Stu Cowan: Canadiens maintain their title as final Canadian workforce to win Cup

Article content material

The Canadiens will maintain the title of final Canadian workforce to win the Stanley Cup for a minimum of another 12 months.

Article content material

The Edmonton Oilers — the final Canadian workforce alive on this 12 months’s playoffs — have been eradicated Sunday night time after they misplaced 5-2 to the Vegas Golden Knights in Recreation 6 of their second-round sequence. The Toronto Maple Leafs have been eradicated final Friday with a 3-2 OT loss to the Florida Panthers in Recreation 5.

Article content material

The Canadiens gained their report twenty fourth Stanley Cup in 1993 after they beat the Los Angeles Kings within the ultimate. The Maple Leafs, who rank second with 13 Stanley Cups, gained their final championship in 1967, whereas the Oilers gained their fifth Stanley Cup in 1990. The Calgary Flames gained their solely Stanley Cup in 1989 after they beat the Canadiens, which was the final time two Canadian groups made it to the ultimate.

The Winnipeg Jets, Vancouver Canucks and the present model of the Ottawa Senators have by no means gained the Stanley Cup.

Article content material

Article content material

There are a number of causes that may very well be listed for why it has been 30 years since a Canadian workforce final gained. There are gamers who don’t wish to play in Canada due to climate, taxes and/or the very shiny highlight on and off the ice in Canadian markets. From the possession facet, groups are bringing in Canadian cash at their arenas and paying out American {dollars} in salaries with a excessive trade fee.

To spotlight how a lot Individuals — and American TV — are working the NHL, Sunday’s Oilers sport was a ten p.m. ET begin. The explanation for the late begin is that ESPN was dedicated to its Sunday Night time Baseball sport between the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Purple Sox at 7 p.m., bumping hockey to late-night viewing.

The Walt Disney Firm, which owns ESPN and ABC, is paying the NHL US$400 million per season in a seven-year TV deal that kicked in final season. Rogers Communication paid $5.232 billion Canadian (about $436 million a season) for its 12-year cope with the NHL that began with the 2014-15 season.

Article content material

Individuals — led by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman — management Canada’s sport.

Because the Canadiens’ final Stanley Cup win, they’ve gained 13 playoff sequence, tied for essentially the most amongst Canadian groups with the Canucks. The Senators have gained 11 playoff sequence since 1993.

The Maple Leafs have gained 10 playoff sequence because the Canadiens gained the Cup, however just one — this season towards the Tampa Bay Lightning — since 2004. The Oilers have gained 9 playoff sequence within the final 30 years, the Flames have gained six sequence and the Jets have gained three sequence because the franchise moved from Atlanta to Winnipeg for the 2011-12 season.

Searching for their elusive twenty fifth Stanley Cup, the Canadiens began a rebuild final 12 months. However in at this time’s NHL top-of-the-line methods to construct a workforce is to get an growth franchise within the U.S.

Article content material

Since coming into the NHL for the 2017-18 season, the Vegas Golden Knights have gained 9 playoff sequence and superior to the Stanley Cup ultimate of their first 12 months. The Golden Knights have superior to the Western Convention ultimate for the third time this season. Their opponent may very well be the Seattle Kraken, who entered the NHL final season, gained their first playoff spherical this 12 months — knocking off the defending Stanley Cup-champion Colorado Avalanche — and have been enjoying the Dallas Stars in Recreation 7 of the second-round sequence Monday night time, a victory away from assembly the Golden Knights within the convention ultimate.

In the meantime, followers in Canada don’t have a workforce of their very own to root for over the last two rounds of the playoffs, which gained’t assist the TV scores for Rogers.

[email protected]

twitter.com/StuCowan1