NHL Dynasties Are Dead
Red Wings May Be League's Last True Dynasty
Since the NHL began awarding the Stanley Cup exclusively to the league’s best team in 1927, no franchise has ever claimed the title more than five years in a row. In fact, no team has been able to capture more than two consecutive championships since the New York Islanders won four straight Stanley Cups from 1980 – 1983. Are the days of overwhelming and consistent dominance by one team dead and gone?
That all depends on your definition of a true sports dynasty.
Early Dynasties in the NHL
The first true dynasty in the NHL was the Toronto Maple Leafs who over a span of 10 years from 1941 – 1951, lay claim to the league’s best a total of six times.
The Montreal Canadiens came next, they won five straight Stanley Cups from 1956 – 1960, which is still the NHL record for most consecutive Stanley Cup wins. With Toe Blake behind the bench and led by such legends as Maurice Richard, Dickie Moore, Jean Beliveau, Jacques Plante and Bernie “Boom Boom” Geoffrion, the Canadiens disposed of their original six rivals Toronto, Boston and Detroit in a combined 20 wins vs. only five losses in the finals over the five year span.
In 1976, the Canadiens would go on a new run that saw them win another four straight Cup titles ending in 1979, firmly cemented Scotty Bowman’s place in hockey history as one of, if not the greatest coach the NHL has ever seen.
The very next year, in 1980, Al Arbour would guide Mike Bossy, Billy Smith, Denis Potvin and Bryan Trottier, amoung others, to four consecutive Stanley Cups, finally bowing out to Wayne Gretzky’s Edmonton Oilers in 1984. The Oilers would go on to win five cups of their own in the next seven years.
And then…
Well, the Mario Lemieux led Pittsburgh Penguins would win back-to-back championships in 1991 and 1992. Martin Brodeur has back stopped the New Jersey Devils to three cups over nine years ('94-'03) and the Detroit Red Wings have hoisted Lord Stanley’s Mug four times in the past 12 years. But can those teams really be considered dynasties?
Detroit Red Wings Stanley Cup History
The closest team to a true sports dynasty of late in the NHL would have to go to the Detroit Red Wings. As mentioned, they have four Stanley Cups in 12 (calendar) years, they have won their division the past eight years, and four Presidents’ Trophies in the past 10 years. Truly a dominate force in the league for the past 11 seasons, despite their inability to win more than two consecutive cups – and doesn’t it sounds silly to almost diminish their accomplishments because it was only a lousy two uninterrupted championships?
With the way the NHL has evolved, it’s hard to believe that we will ever see another three or four year stretch as league champion by any team. With the adoption of the salary cap and the elimination of hooking and holding, parody among NHL teams is higher than its ever been and will only grow with each passing year.
It is truly a remarkable feat these days for clubs to compete at the highest level and challenge for the Stanley Cup for more than five or seven years before losing top talent to free agency or dismantling a team for failing to go all the way (cough! San Jose), which is really too bad.
Every team deserves a shot at winning each year, sure! But who will be remembered more 20, 30 years from now? The one-time champion 2004 Tampa Bay Lightning or the power house New York Islanders of the early 80's?
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