Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup is the trophy given out to the champions of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is given out each year, usually in June, to the team that wins a best-of-seven game championship final series. However, the Cup is decades older than the NHL.

The first playoff game for the Stanley Cup started on March 22, 1894. The Stanley Cup was originally donated in 1892 by Sir Frederick Arthur[?], Lord Stanley of Preston, Governor General of Canada and the son of the Earl of Derby, who had become enamoured with hockey. It was originally used as the trophy given out to the top amateur hockey team in Canada, decided by the acceptance of a challenge from another team by the Cup holders and trustees. In 1910, professional teams started competing for the trophy, and in 1926, the NHL got exclusive use of the Stanley Cup.

The cup has been awarded every year since 1893, except for 1919 when the finals were cancelled after five games after a spanish influenza epidemic in Montreal and Seatle. The deadly disease claimed the life of one player, and incapacitated several others. The series was abandoned, and remained tied at 2-2-1.

Since its first presentation, the Cup has undergone many alterations, with new levels being added and old bands being removed and preserved in the Hockey Hall of Fame (Toronto, Ontario, Canada). This is mainly due to the fact the Stanley Cup is the only trophy in professional sports that has the name of every member of the winning team engraved upon it. It stands at three feet tall and weighs almost 35 pounds.

The Montreal Canadiens have won the most Stanley Cups, capturing the Cup 24 times. The Toronto Maple Leafs come in second with 13 Cup wins. The highest-ranking American team is the Detroit Red Wings with 10 wins.

Often touted as the most difficult trophy to win in professional sports, each member of the winning Stanley Cup team gets to take possession of the trophy for 24 hours. This has resulted in a number of stories about the treatment of the trophy itself: A member of the 1905 Ottawa club drop kicked onto a frozen canal, retrieving it the next day; the 1924 Canadiens left it by a roadside after repairing a flat tire and both the 1991 Pittsburgh Penguins and 1993 Habs tested its buoyancy properties in players' swimming pools. "The Stanley Cup", Guy Carbonneau observed, "does not float".

