Northwest Division (NHL)
| Conference | Western Conference |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Formerly | Smythe Division |
| Inaugural season | 1998–99 season |
| Ceased | 2013 |
| Replaced by | Central Division and Pacific Division |
| Teams | |
| No. of teams | 5 |
| Championships | |
| Most Northwest Division titles | Vancouver Canucks (7) |
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 1981–1993.
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
1998–2000
Changes from the 1997–98 season
- The Northwest Division is formed as a result of NHL realignment
- The Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks come from the Pacific Division
2000–2013
- Calgary Flames
- Colorado Avalanche
- Edmonton Oilers
- Minnesota Wild
- Vancouver Canucks
Changes from the 1999–2000 season
- The Minnesota Wild were added as an expansion team
2013 realignment
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) were moved back to the Pacific Division, while the division's American teams (the Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Wild) joined the Central Division.
Division Champions
- 1999—Colorado Avalanche (44–28–10, 98 pts)
- 2000—Colorado Avalanche (42–28–11–1, 96 pts)
- 2001—Colorado Avalanche (52–16–10–4, 118 pts)
- 2002—Colorado Avalanche (45–28–8–1, 99 pts)
- 2003—Colorado Avalanche (42–19–13–8, 105 pts)
- 2004—Vancouver Canucks (43–24–10–5, 101 pts)
- 2005—no season (NHL Lockout)
- 2006—Calgary Flames (46–25–11, 103 pts)
- 2007—Vancouver Canucks (49–26–7, 105 pts)
- 2008—Minnesota Wild (44–28–10, 98 pts)
- 2009—Vancouver Canucks (45–27–10, 100 pts)
- 2010—Vancouver Canucks (49–28–5, 103 pts)
- 2011—Vancouver Canucks (54–19–9, 117 pts)
- 2012—Vancouver Canucks (51–22–9, 111 pts)
- 2013—Vancouver Canucks (26–15–7, 59 pts)
Season results
| Season | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998–99 | Colorado (98) | Edmonton (78) | Calgary (72) | Vancouver (58) | |
| 1999–2000 | Colorado (96) | Edmonton (88) | Vancouver (83) | Calgary (77) | |
| 2000–01 | Colorado (118) | Edmonton (93) | Vancouver (90) | Calgary (73) | Minnesota (68) |
| 2001–02 | Colorado (99) | Vancouver (94) | Edmonton (92) | Calgary (79) | Minnesota (73) |
| 2002–03 | Colorado (105) | Vancouver (104) | Minnesota (95) | Edmonton (92) | Calgary (75) |
| 2003–04 | Vancouver (101) | Colorado (100) | Calgary (94) | Edmonton (89) | Minnesota (83) |
| 2004–05 | No season due to 2004–05 NHL lockout | ||||
| 2005–06 | Calgary (103) | Colorado (95) | Edmonton (95) | Vancouver (92) | Minnesota (84) |
| 2006–07 | Vancouver (105) | Minnesota (104) | Calgary (96) | Colorado (95) | Edmonton (71) |
| 2007–08 | Minnesota (98) | Colorado (95) | Calgary (94) | Edmonton (88) | Vancouver (88) |
| 2008–09 | Vancouver (100) | Calgary (98) | Minnesota (89) | Edmonton (85) | Colorado (69) |
| 2009–10 | Vancouver (103) | Colorado (95) | Calgary (90) | Minnesota (84) | Edmonton (62) |
| 2010–11 | Vancouver (117) | Calgary (94) | Minnesota (86) | Colorado (68) | Edmonton (62) |
| 2011–12 | Vancouver (111) | Calgary (90) | Colorado (88) | Minnesota (81) | Edmonton (74) |
| 2012–13 | Vancouver (59) | Minnesota (55) | Edmonton (45) | Calgary (42) | Colorado (39) |
- Green background denotes qualified for playoffs
Stanley Cup winners produced
- 2001 – Colorado Avalanche
Presidents' Trophy winners produced
- 2001 – Colorado Avalanche
- 2011 – Vancouver Canucks
- 2012 – Vancouver Canucks
Northwest Division titles won by team
| Team | Number of Championships Won | Last Year Won |
|---|---|---|
| Vancouver Canucks | 7 | 2013 |
| Colorado Avalanche | 5 | 2003 |
| Calgary Flames | 1 | 2006 |
| Minnesota Wild | 1 | 2008 |
| Edmonton Oilers | 0 | – |