NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup

Every NHL season, there are a few fanbases who spend six or seven months going through the regular season and watching their team dominate. Many of them end up winning the President’s Trophy, and others just watch as one of the most talented teams in franchise history go into the playoffs with all of the momentum. Then, it all falls apart when it matters most.

Some of the best teams in history lose in the most disappointing ways possible. A team’s fanbase that was riding for six months sees it all fall apart in four to seven games. Everything that went well just doesn’t in the playoffs. Sometimes it’s actual flaws in the roster, but sometimes it’s just the Hockey Gods taking over and making everything go wrong that’s humanly possible.

In the more than 100 years of existence, some amazing NHL teams are lost in existence because their name is not currently on the Stanley Cup. There’s no wing of the Hall of Fame for the teams that “should” win it all. Only champions find a place in history.

So, this list is to find those teams that might have been considered the best of the league, but they never won the Cup. It might be a dynasty year gone wrong, or it could be a non-traditional team going all in just to fall short. Some of the best players in the history of this league are on these teams, and they lost in some of the most disappointing fashions.

There are a plethora of teams to choose from, but these 30 teams stand out. Some went all the way to the Stanley Cup Final just to disappoint everyone, while others literally couldn’t win one game in the playoffs. Which team should have won it all but didn’t?

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 30. 2017 Oilers

In the offseason of 2017, many were picking the Edmonton Oilers to win the 2018 Stanley Cup. It was because of the insane growth the team showed in 2017.

Connor McDavid was (and still is) the best player in the world. A surprise Taylor Hall trade in the offseason seemed to give them the defenseman they needed (Adam Larsson). They signed Milan Lucic to a seven-year contract in the offseason. They finally cut their losses on former first-overall pick Nail Yakupov and Kris Russell brought another veteran defensive presence.

It looked like the Oilers, after years of being a laughing stock, were ready to make a move towards contention. They made the playoffs and finished second in the Western Conference with 103 points. The Anaheim Ducks beat them in the standings by a mere two points.

While that Oilers team might not be considered one of the best, think about everything that was going right for the franchise. They had the best player in the world finally moving towards his peak. Leon Draisaitl was quickly becoming a star. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jordan Eberle were nice complementary forwards. The defense had a decent combination of youth and experience. Then, the goalie situation was finally “fixed” with Cam Talbot in the net.

Talbot was huge for the Oilers. In his second year with the team, he led the league in wins. Unfortunately, the offense wasn’t able to keep up with him in the playoffs. They took on the Ducks in the second round of the playoffs and lost in seven games. Two of their losses came in overtime. After scoring seven goals in Game 6 to force a Game 7, they could only score one goal in the final game.

Since then, the Oilers are constantly disappointing the fanbase. They missed the playoffs the next two seasons, and then last year they were upset by the 12th seeded Chicago Blackhawks. They always have 2018, when they had one of the better teams in the NHL.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 29. 2003 Ducks

The 2003 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim are different than a lot of the teams on this list. They weren’t the traditionally dominant team in the regular season. They finished the year with a +10 goal differential, which doesn’t compare to the Dallas Stars who had a ridiculous +76 goal differential. However, once they hit the postseason, a different Ducks team took the ice.

They went into the postseason as a seven seed. Again, this isn’t the “traditional” team that will make this list, but this Ducks squad was exhilarating once the playoffs began. Jean-Sebastian Giguere took over the postseason, and he helped the Ducks go all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. He was masterful. Only one goalie played more than a dozen playoff games in one season and had a (slightly) better save percentage than Giguere in 2003. Jonathan Quick was percentage points better in 2012.

The Ducks ran right over the second-seeded Detroit Red Wings, took out the top-seeded Stars in six games, and swept the Minnesota Wild before preparing for a matchup with the New Jersey Devils. It was a playoff newbie against a team that was a powerhouse for close to a decade with two Stanley Cups to its name already.

This was a postseason with lots of great storylines. Paul Kariya looked like he was on his way to stardom. Adam Oates led the team in playoff scoring late in his career. However, it was all Giguere. He went on the greatest heater in playoff history, and only one of the best goalies of all time in Martin Brodeur could stop him.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 28. 2012 Rangers

It’s another team that was vanquished by a New Jersey Devils team, but one that was made up of a completely different roster (although Brodeur was still there). This Rangers team and the team that went to the Stanley Cup were loaded, but this division was so intense that it means something to win the number-one seed in the conference in a division that included a total of four 100-point teams.

The Rangers felt like they had magic that year. The offseason brought a heavy heart, as defenseman Derek Boogard passed away in May. Then, the team had to make tough roster decisions like buying out Chris Drury, who was the captain at the time.

Once the regular season started, the Rangers stacked wins. They beat the Philadelphia Flyers in the Winter Classic thanks to Henrik Lundqvist’s penalty shot save with 20 seconds left in the game. They had been building something for years, and it seemed like the young players were finally able to fit with the stars like offseason signing Brad Richards. Marian Gaborik broke the 40-goal plateau, and Ryan Callahan was great in his first year as captain.

