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"&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; Commissioner Gary Bettman officially announced the NHL's long-awaited realignment. (Getty Images)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;By Allan Muir&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Minutes after clearing its system of the Olympic negotiation obstruction, the NHL finally got around to releasing its 2013-14 schedule.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;More on that in a minute.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;First, let's look at the newly revealed names for the divisions created during the latest round of realignment. No surprise that the league ignored the solution supported by a large percentage of fans who wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to honor some of the game's all-time greats. Instead, they looked around and saw that every other North American pro circuit uses geographic designations. So that's what the tag-along NHL did as well. Too bad.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Anyway, Anaheim, Calgary, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Jose and Vancouver will now compete in the Pacific Division.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Chicago, Colorado, Dallas, Minnesota, Nashville, St. Louis and Winnipeg will battle it out in the Central.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Boston, Buffalo, Detroit, Florida, Montreal, Ottawa, Tampa Bay and Toronto will man the Atlantic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;And Carolina, Columbus New Jersey, the Islanders, the Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Washington will represent ... wait for it ... the Metropolitan Division.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Yup. Because no term could possibly give a more specific sense of geography or time zone than &lt;em&gt;Metropolitan&lt;/em&gt;, right.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;And yeah, it was an immediate hit with fans.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;OK, back to the schedule.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The NHL is returning next season to a matrix that sees each team play every other team at least twice, ensuring that fans across the league will finally have a chance to watch all of the game's top stars at least once in person. That move is long overdue.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Beyond that, the whole thing gets a little ... complex. Since the West has 14 teams and the East 16, each employs a different method to divvy up the games. If you're hardcore enough to want to know how it plays out, the NHL explains it here.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We'll break down some of the oddities as we get to spend a little more time with the calendar, but the one thing that always sticks out is back-to-back contests, as in who has the fewest ... and who has the most.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;This year it's the Devils who drew the short straw, getting hammered with a ridiculous 22 back-to-back games. Might see a lot of Cory Schneider/Martin Brodeur combos utilized there to keep the boys from wearing out.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;At the other end of the spectrum, the Avalanche, Jets and Sharks have the fewest with just 10. A reward for the overall mileage they have to put on the tires this year? Maybe.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We break down some of the season's most anticipated games here.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Here are some other key dates to circle on your calendar:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Training camps open:&lt;/strong&gt; Sept. 11&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Exhibition games begin:&lt;/strong&gt; Sept. 13&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Regular season opens:&lt;/strong&gt; Oct. 1&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Hall of Fame Game:&lt;/strong&gt; Nov. 8&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Hockey Day In Canada:&lt;/strong&gt; Jan. 18&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Hockey Weekend Across America:&lt;/strong&gt; Feb. 28 - March 2&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Olympic Break:&lt;/strong&gt; Feb. 9 \u2013 Feb. 25&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Last day of regular season:&lt;/strong&gt; Apr. 13&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Stanley Cup Playoffs begin:&lt;/strong&gt; Apr. 16&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The date of this year's trade deadline hasn't yet been set.&lt;/p&gt;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.si.com/nhl/home-ice/2013/07/19/nhl-announces-schedule-and-new-division-names-spoiler-one-is-brutal>