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Stanley Cup Finals

The Stanley Cup Finals in ice hockey (also known as the Stanley Cup Final among various media,[note 2] French: Finale de la Coupe Stanley) is the National Hockey League's (NHL) annual championship series. The winner is awarded the Stanley Cup, North America's oldest professional sports trophy,[1] and one of the "most important championships available to the sport [of ice hockey]" according to the International Ice Hockey Federation.[2]

Stanley Cup Finals
The Stanley Cup, the trophy awarded annually to the winner of the Stanley Cup Finals
LeagueNational Hockey League (1926–current)
First played1914[note 1]
Most recently played2023
Current championsVegas Golden Knights
(2023) (1st title)
Most titlesMontreal Canadiens (24)

Originally inscribed the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup, the trophy was donated in 1892 by Lord Stanley of Preston, then–Governor General of Canada, initially as a "challenge trophy" for Canada's top-ranking amateur ice hockey club. The champions held onto the Cup until they either lost their league title to another club, or a champion from another league issued a formal challenge and defeated the reigning Cup champion in a final game to claim their win.

Professional teams first became eligible to challenge for the Stanley Cup in 1906. Starting in 1915, the Cup was officially held between the champion of the National Hockey Association (NHA) and the champion of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA). After a series of league mergers and folds, it became the championship trophy of the National Hockey League (NHL) in 1926. Starting in 1982, the championship round of the NHL's playoffs has been a best-of-seven series played between the champions of the Eastern and Western Conferences. Western champions have won 21 times, while the Eastern champions have won 19 times.

History edit

The Stanley Cup was first awarded to the Montreal Hockey Club in 1893 when the team won the 1893 AHAC season. The team then had to defend its champion-title both through league championships and challenge games organised by the Stanley Cup trustees. Until 1912, these challenges could take place before or during a league season. After 1912, the trustees ordered that challenges only take place after all league games were completed.[3]

The last challenge, in 1914, was the inauguration of the first "World Series" of ice hockey,[4] a series between the Stanley Cup and league champion Toronto Hockey Club of the National Hockey Association (NHA) and the Victoria Aristocrats, champions of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA). The series was pre-arranged between the two leagues before the season after post-season exhibitions held in their previous seasons. The inaugural series was to be held in the city of the NHA champion, and alternate annually following the series.

After the series got under way, there was some concern that the series would not produce an "official" Stanley Cup champion. The Victoria club had not formally applied to the Stanley Cup trustees to challenge for the Cup.[5] A letter arrived from the Stanley Cup trustees on March 17, that the trustees would not let the Stanley Cup travel west, because they did not consider Victoria a proper challenger, as they had not verified themselves with the trustees.[6] However, on March 18, trustee William Foran stated that it was a misunderstanding. PCHA president Lester Patrick, PCHA President, had not filed a challenge, because he had expected Emmett Quinn of the NHA to make all of the arrangements in his role as hockey commissioner, whereas the trustees thought they were being purposely ignored. The Victoria challenge was accepted.[7] Any tension was diffused as Toronto successfully defended the Cup by sweeping a best-of-five series in three games.[8] This began the end of the influence of the Stanley Cup trustees on the challengers and series for the Cup. In March 1914, trustee William Foran wrote to NHA president Emmett Quinn that the trustees are "perfectly satisfied to allow the representatives of the three pro leagues (NHA, PCHA and Maritime) to make all arrangements each season as to the series of matches to be played for the Cup."[9]

Victoria vs. Toronto

Date Winning team Score Losing team Rules Notes
March 14, 1914 Toronto HC 5–2 Victoria Aristocrats NHA
March 17, 1914 Toronto HC 6–5 Victoria Aristocrats PCHA 15:00, OT
March 19, 1914 Toronto HC 2–1 Victoria Aristocrats NHA
Toronto Hockey Club wins best-of-five series 3 games to 0

[4]

All games played at Arena Gardens in Toronto.

Part of their 1913 agreement to set up drafting and player rights ownership, the NHA and PCHA leagues agreed to have their respective champions face each other for the Cup.[10] At the same time, the NHA concluded a similar agreement with the Maritime Hockey League but the MHL champions abandoned their 1914 challenge and did not challenge again. From 1914 onwards, the Stanley Cup championship finals alternated between the East and the West each year, with alternating games played according to NHA and PCHA rules.[11] The Cup trustees agreed to this new arrangement, because after the Allan Cup became the highest prize for amateur hockey teams in Canada, the trustees had become dependent on the top two professional leagues to bolster the prominence of the trophy.[12] After the Portland Rosebuds, an American-based team, joined the PCHA in 1914, the trustees issued a statement that the Cup was no longer for the best team in Canada, but now for the best team in the world.[11] Two years later, the Rosebuds became the first American team to play in the Stanley Cup championship finals.[8] In 1917, the Seattle Metropolitans became the first American team to win the Cup.[13] After that season, the NHA dissolved, and the National Hockey League (NHL) took its place.[11]

In 1919, the Spanish influenza epidemic forced the Montreal Canadiens and the Seattle Metropolitans to cancel their series tied at 2–2–1, marking the first time the Stanley Cup was not awarded.[14]

The format for the Stanley Cup championship changed in 1922, with the creation of the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL). Now three leagues competed for the Cup and this necessitated a semi-final series between two league champions, with the third having a bye directly to the finals.[15] In 1924, the PCHA and the WCHL merged to form the Western Hockey League (WHL) and the championship reverted to a single series.[16] After winning in the 1924–25 season, the Victoria Cougars became the last team outside the NHL to win the Stanley Cup.[17]