Unfortunately, the Rangers’ path to its first Stanley Cup since 1994 didn’t come as easy as one would hope. The Ottawa Senators took them to seven games in the first round. The Washington Capitals pushed them to seven games in the second round. So, when the Rangers were facing the arch rival Devils, they were clearly tired. The Devils kept the pace up, and the Rangers eventually saw their season end on the stick of Adam Henrique.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 27. 1929 Canadiens

From one of the newer teams on the list to one of the oldest. The 1929 Canadiens probably had the greatest single-season performance from a goaltender in history. George Hainsworth recorded 22 shutouts. Only six times all season did the Canadiens win a game in which Hainsworth didn’t record a shutout. It was an insane performance. He had a 0.98 GAA for the entire season.

This wasn’t an offensive juggernaut or anything, but Howie Morenz was a fine player for his time. He put up 17 goals in a 44-game season (a 31-goal pace over an 82-game season). However, things went wrong for him and the rest of the Canadiens offense in their short playoff run.

The Canadiens went into the postseason as the number-one seed, and they received a first-round bye. Then, they faced a Boston Bruins team that just took them to the woodshed. Hainsworth did everything he could, allowing just five goals in three games, but the Canadiens couldn’t score.

Morenz was held pointless, along with everyone else on the roster outside of Aureie Joliat and Albert Leduc. Tiny Thompson ended up playing out of his mind, and the Bruins swept the five-game series 3-0. They went on to win the Stanley Cup, leading to the Canadiens asking what comes next?

Well, what came next was greatness. They ended up winning the next two Stanley Cups, which was the first real run in what would be the greatest franchise in hockey history. However, that first team was really on to something with Hainsworth in the net. He deserved better in the playoffs.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 26. 1972 Rangers

Another New York Rangers team that came extremely close. The 1972 team seemed like the one to finally bring the Cup back to Broadway. This year was a three-team race, with Montreal and Boston joining New York among the 100-point teams. However, the Rangers hadn’t been to the Stanley Cup since 1950, despite the league being either six or seven teams.

This Rangers team finally felt like the one that could reclaim hockey greatness. Jean Ratelle and Vic Hadfield both put up 100 points that season. They had a very untraditional two-goalie system with Ed Giacomin and Gilles Villemure. They even split time throughout the playoffs. They both won 24 games. They actually shared the Vezina Trophy in 1971.

However, the Rangers were taken as far as the offense would go. Ratelle, Hadfield, and Rod Gilbert were known as the “Goal-A-Game” Line. Seven players broke the 50-point plateau, and seven players had double-digit points in the playoffs. The team seemed like they were impossible to outscore in a crucial situation. They averaged more than four goals per game.

Unfortunately, the team lost Ratelle to a broken ankle late in the season. That really derailed what was an insane offense. Instead, they had just a run-of-the-mill really good one. He tried to get into some playoff games, but he wasn’t able to score. Then, the Boston Bruins ended up winning the Cup. It was the last time this iteration of the Rangers really contended.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 25. 1951 Red Wings

There have been some great Red Wings teams over the 90+ years of existence. However, it’s hard to argue any of them was better than the Red Wings’ squad of the 50s. There are plenty of dynasties in the history of this league, but winning four Cups in six years made the Red Wings the team of the 50s. They won the Cup in 1950, and it was expected they would repeat in 1951. It didn’t work out that way.

This Red Wings team was the only one able to break the 100-point mark that season. They did it in just 70 games. They put up insane stats, like a +97 goal differential. They won nine of their final ten games in the season, which gave them all of the momentum going into the playoffs.

Gordie Howe was ready to carry his team to back-to-back championships. He scored 86 points in 70 games. Terry Sawchuk was dominant in goal once again. He had a GAA under two, and he won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year. In his first season as the starter, he led the league in wins and shutouts.

Despite all this, the Red Wings had serious trouble scoring in the first-round series with the Bruins. They went 8-2-4 in the regular season against the Bruins, but they lost in six games when they faced them in the postseason. It was the start of a special run, but after finally getting Sawchuk as the starter, the first iteration of this team failed spectacularly in the playoffs.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 24. 1989 Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens have had some great teams for their entire history, which means every so often, very good teams will fail to lift Lord Stanley’s Cup. More often than not, the Canadiens were the last team standing. However, the best team in the French province of Canada had one team that was supposed to win it all, but they just couldn’t get it done.

The Canadiens finished first in the Eastern Conference this season with 115 points. Mats Naslund led the team with 84 points, but Bobby Smith was right behind him with 83 points. Claude Lemieux, Stephane Richer, and Guy Carbonneau provided great secondary help among the forward group. A young Chris Chelios led a strong defensive group while also scoring 73 points himself. The great Patrick Roy was in net. This should have been an easy championship for the city of Montreal, but it didn’t work out that way.

After flying through the Eastern Conference, they took on the President Trophy winners in the Calgary Flames. It was a best-on-best Stanley Cup Final. After going up in the series 2-1, the Canadiens lost three straight games and lost the Final in Game 6.