Stanley Cup Winners

Year	Winner	Finalist	Games
2003	New Jersey Devils	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	4-3
2002	Detroit Red Wings	Carolina Hurricanes	4-1
2001	Colorado Avalanche	New Jersey Devils	4-3
2000	New Jersey Devils	Dallas Stars	4-2
1999	Dallas Stars	Buffalo Sabres	4-2
1998	Detroit Red Wings	Washington Capitals	4-0
1997	Detroit Red Wings	Philadelphia Flyers	4-0
1996	Colorado Avalanche	Florida Panthers	4-0
1995	New Jersey Devils	Detroit Red Wings	4-0
1994	New York Rangers	Vancouver Canucks	4-3
1993	Montreal Canadiens	Los Angeles Kings	4-1
1992	Pittsburgh Penguins	Chicago Blackhawks	4-0
1991	Pittsburgh Penguins	Minnesota North Stars	4-2
1990	Edmonton Oilers	Boston Bruins	4-1
1989	Calgary Flames	Montreal Canadiens	4-2
1988	Edmonton Oilers	Boston Bruins	4-0
1987	Edmonton Oilers	Philadelphia Flyers	4-3
1986	Montreal Canadiens	Calgary Flames	4-1
1985	Edmonton Oilers	Philadelphia Flyers	4-1
1984	Edmonton Oilers	New York Islanders	4-1
1983	New York Islanders	Edmonton Oilers	4-0
1982	New York Islanders	Vancouver Canucks	4-0
1981	New York Islanders	Minnesota North Stars	4-1
1980	New York Islanders	Philadelphia Flyers	4-2
1979	Montreal Canadiens	New York Rangers	4-1
1978	Montreal Canadiens	Boston Bruins	4-2
1977	Montreal Canadiens	Boston Bruins	4-0
1976	Montreal Canadiens	Philadelphia Flyers	4-0
1975	Philadelphia Flyers	Buffalo Sabres	4-2
1974	Philadelphia Flyers	Boston Bruins	4-2
1973	Montreal Canadiens	Chicago Blackhawks	4-2
1972	Boston Bruins	New York Rangers	4-2
1971	Montreal Canadiens	Chicago Blackhawks	4-3
1970	Boston Bruins	St. Louis Blues	4-0
1969	Montreal Canadiens	St. Louis Blues	4-0
1968	Montreal Canadiens	St. Louis Blues	4-0
1967	Toronto Maple Leafs	Montreal Canadiens	4-2
1966	Montreal Canadiens	Detroit Red Wings	4-2
1965	Montreal Canadiens	Chicago Blackhawks	4-3
1964	Toronto Maple Leafs	Detroit Red Wings	4-3
1963	Toronto Maple Leafs	Detroit Red Wings	4-1
1962	Toronto Maple Leafs	Chicago Blackhawks	4-2
1961	Chicago Blackhawks	Detroit Red Wings	4-2
1960	Montreal Canadiens	Toronto Maple Leafs	4-0
1959	Montreal Canadiens	Toronto Maple Leafs	4-1
1958	Montreal Canadiens	Boston Bruins	4-2
1957	Montreal Canadiens	Boston Bruins	4-1
1956	Montreal Canadiens	Detroit Red Wings	4-1
1955	Detroit Red Wings	Montreal Canadiens	4-3
1954	Detroit Red Wings	Montreal Canadiens	4-3
1953	Montreal Canadiens	Boston Bruins	4-1
1952	Detroit Red Wings	Montreal Canadiens	4-0
1951	Toronto Maple Leafs	Montreal Canadiens	4-1
1950	Detroit Red Wings	New York Rangers	4-3
1949	Toronto Maple Leafs	Detroit Red Wings	4-0
1948	Toronto Maple Leafs	Detroit Red Wings	4-0
1947	Toronto Maple Leafs	Montreal Canadiens	4-2
1946	Montreal Canadiens	Boston Bruins	4-1
1945	Toronto Maple Leafs	Detroit Red Wings	4-3
1944	Montreal Canadiens	Chicago Blackhawks	4-0
1943	Detroit Red Wings	Boston Bruins	4-0
1942	Toronto Maple Leafs	Detroit Red Wings	4-3
1941	Boston Bruins	Detroit Red Wings	4-0
1940	New York Rangers	Toronto Maple Leafs	4-2
1939	Boston Bruins	Toronto Maple Leafs	4-1
1938	Chicago Blackhawks	Toronto Maple Leafs	3-1
1937	Detroit Red Wings	New York Rangers	3-2
1936	Detroit Red Wings	Toronto Maple Leafs	3-1
1935	Montreal Maroons	Toronto Maple Leafs	3-0
1934	Chicago Blackhawks	Detroit Red Wings	3-1
1933	New York Rangers	Toronto Maple Leafs	3-1
1932	Toronto Maple Leafs	New York Rangers	3-0
1931	Montreal Canadiens	Chicago Blackhawks	3-2
1930	Montreal Canadiens	Boston Bruins	2-0
1929	Boston Bruins	New York Rangers	2-0
1928	New York Rangers	Montreal Maroons	3-2
1927	Ottawa Senators	Boston Bruins	2-0-2
1926	Montreal Maroons	Victoria Cougars[?] (WHL)	3-1
1925	Victoria Cougars[?] (WHL)	Montreal Canadiens	3-1
1924	Montreal Canadiens	Vancouver Maroons[?] (PCHA)	2-0
1923	Ottawa Senators	Vancouver Maroons[?] (PCHA)	3-1
1922	Toronto St. Patricks	Vancouver Millionaires[?] (PCHA)	3-2
1921	Ottawa Senators	Vancouver Millionaires[?] (PCHA)	3-2
1920	Ottawa Senators	Seattle Metropolitans (PCHA)	3-2
1919	cancelled
1918	Toronto Arenas	Vancouver Millionaires[?](PCHA)	3-2
1917	Seattle Metropolitans (PCHA)	Montreal Canadiens (NHA)	3-1
1916	Montreal Canadiens (NHA)	Portland Rosebuds (PCHA)	3-2
1915	Vancouver Millionaires[?](PCHA)	Ottawa Senators (NHA)	3-0
1914	Toronto Blueshirts (NHA)	Victoria Aristocrats (PCHA)	3-0
1913	Quebec Bulldogs (NHA)
1912	Quebec Bulldogs (NHA)	Moncton Victorias (MPHL)	2-0
1911	Ottawa Senators (NHA)
1910	Montreal Wanderers (NHA)
1909	Ottawa Senators (ECAHA)
1908	Montreal Wanderers (ECAHA)
1907	Montreal Wanderers (ECAHA)
1907	Kenora Thistles (MPHL)
1906	Montreal Wanderers (ECAHL)
1906	Ottawa Silver Seven[?] (ECAHL)
1905	Ottawa Silver Seven[?]
1904	Ottawa Silver Seven[?]
1903	Ottawa Silver Seven[?]
1903	Montreal AAA (CAHL)
1902	Montreal AAA (CAHL)
1902	Winnipeg Victorias
1901	Winnipeg Victorias
1900	Montreal Shamrocks (CAHL)
1899	Montreal Shamrocks (CAHL)
1899	Montreal Victorias (CAHL)
1898	Montreal Victorias (AHA)
1897	Montreal Victorias (AHA)
1896	Montreal Victorias (AHA)
1896	Winnipeg Victorias
1895	Montreal Victorias (AHA)
1894	Montreal AAA (AHA)
1893	Montreal AAA (AHA)