The WHL folded in 1926, and most of the players moved to the NHL. This left the NHL as the only league left competing for the Cup. Other leagues and clubs have issued challenges, but from that year forward, no non-NHL team has played for it, leading it to become the de facto championship trophy of the NHL.[16] In 1947, the NHL reached an agreement with trustees P. D. Ross and Cooper Smeaton to grant control of the cup to the NHL, allowing the league itself to reject challenges from other leagues that may have wished to play for the Cup.[18][19] A 2006 Ontario Superior Court case found that the trustees had gone against Lord Stanley's conditions in the 1947 agreement.[20] The NHL has agreed to allow other teams to play for the Cup should the league not be operating, as was the case in the 2004–05 NHL lockout.[19]

Broadcasting edit

The first television broadcast of the Stanley Cup Finals in Canada was in 1953. English-language coverage was aired by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), with Danny Gallivan calling the play-by-play, Keith Dancy providing the colour commentary, and Wes McKnight hosted. The Hockey Night in Canada team of Gallivan and Dancy called the next eight finals. Gallivan called his last championship series in 1978. For decades, Hockey Night in Canada on CBC remained the exclusive English-language broadcaster across Canada, except in 1972 when a lengthy NABET strike forced coverage to be instead aired on CTV, and from 1985 to 1988 when the series was split between CBC and either CTV or Global TV. In 2015, the CBC telecast became a Rogers Media-produced broadcast under a sub-license agreement, with it streaming on Rogers Media's digital platform, and a simulcast on Sportsnet starting in 2017.

French-language broadcasts in Canada also began in 1953, with play-by-play commentator René Lecavalier and colour commentator Jean-Maurice Bailly on CBC's Télévision de Radio-Canada (SRC) division. SRC continued to be the exclusive French-language broadcaster until 2003 when Réseau des sports (RDS) took over. Since 2015, under a sub-license agreement with Rogers, TVA has been the exclusive home of French-language broadcasts in Canada.

The first television broadcast in the United States was in 1962, covered by local Chicago station WGN, while network broadcasts started in 1966 on NBC. However, national coverage on American television, like the rest of the NHL season, remained in a state of flux for decades. From 1966 to 1975, NBC and CBS held the rights at various times, but they each only covered selected games of the series. It was then carried on syndication from 1976 to 1979 through the 1970s NHL Network. In 1980, the Hughes broadcast network simulcast CBC's feed before the series was moved to cable. During its time on cable from 1980 to 1993, rights to the series was held at various times by USA, SportsChannel America, and ESPN, but there was no exclusive coverage of games and thus local broadcasters could also still televise them regionally as well. In 1995, Fox signed on to be the exclusive national broadcast network of selected games of the final round, splitting it with ESPN. This splitting of exclusive national coverage between a cable and a broadcast network was then passed to ABC and ESPN in 2000, and then NBC and Versus (now NBCSN) in 2006. Since 2022, the series has been rotated annually between ABC in even years and the cable channel TNT in odd years (with the option for simulcasts on their respective sister cable networks or streaming platforms).

Timeline of national broadcasters edit

Canada United States
Year English language French language Year National broadcaster(s) Local/national coverage policy
1953 CBC SRC 1953 None
1966 1966 NBC (Games 1 and 4), RKO General (Game 6) Local coverage permitted for non-network games.
National network telecasts exclusive.
1967 1967 CBS (Selected games only)
1972 CTV 1972
1973 CBC 1973 NBC (Selected games only)
1976 1976 NHL Network National coverage on syndicated network exclusive.
1980 1980 Hughes (Games 1–5), CBS (Game 6)
1981 1981 USA Local coverage permitted for all games.
National coverage (cable) not exclusive.
1985 Split between CBC and CTV 1985
1986 1986 ESPN
1987 Split between CBC and Global 1987
1989 CBC 1989 SportsChannel America
1993 1993 ESPN
1995 1995 Split between Fox and ESPN National coverage (network and cable) exclusive.
2000 2000 Split between ABC and ESPN
2003 RDS 2003
2006 2006 Split between NBC and OLN/VS/NBCSN
2015 CBC, produced by Rogers Sportsnet; simulcast on Sportsnet since 2017 TVA 2015
2022 2022 Rotated annually between ABC in even years and TNT in odd years; TNT's broadcasts are also simulcast on TruTV and TBS

Series format edit

The championship series began with the interleague 'World Series' played in one city. The series alternated between a rink of the NHA and later the NHL and a rink of the PCHA and later the WCHL/WHL. It was not until the demise of the WHL, that the final series alternated games between the two finalists' home ice.

The series allowed ties until 1928. As the two and later three leagues differed, the series would alternate using each league's rules. The PCHA continued to use seven-man team play, and games would alternate with six and seven-man games.

After the NHL became the last remaining league to compete for the Cup, the trophy was then awarded to the winner of the NHL's championship playoff round. This first took place in 1927 between the Boston Bruins and the Ottawa Senators, which was planned to be a best-of-three series, although the series allowed ties. The series ended after four games, when the Senators defeated the Bruins in the fourth game.

The NHL has changed its playoff format several times since 1927, and thus the final round has not always pitted conference or division playoff champions against each other. In the playoff format used from 1929 to 1938, the two teams with identical division ranking would face each other (i.e. the first place teams played each other, the second place teams play each other, and likewise for the third place teams). The winner of the first place series would automatically advance to the final round. The winner of the second and third place series would then play each other, with the winner of that series earning the other berth to the championship round.

During the Original Six era, the top four teams made the playoffs, with the first and third place teams battling in one semifinal series, while the second and fourth place teams battled in the other. And from 1975 to 1981, all the playoff teams were seeded regardless of division or conference. From 1982 to 2020, the NHL's final round pitted the league's two conference playoff champions. In 2021, the league temporarily realigned due the COVID-19 pandemic, as a result the four playoff division champions were re-seeded and played in the Semifinals, with the winners of those series advancing to the finals. The league then returned to the previous conference based playoff format in 2022.