The last game of the series was a slugfest, as there were three coincidental minors and Lemieux went off for game misconduct last in the third period. The Canadiens lost that game, and the series, to a team that was still relatively new to the league. It was a disappointing end, but the Canadiens would be back soon enough. After a few more failed playoff attempts, the Canadiens finally won it all in 1993. It wasn’t the run Montreal fans hoped, but since it’s their last championship, they very much appreciate it.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 23. 1974 Bruins

There are so many ways to show the absolute dominance of the 1974 Boston Bruins in the regular season. They put up 113 points in 78 games. That was 14 points ahead of the second-place Montreal Canadiens. They had a +128 goal differential. Phil Esposito put up 145 points. Bobby Orr had 122. Ken Hodge also broke 100 points. Seven players had at least 50 points. The team was stacked from top to bottom.

They went through the Chicago Blackhawks and Toronto Maple Leafs on their way to the Stanley Cup Final, where they were facing the Philadelphia Flyers, who were building a powerhouse of their own. They had Bobby Clarke as the star goal scorer and Bernie Parent leading the team in goal. It was a star-studded matchup between the two best teams in the National Hockey League.

Boston had not lost in 19 straight games at the Boston Garden against the Flyers. They knew how to beat this team at home. So, when Philadelphia was able to take Game 2 in overtime, it was a shock to the Bruins. Boston ended up losing the next two games to go down 3-1 in the series. Boston returned home and exploded for five goals against Parent, which led to the pivotal Game 6.

It was 1-0 for most of the game after Rick MacLeish scored a first-period goal. Boston kept pounding, shooting the puck 30 times on Parent. He stopped every single shot. The Flyers won 1-0 when Orr pulled down Clarke on a breakaway attempt, ending the game on a penalty kill for the Bruins. It was a bitter end for a Bruins team that expected to win it all. They just faced a team that made the most of its home games.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 22. 1997 Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche was putting together an absolute unit in the mid-90s. After trading for Patrick Roy in the middle of the 1995-96 season, they were one of the scariest teams in the league. Joe Sakic was quickly becoming a star. Peter Forsberg was right up there with him in offensive production. They had a lot of really good complementary pieces, and they used that to win the 1996 Stanley Cup Championship.

There weren’t many teams who felt like a lock to repeat as champs as the 1996-97 Avalanche. They brought most of their core players back, and it led to complete domination of the regular season. They won the President’s Trophy, beat everyone in their division by at least 22 points, and it looked like this would be another season where everyone has to get out of Colorado’s way.

The eighth-seeded Chicago Blackhawks put up a surprising fight, but they lost in six games. The Edmonton Oilers upset the Dallas Stars in the first round, so the Avalanche faced another overmatched team. Most teams would sign up for this, but when the Avalanche went up against a scary Detroit Red Wings team, it took a moment to get ready.

After winning Game 1, Colorado watched as Detroit won the next three, including an embarrassment in Game 4. The Red Wings posted six on Roy and the rest of the Avs while their exciting offense scored exactly zero goals. They eventually forced a Game 6, but things didn’t go well there. Sergei Federov scored a backbreaking goal with about 14 minutes left in the game. The Avs got a goal from Scott Young with five minutes left to give fans hope, but that hope ended when Brendan Shanahan scored an empty-net goal to give the Red Wings a two-goal lead.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 21. 2004 Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been trying to end one of the worst championship droughts in sports. The Maple Leafs are the pinnacle team in the NHL. They have the biggest fanbase, they make the most money, and there’s the most media coverage surrounding them. Despite all that, they can’t seem to get over the hump. Their last Stanley Cup Championship came in 1967. That was also the last time the Maple Leafs appeared in the Cup Final. The closest the Maple Leafs came was back in 2004.

The Northeast Division was absolutely stacked that year, and the Leafs came in second by one point. Mats Sundin was having a very good season as the captain of the team, putting up 75 points. Ed Belfour was ready to make a run in the playoffs. Tie Domi brought a very important level of grit to the lineup.

This Maple Leafs team was built to grind teams down to nothing, and they would take advantage with a lineup that had equal skill and toughness throughout. That seemed to be the right combination to get them a championship that eluded them for decades.

Unfortunately, it was only good enough to get them through one round. They beat the Ottawa Senators in seven games before losing to the Philadelphia Flyers in the second round. They just kept coming back from deficits, but it was too little too late. They went down 2-0 in the series but won the next two games. They went down 2-0 going into the third period in Game 6 while being down 3-2 in the series. They scored two third-period goals to send the game to overtime, but Jeremy Roenick ended the dream with an OT goal seven minutes in. It was a massive disappointment, and the Maple Leafs haven’t really gotten close ever since.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 20. 2016 Capitals

Coming back to recent times, it’s hard to remember when the Washington Capitals were considered playoff losers, but that was the narrative before the 2018 Stanley Cup Championship. Previous to that, it was loss after loss in the playoffs for the Capitals. They were the number-one seed in the Southeast Division from 2008 to 2011, and they won a total of two playoff series. The next four seasons, it was more of the same. Two playoff series wins.

