Norris Division
| Conference |
Wales Conference (1974-1981) Campbell Conference (1981–1993) |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Founded | 1974 |
| Ceased | 1993 |
| Replaced by | Central Division |
| Championships | |
| Most Norris Division titles | Montreal Canadiens (7) |
The NHL'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 in honour of James E. Norris, longtime owner of the Red Wings. It is the fore-runner 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.
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.
The league was reformatted into two conferences with two divisions each:
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