Fourteen seasons and 15 years.
That’s how long it has been since a Canadian-based team captured the Stanley Cup.
Not exactly streak to be proud of, eh?
When the Montreal Canadiens, riding on the coattails of superstar goaltender Patrick Roy, won the Cup in 1993, defeating Wayne Gretzky’s Los Angeles Kings in five games, it marked the eighth time in 10 years the Cup was won by a team playing in Canada.
The Canadiens are the NHL’s most successful franchise with 23 Cup victories to their credit while the Toronto Maple Leafs, who last won the Cup in 1967, are second with 13.
But since ’93, only three Canadian teams – Calgary in 2003-04, Edmonton in 2005-06 and Ottawa in 2006-07 have even made it to the final.
All of which begs the question: can one of Canada’s six teams win the Cup this season?
The temptation is to immediately say no. Most experts would likely rank the reigning Cup champs from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia Flyers, Detroit Red Wings, Washington Capitals, San Jose Sharks and possibly the Chicago Blackhawks ahead of any of the Canadian teams.
In fact, The Hockey News – the bible of hockey – has just three of the six Canadian teams making the playoffs in its pre-season prediction and they may be right.
But I think Canada has two legitimate shots at winning the Cup – the Vancouver Canucks and the Calgary Flames – and a third team, the Montreal Canadiens, who are a wild card.
First, the Canucks.
The Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik, have taken their game to a new level and were quite deserving of the long-term deals they signed with the team in the summer. I used to believe they ranked somewhere between low-end first-liners or high-end second-liners, but now I believe they are the type of players you can win with.
Beyond that, general manager Mike Gillis has done an excellent job of surrounding the twins with a quality supporting cast. The Canucks boast a lot of depth up front with the likes of Alex Burrows, Ryan Kessler, Pavol Demitra, Kyle Wellwood, Steve Bernier and defensive specialist Ryan Johnson.
It will be interesting to see if rookie Cody Hodgson cracks the lineup and if he can have an impact this season. All indications are he is going to be a star in the league; it’s just a matter of how long it takes until he gets his chance to shine.
Despite the loss of Mattias Ohlund to free agency, the defence is also solid and they’ll look even better if goaltender Roberto Luongo lives up to the hype of being one of, if not the best goaltenders in the league.
This season, just like the past few years, it will be extremely tough to make it through the Western Conference to the Stanley Cup final, but the Canucks, on paper at least, appear to have what it takes.
The Flames, meanwhile, are coming off a disappointing season, but made some significant changes in the off-season that suggest they are determined to get back into contention. Bringing in coach Brent Sutter was a work of genius. Never mind what he did in New Jersey, this guy is a winner and when left to his own devices, he can get the most out of his players.
The addition of defenceman Jay Bouwmeester was also a fantastic move for the Flames who did not play well defensively last season. The hope is Bouwmeester will continue with his ascension to becoming one of the best two-way defencemen in the league, a minute-muncher who puts up points and plays a safe game in his zone.
As for the returnees, Jarome Iginla remains one of the best power forwards in the NHL, but for the Flames to succeed he needs to find some consistency in his game. He put up decent numbers last season, 35 goals and 89 points in 82 games, but there were long stretches when he played well, but was not productive.
Goalie Miikaa Kiprusoff led the NHL in victories with 45 last season, but truth be told, he didn’t play with the same level of confidence or authority. This season, if the defence plays better, Kiprusoff simply needs to play well enough to not lose games for his team.
The other question mark is Olli Jokinen. He got his first taste of playoff action last year scoring two goals and five points in six games, but is he a winner?
The Canadiens are an interesting team, to say the least. After being completely restructured, it may take some time for this club to find an identity, but there is no denying there is the potential for this club to not only make the playoffs, but also win a round. After that, it will come down to how well Carey Price plays between the pipes and what kind of effect new coach Jacques Martin has on the team.
The Canadiens have the potential to be a highly-skilled team, but is there a level of commitment from the players to be the best they can be? That was a huge issue last season and there is no way GM Bob Gainey can allow it to happen again.
As for the other three Canadian teams, Toronto, Ottawa and Edmonton, all have the potential to make the playoffs. It will probably be toughest for the Oilers because of the strength of the Western Conference, but with Pat Quinn behind the bench they are not to be counted out.
Fifteen seasons and 16 years without a Canadian champion?
Time will tell.
