List of Stanley Cup champions

This is a list of Stanley Cup champions, including the finalists/challengers. Originally, it was referred to as the "Challenge Cup"; 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 subsequently defeated the reigning Cup champion in a special game or series. The playoff format for each challenge varied depending on what the two competing clubs agreed to.

Prior to 1912, challenges could take place at any time, given the appropriate rink conditions, and it was common for teams to defend the Cup numerous times during the year. In 1912, the Cup's trustees declared that the Cup was only to be defended at the end of the champion team's regular season. Also during the Cup's challenge era, all of the leagues that played for the trophy had no annual formal playoff system to decide their own respective championships; whoever finished in first place after the regular season won the league title. Thus, a few league championship games or series were held just to break first place ties and determine who would keep the Cup. These league title games have historically been listed along with the regular inter-league Cup challenges.

In 1915, an agreement between the National Hockey Association (NHA) and the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) was reached in which their respective champions would face each other for the Cup. The NHA dissolved in 1917, and the National Hockey League (NHL) took its place. Then after the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL) was born in 1921, it was agreed that all three league champions would play for the Cup. The PCHA and the WCHL merged in 1924, and became the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 1925.

Since the demise of the WHL in 1926, the Cup has been awarded to the NHL champions.

Challenge Cup
The origins of the Challenge era come from the method of play of the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada prior to 1893. From 1887 to 1893, the league did not play a round-robin format, but rather challenges between teams of the association that year, with the winner of the series being the 'interim' champion, with the final challenge winner being the champions for the year. The Stanley Cup kept the tradition going, but added that the winner of the current champion's league would then inherit the Cup, if it was not the current champion.

The 'Chronology' sections lists the complete series of league championships and challenges during the period, and the 'Season-by-Season' record lists the winners after the final challenge of the hockey season, as well as challenge winners during the season, if they are different teams.

Full Chronology
This table lists the outcome of all Stanley Cup wins, including successful victories and defenses in challenges, and league championships for the challenge era.

''(*) Note: Although the Montreal Victorias won the AHA title in 1895, the Stanley Cup trustees had already accepted a challenge from the 1894 Cup champion Montreal HC and Queen's University. As a compromise, the trustees decided that if the Montreal HC won the challenge match, the Victorias would become the Stanley Cup champions. The Montreals eventually won the game, 5-1, and their crosstown rivals were awarded the Cup.''

(**) Note: For most of 1904, the Ottawa Senators was not affiliated with any league.

''(***) Note: The Montreal Wanderers were disqualified as the result of a dispute. After Game 1 ended tied at the end of regulation, 5-5, the Wanderers refused to play overtime with the current referee, and then subsequently refused to play the next game of the series in Ottawa.''

† Note: January 29 game was completed on January 31, because January 29 game was tied at midnight, January 30th and the Mayor of Westmount refused to allow play to continue on the Sunday.

Season-by-Season Record
This table lists the winners of Stanley Cups per hockey season, (which does not have official dates as rinks were natural ice, so the season roughly corresponds to winter) for the 'challenge era.' The leagues typically started close to the beginning of the calendar year and ended in early March.

NHL champion

 * After NHL became the only league to compete for the Cup, the playoff champion of the NHL Canadian Division faced the playoff champion of the NHL American Division in the Stanley Cup Finals.


 * The league changed the playoff format: In the Stanley Cup Quarterfinals, both second place teams faced each other, as did the two third place teams. Both first place teams received a bye and automatically advanced to the semifinals, but had to face each other in that playoff round. As a result, two teams from the same division occasionally played each other in the Stanley Cup Finals.


 * Before the start of the 1938-39 season, the league contracted to seven teams, causing the league to implement a one division format. The NHL contracted even further to only six clubs by the 1942-43 season, beginning a period that became known as the Original Six Era.


 * As a result of the 1967 NHL Expansion, the league realigned its teams into the East Division and the West Division.


 * The league changed the playoff format again so that an Eastern Division team would always face a Western Division team in the Stanley Cup Semifinals. Therefore, two teams from the same division could face each other in the Stanley Cup Finals.


 * The league expanded to 18 teams and realigned into two conferences: the Prince of Wales Conference and the Clarence Campbell Conference. Twelve teams qualified for the postseason, but were seeded 1-12 regardless of conference. This type of seeding system would continue after the league expanded the playoffs to 16 teams before the 1979-80 season.


 * The postseason format was altered so that once again the playoff champion of the Prince of Wales Conference faced the playoff champion of the Clarence Campbell Conference in the Stanley Cup Finals.


 * The league's two conferences were renamed the Eastern and Western Conferences, respectively.

Active teams
Unless marked otherwise, teams played in the NHL exclusively at the time they competed for the Stanley Cup. A bolded year denotes a Stanley Cup win.

Six active teams have yet to make a Stanley Cup Finals appearance. Four teams have remained "intact" since their inceptions:
 * Columbus Blue Jackets (14 seasons, 2 playoffs)
 * Minnesota Wild (14 seasons, 6 playoffs, 1 Division Championship)
 * Nashville Predators (16 seasons, 8 playoffs)
 * San Jose Sharks (23 seasons, 16 playoffs, 6 Division Championships)

The other two teams had previously relocated and never made the Finals in either location:
 * Atlanta Thrashers (11 seasons, 1 playoff, 1 Division Championship) / Winnipeg Jets (4 seasons, 1 playoff)
 * Winnipeg Jets (original team -- 17 seasons, 11 playoffs, 3 Division Championships) / Phoenix-Arizona Coyotes (18 seasons, 8 playoffs, 1 Division Championship)

Five relocated teams that have won the Stanley Cup in their current locations never appeared in the Finals in their former locations:
 * Quebec Nordiques (16 seasons, 9 playoffs, 2 Division Championships) -- won 2 Stanley Cups as Colorado Avalanche
 * Kansas City Scouts (2 seasons, never made playoff contention) / Colorado Rockies (6 seasons, 1 playoff) -- won 3 Stanley Cups as New Jersey Devils
 * Oakland Seals-California Golden Seals (9 seasons, 2 playoffs) / Cleveland Barons (2 seasons, never made playoff contention) -- merged with Minnesota North Stars who lost twice in the Finals then won the Stanley Cup once as Dallas Stars
 * Atlanta Flames (8 seasons, 6 playoffs) -- won Stanley Cup once as Calgary Flames
 * Hartford Whalers (18 seasons, 8 playoffs, 1 Division Championship) -- won Stanley Cup once as Carolina Hurricanes

Defunct teams
Listed after the team name is the name of the affiliated league(s) when the team competed for the Stanley Cup. A bold year denotes a Stanley Cup win.


 * Notes
 * The Montreal Canadiens and the Seattle Metropolitans appearance totals include the 1919 Stanley Cup Finals that ended with a no-decision because of the Spanish flu epidemic. It is not considered an official loss by either team.
 * The franchise known today as the Toronto Maple Leafs won the Cup in 1918 as the Toronto Hockey Club, (later engraved on the Stanley Cup as the Toronto Arenas in 1947), and in 1922 as the Toronto St. Patricks.
 * The Chicago Blackhawks were known as the Chicago Black Hawks prior to the 1986–87 season.
 * The Dallas Stars totals include two losses as the Minnesota North Stars.
 * The Anaheim Ducks totals include one loss as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
 * The modern Ottawa Senators (1992–present) are the namesake of the original Senators (1883–1934).