In 1974, the Philadelphia Flyers won their first Stanley Cup followed by another the following year. After that Montreal would take the next four Stanley Cup championships. Then in 1980, the New York Islanders won their first Stanley Cup. They would do that over the next three seasons as well. After them came the Edmonton Oilers. Led by NHL legends like Paul Coffey and Wayne Gretzky, they would win the Stanley Cup five out of the next seven seasons. They were followed by the Pittsburgh Penguins who won two consecutive Cup titles. Then, for the first time since 1973, we would see two different teams win the Stanley Cup in two consecutive seasons. The Canadiens and Rangers won those two. Then the NHL entered an era dominated by the Devils, Red Wings and Avalanche. From 1995 to 2003, those three teams made it to the finals ten times, and would sometimes face eachother. They traded championships on and off during that time, combining to win or be in all finals but one, which was the 1999 Stanley Cup Final between the Stars and Sabres. This was impressive and all these teams became not only legends, but had legends on their teams. Players like Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Steve Yzerman, and Patrick Roy made their names known. So where are these teams now? Who's taken their place? Let's break down the next set of dynasties and legends.
In 2004, the Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup and put an end to the Devils, Red Wings and Avalanche era. After that, only one team has won the Cup more than once. That team is the Chicago Blackhawks. Following a successful rebuild, the Blackhawks have been playing well for a number of years, which has been evident as they won the Stanley Cup in 2010 and 2013. They also made the Western Final four times and have produced NHL stars like Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp. But they are not alone in their success. Another team out west has risen from the ashes and they're fightning for their second Stanley Cup in three years: the Los Angeles Kings.
The Kings had limited success in the past, making the Finals once and losing to the Montreal Canadiens in 1993. They even struggled in the year that they first won the Cup, in the 2011-12 regular season. This however wasn't evident in the postseason where they went 16-4 and became the first ever eigth seeded team to win the Stanley Cup. They've also produced notable names ike Jonathan Quick and Anze Kopitar. The Kings know how to win and now that they're up 2-0 in their series against the New York Rangers, they could easily make a run for another Stanley Cup.
The dominance of the Kings and Blackhawks is somewhat reminiscent of when the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche ruled the west. Now the Red Wings are in the East and the Avalanche are starting what appears to be a very successful rebuild. The Red Wings no longer have star players like Nicklas Lidstrom and Steve Yzerman and star players Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk are nearing retirement. They have a chance to have continued success with players like Jimmy Howard and Gustav Nyquist as they look to continue their 23 season long playoff run, during which they've won four Stanley Cups.
Then there's the Avalanche. While stars like Patrick Roy and Joe Sakic are no longer on the ice, they play a big role off the ice for the Avs who are coming off a first round playoff loss. Sakic is Vice President of hockey operations for the Avs and Roy is their head coach. Roy's leadership is evident, as he is up for coach of the year. Under his leadership the Avs took the Central Division and finished third in the league with 112 points, five behind the Bruins who won the President's Trophy this year.
There's no doubt that the Blackhawks and Kings are ruling the west and while the Red Wings and Avalanche are rebuilding, that leaves one question. Who rules the East?
The Devils enjoyed great times, thanks largely to Martin Brodeur's goaltending. In his time with New Jersey, the Devils won three Stanley Cups. And while the Devils have still made the playoffs numerous time since their last Stanley Cup in 2003, it's safe to say they haven't had a truely great team in quite some time. And as the offseason progresses for the Devils, it's becoming more and more evident that Brodeur won't be coming back to New Jersey. All signs indicate the Devils won't resign him and picking up goaltender Cory Schneider last summer was a big sign that Brodeur is on his way out. Brodeur insists he still wants to play and will even consider being a backup. The Devils tenure has ended and dominance of the East has been up for grabs for quite some time.
Since 2004, teams from the East have won the Stanley Cup four of nine times. Whether it was Carolina in 2006, or Boston in 2011, these teams have had some big names like Eric Staal and Tim Thomas. But nobody has dominated the East. One could argue that Boston is the closest. They won it three years ago and made it to the Final against Chicago last year, but with rising teams like the Rangers and Canadiens, the Bruins won't be alone in their success for long. Almost every team in the East will pose a serious threat to Boston next year and competition for playoff spots will be intense.
So the days of the great dynasties is over and today's great teams are recognized, but who owns the future? If the history of hockey proves anything, it's that not every team stays great for too long.
Many teams in the NHL are going through tough times and others are just starting the long climb back to success. Some teams have experienced this success recently. Whether it was the scare the Islanders managed to inflict on the Penguins in the first round last year, or the hard-fought battle the Stars put up against the Ducks this year, these teams are making a comeback. Nobody can predict the winners of the future but there are some potential ones playing right now.
The Minnesota Wild had a successful year, advancing as far as Game 6 in the second round of the playoffs where they were eliminated by the Blackhawks. This team however, will pose a real threat next year. With star forward Zach Parise leading the team up front and strong goaltending from players like Niklas Backstrom and Josh Harding they could be a real threat next year. And they're not alone. Teams like the Lightning and Blue Jackets have bright futures ahead as they have rising star players like Ondrej Palat and Ryan Johansen leading the way.
The NHL is one of the toughest professional sports league's in the world and having a good team for a long time is no easy feat. Teams like the Devils know that, and at some point in the future, teams like the Blackhawks and Bruins will find that out as well. But for now, the NHL will have plenty of competition over who becomes the next dynasty, and who changes hockey history.