In the offseason of 2015-16, the Capitals were sick and tired of coming up short. They made a massive trade to bring in Olympic hero T.J. Oshie from the St. Louis Blues. They inked “Mr. Game 7” Justin Williams to a two-year deal. He was literally signed to help them in the postseason. Those two pieces on top of a core that included Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, and Evgeny Kuznetsov. Williams and Oshie were good right off the bat. Marcus Johansson was good when healthy, scoring 17 goals. John Carlson was starting his stellar career. Everything was looking good for the Capitals.

This group was unstoppable in the regular season. They had a ridiculous 120 points. Everything looked like they were finally going to get over the hump. They weren’t just playing well because they were in the Southeast Division. Now, they were dominating the Metropolitan Division.
In the playoffs, the Capitals started off on fire. Braden Holtby shut out the Philadelphia Flyers in the first three games of the first-round series, and he eventually grinds out the next three games to a six-game series win. This wasn’t the typical Capitals team.

Then, the hated Pittsburgh Penguins came to town. The Capitals needed to get past a bitter rival to finally show they were Stanley Cup ready. They weren’t, and the Penguins beat them in six games. Three games went to overtime, including Game 6. Nick Bonino shoots one in just inches in front of Holtby to end the Capitals’ dreams of lifting Lord Stanley’s Cup.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 19. 2006 Senators

Right now, the Ottawa Senators are one of the worst teams in the league. Years of mismanagement left a bare-bones roster while star players like Jason Spezza and Erik Karlsson were forced to put on new jerseys.

However, there was a time when the Senators were one of the best teams in the league, but they could never win the big one. There were some great teams over the years. The 2003 Senators took the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Devils to a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Finals. The 2007 team made a surprise run to the Stanley Cup Final. More recently, the 2017 squad was one win away from making it to the Final.
Despite all that success, the 2006 Senators were the best team from top to bottom.

Dany Heatly and Daniel Alfredsson were one of the best one-two punches in the NHL. They both broke 100 points this season, which wasn’t as prevalent post lockout. They finished first in the Eastern Conference, making them the favorites to at least get to the Stanley Cup Final with 113 points. Zdeno Chara was actually young if you could believe that. Plus, they added Dominik Hasek to give the team Stanley Cup experience in the net.

Everything appeared to fall into place. They had their top scorer, the defense was stacked, and Hasek would finally give them stability in goal. It led to a second-round exit. Wait, what?

Hasek ended up getting replaced by Ray Emery. He got them through the first round, but the underdog Buffalo Sabres just destroyed Ottawa in five games. The Senators lost three overtime games. Heatly scored 50 goals in the regular season, but he couldn’t score any in the final four games of this season. Everything went wrong, and the Senators went home way too early.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 18. 1998 Stars

In 1997, the Dallas Stars were putting together something special. You know the names. Mike Modano, Ed Belfour, Joe Nieuwendyk, and Sergei Zubov led the team with skill and experience. Pat Verbeek brought a scoring touch from someone who’s seen it all. The pieces were coming together, and the Stars were ready to challenge the Avalanche and Red Wings for Stanley Cup supremacy.

At least, it looked like they were ready. Unfortunately, easy wins against the Oilers and Sharks in the first two rounds of the playoffs did not prepare them for the Red Wings. For the most part, the offense did not live up to expectations in the playoffs. Only Modano was able to break double-digit points in 17 games. They were shut out twice by the Red Wings, including in the sixth and deciding game.

Losing to the eventual champions is never something to hang your head at, but this Stars team just didn’t show up as some hoped against the traditional leader. Getting shut out in the final game with a team with as many offensive weapons as the 1998 Stars is a massive disappointment.

Obviously, better days would be on the horizon for the Stars. They didn’t let the loss distract them from the ultimate goal, which was to win a Stanley Cup. They won it all in 1999 and went back to the Final in 2000. It could have been one of the better dynasties of our era if the Stars could win two Cups and make it to three in a row. Instead, they are just another drop in the bucket who was able to win one championship.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 17. 1979 Islanders

Most hockey fans know all about the 1980s Islanders. It was one of the greatest dynasties in the history of hockey. The Islanders won 16-straight playoff series on their way to winning the Cup every year between 1980 and 1984. It literally took Wayne Gretzky at the peak of his powers to stop them. No North American team has won four-straight championships since.

However, it should have been five. During the 1978-79 season, the Islanders took out the defending Stanley Cup Champion Montreal Canadiens to finish first in the league. Bryan Trottier, Denis Potvin, and Mike Bossy were on their way to superstardom. They all scored more than 100 points. Chico Resch and Billy Smith split the net. Things made a lot of sense on the ice.

After dispatching the Chicago Blackhawks pretty easily, the Islanders set up for the crosstown rival Rangers with a chance to go to the Stanley Cup Final. They apparently weren’t ready to take a step towards title contention, and the Rangers won the series in six games.

This could have been where the dynasty started, but questions about the lineup, including who should start in net, caused them to fall below their expectations. Smith took over the following season as the full-time goalie. Five is such a nice, round number and that’s what should have happened for the Islanders franchise.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 16. 2009 Sharks

The San Jose Sharks are not the traditional powerhouse that will appear on this list. However, they’ve had some amazing teams over the years. After trading for Joe Thornton in 2005, they were basically contenders from then on. Unfortunately, while they were contenders, they never won the Stanley Cup.

