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.
Stanley Cup champions by year[]
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[]
- See also: Stanley Cup Challenge Games
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.
Season | Holder at End of Season | Other Challenge Winners |
---|---|---|
1892-93 | Montreal HC (AHAC) | |
1893-94 | Montreal HC (AHAC) | |
1894-95 | Montreal Victorias (AHAC) | Montreal HC (AHAC) |
1895-96 | Winnipeg Victorias (MHA) | |
1896-97 | Montreal Victorias (AHAC) | |
1897-98 | Montreal Victorias (AHAC) | |
1898-99 | Montreal Shamrocks (CAHL) | Montreal Victorias (CAHL) |
1899-1900 | Montreal Shamrocks (CAHL) | |
1900-01 | Winnipeg Victorias (MHA) | |
1901-02 | Montreal HC (CAHL) | Winnipeg Victorias (MHA) |
1902-03 | Ottawa Senators (CAHL) | Montreal HC (CAHL) |
1903-04 | Ottawa Senators | |
1904-05 | Ottawa Senators (FAHL) | |
1905-06 | Montreal Wanderers (ECAHA) | Ottawa Senators (ECAHA) |
1906-07 | Montreal Wanderers (ECAHA) | Kenora Thistles (MPHL) |
1907-08 | Montreal Wanderers (ECAHA) | |
1908-09 | Ottawa Senators (ECAHA) | Montreal Wanderers (ECAHA) |
1909-10 | Montreal Wanderers (NHA) | Ottawa Senators (CHA/NHA) |
1910-11 | Ottawa Senators (NHA) | |
1911-12 | Quebec Bulldogs (NHA) | |
1912-13 | Quebec Bulldogs (NHA) | |
1913-14 | Toronto Blueshirts (NHA) |
NHA vs. PCHA champions[]
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1914-15 | Vancouver Millionaires
(PCHA) |
Frank Patrick
(playing-Coach) |
Ottawa Senators
(NHA) |
Alf Smith | 3-0 | Barney Stanley (5:30, 2nd) |
1915-16 | Montreal Canadiens (NHA) | Edouard "Newsy" Lalonde
(playing-Coach) |
Portland Rosebuds
(PCHA) |
Ed Savage | 3-2 | Goldie Prodgers (17:20, 3rd) |
1916-17 | Seattle Metropolitans (PCHA) | Pete Muldoon | Montreal Canadiens
(NHA) |
Edouard "Newsy" Lalonde
(playing-Coach) |
3-1 | Bernie Morris (7:55, 1st) |
NHL vs. PCHA champions[]
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1917-18 | Toronto (NHL) | Dick Carroll | Vancouver Millionaires (PCHA) | Frank Patrick (playing-Coach) | 3-2 | Corb Denneny (10:30, 3rd) |
1918-19 | Not awarded due to the flu epidemic. | |||||
1919-20 | Ottawa Senators (NHL) | Pete Green | Seattle Metropolitans (PCHA) | Pete Muldoon | 3-2 | Jack Darragh (5:00, 3rd) |
1920-21 | Ottawa Senators (NHL) | Pete Green | Vancouver Millionaires (PCHA) | Frank Patrick (playing-Coach) | 3-2 | Jack Darragh (9:40, 2nd) |
NHL vs. PCHA or WCHL champions[]
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1921-22 | Toronto St. Pats (NHL) | George O'Donoghue | Vancouver Millionaires
(PCHA) |
Frank Patrick
(playing-Coach) |
3-2 | Cecil "Babe" Dye (4:20, 1st) |
1922-23 | Ottawa Senators (NHL) | Pete Green | Edmonton Eskimos
(WCHL) |
Ken McKenzine | 2-0 | Harry "Punch" Broadbent (11:23, 1st) |
1923-24 | Montreal Canadiens (NHL) | Leo Dandurand | Calgary Tigers (WCHL) | Lloyd Turner | 2-0 | Howie Morenz (4:55, 1st) |
NHL vs. WCHL/WHL champions[]
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1924-25 | Victoria Cougars (WCHL) | Lester Patrick | Montreal Canadiens (NHL) | Leo Dandurand | 3-1 | Harold "Gizzy" Hart (2:35, 2nd) |
1925-26 | Montreal Maroons (NHL) | Eddie Gerard | Victoria Cougars (WHL) | Lester Patrick | 3-1 | Nels Stewart (2:50, 2nd) |
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.
