2011–12 NHL season
The league did not change its divisional structure to accommodate the move, and the Jets took the place of the Thrashers in the Southeast Division.
In December 2011, the board of governors eventually approved a proposed realignment for the following season, which would result in four conferences with the first two rounds of the playoffs being divisional, but this was rejected by the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA).
Atlanta Spirit, LLC, which previously owned the Atlanta Thrashers, sold the team to True North Sports and Entertainment, who relocated them to the True North-owned MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba[1] and renamed the Winnipeg Jets, after a previous NHL team in the market.
[3] The 2011 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 24–25, 2011, at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
The Nashville Predators unveiled new home and away uniforms on June 22, complete with the updated saber-toothed cat logo.
The Florida Panthers made minor changes to their home uniform, using red as the primary and relegating navy blue as a trim color.
The Washington Capitals also promoted their 2011 NHL Winter Classic retro uniforms as their road alternates.
The New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers wore special commemorative uniforms for the 2012 NHL Winter Classic.
The Flyers unveiled theirs on November 21, and is in a classic sweater design in orange featuring black numbers and different striping patterns on the yoke.
The new wording requires the player delivering the check to avoid or minimize contact if the opponent is defenceless.
However, determination if the check is legal will depend on various factors including whether or not the player put himself in a vulnerable position or if the hit was unavoidable.
The deaths of Derek Boogaard, Rick Rypien and Wade Belak led to speculation about the effect of fighting on the mental health of players.
Those who perished in the plane crash included NHL All-Star Pavol Demitra, Alexander Karpovtsev, Igor Korolev, Brad McCrimmon, Karel Rachunek, Ruslan Salei, Karlis Skrastins and Josef Vasicek along with nearly the entire team roster, coaches, and several young prospects.
On October 7, Anaheim played Buffalo at Hartwall Areena in Helsinki, Finland, and Los Angeles faced New York at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.
All four teams played again on October 8 with Los Angeles against Buffalo at the O2 World Arena in Berlin, Germany, and Anaheim against New York in Stockholm.
The 2012 NHL Winter Classic was held at the Citizens Bank Park baseball stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Monday, January 2, 2012.
If the Winter Classic was held on New Year's Day, it would have conflicted with the final game of the National Football League season (in which the Philadelphia Eagles hosted the Washington Redskins at nearby Lincoln Financial Field), and the annual Mummers Parade in downtown Philadelphia.
The two conference winners then advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals, where home ice advantage was awarded to the team that had the better regular season record.
CBC and TSN then split the first three rounds of the playoffs, selecting the rights to individual series using a draft-like setup.