Years Format Participants[21][22] Notes
1914–1917 best-of-five NHA champion vs. PCHA champion
1918–1921 NHL champion vs. PCHA champion 1919 finals cancelled after the fifth game because of the flu epidemic.
1922 With three leagues (the NHL, the PCHA, and the WCHL) competing for the Cup, a semifinal series was held between two league champions, with the third having a bye directly to the Cup finals.
1923–1924 best-of-three
1925–1926 best-of-five NHL champion vs. WCHL/WHL champion The WCHL was renamed the WHL before the 1925–26 season.
1927 best-of-three American Division vs. Canadian Division playoff champions Ties allowed, series ended in four games. First season that the Cup was solely contested by the NHL.
1928 best-of-five
1929–1930 best-of-three The two divisional first-place teams played each other for one berth in the Cup Finals, while the other playoff teams competed in a series of rounds for the other berth in the Cup Finals.
1931–1938 best-of-five
1939–1942 best-of-seven The top two seeds played each other for one berth in the Cup finals, while the other four playoff teams battled in a series of rounds for the other berth. Period of the seven-team NHL
1943–1967 The first and third-place teams played for one berth in the Cup finals, while the second and fourth-place teams played for the other berth. The "Original Six" era.
1968–1970 East Division vs. West Division playoff champions
1971–1974 The league used playoff formats that ensured that both Cup semifinals were inter-division match-ups.
1975–1981 Playoff teams were seeded regardless of division or conference, with the last two remaining teams playing in the finals.
1982–2020 Wales/Eastern Conference vs. Campbell/Western Conference playoff champions 2004–05 season canceled due to lockout.
2021 The COVID-19 pandemic and closure of the Canada–United States border forced the league to temporarily realign the teams in three US-based divisions and one Canadian division to limit travel. The top four teams in each division played each other with the winners of those games advancing to the divisional round. The four divisional playoff champions were then re-seeded by regular season points in the Stanley Cup Semifinals. The winners of the Semifinals played each other in the Stanley Cup Finals.
2022–present Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference playoff champions

Champions edit

Most recent finals (last five)
Year Winning team Coach Losing team Coach Result Series-winning goal
2019 St. Louis Blues (WC) Craig Berube (interim) Boston Bruins (EC) Bruce Cassidy 4–3 Alex Pietrangelo (19:52, first)
2020 Tampa Bay Lightning (EC) Jon Cooper Dallas Stars (WC) Rick Bowness (interim) 4–2 Brayden Point (12:23, first)
2021 Tampa Bay Lightning (CD) Jon Cooper Montreal Canadiens (ND) Dominique Ducharme (interim) 4–1 Ross Colton (13:27, second)
2022 Colorado Avalanche (WC) Jared Bednar Tampa Bay Lightning (EC) Jon Cooper 4–2 Artturi Lehkonen (12:28, second)
2023 Vegas Golden Knights (WC) Bruce Cassidy Florida Panthers (EC) Paul Maurice 4–1 Reilly Smith (12:13, second)
Most finals appearances (top five)
(Bold indicates Cup wins)
Appearances Team Wins Losses Win % Years of appearance
35[3] Montreal Canadiens (NHA/NHL) 24 10 .686 1916, 1917, 1919[3], 1924, 1925, 1930, 1931, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1986, 1989, 1993, 2021
24 Detroit Red Wings 11 13 .458 1934, 1936, 1937, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1945, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2008, 2009
21 Toronto Maple Leafs[1] 13 8 .619 1918, 1922, 1932, 1933, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1942, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1967
20 Boston Bruins 6 14 .300 1927, 1929, 1930, 1939, 1941, 1943, 1946, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1970, 1972, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1988, 1990, 2011, 2013, 2019
13 Chicago Blackhawks[2] 6 7 .462 1931, 1934, 1938, 1944, 1961, 1962, 1965, 1971, 1973, 1992, 2010, 2013, 2015
Notes

^ 1. The NHL includes the Toronto Hockey Club (Toronto Arenas) 1918 win and the 1922 Toronto St. Patricks win in the Toronto Maple Leafs total.
^ 2. The Chicago Blackhawks were known as the Chicago Black Hawks before the 1986–87 season.
^ 3. The Montreal Canadiens totals include the 1919 finals that ended with a no-decision because of the Spanish flu epidemic.

Records edit

Team edit

  • Most wins: Montreal Canadiens (24)
  • Most losses: Boston Bruins (14)
  • Fewest losses: Colorado Avalanche (0)
  • Most consecutive wins: Montreal Canadiens (5 in 19561960)
  • Most consecutive losses: Toronto Maple Leafs (3 in 19381940), St. Louis Blues (3 in 19681970)
  • Most consecutive appearances: Montreal Canadiens (10 in 19511960)[23]
  • Most consecutive appearances without a loss: Montreal Canadiens (9 from 1968 to 1986)
  • Most consecutive appearances without a win: Toronto Maple Leafs (6 from 1933 to 1940), Detroit Red Wings (6 from 1956 to 1995), Philadelphia Flyers (6 from 1976 to 2010)
  • Most seasons between wins: New York Rangers (54 between 1940 and 1994, if not Toronto Maple Leafs below)
  • Most seasons between appearances: Toronto Maple Leafs (55 between 1967–present, excluding 2004-05 season)

