The National Hockey League's Norris Division was formed in 1974 as part of the Prince of Wales Conference. When the NHL realigned into geographic divisions in 1981, the division moved to the Clarence Campbell Conference, where it comprised the league's Great Lakes and Midwest teams, with the Detroit Red Wings being the only member to remain from the previous season. The division existed for 19 seasons until 1993. The division was named after James E. Norris, longtime owner of the Red Wings. It is the forerunner of the NHL's Central Division. Intense rivalries developed between its constituent teams, which through the 1980s were noted for enforcer-heavy squads that had poor performances – qualifying for the playoffs with .500 points percentages, and achieving no Stanley Cup titles or appearances in the finals – but great local popularity.HOW THEY BORE US IN THE NORRIS, Sports IllustratedGet in the Ring: Celebrating the ’88-’89 Red Wings, GrantlandThe Norris Division Has Gone Respectable, The Hockey News Despite the division's reputation, the 1985–86 St. Louis Blues made an impressive Cinderella run by reaching the Conference Finals where it took the Calgary Flames 7 games to dispatch them following the Monday Night Miracle, and the 1990–91 Minnesota North Stars reached the Stanley Cup Finals.
As part of his shtick, ESPN's Chris Berman often refers to the National Football League's NFC North division (previously the NFC Central division) as the Norris Division or "NFC Norris" since the two divisions included teams from three of the same cities: Chicago, Detroit, and Minneapolis–St. Paul. The Tampa Bay Area was also briefly represented in both divisions simultaneously, during the 1992–93 NHL season.
Division lineups
1974–1979
Detroit Red Wings Los Angeles Kings Montreal Canadiens Pittsburgh Penguins Washington Capitals
Changes from the 1973–74 season The Norris Division is formed as a result of NHL realignment The Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens come from the East Division The Los Angeles Kings and Pittsburgh Penguins come from the West Division The Washington Capitals are added as an expansion team
1979–1981
Detroit Red Wings Hartford Whalers Los Angeles Kings Montreal Canadiens Pittsburgh Penguins
Changes from the 1978–79 season The Hartford Whalers are granted entry into the NHL from the World Hockey Association (WHA) The Washington Capitals move to the Patrick Division
1981–1982
Chicago Black Hawks Detroit Red Wings Minnesota North Stars St. Louis Blues Toronto Maple Leafs Winnipeg Jets
Changes from the 1980–81 season The Norris Division switches from the Prince of Wales Conference to the Clarence Campbell Conference The Hartford Whalers and Montreal Canadiens move to the Adams Division The Pittsburgh Penguins move to the Patrick Division The Los Angeles Kings move to the Smythe Division The Minnesota North Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs come from the Adams Division The Chicago Black Hawks, St. Louis Blues, and Winnipeg Jets come from the Smythe Division
1982–1986
Chicago Black Hawks Detroit Red Wings Minnesota North Stars St. Louis Blues Toronto Maple Leafs
Changes from the 1981–82 season The Winnipeg Jets move back to the Smythe Division
1986–1992
Chicago Blackhawks Detroit Red Wings Minnesota North Stars St. Louis Blues Toronto Maple Leafs
Changes from the 1985–86 season Chicago changes their team name from the Black Hawks to the Blackhawks
1992–1993
Chicago Blackhawks Detroit Red Wings Minnesota North Stars St. Louis Blues Tampa Bay Lightning Toronto Maple Leafs
Changes from the 1991–92 season The Tampa Bay Lightning are added as an expansion team
After the 1992–93 season The league was reformatted into two conferences with two divisions each: Eastern Conference Atlantic Division Northeast Division Western Conference Central Division Pacific Division
Season results (#) Denotes team that won the Stanley Cup (#) Denotes team that won the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl, but lost Stanley Cup Final (#) Denotes team that qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs‡ Denotes team with most points in the regular season (winner of the Presidents' Trophy since 1985–86) Season 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th1974–75(DC) Montreal (113)(1) Los Angeles (105)(3) Pittsburgh (89)Detroit (58)Washington (21)1975–76(DC) Montreal (127)‡(3) Los Angeles (85)(5) Pittsburgh (82)Detroit (62)Washington (32)1976–77(DC) Montreal (132)‡(3) Los Angeles (83)(4) Pittsburgh (81)Washington (62)Detroit (41)1977–78(DC) Montreal (129)‡(5) Detroit (78)(6) Los Angeles (77)Pittsburgh (68)Washington (48)1978–79(DC) Montreal (115)(5) Pittsburgh (85)(7) Los Angeles (80)Washington (63)Detroit (62)1979–80(3) Montreal (107)(12) Los Angeles (74)(13) Pittsburgh (73)(14) Hartford (73)Detroit (63)1980–81(3) Montreal (103)(4) Los Angeles (99)(15) Pittsburgh (73)Hartford (60)Detroit (56)1981–82Minnesota (94)Winnipeg (80)St. Louis (72)Chicago (72)Toronto (56)Detroit (54)1982–83Chicago (104)Minnesota (96)Toronto (68)St. Louis (65)Detroit (57)1983–84Minnesota (88)St. Louis (71)Detroit (69)Chicago (68)Toronto (61)1984–85St. Louis (86)Chicago (83)Detroit (66)Minnesota (62)Toronto (48)1985–86 Chicago (86)Minnesota (85)St. Louis (83)Toronto (57)Detroit (40)1986–87St. Louis (79)Detroit (78)Chicago (72)Toronto (70)Minnesota (70)1987–88Detroit (93)St. Louis (76)Chicago (69)Toronto (52)Minnesota (51)1988–89Detroit (80)St. Louis (78)Minnesota (70)Chicago (66)Toronto (62)1989–90Chicago (88)St. Louis (83)Toronto (80)Minnesota (76)Detroit (70)1990–91Chicago (106)‡St. Louis (105)Detroit (76)Minnesota (68)Toronto (57)1991–92Detroit (98)Chicago (87)St. Louis (83)Minnesota (70)Toronto (67) 1992–93Chicago (106)Detroit (103)Toronto (99)St. Louis (85)Minnesota (82)Tampa Bay (53)
Norris Division titles won by team Team Wins Last win Montreal Canadiens 7 1981 Chicago Blackhawks 5 1993 Detroit Red Wings 3 1992 Minnesota North Stars 2 1984 St. Louis Blues 2 1987 Hartford Whalers 0 — Los Angeles Kings 0 — Pittsburgh Penguins 0 — Tampa Bay Lightning 0 — Toronto Maple Leafs 0 — Washington Capitals 0 — Winnipeg Jets 0 —
References
NHL History