After the St. Louis Blues won their first Stanley Cup title by defeating the Boston Bruins in seven games, there are 11 remaining NHL teams that have never won a championship. This is the second straight season in which a team hoisted the Cup for the first time; the Washington Capitals defeated the Vegas Golden Knights in five games for the 2018 title.
NHL.com takes a look at the top players, recent regular-season and/or Stanley Cup Playoff results and key offseason storylines for teams still seeking their first title.
11 NHL teams without Stanley Cup title
Outlook for those seeking championship after Blues, Capitals became first-time winners in consecutive seasons
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MORE COVERAGE:
Top 10 active NHL players without Stanley Cup title
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Buffalo Sabres:Missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the eighth straight season, the longest active drought in the NHL. … Rookie defenseman Rasmus Dahlin is a finalist for the Calder Trophy. … Center Jack Eichel led Buffalo with an NHL career-high 82 points in his fourth season. … The Sabres hired Ralph Krueger as coach on May 15 and re-signed leading goal-scorer, left wing Jeff Skinner (40 this season), to an eight-year contract June 7. … Right wing Jason Pominville can become an unrestricted free agent July 1. … The Sabres have two picks (No. 7, No. 31) in the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft.
Columbus Blue Jackets: Lost to the Bruins in six games in the second round. Won their first playoff series in 18 seasons in a sweep of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round. … Right wing Cam Atkinson scored an NHL career-high 41 goals this season, tying Rick Nash (2003-04) for the most in a single season in Blue Jackets history. … Top forwards Artemi Panarin, Matt Duchene and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, along with wing Ryan Dzingel, can become UFAs on July 1. … The Blue Jackets do not have a first-round pick in the 2019 draft but have potential impact prospects in forward Alexandre Texier and goalie Elvis Merzlikins.
Florida Panthers:Missed the playoffs for the third straight season. … Center Aleksander Barkov had an NHL career-high 96 points, the most in a single season in Panthers history, and left wing Jonathan Huberdeau had a career-high 92 (tied for third in their history). … Florida hired Joel Quenneville as coach on April 8. … Wing Denis Malgin can become a restricted free agent July 1. … The Panthers have one pick (No. 13) in the first round of the 2019 draft and potential impact prospects in forwards Aleksi Heponiemi, Serron Noel, Owen Tippett and Grigori Denisenko.
Ottawa Senators: Missed the playoffs for the second straight season. … Defenseman Thomas Chabot led Ottawa with an NHL career-high 55 points, and left wing Brady Tkachuk finished second among rookies in scoring with 45 points. … Ottawa hired D.J. Smith as coach on May 23. … Center Colin White can become a RFA on July 1. ... The Senators have one pick (No. 19) in the first round of the 2019 draft and a potential impact prospect in defenseman Erik Brannstrom.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Arizona Coyotes: Missed the playoffs for the seventh straight season, the second-longest active drought in the NHL. … Goalie Darcy Kuemper had a .925 save percentage in 55 games this season, the third best in a single season in Coyotes history. Forward Nick Schmaltz and goalie Antti Raanta missed significant time because of lower-body injuries. … Arizona has one pick (No. 14) in the first round of the 2019 draft and a potential impact prospect in forward Barrett Hayton.
Minnesota Wild:Missed the playoffs after qualifying in each of the previous six seasons. … Left wing Zach Parise bounced back to lead the Wild in goals (28) and points (61) this season. Rookie forward Ryan Donato, acquired from the Bruins on Feb. 20, scored 16 points (four goals, 12 assists) in 22 games with Minnesota. Defenseman Mathew Dumba (ruptured pectoralis muscle) missed significant time because of injury. … Wing Kevin Fiala can become a RFA on July 1. … The Wild have one pick (No. 12) in the first round of the 2019 draft.
Nashville Predators: Lost to the Dallas Stars in six games in the first round. Reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2017, losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games. … Center Ryan Johansen led the Predators with 64 points this season, his highest total in three full seasons with Nashville. … The Predators hired Dan Lambert as an assistant coach June 4 to improve their power play, which ranked last in the NHL (12.9 percent) in the regular season and went 0-for-15 in the playoffs. … Wing Wayne Simmonds can become a UFA on July 1. … The Predators have one pick (No. 24) in the first round of the 2019 draft and a potential impact prospect in forward Eeli Tolvanen.
San Jose Sharks:Lost to the eventual champion Blues in six games in the conference final. Reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2016, losing to the Penguins in six games. … Brent Burns scored the most points (83) in a single season by a defenseman since Brian Leetch (85) in 1995-96 and is a finalist for the Norris Trophy. Center Logan Couture led the entire 2019 playoffs in goals (14 in 20 games). … The Sharks re-signed elite defenseman Erik Karlsson to an eight-year contract Monday. Valuable forwards Joe Pavelski, Gustav Nyquist and Joe Thornton can become UFAs on July 1. ... Karlsson (groin), Pavelski and center Tomas Hertl (undisclosed) did not play in San Jose's final postseason game. …San Jose does not have a first-round pick in the 2019 draft.
Vancouver Canucks:Missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season. … Center Elias Pettersson led all NHL rookies in goals (28), assists (38), points (66) and power-play points (22) and is a finalist for the Calder Trophy. … Defenseman Alexander Edler can become a UFA on July 1, and right wing Brock Boeser can become a RFA. … The Canucks have one pick (No. 10) in the first round of the 2019 draft and have an impact prospect in defenseman Quinn Hughes.
Vegas Golden Knights:Lost to the Sharks in seven games in first round. Reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2018 as an expansion team, losing to the Capitals in five games. … Right wing Mark Stone, acquired from the Senators on Feb. 25, had 11 points in 18 games with Vegas and is a finalist for the Selke Trophy (best defensive forward). Stone led all players in the first round of the playoffs with 12 points in seven games, and left wing Max Pacioretty finished second with 11. … Forwards William Karlsson and prospect Nikita Gusev can become RFAs on July 1. Gusev joined the Golden Knights in the playoffs but did not play in the NHL after leading the Kontinental Hockey League in points (82) this season. Vegas has one pick (No. 17) in the first round of the 2019 draft.
Winnipeg Jets:Lost to the eventual champion Blues in six games in the first round. … Forward Blake Wheeler had 91 points for the second consecutive season, center Mark Scheifele had an NHL career-high 84 points, and left wing Kyle Connor has scored at least 31 goals (34 this season) in each of his first two NHL seasons. … Connor and wing Patrik Laine can become RFAs on July 1. … Laine (back, groin) and wing Nikolaj Ehlers (fractured leg) played with injuries in the playoffs. … The Jets have one first-round pick (No. 20; re-acquired in trade that sent defenseman Jacob Trouba to New York Rangers) in the 2019 draft and a potential impact prospect in forward Kristian Vesalainen.
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