Stanley Cup Finals consecutive appearances edit

Team Appearance streak Consecutive appearances Wins during streak
Montreal Canadiens 10 seasons 1950–51 through to 1959–60 1952–53, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1958–59, 1959–60
Montreal Canadiens 05 seasons 1964–65 through to 1968–69 1964–65, 1965–66, 1967–68, 1968–69
New York Islanders 05 seasons 1979–80 through to 1983–84 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1982–83
Montreal Canadiens 04 seasons 1975–76 through to 1978–79 1975–76, 1976–77, 1977–78, 1978–79
Toronto Maple Leafs 03 seasons 1937–38 through to 1939–40 none
Detroit Red Wings 03 seasons 1940–41 through to 1942–43 1942–43
Toronto Maple Leafs 03 seasons 1946–47 through to 1948–49 1946–47, 1947–48, 1948–49
Detroit Red Wings 03 seasons 1947–48 through to 1949–50 1949–50
Detroit Red Wings 03 seasons 1953–54 through to 1955–56 1953–54, 1954–55
Toronto Maple Leafs 03 seasons 1961–62 through to 1963–64 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64
St. Louis Blues 03 seasons 1967–68 through to 1969–70 none
Philadelphia Flyers 03 seasons 1973–74 through to 1975–76 1973–74, 1974–75
Edmonton Oilers 03 seasons 1982–83 through to 1984–85 1983–84, 1984–85
Tampa Bay Lightning 03 seasons 2019–20 through to 2021–22 2019–20, 2020–21

Individual edit

Career
Series

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ See List of Stanley Cup challenge games for Stanley Cup champions earlier than 1914
  2. ^ The NHL officially began referring to the championship series as a singular "Final" circa 2006. However, various North American media still continue to refer to it as plural "Finals", similar to the NBA Finals.
  3. ^ One of the above (most points, most goals) is incorrect, as 14 goals are also 14 points. The discrepancy seems to be whether the years before 1918 are included in NHL Stanley Cup history.

References edit

Citations edit

  1. ^ Roarke, Shawn P. (March 12, 2017). "Stanley Cup has incredible history". National Hockey League. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  2. ^ Podnieks, Andrew (March 25, 2008). "Triple Gold Goalies... not". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
  3. ^ Kreiser, John (March 8, 2013). "Stanley Cup timeline, from 1892 to today". NHL. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
  4. ^ a b Diamond, Zweig, and Duplacey, p. 25
  5. ^ Coleman 1966, p. 262.
  6. ^ "Stanley Cup Contest May Not Be for the Mug, After All is Said". Saskatoon Phoenix. March 18, 1914. p. 8.
  7. ^ "A Tempest In a Teapot". Montreal Daily Mail. March 19, 1914. p. 9.
  8. ^ a b Diamond (1992), p. 46
  9. ^ "Three Pro Leagues as to Stanley Cup". Toronto World. March 25, 1914. p. 8.
  10. ^ "Hockey Season At Coast Opens With Exhibition Game Tomorrow". Ottawa Citizen. November 27, 1913. p. 8.
  11. ^ a b c Diamond, Zweig, and Duplacey, p. 20
  12. ^ Diamond (1992), p. 45
  13. ^ . Hockey Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2006-07-11.
  14. ^ Podnieks, p. 51
  15. ^ Diamond, Zweig, and Duplacey, pp. 20–21
  16. ^ a b Diamond, Zweig, and Duplacey, p. 21
  17. ^ . Hockey Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2006-07-11.
  18. ^ Diamond, Zweig and Duplacey, p. 40.
  19. ^ a b . TSN. 2006-02-07. Archived from the original on 2007-12-16. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
  20. ^ "Amateurs taking NHL to court to play for Cup". ESPN. 2005-04-13. Retrieved 2007-10-13.
  21. ^ McCarthy, Dave (2008). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book (2009 ed.). Dan Diamond Associates. p. 249. ISBN 978-1-894801-14-0.
  22. ^ "NHL playoff formats". NHL.com. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
  23. ^ "Final Series Record Book, 1918-2011 Page 1 - Stanley Cup Playoffs". Nhl.com. Retrieved 2013-06-02.
  24. ^ a b c d e f g h Diamond(2000), p. 88
  25. ^ a b c Diamond(2000), p. 89.

Sources edit

  • Coleman, Charles (1964–1969). The Trail of the Stanley Cup vols. 1–3. Sherbrooke Daily Record Company Ltd., NHL.
  • Diamond, Dan; Eric Zweig; James Duplacey (2003). The Ultimate Prize: The Stanley Cup. Andrews McMeel Publishing. ISBN 0-7407-3830-5.
  • Diamond, Dan, ed. (1992). The Official National Hockey League Stanley Cup Centennial Book. Firefly Books. ISBN 1-895565-15-4.
  • Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Stanley Cup. Total Sports Canada. ISBN 1-892129-07-8.
  • McCarthy, Dave, ed. (2008). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2009. Dan Diamond Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-14-0.
  • Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame (2004). Lord Stanley's Cup. Triumph Books. ISBN 1-55168-261-3.

External links edit

  • "List of winners of the Stanley Cup". NHL.com. Retrieved 2016-03-03.
  • "List of Stanley Cup Playoff Formats: 1917 to date". NHL.com. Retrieved 2013-06-25.
  • . NHL.com. Archived from the original on 2009-04-12. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
  • . LegendsofHockey.net. Archived from the original on 2007-12-30. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
  • . The Sports Network. Archived from the original on 2008-05-02. Retrieved 2008-04-18.

