Hockey is finally upon us after a four-month lockout, with the NHL beginning its abbreviated 48-game schedule Saturday. To compensate for the shortened season, teams will only play opponents from their respective conferences.

If you play for an Eastern Conference squad, this is a pretty nice deal. But Western Conference players may want to invest in a comfy neck pillow—they'll be spending a lot of time on airplanes. The average Western Conference team will travel 26,093 miles, led by the Minnesota Wild with 31,273. That's...