Canada has been searching for a Stanley Cup since the Montreal Canadiens hoisted it in 1993. Since then, there have been several Canadian teams that have competed in the Cup final, but they’ve failed each time.
Including this year’s final, there have been eight finals that have consisted of a Canadian team. The Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers featured in two Cup finals leading up to this season. In addition to those teams, the Calgary Flames, Ottawa Senators and Canadiens made appearances.
Edmonton was the last Canadian team to lose in the Cup final, falling to the Florida Panthers in seven games last season. They dropped the first three games, but crawled back to force a Game 7. Despite their dramatic comeback, Florida took home the Cup, winning 2-1 in that contest
The Oilers will have a chance at redemption this season against the Panthers after beating the Dallas Stars in five games in the Western Conference final.
Before that, the Canadiens met with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2021 Cup final, where they lost in five games, and the Lightning won the Stanley Cup for a second consecutive season.
This was when Montreal came out of the all-Canadian North Division. They were the last seed in that division and defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in a famous comeback series win after Toronto led the series 3-1.