stanley, finals, this, article, about, championship, series, postseason, general, stanley, playoffs, most, recent, series, 2023, hockey, also, known, stanley, final, among, various, media, note, french, finale, coupe, stanley, national, hockey, league, annual,. This article is about the NHL championship series For the NHL postseason in general see Stanley Cup playoffs For the most recent series see 2023 Stanley Cup Finals The Stanley Cup Finals in ice hockey also known as the Stanley Cup Final among various media note 2 French Finale de la Coupe Stanley is the National Hockey League s NHL annual championship series The winner is awarded the Stanley Cup North America s oldest professional sports trophy 1 and one of the most important championships available to the sport of ice hockey according to the International Ice Hockey Federation 2 Stanley Cup FinalsThe Stanley Cup the trophy awarded annually to the winner of the Stanley Cup FinalsLeagueNational Hockey League 1926 current First played1914 note 1 Most recently played2023Current championsVegas Golden Knights 2023 1st title Most titlesMontreal Canadiens 24 Originally inscribed the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup the trophy was donated in 1892 by Lord Stanley of Preston then Governor General of Canada initially as a challenge trophy for Canada s top ranking amateur ice hockey club The champions held onto the Cup until they either lost their league title to another club or a champion from another league issued a formal challenge and defeated the reigning Cup champion in a final game to claim their win Professional teams first became eligible to challenge for the Stanley Cup in 1906 Starting in 1915 the Cup was officially held between the champion of the National Hockey Association NHA and the champion of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association PCHA After a series of league mergers and folds it became the championship trophy of the National Hockey League NHL in 1926 Starting in 1982 the championship round of the NHL s playoffs has been a best of seven series played between the champions of the Eastern and Western Conferences Western champions have won 21 times while the Eastern champions have won 19 times Contents 1 History 1 1 Broadcasting 1 1 1 Timeline of national broadcasters 2 Series format 3 Champions 4 Records 4 1 Team 4 1 1 Stanley Cup Finals consecutive appearances 4 2 Individual 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References 7 1 Citations 7 2 Sources 8 External linksHistory editThe Stanley Cup was first awarded to the Montreal Hockey Club in 1893 when the team won the 1893 AHAC season The team then had to defend its champion title both through league championships and challenge games organised by the Stanley Cup trustees Until 1912 these challenges could take place before or during a league season After 1912 the trustees ordered that challenges only take place after all league games were completed 3 The last challenge in 1914 was the inauguration of the first World Series of ice hockey 4 a series between the Stanley Cup and league champion Toronto Hockey Club of the National Hockey Association NHA and the Victoria Aristocrats champions of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association PCHA The series was pre arranged between the two leagues before the season after post season exhibitions held in their previous seasons The inaugural series was to be held in the city of the NHA champion and alternate annually following the series After the series got under way there was some concern that the series would not produce an official Stanley Cup champion The Victoria club had not formally applied to the Stanley Cup trustees to challenge for the Cup 5 A letter arrived from the Stanley Cup trustees on March 17 that the trustees would not let the Stanley Cup travel west because they did not consider Victoria a proper challenger as they had not verified themselves with the trustees 6 However on March 18 trustee William Foran stated that it was a misunderstanding PCHA president Lester Patrick PCHA President had not filed a challenge because he had expected Emmett Quinn of the NHA to make all of the arrangements in his role as hockey commissioner whereas the trustees thought they were being purposely ignored The Victoria challenge was accepted 7 Any tension was diffused as Toronto successfully defended the Cup by sweeping a best of five series in three games 8 This began the end of the influence of the Stanley Cup trustees on the challengers and series for the Cup In March 1914 trustee William Foran wrote to NHA president Emmett Quinn that the trustees are perfectly satisfied to allow the representatives of the three pro leagues NHA PCHA and Maritime to make all arrangements each season as to the series of matches to be played for the Cup 9 Victoria vs Toronto Date Winning team Score Losing team Rules NotesMarch 14 1914 Toronto HC 5 2 Victoria Aristocrats NHAMarch 17 1914 Toronto HC 6 5 Victoria Aristocrats PCHA 15 00 OTMarch 19 1914 Toronto HC 2 1 Victoria Aristocrats NHAToronto Hockey Club wins best of five series 3 games to 0 4 All games played at Arena Gardens in Toronto Part of their 1913 agreement to set up drafting and player rights ownership the NHA and PCHA leagues agreed to have their respective champions face each other for the Cup 10 At the same time the NHA concluded a similar agreement with the Maritime Hockey League but the MHL champions abandoned their 1914 challenge and did not challenge again From 1914 onwards the Stanley Cup championship finals alternated between the East and the West each year with alternating games played according to NHA and PCHA rules 11 The Cup trustees agreed to this new arrangement because after the Allan Cup became the highest prize for amateur hockey teams in Canada the trustees had become dependent on the top two professional leagues to bolster the prominence of the trophy 12 After the Portland Rosebuds an American based team joined the PCHA in 1914 the trustees issued a statement that the Cup was no longer for the best team in Canada but now for the best team in the world 11 Two years later the Rosebuds became the first American