The Washington Capitals second round series victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins put an end to the Pens becoming the first team since the New York Islanders of the early 80’s to hoist Lord Stanley’s cup in three consecutive seasons.
(Fun facts: the Islanders won four straight from 1980-1983, and the Montreal Canadiens won the previous four during 1976-1979).
One of the toughest things do to in the salary cap era is win the Stanley Cup, let alone for three years in a row. What’s even more difficult is trying to keep your team in tact by retaining as many players possible the following summer. Just ask the Chicago Blackhawks, who did a wonderful job of replacing their departures with youth and skill after their first of three cups.
When the Penguins won it last season, they had six unrestricted free agents that were all but guaranteed to walk because of the team’s salary cap situation, and tasked with finding a new home for Marc-Andre Fleury, so the Vegas Golden Knights didn’t snag Matt Murray for free in the expansion draft.
Trevor Daley, Matt Cullen, Ron Hainsey and Mark Streit were four of the six that left in the off-season for what they hoped were greener pastures.
The other two free agents, along with Fleury, also found new homes, and now have a chance at winning the Stanley Cup for the third straight season.
Marc-Andre Fleury
At age 33, Fleury endured the best statistical season over his 14-year career in his first campaign in Sin City. If it wasn’t for a concussion that limited the first overall pick in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft to just 46 games, he would’ve had a strong case at being nominated as a Vezina finalist with his 29-13-4 record and impressive 2.24 goals against average and a .927 save-percentage. The Golden Knights checked another box on their historic and record-setting season by defeating the San Jose Sharks in six games to advance to the Western Conference Championship in their first year of existence. Based on how fast and well-rounded their entire lineup is, Fleury could become the first goaltender to win two Stanley Cups with two different teams since Patrick Roy and Mike Vernon.
Chris Kunitz
If the Tampa Bay Lightning get back to the promise land and win the cup like many pundits predicted at the start of the season, then Chris Kunitz – who agreed to a one-year, $2 million contract with the club last offseason – will get his name inscribed for the fifth time! Although the 38-year-old has been held pointless through ten playoff games so far, his veteran leadership, experience and toughness could play a considerable role in helping the Lightning land their second championship in franchise history. Kunitz’ five potential cup wins would put him into a tie for tenth all-time.
Nick Bonino
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Well, Nick Bonino did the opposite of that. After knocking off the Predators a year ago anchoring the Penguins’ third line, the former Duck and Canuck inked a four-year $16 million dollar deal in Smashville. Making only $1.9 million after signing a three-year deal with the Ducks, Bonino spent a season in Vancouver being before dealt to Pittsburgh in a package for Brandon Sutter. A productive two-way centre that delivered in the past two playoffs, Bonino has 2 goals and 3 assists through 12 games so far, and will look to be counted on to provide some secondary scoring for a Preds team that has relied heavily on their top line of Ryan Johansen, Filip Forsberg and Viktor Arvidsson.
So, what former Pens player has the best shot of winning the Stanley Cup for the third straight season? Let us know in our Facebook comments.
