Which Canadian Team Will Be the Next Stanley Cup Champion?

The club was founded in 1917, operating simply as Toronto and known then as the Toronto Arenas. Under new ownership, the club was renamed the Toronto St. Patricks in 1919. In 1927, the club was purchased by Conn Smythe and renamed the Maple Leafs. A member of the "Original Six," the club was one of six NHL teams to have endured the period of League retrenchment during the Great Depression. The club has won 13 Stanley Cup championships, second only to the 24 championships of the Montreal Canadiens. With new changes to the lineup, coaching staff, and management, is this the year the Toronto Maple Leafs' Austin Matthews and Mitch Marner carry the team to the cup?

The Oilers were founded in 1971 by W. D. "Wild Bill" Hunter and Dr. Chuck Allard and played its first season in 1972 as one of the twelve founding franchises of the major professional World Hockey Association (WHA). After joining the NHL, the Oilers went on to win the Stanley Cup on five occasions: 1983–84, 1984–85, 1986–87, 1987–88, and 1989–90. Along with the Pittsburgh Penguins, they are tied for the most championships won by any team since the NHL-WHA merger and the most won by any team that joined the league in or after 1967. Led by their captain Conner McDavid, could the Edmonton Oilers be the next Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup?

Founded and established by Ottawa real estate developer Bruce Firestone, the team is the second NHL franchise to use the Ottawa Senators name. The original Ottawa Senators, founded in 1883, had a famed history, winning the Stanley Cup 11 times and playing in the NHL from 1917 until 1934. On December 6, 1990, after a two-year public campaign by Firestone, the NHL awarded a new franchise, which began play in the 1992–93 season. The Senators have made 16 playoff appearances, won four division titles, and won the 2003 Presidents' Trophy. They appeared in the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals but lost to the Anaheim Ducks in five games. Could this be their year?

Founded in 1909, the Canadiens are the longest continuously operating professional ice hockey team worldwide and the only existing NHL club to predate the founding of the NHL. The Canadiens have won the Stanley Cup more times than any other franchise, having earned 24 championships, with 23 victories since the founding of the NHL, and 22 since 1927, when NHL teams became the only ones to compete for the Stanley Cup. The Montreal Canadiens were the last Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup and the last Canadian team to reach the finals in 2020-2021. Can they do it again?

The team was founded in 1972 in Atlanta as the Atlanta Flames before relocating to Calgary in 1980. The Flames have won two Presidents' Trophies as the NHL's top regular-season team and have claimed eight division championships. The Calgary Flames have had a lot of struggles lately with losing some key players.  They have yet to win a Stanley Cup. Could this be their year? 

The Jets were established as the Atlanta Thrashers on June 25, 1997, and began play in the 1999–2000 NHL season. True North Sports & Entertainment then bought the team in May 2011 and relocated the franchise to Winnipeg prior to the 2011–12 season, making them the first NHL franchise to relocate since the Hartford Whalers became the Carolina Hurricanes in 1997. The team was renamed the Jets after Winnipeg's original WHA/NHL team, which relocated after the 1995–96 season due to financial issues to become the Phoenix (later Arizona) Coyotes. The Winnipeg Jets have been shuffled these few years, and recently their star goalie wants a trade. Though the Winnipeg Jets have been the favourite Canadian team to win it all over the last few years, it seems people are losing hope. What do you think, can they win?

The Canucks joined the league in 1970 as an expansion team along with the Buffalo Sabres. In its NHL history, the team has advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals three times, losing to the New York Islanders in 1982, the New York Rangers in 1994, and the Boston Bruins in 2011. They have won the Presidents' Trophy in back-to-back seasons as the team with the league's best regular season record in the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons. Can their young guns perform as needed to bring home the hardest trophy to win in professional sports?