team to play in the Stanley Cup championship finals 8 In 1917 the Seattle Metropolitans became the first American team to win the Cup 13 After that season the NHA dissolved and the National Hockey League NHL took its place 11 In 1919 the Spanish influenza epidemic forced the Montreal Canadiens and the Seattle Metropolitans to cancel their series tied at 2 2 1 marking the first time the Stanley Cup was not awarded 14 The format for the Stanley Cup championship changed in 1922 with the creation of the Western Canada Hockey League WCHL Now three leagues competed for the Cup and this necessitated a semi final series between two league champions with the third having a bye directly to the finals 15 In 1924 the PCHA and the WCHL merged to form the Western Hockey League WHL and the championship reverted to a single series 16 After winning in the 1924 25 season the Victoria Cougars became the last team outside the NHL to win the Stanley Cup 17 The WHL folded in 1926 and most of the players moved to the NHL This left the NHL as the only league left competing for the Cup Other leagues and clubs have issued challenges but from that year forward no non NHL team has played for it leading it to become the de facto championship trophy of the NHL 16 In 1947 the NHL reached an agreement with trustees P D Ross and Cooper Smeaton to grant control of the cup to the NHL allowing the league itself to reject challenges from other leagues that may have wished to play for the Cup 18 19 A 2006 Ontario Superior Court case found that the trustees had gone against Lord Stanley s conditions in the 1947 agreement 20 The NHL has agreed to allow other teams to play for the Cup should the league not be operating as was the case in the 2004 05 NHL lockout 19 Broadcasting edit See also List of Stanley Cup Finals broadcasters List of American Stanley Cup Finals television announcers and List of Canadian Stanley Cup Finals television announcers The first television broadcast of the Stanley Cup Finals in Canada was in 1953 English language coverage was aired by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation CBC with Danny Gallivan calling the play by play Keith Dancy providing the colour commentary and Wes McKnight hosted The Hockey Night in Canada team of Gallivan and Dancy called the next eight finals Gallivan called his last championship series in 1978 For decades Hockey Night in Canada on CBC remained the exclusive English language broadcaster across Canada except in 1972 when a lengthy NABET strike forced coverage to be instead aired on CTV and from 1985 to 1988 when the series was split between CBC and either CTV or Global TV In 2015 the CBC telecast became a Rogers Media produced broadcast under a sub license agreement with it streaming on Rogers Media s digital platform and a simulcast on Sportsnet starting in 2017 French language broadcasts in Canada also began in 1953 with play by play commentator Rene Lecavalier and colour commentator Jean Maurice Bailly on CBC s Television de Radio Canada SRC division SRC continued to be the exclusive French language broadcaster until 2003 when Reseau des sports RDS took over Since 2015 under a sub license agreement with Rogers TVA has been the exclusive home of French language broadcasts in Canada The first television broadcast in the United States was in 1962 covered by local Chicago station WGN while network broadcasts started in 1966 on NBC However national coverage on American television like the rest of the NHL season remained in a state of flux for decades From 1966 to 1975 NBC and CBS held the rights at various times but they each only covered selected games of the series It was then carried on syndication from 1976 to 1979 through the 1970s NHL Network In 1980 the Hughes broadcast network simulcast CBC s feed before the series was moved to cable During its time on cable from 1980 to 1993 rights to the series was held at various times by USA SportsChannel America and ESPN but there was no exclusive coverage of games and thus local broadcasters could also still televise them regionally as well In 1995 Fox signed on to be the exclusive national broadcast network of selected games of the final round splitting it with ESPN This splitting of exclusive national coverage between a cable and a broadcast network was then passed to ABC and ESPN in 2000 and then NBC and Versus now NBCSN in 2006 Since 2022 the series has been rotated annually between ABC in even years and the cable channel TNT in odd years with the option for simulcasts on their respective sister cable networks or streaming platforms Timeline of national broadcasters edit Canada United StatesYear English language French language Year National broadcaster s Local national coverage policy1953 CBC SRC 1953 None1966 1966 NBC Games 1 and 4 RKO General Game 6 Local coverage permitted for non network games National network telecasts exclusive 1967 1967 CBS Selected games only 1972 CTV 19721973 CBC 1973 NBC Selected games only 1976 1976 NHL Network National coverage on syndicated network exclusive 1980 1980 Hughes Games 1 5 CBS Game 6 1981 1981 USA Local coverage permitted for all games National coverage cable not exclusive 1985 Split between CBC and CTV 19851986 1986 ESPN1987 Split between CBC and Global 19871989 CBC 1989 SportsChannel America1993 1993 ESPN1995 1995 Split between Fox and ESPN National coverage network and cable exclusive 2000 2000 Split between ABC and ESPN2003 RDS 20032006 2006 Split between NBC and OLN VS NBCSN2015 CBC produced by Rogers Sportsnet simulcast on Sportsnet since 2017 TVA 20152022 2022 Rotated annually between ABC in even years and TNT in odd years TNT s broadcasts are also simulcast on TruTV and TBSSeries format editSee also Stanley Cup playoffs History The championship series began with the interleague World Series played in one city The series alternated between a rink of the NHA and later the NHL and a rink of the PCHA and later the WCHL WHL It was not until the demise of the WHL that the final series alternated games between the two finalists home ice The series allowed ties until 1928 As the two and later three leagues differed the series would alternate using each league s rules The