The best team the Sharks put on the ice came in 2009. Sadly, it was also one of the biggest disappointments in the playoffs in recent memory. The Sharks put up 117 points in the standings, which won them the President’s Trophy.

Joe Thornton was at the peak of his powers. Patrick Marleau was in the first year of the best three-year stretch of his career. Devin Setoguchi put up the best stats of his career. Joe Pavelski was becoming a star. Newly-acquired Dan Boyle was a perfect fit in the lineup. Evgeni Nabokov was a stable presence in goal. Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Christian Ehrhoff were supposed to be shut down defensemen on the back end.

This seemed like the right team to finally bring the Stanley Cup to the Shark Tank. They really just forced other teams to make mistakes and never really made them. They were second in goals allowed in the Western Conference and third in goals scored. They weren’t extraordinarily flashy, but they got the job done with efficiency.

Then, they got demolished in the playoffs by the eighth-seeded Anaheim Ducks. The Sharks had a massive penalty advantage in the series, but the Ducks killed them off at a very high clip. That was the difference in the series. The Sharks could not take advantage of the mistakes they were making teams pay for all season long. Vlasic had a bad series, veterans like Jeremy Roenick and Claude Lemieux did not help at all (although Rob Blake did), and the Ducks knocked the Sharks in six.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 15. 1967 Black Hawks

The Chicago Blackhawks are a franchise that went through great highs and terrible lows. They are one of the Original Six franchises, so they should have a leg up on championships over all the other teams. Yet, they only have one more title than franchises like the Penguins and Oilers, who came in the league decades later. That doesn’t mean the Blackhawks lacked teams that were supremely talented.

The 1966-67 Black Hawks broke a franchise record with 41 wins and 94 points. This was the first time the franchise was the first-place team in the NHL. Dennis DeJordy and Glenn Hall shared the net and ended up winning the Vezina Trophy. Stan Mikita was the Hart Trophy winner, putting up an insanely consistent performance all year long on his way to 97 points in 70 games. Bobby Hull put up his second-straight 50-goal season. The star power was abundant for Chicago this season.

Despite the veterans on the roster, the star power at every position, and the sour taste of a playoff upset in 1966 still giving them motivation one year later, the Black Hawks still couldn’t get out of the first round.

The Toronto Maple Leafs found a way to win by just grinding down the Blackhawks’ prolific offense. In six games, the Black Hawks scored less than three goals four times. As can be predicted, they lost every one of those games. It was another major disappointment, and it led to a pretty deep black hole. The Blackhawks franchise wouldn’t get another Stanley Cup until 2010.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 14. 1980 Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers are a franchise that went from expansion to champion relatively quickly. They won two championships in their first eight years of existence. Unfortunately, it’s been four decades of disappointment since then. They made the Stanley Cup Final six times since their last title, and they lost every single time. The one that hurts the most is the 1980 Flyers.

From October 14th to January 6th, the Flyers did not lose a game. The 35-game unbeaten streak is still the best in the history of North American sports. They could only occasionally be slowed down (since ties still existed at this time). The Flyers only lost 12 of their 80 games in the 1979-80 season.

Their regular-season dominance seemed to trickle into the playoffs. They swept the Edmonton Oilers who had a 19-year-old Wayne Gretzky coming off a 137-point season. They took out the rival New York Rangers and pretty easily beat the Minnesota North Stars on their way to the Cup Final.

That’s where the Flyers went up against the New York Islanders. They may have beat them in the standings, but they struggled against them head to head in the regular season. Those struggles continued in the Cup Final. It was a high-scoring affair, as the Flyers put up 25 goals in six games, but they couldn’t beat what was becoming an Islanders dynasty. This was a team with Hall of Famers Bobby Clarke and Bill Barber on offense, but questions in at net ended up being their downfall.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 13. 2011 Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks are one of 11 teams in history that have never won a Stanley Cup. They’ve come incredibly close, but they were never closer than they were in the 2011 Stanley Cup Final. It was the first time in 41 years that the Canucks won the President’s Trophy, making them the favorites to win it all.

This was the best season by the combination of the Sedin Twins. Henrik Sedin put up 94 points in the season after winning a Hart Trophy. Daniel Sedin put up 104 points, which included 41 goals. They were the driving force to this franchise. That continued in the playoffs, as they were the only two players on the Canucks to break 20 points on their way to the Final.
Ryan Kesler was in the midst of his breakout season. He scored a career-high 41 goals, and he made it clear he was a top center in the game. Not only did he put up a ton of points, but he won the Selke Trophy as the league’s best defensive forward.

The Canucks had everything going for them, and they had arguably the best goalie in the game in net in Roberto Luongo. They also had the best backup in hockey in Cory Schneider. This one-two punch could outlast anyone in the NHL.

