Oh you can feel it in the air. When the Nashville Predators come to the United Center, throw away the records. When these rivals clash, it's old time hockey!

Yawn.

So is Gary Bettman's "rivalry development" working yet? I didn't think so.

The Commish was (and still is) convinced that rivalries are coming for teams like Nashville, Atlanta, Phoenix, Florida, Tampa Bay and the rest of the expansion crap teams. They aren't.

Eleven years into the existence of the Nashville Predators, they remain the Blackhawks' least interesting divisional opponent.

Believe it or not, they SHOULD be rivals. The Predators are a physical team who have always been a thorn in the side of the Hawks. Many former Hawks, including Steve Sullivan, Scott Nichol, and JP Dumont play or have played there. All the ingredients for a rivalry are there. All that's missing is a playoff series.

So why are Predators so uninteresting? They've been competitive at times. They've battled the Hawks for playoff spots before.

The answer is Nashville. At least to me, there is a mental block that a team from Nashville Tennessee doesn't frickin' matter. It's the most un-hockey place on the planet.

Hell, when the Preds score they play Tim McGraw's, "I Like It, I Love It, I Want Some More of It" song. Way to buck the stereotype hill rods.

I simply can not get excited about a game against the Predators. There will never be a rivalry between these two teams...ever. As long as the Red Wings, Blues, Avalanche, and the other Original Six teams are in existence, the Preds won't matter.

So what's the answer? Likely, there isn't a realistic one. Gary Bettman would never contract a team. The Phoenix Coyotes are bankrupt and playing in front of an empty arena, as everyone predicted. So what did the NHL do? They didn't sell them, even though a group from Alberta wanted to move the team to Canada. They BOUGHT them, and now the NHL controls them. Ridiculous.

Here's what I would do if contraction isn't an option: Original Six Division. Put all 6 original NHL franchises in one division, and let the lesser teams develop their own rivalries.

Change the names of the Eastern and Western Conferences back to the Campbell and Prince of Wales Conferences. That way, you wouldn't have to worry about regional alignments.

Campbell Conference:

The Original Six Division:

Chicago Blackhawks

Detroit Red Wings

Montreal Canadiens

Boston Bruins

New York Rangers

Toronto Maple Leafs

Division 2:

Vancouver Canucks

San Jose Sharks

Anaheim Ducks

LA Kings

Edmonton Oilers

Division 3:

Calgary Flames

Colorado Avalanche

Phoenix Coyotes

Dallas Stars

Wales Conference:

Division 1:

Minnesota Wild

Nashville Predators

St. Louis Blues

Columbus Blue Jackets

Division 2:

Washington Capitals

Atlanta Thrashers

Carolina Hurricanes

Florida Panthers

Tampa Bay Lightning

Division 3:

Ottawa Senators

New York Islanders

Pittsburgh Penguins

Buffalo Sabres

Philadelphia Flyers

New Jersey Devils

Thoughts? Please share them. It's just a brainstorm by a hockey nut, but I think it could be a good thing. Obviously, a scheduling system would need to be perfected, with unbalanced divisions, but I think the pros outweigh the cons for sure. I'm sure there are more holes in this theory than in Steve Passmore's glove hand, but hell...it's a start.

