What we didn't know about the NHL's radical realignment plan, approved by the NHL Board of Governors last month and affecting everything from conference sizes to playoff format: That the National Hockey League Players' Association would refuse to provide its consent, and kill the plan for 2012-13.

Which, in fact, the NHLPA did on Friday. No four unbalanced conferences. No divisional playoffs. The Winnipeg Jets remain in the Southeast. The Dallas Stars remain in the Pacific, and so on.

What we really didn't know about the NHL's radical realignment plan, until the NHLPA and executive director Donald Fehr's rejection of it: That it was a grandiose power play against the players, as Gary Bettman pushed Fehr for the first time and Fehr responded with a left hook that made the fight fans gasp.

From the NHL:

The National Hockey League announced today that it will not move forward with implementation of the realignment plan and modified playoff format recently approved by the NHL Board of Governors for the 2012-13 NHL season because the NHLPA has refused to provide its consent. "It is unfortunate that the NHLPA has unreasonably refused to approve a plan that an overwhelming majority of our clubs voted to support, and that has received such widespread support from our fans and other members of the hockey community, including players," said NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly. "We have now spent the better part of four weeks attempting to satisfy the NHLPA's purported concerns with the plan with no success. Because we have already been forced to delay, and as a result are already late in beginning the process of preparing next season's schedule, we have no choice but to abandon our intention to implement the realignment plan and modified playoff format for next season." "We believe the union acted unreasonably in violation of the league's rights. We intend to evaluate all of our available legal options and to pursue adequate remedies, as appropriate." As a result of the league's decision today, the NHL will maintain its current alignment and playoff format for the 2012-13 season.

So why did the NHLPA refuse to endorse this plan, besides a clear disregard for the league's rights (OK then)? Simple: They felt realignment was unfair and inconsiderate to the players; they weren't given a chance, in their eyes, to help create it; and it communicated that the NHLPA isn't going to be shoved around now or during the CBA talks.

On Monday, Dec. 5, 2011, the NHL's Board of Governors approved a new four-conference format for the league beginning in 2012-13, with two conferences of seven teams and two conferences of eight teams.

Every team in the NHL would have played home-and-home; the Stanley Cup Playoffs would have started inside each conference, with the top four teams squaring off in divisional playoffs.

According to sources with knowledge of the negotiations, the NHL didn't include the NHLPA in the formation of the realignment plan because there was no mandate in the CBA to do so. So the league created the plan, the Board of Governors passed it and the dare was made: Go ahead, kill off something that the majority of hockey teams, fans and media deemed a positive move for the NHL.

But the league eventually needed the NHLPA's consent. It was never a given despite reports to the contrary. So they sent a letter asking for it, and the NHLPA responded by communicating several concerns they had with the now-passed plan:

• The unbalanced conference format, with two divisions of eight teams and two divisions of seven teams. Combined with the return to a four-team "divisional" playoff format, the players felt there was an unfair advantage to teams in the smaller conferences.

• The NHL trumpeted reduced travel for teams; for example, the Detroit Red Wings would only have to make one long swing to California and to Western Canada each season instead of multiple trips.

What the NHLPA wanted: Specific data on what the schedule would look like under this plan, to better understand duration of road trips, for example. What the NHL provided, according to a source with knowledge of the talks: Mileage charts per teams and other formulas. The NHLPA was not pleased.

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