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1926-27 | Ottawa Senators (C) | Dave Gill | Boston Bruins (A) | Art Ross | 2-0-2 | Cy Denneny (7:30, 2nd) |
1927-28 | New York Rangers (A) | Lester Patrick
(playing-Coach) |
Montreal Maroons (C) | Eddie Gerard | 3-2 | Frank Boucher (3:35, 3rd) |
- 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.
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1967-68 | Montreal Canadiens (E) | Hector "Toe" Blake | St. Louis Blues (W) | Scotty Bowman | 4-0 | Jean-Claude Tremblay (11:40, 3rd) |
1968-69 | Montreal Canadiens (E) | Claude Ruel | St. Louis Blues (W) | Scotty Bowman | 4-0 | John Ferguson (3:02, 3rd) |
1969-70 | Boston Bruins (E) | Harry Sinden | St. Louis Blues (W) | Scotty Bowman | 4-0 | Bobby Orr (0:40, OT) |
- 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.
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1970-71 | Montreal Canadiens (E) | Al MacNeil | Chicago Black Hawks (W) | Bill Reay | 4-3 | Henri Richard (2:34, 3rd) |
1971-72 | Boston Bruins (E) | Tom Johnson | New York Rangers (E) | Emile Francis | 4-2 | Bobby Orr (11:18, 1st) |
1972-73 | Montreal Canadiens (E) | Scotty Bowman | Chicago Black Hawks (W) | Bill Reay | 4-2 | Yvan Cournoyer (8:13, 3rd) |
1973-74 | Philadelphia Flyers (W) | Fred Shero | Boston Bruins (E) | Bep Guidolin | 4-2 | Rick MacLeish (14:48, 1st) |
- 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.
Season | Winning Team | Coach | 2nd Place Team | Coach | Games | Winning Goal |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1974-75 | Philadelphia Flyers | Fred Shero | Buffalo Sabres | Floyd Smith | 4-2 | Bob Kelly (0:11, 3rd) |
1975-76 | Montreal Canadiens | Scotty Bowman | Philadelphia Flyers | Fred Shero | 4-0 | Guy Lafleur (14:18, 3rd) |
1976-77 | Montreal Canadiens | Scotty Bowman | Boston Bruins | Don Cherry | 4-0 | Jacques Lemaire (4:32, OT) |
1977-78 | Montreal Canadiens | Scotty Bowman | Boston Bruins | Don Cherry | 4-2 | Mario Tremblay (9:20, 1st) |
1978-79 | Montreal Canadiens | Scotty Bowman | New York Rangers | Fred Shero | 4-1 | Jacques Lemaire (1:02, 2nd) |
1979-80 | New York Islanders | Al Arbour | Philadelphia Flyers | Pat Quinn | 4-2 | Bob Nystrom (7:11, OT) |
1980-81 | New York Islanders | Al Arbour | Minnesota North Stars | Glen Sonmor | 4-1 | Wayne Merrick (5:37, 1st) |
- 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.
Appearances[]
Challenge Cup era (1893–1914)[]
Legend: SC = successful Stanley Cup challenge or defense of championship (win); UC = unsuccessful Stanley Cup challenge or defense of championship (loss); Years in bold denote a Stanley Cup win.
