Northwest Division (NHL)

The NHL's Northwest Division was formed in 1998 as part of the Western Conference due to expansion. The teams in the Pacific Division were split up, with the Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers, and the Vancouver Canucks becoming the newly formed Northwest Division. The Minnesota Wild joined the division in 2000 as an expansion team. Like the Pacific Division, the Northwest Division is also a descendant of the former Smythe Division, as three of its Canadian teams played in that division from 1981 to 1993.
The Northwest Division existed for 14 seasons (not including the cancelled 2004–05 season) until 2013. During that time, it had the greatest distances between teams in the entire NHL.
Division lineups.
After the 2012–13 season.
The Northwest Division was dissolved as the league realigned into two conferences with two divisions each. The division's Canadian teams (the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, and Vancouver Canucks) returned to the Pacific Division, while the division's American teams (the Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Wild) joined the Central Division.