For anyone familiar with bulletin boards, talkbacks, and blog comment areas in the hockey universe, the opinion that Florida, Tampa, Washington - heck, the entire Southeast Division, needs to be folded or relocated is no revelation. Especially if you follow and support a team within that division. Or in Nashville. Or Phoenix. (And the Stars get a pass, um, why...?).

It's the same refrain, over and over, from fans in Toronto, and Detroit, and Montreal, and New York, and on and on.

The approximately one billion reasons presented for backing up their remarkably ignorant case run the gamut from "No one goes to the games", to "no one cares about hockey down there", to the gold standard: "There's no support."

It's just sooooo easy to sit up high in your glass arena and toss brickbats at the southern upstarts.

I've been a nut for this sport way too long to not notice the sea-change in attitude toward the SE Division. There's a developing "us-vs.-them" mentality brewing, and it's not healthy.

Then along comes Ross McKeon, Yahoo! Sports editor, with his suggestions for the fantastic daily "5 Ways I'd Change the NHL" feature at Puck Daddy.

A firestorm of controversy has erupted from the far corners of fandom in the aftermath. As a fan of the the Southeast Division, I'm used to the non-stop calls for contraction of our teams, but this is a bit much.

Apparently, Alex Ovechkin's financier Ted Leonsis agrees, and he's had enough:

A completely awesome and timely response from a successful owner within our division. By all means click the link above and enjoy a very frank and honest read. Go Ted!