It has been over 30 years since the Stanley Cup was brought home to the great white north.
Last won by the Montreal Canadiens in 1993, the United States-based organizations have monopolized the championship victories for more than three decades. But could 2025 be the best opportunity in the last 32 years that a Canadian has had to bring the cup back north of the border?
Assuming the Canadiens are able to hang on to the second wild card seed in the Eastern Conference and fend off the Columbus Blue Jackets, we will be seeing five Canadian teams make the postseason this year. Since the Winnipeg Jets relocated from Atlanta in 2011, there has never been a year where we’ve seen this many Canadian teams in the playoffs. In fact, I can’t ever remember seeing this many teams from north of the border in the postseason.
But of the (potential) five teams in the playoffs, which of them are authentic Stanley Cup contenders?
The Jets are the easy team to start off with, as the Scott Arniel coached club has clinched the President’s trophy in what has been a remarkable season. The Jets are a slam dunk true contender this year, but they will have to exercise their playoff demons that have doomed them the last several years in disappointing first-round exits. Vezina trophy favorite goaltender Connor Hellebuyck is at the forefront of individual players who will need to turn things around for the Jets, as his play has completely nose dived in the playoffs from the level he has conditioned fans and pundits to expect of him in the regular season.
The center ice position is a cause for concern for the Jets, as the depth takes a steep dive after no.1 center Mark Scheifele. The depth on the wings is there, but the center ice position is a well-documented X-Factor for any teams looking to make a true push for the Stanley Cup. But if Hellebuyck and the centers can hold up, there’s no reason to believe that the Jets won’t go deep in the playoffs; they have not made it to the conference final since 2018.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are in a dog fight with the Tampa Bay Lightning for the no.1 seed in the Atlantic Division, and the prize in doing so would be avoiding the defending cup champion Florida Panthers. With almost two full seasons under GM Brad Treliving, the Leafs have a ,uch different makeup from years’ past. Overhauling the defense by bringing in Brandon Carlo, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Chris Tanev since last summer, this is the most structured and balanced Leafs’ defense we have ever seen – at least on paper.
The top-six forwards up front (led by the core four) will always give them a chance to win, especially with the emergence of Matthew Knies as a top-line power forward. The problem for the Leafs in recent postseason failures has been the offensive depth, which is why Treliving went out and paid the piper to acquire Scott Laughton from the Philadelphia Flyers. Laughton, who was thought to be the third line pivot, has struggled to get acclimated in Toronto and has found himself on the fourth line or playing wing on the third. If the Leafs are to try and break through this season, it will need to be in large part due to their bottom six carrying their share of the load.
In net, Anthony Stolarz or Joseph Woll will need to step up to the plate. The latter just needs to prove to be capable of staying healthy, while the former has no playoff experience in his career. One of them proving to be capable of giving competent goaltending in the playoffs (and reliability) is imperative.
The Edmonton Oilers were the sexy Stanley Cup pick entering this season, but things have not been as bright for the team as of late. The Oilers are poised to lock horns with the Los Angeles Kings in what is proving to be a yearly showdown in the Pacific division this year; the only difference is that the Kings will have home-ice advantage. The Oilers’ keys to success are going to be the same as always: Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid.
Beyond that, it is the common concerns and questions. Will the goaltending hold up? Is the defense capable of going deep? Is there enough forward depth? All these questions will need to be answered in a positive fashion if the Oilers hope to make a deep run like last spring.
The Ottawa Senators have been one of the league’s best stories this season, finally breaking through and clinching a playoff berth for the first time since 2017. Under the first full year of owner Michael Andlauer, GM Steve Staios and head coach Travis Green, the identity of the Senators has completely changed and they have proven to be more than just a bubble team.
Are they true cup contenders? That much is highly in question, as the lack of playoff experience up front (and even on the back end) is a cause for concern. But teams have to start somewhere, and this is the first major stepping stone for the Senators in eventually working their way back to being a true cup contender. But even with that said, is it not completely possible for the Senators to upset the Maple Leafs if the two are to clash in a first-round match up?
If they are to sneak in as the eighth seed in the playoffs, it will be fascinating to see what the Canadiens can muster up against the Washington Capitals in the first round. The Canadiens have shocked the hockey world with their torrid run after the 4 Nations Faceoff by jumping into the playoff picture, and the electric debut of Ivan Demidov has only sparked more excitement in la belle province.
But if we’re being honest, there isn’t much of a hope for the Canadiens to be the ones to bring back the cup north of the border. There is still work that needs to be done throughout the lineup for the Habs to be true cup contenders, though the roster is probably a lot better than people give them credit for. All this to say, they won’t be an easy out for the Capitals, and it will be a major learning experience for the Canadiens’ younger players to be in the playoffs.
So, which teams are true cup contenders from Canada? The Jets, Leafs, and Oilers are the ones that appear to be the low-hanging fruit, but I would not sleep on the Senators either. With three (and maybe four) teams being true cup contenders, this is the best year in quite some time that we could see the cup return the great white north.