That is, any team besides the Boston Bruins. Vancouver won its first two home games, but Boston won the two games at TD Garden to even the series. The Canucks took Game 5 in a 1-0 stalemate. With two games to go and only needing one win, it seemed like the Canucks would finally bring the Stanley Cup to Western Canada. With that said, they did not show up in Game 6 or Game 7. The team laid an egg, and the Stanley Cup went to Boston. It was the closest this team would ever come to winning the championship.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 12. 2006 Red Wings

There have been several amazing Detroit Red Wings teams over the years. The current iteration of the franchise notwithstanding, this is the pinnacle franchise over the past three decades. However, for every Cup champion, there is a massive disappointment for a team that went into the playoffs as the favorites.

The 2005-06 Detroit Red Wings put up the second-most points in the regular season in franchise history. The 124 points in the standings were good enough for a President’s Trophy.

It was a strange season for the Red Wings, but one with amazing results (in the regular season). Chris Osgood got injured in the preseason, but Manny Legace ended up being one of the best goalies of the season. He finished in the top five of Vezina voting after taking the net for the entire season.

The Red Wings scored 305 goals this season, more than anyone in the Western Conference by at least 20 goals. Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterburg, Niklas Lindstrom, and Brendan Shanahan all had at least 80 points. They had all the players in place to be a champion, but there was one major issue.

Legace was not ready for the pressure of the postseason. That was abundantly clear. He had no pressure during the regular season because everything he did was found success. Osgood was supposed to be the starter, but Legace outplayed him. However, after putting up a .915 save percentage in the regular season, he had an .884 save percentage in the playoffs against the Edmonton Oilers. With Legace unable to make a stop, the Red Wings could not keep up and lost in six games in the first round.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 11. 1982 Oilers

The 1981-82 Edmonton Oilers had six future Hall of Famers on the roster all under the age of 23. Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Paul Coffey, Jari Kurri, Glenn Anderson, and Kevin Lowe were all at the very beginning of their careers. They also had Grant Fuhr at 19 years old. So, another future Hall of Famers. This was probably the greatest collection of young talent ever assembled. Despite a lack of veteran stars, that doesn’t take away from the fact it’s still one of the best teams ever.

Let’s start with Gretzky, because obviously. He put up the first 200-point season of his career. (He would eventually put up 200 points four times.) He scored a career-high 92 goals as the Oilers took the top spot in the Smythe Division. Gretzky would go on to win his third Hart Trophy. There was no doubt he was by far the best player in the NHL.

Messier put up his first 50-goal season. Paul Coffey put up 89 points from the blueline. Anderson had himself a 100-point season. Everything pointed to an unstoppable force going into the postseason.

They were anything but when they took on the Los Angeles Kings. In Game 1, they let the Kings score an unprecedented 10 goals against them. They put up eight goals themselves, making it the highest-scoring playoff game in NHL history. It was more disappointing as the series went on. The Oilers had a 5-0 lead going into the 3rd period of Game 3, but they ended up giving up give unanswered goals and lost the game in overtime. In the deciding Game 5, the Kings rode a three-goal second period to victory.

This was an Oilers team that was hitting the peak of its powers, but they still couldn’t do it when it mattered. It would take a few years before they were truly unstoppable.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 10. 2007 Sabres

It’s hard to believe the Buffalo Sabres were once one of the most feared franchises in the league, but at times during the 90s and 2000s it seemed inevitable they’d finally win a Stanley Cup. Fans were forced to watch Dominick Hasek leave and win a Cup with the Red Wings, but through the early 2000s the Sabres were once again building a contender. Then, in 2006-07, it seemed like everything was falling into place.

The Sabres were as starstudded as anyone this season. Daniel Briere, Jason Pominville, Thomas Vanek, and Chris Drury were a four-headed offensive monster nobody wanted to deal with. Ryan Miller was coming off a stellar rookie season, and he was looking to be even better this year. (He was slightly worse but still one of the better goalies in the league.)

The season started off on fire. The Sabres won its first 10 games of the season. That would show what’s to come, as the team just kept winning. Four players would score 20 goals before the All-Star Break. Sabres fans were ready to get to the playoffs after winning the Northeast Division with 113 points. Unfortunately, it appears they should have relished in the success a little more.

The Sabres made pretty quick work of both New York teams, beating the Islanders in five and the Rangers in six. It led to a showdown between division rivals. The Sabres would need to get past the Ottawa Senators if they were going to go to the Stanley Cup Final.

Ottawa gave the Sabres no shot. They won the series in five, and it never felt close. It looked like a completely different Sabres team on the ice. Stay-at-home defenseman Henrik Tallinder was their second-leading scorer in the series. Vanek got injured and only played two games while the rest of the offensive stars were no shows. Miller tried to carry the team with a .923 save percentage, but it wasn’t enough and the Senators were the team that got to play for Lord Stanley’s Cup.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 9. 2001 Devils

Ask New Jersey Devils fans which team was the best in the history of the franchise, and most would point to the 2000-01 team. It’s a surprising take since the franchise has three Stanley Cup Championships to its name, but this 2001 team was stacked. They still had the defensive prowess that comes with Scott Stevens and Scott Niedermayer on the blueline and the superb goaltender of Martin Brodeur. However, now this was also an offensive powerhouse.