PCHA continued to use seven man team play and games would alternate with six and seven man games After the NHL became the last remaining league to compete for the Cup the trophy was then awarded to the winner of the NHL s championship playoff round This first took place in 1927 between the Boston Bruins and the Ottawa Senators which was planned to be a best of three series although the series allowed ties The series ended after four games when the Senators defeated the Bruins in the fourth game The NHL has changed its playoff format several times since 1927 and thus the final round has not always pitted conference or division playoff champions against each other In the playoff format used from 1929 to 1938 the two teams with identical division ranking would face each other i e the first place teams played each other the second place teams play each other and likewise for the third place teams The winner of the first place series would automatically advance to the final round The winner of the second and third place series would then play each other with the winner of that series earning the other berth to the championship round During the Original Six era the top four teams made the playoffs with the first and third place teams battling in one semifinal series while the second and fourth place teams battled in the other And from 1975 to 1981 all the playoff teams were seeded regardless of division or conference From 1982 to 2020 the NHL s final round pitted the league s two conference playoff champions In 2021 the league temporarily realigned due the COVID 19 pandemic as a result the four playoff division champions were re seeded and played in the Semifinals with the winners of those series advancing to the finals The league then returned to the previous conference based playoff format in 2022 Years Format Participants 21 22 Notes1914 1917 best of five NHA champion vs PCHA champion1918 1921 NHL champion vs PCHA champion 1919 finals cancelled after the fifth game because of the flu epidemic 1922 With three leagues the NHL the PCHA and the WCHL competing for the Cup a semifinal series was held between two league champions with the third having a bye directly to the Cup finals 1923 1924 best of three1925 1926 best of five NHL champion vs WCHL WHL champion The WCHL was renamed the WHL before the 1925 26 season 1927 best of three American Division vs Canadian Division playoff champions Ties allowed series ended in four games First season that the Cup was solely contested by the NHL 1928 best of five1929 1930 best of three The two divisional first place teams played each other for one berth in the Cup Finals while the other playoff teams competed in a series of rounds for the other berth in the Cup Finals 1931 1938 best of five1939 1942 best of seven The top two seeds played each other for one berth in the Cup finals while the other four playoff teams battled in a series of rounds for the other berth Period of the seven team NHL1943 1967 The first and third place teams played for one berth in the Cup finals while the second and fourth place teams played for the other berth The Original Six era 1968 1970 East Division vs West Division playoff champions1971 1974 The league used playoff formats that ensured that both Cup semifinals were inter division match ups 1975 1981 Playoff teams were seeded regardless of division or conference with the last two remaining teams playing in the finals 1982 2020 Wales Eastern Conference vs Campbell Western Conference playoff champions 2004 05 season canceled due to lockout 2021 The COVID 19 pandemic and closure of the Canada United States border forced the league to temporarily realign the teams in three US based divisions and one Canadian division to limit travel The top four teams in each division played each other with the winners of those games advancing to the divisional round The four divisional playoff champions were then re seeded by regular season points in the Stanley Cup Semifinals The winners of the Semifinals played each other in the Stanley Cup Finals 2022 present Eastern Conference vs Western Conference playoff championsChampions editFurther information List of Stanley Cup champions Most recent finals last five Year Winning team Coach Losing team Coach Result Series winning goal2019 St Louis Blues WC Craig Berube interim Boston Bruins EC Bruce Cassidy 4 3 Alex Pietrangelo 19 52 first 2020 Tampa Bay Lightning EC Jon Cooper Dallas Stars WC Rick Bowness interim 4 2 Brayden Point 12 23 first 2021 Tampa Bay Lightning CD Jon Cooper Montreal Canadiens ND Dominique Ducharme interim 4 1 Ross Colton 13 27 second 2022 Colorado Avalanche WC Jared Bednar Tampa Bay Lightning EC Jon Cooper 4 2 Artturi Lehkonen 12 28 second 2023 Vegas Golden Knights WC Bruce Cassidy Florida Panthers EC Paul Maurice 4 1 Reilly Smith 12 13 second Most finals appearances top five Bold indicates Cup wins Appearances Team Wins Losses Win Years of appearance35 3 Montreal Canadiens NHA NHL 24 10 686 1916 1917 1919 3 1924 1925 1930 1931 1944 1946 1947 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1971 1973 1976 1977 1978 1979 1986 1989 1993 202124 Detroit Red Wings 11 13 458 1934 1936 1937 1941 1942 1943 1945 1948 1949 1950 1952 1954 1955 1956 1961 1963 1964 1966 1995 1997 1998 2002 2008 200921 Toronto Maple Leafs 1 13 8 619 1918 1922 1932 1933 1935 1936 1938 1939 1940 1942 1945 1947 1948 1949 1951 1959 1960 1962 1963 1964 196720 Boston Bruins 6 14 300 1927 1929 1930 1939 1941 1943 1946 1953 1957 1958 1970 1972 1974 1977 1978 1988 1990 2011 2013 201913 Chicago Blackhawks 2 6 7 462 1931 1934 1938 1944 1961 1962 1965 1971 1973 1992 2010 2013 2015Notes 1 The NHL includes the Toronto Hockey Club Toronto Arenas 1918 win and the 1922 Toronto St Patricks win in the Toronto Maple Leafs total 2 The Chicago Blackhawks were known as the Chicago Black Hawks before the 1986 87 season 3 The Montreal Canadiens totals include the 1919 finals that ended with a no decision because of the Spanish flu epidemic Records editTeam edit Most wins Montreal Canadiens 24 Most losses Boston Bruins 14 Fewest losses Colorado Avalanche 0 Most consecutive wins Montreal Canadiens 5 in 1956 1960 Most consecutive losses