teams located geographically close together, which is beneficial for the NHL. For the Islanders, this means they will see a lot of familiar faces within the division including the Rangers, Devils, Flyers, and Capitals. The Metropolitan Division teams that will likely realigned include some mixture of Pittsburgh, Columbus, and Carolina. However, the Islanders will be generally familiar with the majority of the teams they play, simply because of the geographical divide. Their rivals with nearby teams shall live on this season.

Boston and Buffalo May Get Involved

The majority of division re-alignment projections have involved the Bruins and the Sabres being in the same division as other Northeastern opponents, which makes sense if an all-Canadian division is being put into effect.

Boston would be a brutal addition to the division, even with Torey Krug signing in St. Louis and Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak expected to be injured the first couple months of the season. The Islanders have struggled with the Bruins immensely in recent memory, and Buffalo got tougher with the additions of Taylor Hall and Eric Staal. All of these games will likely be tight and well-contested.

The Islanders Division is Going to Be Tough

No matter how you slice it, the Islanders division is going to be extremely tough next year. The Flyers, Rangers, and Capitals are a tough group alone, and adding any combination of Carolina, Columbus, or Pittsburgh will solidify the division’s spot as the toughest in hockey. Like always, the Islanders will have to deal with tough competition night in and night out, but they have the ability to rise to the occasion.

John Smark