Patrik Elias put up the best season in franchise history with 96 points. Alexander Mogilny was back to being a 40-goal scorer like he was earlier in his career. The team had a total of eight 50-point scorers to go along with grit players like John Madden and Bobby Holik (who was one of the 50-point scorers). This team was on a mission to repeat.

Fast forward to the playoffs, and the Devils did not have as easy a time as fans hoped, but they did make it to the Final once again. It took six games to beat the eighth-seeded Hurricanes, then they were in a dogfight with the Toronto Maple Leafs and needed a deciding seventh game to get past them. This was a team that only lost two games after February 28th.

It was the matchup everyone wanted in the Final. Brodeur versus Roy. Two of the very best of all time squaring off. The Devils took a 3-2 lead in the series, with the Avalanche coming to New Jersey for Game 6. It looked like the Devils were going to raise the Cup on home ice, but the Avs were too much and exploded for a 4-0 win. In Game 7, the Devils could not solve Roy. It left one of the best teams of an interesting franchise in the dust, as they were forced to watch Ray Bourque lift the Cup before riding off into the sunset.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 7. 2000 Blues

The St. Louis Blues finally won it all in 2019. Everyone knows the story. The last place team fires their head coach, goes on an incredible run with an unlikely goalie, and they raise Lord Stanley’s Cup. Before that, there were some serious disappointments. None were greater than this ridiculous roster they put together in 2000.

The team had two future Hall of Famers on the back end in Chris Pronger and Al MacInnis. This was Pronger’s best season and the only season of the 2000s where a defenseman won MVP. He beat out Jaromir Jagr but one voting point. Pronger put up 62 points in 79 games while also leading the league in defensive point shares. He was by the far the best overall defenseman in the league (at a time when Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Nicklas Lidstrom, Rob Blake, and Sergei Zubov were still in the league).

The Blues exploded for 114 points, good for first in the Central Division. It was the first time the Blues won the division since 1987. They wouldn’t win the division again until 2012. This was an outlier season where the Blues were the best team in hockey. They won the President’s Trophy, but you know how this story goes. Despite being the best team in the regular season, things did not go well in the playoffs.

The Blues were first in the league in goals against and third in the league in scoring that season. Yet, the Blues watched as the San Jose Sharks took a 3-1 lead in the first-round series. They did come back and force a Game 7, but nobody remembers that when a team loses Game 7. The Blues had something here, but the Sharks ended it way early.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 6. 1993 Penguins

The early 90s Pittsburgh Penguins were unstoppable. They proved that by winning back-to-back Stanley Cup Championships in 1991 and 1992. The one-two punch of Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr is something we hadn’t seen since the Oilers dynasty. Once again, the Penguins won the division in a landslide. This, despite the fact that Lemieux had been dealing with Hodgkin’s Disease. He missed 24 games due to his bout with the disease, but he still led the league in points. And obviously, he still won the Hart Trophy.

Kevin Stevens, Rick Tocchet, and Ron Francis all scored 100+ points. They faced the New Jersey Devils in the first round of the playoffs, and easily dispatched them in five games. The next round they faced the New York Islanders, and it was an absolute dog fight. When looking at the series, it was one of the most exciting in history. It went seven games, the final goal of the series came in overtime, there was only one blowout, and both teams could take advantage of the series at any time.

Game 7 on its own is underrated in the realms of history. The Islanders scored two early third-period goals to give them a 3-1 lead. Francis scored a goal with less than four minutes left, giving them life. Then, with exactly one minute left in the game, Tocchet scored to tie the game. The hype was ridiculous, and all of the momentum was in Pittsburgh’s favor. They had Lemieux leading an insane offense into OT.

Then, five minutes in, the Penguins season was over. A two-on-one eventually went to David Volek for a one timer, and it went in the net.

These things happen, but this Penguins team was well on its way to a three peat. This iteration of the Penguins never won another Stanley Cup. Two championships is a lot, but it just feels like not enough with this much talent on the team.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 5. 1971 Bruins

Tell me if you’ve heard this before. Dominant team goes easily through the regular season, wins the President Trophy, only to lose in the first round of the playoff. This once again is the story here of the 1971 Boston Bruins. Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr, Ken Hodge, and John Bucyk all scored over 100 points and the offense could hit the back of the net on anyone.

The Bruins only lost 14 games this season. Esposito’s 16 game-winning goal is a record (in which he matched the very next season). Not only was this team good, but it appeared they had the tenacity and fortitude to win in the postseason. Unfortunately, they proved that this is impossible to learn in the regular season.

The Bruins went into the postseason by far the favorites to win it all. They had the star power, they had the scoring, and they had a veteran duo in net in Eddie Johnson and Gerry Cheevers. In the first round against the Canadiens, the scoring was there. Esposito had 12 points in seven games. Orr had ten points himself. The Bruins scored 26 goals in the series, but they still fell in seven games.