Toronto Maple Leafs 3 in 1938 1940 St Louis Blues 3 in 1968 1970 Most consecutive appearances Montreal Canadiens 10 in 1951 1960 23 Most consecutive appearances without a loss Montreal Canadiens 9 from 1968 to 1986 Most consecutive appearances without a win Toronto Maple Leafs 6 from 1933 to 1940 Detroit Red Wings 6 from 1956 to 1995 Philadelphia Flyers 6 from 1976 to 2010 Most seasons between wins New York Rangers 54 between 1940 and 1994 if not Toronto Maple Leafs below Most seasons between appearances Toronto Maple Leafs 55 between 1967 present excluding 2004 05 season Stanley Cup Finals consecutive appearances edit Team Appearance streak Consecutive appearances Wins during streakMontreal Canadiens 10 seasons 1950 51 through to 1959 60 1952 53 1955 56 1956 57 1957 58 1958 59 1959 60Montreal Canadiens 0 5 seasons 1964 65 through to 1968 69 1964 65 1965 66 1967 68 1968 69New York Islanders 0 5 seasons 1979 80 through to 1983 84 1979 80 1980 81 1981 82 1982 83Montreal Canadiens 0 4 seasons 1975 76 through to 1978 79 1975 76 1976 77 1977 78 1978 79Toronto Maple Leafs 0 3 seasons 1937 38 through to 1939 40 noneDetroit Red Wings 0 3 seasons 1940 41 through to 1942 43 1942 43Toronto Maple Leafs 0 3 seasons 1946 47 through to 1948 49 1946 47 1947 48 1948 49Detroit Red Wings 0 3 seasons 1947 48 through to 1949 50 1949 50Detroit Red Wings 0 3 seasons 1953 54 through to 1955 56 1953 54 1954 55Toronto Maple Leafs 0 3 seasons 1961 62 through to 1963 64 1961 62 1962 63 1963 64St Louis Blues 0 3 seasons 1967 68 through to 1969 70 nonePhiladelphia Flyers 0 3 seasons 1973 74 through to 1975 76 1973 74 1974 75Edmonton Oilers 0 3 seasons 1982 83 through to 1984 85 1983 84 1984 85Tampa Bay Lightning 0 3 seasons 2019 20 through to 2021 22 2019 20 2020 21Individual edit CareerMost years in finals 12 Maurice Richard Red Kelly Jean Beliveau Henri Richard 24 Most games played in finals 65 Red Kelly Henri Richard 24 Most consecutive games in finals 53 Bernie Geoffrion 24 Most career points in finals 62 Jean Beliveau 24 Most career goals in finals 34 Maurice Richard 24 Most career assists in finals 35 Wayne Gretzky 24 Most career game winning goals in finals 9 Jean Beliveau 24 Most career shutouts in finals 8 Clint Benedict 24 SeriesMost points one series 13 Wayne Gretzky 1988 25 Most goals one series 14 Bernie Morris 1917 note 3 Most assists one series 10 Wayne Gretzky 1988 25 Most shutouts one series 3 Clint Benedict 1926 Frank McCool 1945 Martin Brodeur 2003 25 See also editList of Stanley Cup champions List of Stanley Cup challenge games List of NHL franchise post season droughtsNotes edit See List of Stanley Cup challenge games for Stanley Cup champions earlier than 1914 The NHL officially began referring to the championship series as a singular Final circa 2006 However various North American media still continue to refer to it as plural Finals similar to the NBA Finals One of the above most points most goals is incorrect as 14 goals are also 14 points The discrepancy seems to be whether the years before 1918 are included in NHL Stanley Cup history References editCitations edit Roarke Shawn P March 12 2017 Stanley Cup has incredible history National Hockey League Retrieved December 21 2017 Podnieks Andrew March 25 2008 Triple Gold Goalies not International Ice Hockey Federation Retrieved June 17 2017 Kreiser John March 8 2013 Stanley Cup timeline from 1892 to today NHL Retrieved May 30 2015 a b Diamond Zweig and Duplacey p 25 Coleman 1966 p 262 sfn error no target CITEREFColeman1966 help Stanley Cup Contest May Not Be for the Mug After All is Said Saskatoon Phoenix March 18 1914 p 8 A Tempest In a Teapot Montreal Daily Mail March 19 1914 p 9 a b Diamond 1992 p 46 Three Pro Leagues as to Stanley Cup Toronto World March 25 1914 p 8 Hockey Season At Coast Opens With Exhibition Game Tomorrow Ottawa Citizen November 27 1913 p 8 a b c Diamond Zweig and Duplacey p 20 Diamond 1992 p 45 Stanley Cup Winners Seattle Metropolitans 1916 17 Hockey Hall of Fame Archived from the original on 2007 09 30 Retrieved 2006 07 11 Podnieks p 51 Diamond Zweig and Duplacey pp 20 21 a b Diamond Zweig and Duplacey p 21 Stanley Cup Winners Victoria Cougars 1924 25 Hockey Hall of Fame Archived from the original on 2007 09 30 Retrieved 2006 07 11 Diamond Zweig and Duplacey p 40 a b Court Non NHL teams could vie for Cup TSN 2006 02 07 Archived from the original on 2007 12 16 Retrieved 2008 04 18 Amateurs taking NHL to court to play for Cup ESPN 2005 04 13 Retrieved 2007 10 13 McCarthy Dave 2008 The National Hockey League Official Guide amp Record Book 2009 ed Dan Diamond Associates p 249 ISBN 978 1 894801 14 0 NHL playoff formats NHL com Retrieved 2018 11 19 Final Series Record Book 1918 2011 Page 1 Stanley Cup Playoffs Nhl com Retrieved 2013 06 02 a b c d e f g h Diamond 2000 p 88 a b c Diamond 2000 p 89 Sources edit Coleman Charles 1964 1969 The Trail of the Stanley Cup vols 1 3 Sherbrooke Daily Record Company Ltd NHL Diamond Dan Eric Zweig James Duplacey 2003 The Ultimate Prize The Stanley Cup Andrews McMeel Publishing ISBN 0 7407 3830 5 Diamond Dan ed 1992 The Official National Hockey League Stanley Cup Centennial Book Firefly Books ISBN 1 895565 15 4 Diamond Dan ed 2000 Total Stanley Cup Total Sports Canada ISBN 1 892129 07 8 McCarthy Dave ed 2008 The National Hockey League Official Guide amp Record Book 2009 Dan Diamond Associates ISBN 978 1 894801 14 0 Podnieks Andrew Hockey Hall of Fame 2004 Lord Stanley s Cup Triumph Books ISBN 1 55168 261 3 External links edit List of winners of the Stanley Cup NHL com Retrieved 2016 03 03 List of Stanley Cup Playoff Formats 1917 to date NHL com Retrieved 2013 06 25 Stanley Cup winning goals NHL com Archived from the original on 2009 04 12 Retrieved 2008 04 18 STC List of winners of the Stanley Cup LegendsofHockey net Archived from the original on 2007 12 30 Retrieved 2008 04 18 Stanley Cup Playoffs Winners and Finalists Since 1893 The Sports Network Archived from the original on 2008 05 02 Retrieved 2008 04 18 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Stanley Cup Finals amp oldid 1184832777, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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