The History of the Smythe Division

Each of the four classic divisions had a special attribute. The Adams Division had an even mix of Original Six and WHA flavor, plus there was the fact that none of the teams involved liked the Bruins. The Patrick Division struck a huge blow for pro sports in the Mid-Atlantic region. The Norris Division was quite the classic division, mainly because three of the teams were in the Original Six. All three divisions had their special features and their stories to tell.

And then, there's the Smythe Division. Oh boy!

First off, the Smythe Division was named after the iconic Conn Smythe, the long time owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and whose name is also on the trophy that is awarded to the MVP of the entire Stanley Cup Playoffs. The founding members of the Smythe Division were the Chicago Blackhawks, the Kansas City Scouts, the Minnesota North Stars, the St. Louis Blues, and the Vancouver Canucks. The Blackhawks were the lone Original Six team, the North Stars and Blues were part of the 1967 expansion, the Canucks debuted in 1970, and the Scouts began play in 1974--the same year that these divisions were formed. After two seasons in Kansas City, the Scouts moved to Denver and became the Colorado Rockies. Even so, these five teams were together in the Smythe for the first four seasons, until the North Stars took the Cleveland Barons' place in the Adams Division due to the teams merging.

The 1979-80 season was the year that the NHL merged with the WHA, and regarding the Smythe, two WHA teams, the Edmonton Oilers and the Winnipeg Jets, joined the division, giving them six teams. The first champions of the Smythe were the Canucks, but the next six years saw either the Blackhawks or Blues win the division. The 1981-82 season was the beginning of the divisional playoff format, and in that year, the Blues, Blackhawks, and Jets headed to the Norris, while the Calgary Flames and the Los Angeles Kings joined the Smythe. While the Oilers (much more on them later) would finish first in the Smythe that year, it would be the Canucks who would win the division's first playoff championship; sweeping the Flames (best-of-five Smythe Semifinal) and ousting the Kings (Smythe Final). The Canucks defeated the Blackhawks in the Campbell Final to reach the Stanley Cup Final (the Smythe's first Cup Final appearance), only to become the third team to fall to the Islanders.

In the following year, the Colorado Rockies moved to New Jersey and became the Devils, and also moved to the Patrick Division, allowing the Winnipeg Jets to return to the Smythe Division and give us the most familiar incarnation of the division, which had the Kings as the Smythe's lone American franchise. The Kings, unfortunately, were also the only Smythe team who was out of the loop that year, as the Canadian franchises qualified, with the Oilers finishing first and going all the way to the Cup Final, where the Islanders beat them to remain on top for another year.

Apparently, the Oilers took that personally.

The province of Alberta took over the Smythe from that point on, with Edmonton's back-to-back division titles being the beginning. After their Cup Final loss to the Islanders, the Oilers decided to actually improve from their already stellar previous season. Led by Mark Messier, Jari Kurri, and some punk kid named Wayne Gretzky, the Oilers won 56 games and racked up 119 points for the league's best record. Edmonton's postseason would see them back in the Cup Final and in a rematch with the Islanders, who were looking to win their fifth straight Cup! This time, the Oilers would stand tall and defeat the Isles to win their first Cup; becoming the first of the four WHA teams to win the Stanley Cup.

The Oilers would repeat as Cup Champions in the following year, this time defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in that year's Cup Final. 1985-86 would see the Oilers finish first in the Smythe again, but this time, after sweeping the Canucks in the Smythe Semifinal, they would be ousted and dethroned by their provincial rivals, the Flames, who actually went on to defeat the St. Louis Blues in the Campbell Final to reach the Cup Final for the first time in franchise history, only for the Canadiens to defeat them. Edmonton would take the Smythe once more and turn that into another Cup, but during the three seasons that followed, Calgary would finish first in the Smythe. However, the Oilers would win the Cup two of those three times, with the Flames finally winning one in 1989.

Alberta's dominance of the Smythe Division ended in the 1990-91 season, when the Los Angeles Kings (with that Wayne Gretzky guy) became the first American team to finish first in the Smythe since the Blues did so in 1980-81. LA's playoff run came to an abrupt end when they lost the Smythe Final to the defending champion Oilers. The Oilers ended up losing the Campbell Final to the Minnesota North Stars--the first time in this format that a Smythe team failed to reach the Cup Final.

During the Smythe Division's final two seasons, it was the Canucks' turn to take the mantle, while the expansion San Jose Sharks also joined the division. 1991-92 saw the Canucks finish first in the Smythe for the first time since the division's inaugural year, but both years saw Vancouver's run end in the Smythe Final. In 1991-92, it was the Oilers who ousted them. In 1992-93, they were defeated by the Kings, who were making their stunning and improbable run to the Cup Final, getting their after beating the Toronto Maple Leafs in a seven-game Campbell Final. LA only lasted five games before being defeated by the Canadiens.

The Smythe Division was renamed the Pacific Division in 1993-94, with the Winnipeg Jets being moved to the renamed Central Division, while that year saw the debut of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, who were placed in the Pacific Division. When the divisions were realigned in 1998-99, the Northwest Division was established as a direct descendant of the Smythe, as the original Northwest Division featured the Western Canada teams and a team from Colorado, only this time, it was the Avalanche. The Oilers won the Smythe six times, while the Blackhawks won the division four times, the Canucks and Flames three times each, the Blues twice, and the Kings only once. The Smythe won six Stanley Cups in a seven season span, with five of them belonging to the Oilers, while the Flames had their 1989 Cup.

The current eight-team Pacific Division serves as the current descendant of the Smythe Division, as four of the five core Smythe teams are together in the Pacific Division, though until the 2021-22 season, the Arizona Coyotes (the original Winnipeg Jets) were part of the Pacific Division. The Smythe Division was basically the Wayne Gretzky division, as the division's tenure saw The Great One with the Oilers and the Kings. Also, it was the division that featured the Battle of Alberta rivalry, though basically, all of the other Smythe teams were looking to take down the powerhouse Oilers. The 2013 realignment gave us a chance to see those Western Canada teams and the Kings go through each other again, the Sharks only had two years in the Smythe, but they still represent that old division well, and the other three teams (Ducks, Golden Knights, and Kraken) embody the spirit of the old Smythe despite having debuted in 1993 or later. Much like the Adams, Patrick, and Norris, the Smythe Division never really went away--it was simply retooled and modified.