Name: LeBrun: The case for more all-Canadian games and why it especially matters to the Jets
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LeBrun: The case for more all-Canadian games and why it especially matters to the Jets

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Mar 20, 2021Gary Bettman is not one to lob out pointless maybes.When the commissioner puts something out there in the public domain, you better believe it’s because he’s been thinking about it and has pretty much made up his mind on it. Or at least 75 percent of it.So when Bettman last week, during his media availability, mentioned the likelihood of going back to the divisional alignment as we knew it before the pandemic, with the potential proviso of more divisional games within that old framework, it put an end not only to the all-Canadian division but perhaps more revealing, even the idea of more all-Canadian games within an unbalanced schedule.That’s the part that really caught the attention of many, including chairman and part-owner Mark Chipman.For starters, no one really believed the all-Canadian division could survive past this season, as fun as it’s been.“I think we’ve all really enjoyed this division this year and the fans that I’ve heard from, and friends and family, it’s been really compelling,’’ Chipman told The Athletic. “So, I think it’s worked. It was the right solution for the challenges that we face this year and it’s really worked well.“However, I don’t think it’s got a life beyond this year.’’But what the Canadian division fuelled in many, including Chipman, was the idea of more all-Canadian games within the overall schedule matrix moving forward. He’s not alone in that. The TV ratings in Canada this season speak to it.But the idea of more all-Canadian games within the old framework appears not to have enough momentum right now where it matters. Although the door isn’t totally closed shut.“The current thinking, for a variety of reasons, is to go back to our normal alignment, but I suppose we will consider what options there may be to tweak it,’’ Bettman said via email when I circled back on the issue.For the Jets, just getting the and Canadiens in a home-and-home in a normal season doesn’t seem like enough.“I think that for us, and I assume that the other Canadian teams feel the same way, there’s something very compelling about playing iconic franchises, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the , and there’s a lot of history here dating back to the Smythe Division days with a lot of people’s recollections drawn to those games against Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver,’’ Chipman said.“So sure, I would love to play the Canadian teams more frequently. The challenge with that is, where do you find the games to do that? Because I would also say we do enjoy and we’ve established some really good rivalries in the Central with Chicago, St. Louis, Minnesota, Nashville and Dallas. So on the one hand, I look forward to returning to that. On the other, I wish there was a way we can play Toronto and Montreal more.”Chipman said it would be great to be able to play all the Canadian teams at least four times each.“I feel it would be great to have more Canadian games next year,” chairman Bob Nicholson added.But as it turns out, this is probably a more sensitive point for the Winnipeg franchise than it is for the other six Canadian teams. Because having more games within the division under the old framework would mean more matchups in the Pacific between Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver and in the Atlantic between Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal.That leaves Winnipeg, however, without any additional Canadian games, given that the Jets are the only Canadian team in the Central.“That’s unfortunate but that’s just the geography that we live in,’’ Chipman said. “It would be great if there was a way to have the best of both worlds,’’ Chipman said. “I’m hopeful that somehow, someway, someday that we can achieve that. But it’s far more complicated than it may appear outwardly, to just all of a sudden change the schedule and geography of the league.’’So to be clear, Chipman isn’t knocking down Bettman’s door. But he has diplomatically raised it with him. He’s sensitive to the delicate nature of putting together a . But he also has a good relationship with the commissioner and he happens to be a member of the Executive Committee on the Board of Governors, the powerful little group that essentially decides many things at the ownership level.The point being, Chipman has a pathway to communicate his feelings in a respectful manner.” I think every owner’s voice, every governor’s voice in the league is heard by Gary and Bill (Daly),’’ Chipman said. “And that’s been the pathway by which I’ve had the conversation. It’s not been by trying to advance this through the Executive Committee, it’s just been an open and candid dialogue with Gary about it. And him respecting the point of view that I’ve advanced and vice versa.“He’s got some very legitimate and compelling challenges that result from trying to even consider a significant change to how the league plays right now.’’Again, if you’re adding more all-Canadian games to the schedule, which games get taken away to balance it out?If the Jets get a few more Leafs games next year, does that mean they don’t get and the or and the as a result?“It’s not a perfect world, scheduling,’’ Chipman said. “So for now, I’m really enjoying the games as I think most fans in Canada are and we’ll enjoy it while it lasts.“And maybe someday, there would be a way to play the Canadian teams more often. That would be my hope.’’(Photo: Dan Hamilton / USA TODAY Sports)

Mar 20, 2021Gary Bettman is not one to lob out pointless maybes.When the commissioner puts something out there in the public domain, you better believe it’s because he’s been thinking about it and has pretty much made up his mind on it. Or at least 75 percent of it.So when Bettman last week, during his media availability, mentioned the likelihood of going back to the divisional alignment as we knew it before the pandemic, with the potential proviso of more divisional games within that old framework, it put an end not only to the all-Canadian division but perhaps more revealing, even the...

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Pierre LeBrun

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LeBrun: The case for more all-Canadian games and why it especially matters to the Jets

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