Unfortunately for the Bruins, a legend would be born in Game 7. Rookie goaltender Ken Dryden was out of his mind that game, only allowing two goals while this Boston offense peppered him with shots. The future Hall of Famer didn’t have much time to prove himself. However, he did just that and took out one of the great teams in the history of hockey.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 4. 1986 Oilers

The 1980s Oilers are widely considered the best teams in the history of hockey. Gretzky, Kurri, Messier, Coffey, and Glenn Anderson all in the middle of their prime. The Great One scored 215 points in 1985-86. Everyone was hitting on all cylinders, but there were some extra distractions that hadn’t been there in previous seasons.

Craig MacTavish spent a year in jail for vehicular homicide but returned to hockey the next season. Dave Hunter was facing his third driving while impaired charge. Messier had some issues with driving himself. Despite this, the team set record after record on their way to first in the NHL.

Gretzky’s 215 points were a record. Coffey’s 48 goals were a record for most by a defenseman. This was the best team in history hitting the peak of its powers. They had been to the Stanley Cup Final in three straight seasons, and they won it twice. They would go on to win the next two Stanley Cup Championships. The only thing that stopped the winning was trading Gretzky to the Kings (and they still won one more after that). Well, that and the 1985-86 Calgary Flames.

After sweeping the Canucks, it looked like the Flames would be an easy beat as most teams were for the Oilers at this time. That’s not how it worked at all. The Flames ground this team down, holding them to two goals or less in all four losses. It was an insane result. There are always disappointments, but the Oilers felt like a giant that couldn’t be stopped.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 3. 1930 Bruins

Going way, way back for the first team in the top three. The 1929-30 Boston Bruins were so good. They lost a total of six games throughout the whole season. They only lost one home game. They were the defending Stanley Cup Champions, and this team easily went on its way to the Stanley Cup Final.

Led by Cooney Weiland and Dit Clapper on offense, it seemed like they just had too much goal scoring when compared to the field. They played through the rough and tumble early century NHL and still put up awesome point totals. There were seven Hall of Famers on this roster, including goaltender Tiny Thompson. He put up a 2.19 GAA for the season.

The team with the best winning percentage in history should easily win the Stanley Cup when there are only nine other squads to worry about. No team was within 15 wins of this team. Boston was the only team in the league that allowed less than 100 goals. This team was untouchable.

George Hainsworth was waiting for them with his Montreal Canadiens in the Final. They had lost all four meetings with the Bruins in the regular season, but that didn’t matter. The Cup Final, which was a best of three series at the time, only lasted two games. The Canadiens shutout the Bruins at the Garden. After losing one game in the regular season at home, they lost their only home game in the Final. Then, Montreal took the next game 4-3.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 2. 2019 Lightning

The Tampa Bay Lightning were the best regular-season team of this generation. They lit the lamp 325 times. No team was within 30 of that total. A forward group consisting of Steven Stamkos, Brayden Point, Nikita Kucherov, and J.T. Miller. Add in the best defenseman in Victor Hedman and the best goalie in Andrei Vasilevskiy, and this was one of the best teams we’ve seen in a long time.

The issue was the Lightning didn’t have a meaningful game to play for the final two months of the season. They clinched the President’s Trophy in the middle of March. No team was going to touch them in the regular season. However, it’s hard to ramp things up when playoff hockey starts.

The Columbus Blue Jackets were a strange team. They were supposed to be sellers at the trade deadline, but instead, they became buyers. They added Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel from the Ottawa Senators. Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky were unrestricted free agents at the end of the season. They were going to be traded, but the Blue Jackets decided to keep them. It ended up being worth it.

The Lightning got swept. It always felt like they would make a comeback, but they never did. When Erik Cernak is the leading point scorer, the Lightning are going to lose. That’s what happened in this series. Hedman and Kucherov were held scoreless. Point had as many points as his last name indicates. It was the biggest disappointment possibly in sports this century.

NHL History: 30 best teams to not win the Stanley Cup: 1. 1996 Red Wings

The 90s Red Wings were just on another level, but there were multiple disappointments. The team went into the 1995 Stanley Cup Final as major favorites over the New Jersey Devils but got swept. Then, in the 1996 season, they traded for (now Canadiens GM) Marc Bergevin in the offseason. Sergei Fedorov and Steve Yzerman were one of the best duos in hockey.

Two of the best defensemen of all time played together on this team. Paul Coffey scored 74 points while Nicklas Lidstrom put up 67 points. They were a pair that might be considered untouchable. This was the key to the Red Wings. The high-powered defense drove the offense from the blue line. This team scored 325 goals and allowed just 181.

Unfortunately, the Red Wings would face an up-and-coming Avalanche team that just added one of the best goalies in history in Patrick Roy. It was always going to be these two teams in the Western Conference Finals.

After getting past the Jets and Blues in previous series, the Red Wings matched up with the Avs just as everyone thought. The Red Wings just couldn’t solve Roy enough to win. They scored two or fewer goals in each of their losses.

The Wings made major changes in the offseason, trading Coffey for Brendan Shanahan. They finally won the Stanley Cup in 1997 and again in 1998, but 1996 was the best team to ever come short of winning the greatest trophy in sports.