Team | SC | UC | Total | Win % | Appearances |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ottawa HC | 17 | 2 | 19 | .895 | 1894, 1903 (2), 1904 (4), 1905 (3), 1906 (2), 1906, 1909, 1910 (2), 1911 (3) |
Montreal Wanderers | 10 | 2 | 12 | .833 | 1904, 1906 (2), 1907, 1907, 1908 (5), 1910 (2) |
Winnipeg Victorias | 6 | 5 | 11 | .545 | 1896 (2), 1896, 1899, 1900, 1901 (2), 1902 (2), 1902, 1903 |
Montreal Victorias | 6 | 2 | 8 | .750 | 1895, 1896, 1896, 1897 (2), 1898, 1899, 1903 |
Montreal Shamrocks | 5 | 1 | 6 | .833 | 1899 (2), 1900 (3), 1901 |
Montreal HC | 5 | 0 | 5 | 1.000 | 1893, 1894, 1895, 1902, 1903 |
Quebec Bulldogs | 4 | 0 | 4 | 1.000 | 1912 (2), 1913 (2) |
Rat Portage/Kenora Thistles | 2 | 3 | 5 | .400 | 1903, 1905, 1907 (2), 1907 |
Toronto Blueshirts | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1.000 | 1914 (2) |
Queen's University | 0 | 3 | 3 | .000 | 1895, 1899, 1906 |
Brandon Wheat City | 0 | 2 | 2 | .000 | 1904, 1907 |
Edmonton HC | 0 | 2 | 2 | .000 | 1908, 1910 |
Galt HC | 0 | 2 | 2 | .000 | 1910, 1911 |
Winnipeg Maple Leafs | 0 | 2 | 2 | .000 | 1901, 1908 |
The following 16 teams unsuccessfully challenged for a Stanley Cup only once: Berlin Dutchmen (1910), Dawson City Nuggets (1905), Halifax Crescents (1900), Moncton Victorias (1912), Montreal Canadiens (1914), New Glasgow Cubs (1906), Ottawa Capitals (1897), Ottawa Victorias (1908), Port Arthur Bearcats (1911), Smiths Falls (1906), Sydney Millionaires (1913), Toronto Marlboros (1904), Toronto Professionals (1908), Toronto Wellingtons (1902), Victoria Aristocrats (1914), Winnipeg Rowing Club (1904).
Stanley Cup Finals era (since 1915)[]
Active teams[]
In the sortable table below, teams are ordered first by number of appearances, then by number of wins, and finally by alphabetical order. In the "Years of appearance" column, bold years indicate winning Stanley Cup Finals appearances. Unless marked otherwise, teams played in the NHL exclusively at the time they competed for the Stanley Cup.
Five active teams have yet to make a Stanley Cup Finals appearance. Three of these teams have remained in the same location since their inceptions:
- Columbus Blue Jackets (21 seasons, 6 playoffs)
- Minnesota Wild (21 seasons, 12 playoffs, 1 division title)
- Seattle Kraken (1 season)
The other two teams have relocated and have not made the Finals in either location:
- Atlanta Thrashers (11 seasons, 1 playoff, 1 division title) / Winnipeg Jets (11 seasons, 5 playoffs)
- Winnipeg Jets (original team) (17 seasons, 11 playoffs) / Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes (25 seasons, 9 playoffs, 1 division title)
Five relocated teams that have won the Stanley Cup in their current locations and never in their former locations:
- Quebec Nordiques (16 seasons, 9 playoffs, 2 division titles) – won 3 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
- 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 title) – 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.
Apps | Team | Wins | Losses | Win % | Season(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
5 | Ottawa Senators (NHA/NHL) | 4 | 1 | .800 | 1915, 1920, 1921, 1923, 1927 |
4 | Vancouver Millionaires (PCHA/WCHL) | 1 | 3 | .250 | 1915, 1918, 1921, 1922 |
3 | Montreal Maroons (NHL) | 2 | 1 | .667 | 1926, 1928, 1935 |
3[a] | align="left" | Seattle Metropolitans (PCHA) | 1 | 1[a] | .500 | 1917, 1919[a]
, 1920 |
2 | Victoria Cougars (WCHL/WHL) | 1 | 1 | .500 | 1925, 1926 |
1 | Portland Rosebuds (PCHA) | 0 | 1 | .000 | 1916 |
1 | Edmonton Eskimos (WCHL) | 0 | 1 | .000 | 1923 |
1 | Calgary Tigers (WCHL) | 0 | 1 | .000 | 1924 |
- Notes
- a 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 series win or loss by either team.
- b The franchise known today as the Toronto Maple Leafs won the Cup in 1918 as the Toronto Hockey Club[1] (later engraved on the Stanley Cup as the Toronto Arenas in 1947), and in 1922 as the Toronto St. Patricks.
- c The Chicago Blackhawks were known as the Chicago Black Hawks prior to the 1986–87 season.
- d The Dallas Stars totals include two series losses as the Minnesota North Stars.
- e The Anaheim Ducks totals include one series loss as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
- f The Ottawa Senators (1992–present) are named after the original Senators (1883–1934).
See also[]
- Stanley Cup Challenge Games
- List of NHL seasons
- Presidents' Trophy
- List of NHL franchise post-season droughts
- List of National Hockey League playoff appearance streaks