Cup finals you would have loved to see , but didn't happen

[Raoul Duke*]

Last year I was hoping for a Sabres-Oilers final.

Hopefully Oil would have taken it...

I was hoping for the same. That would have been a barn burner of a series, not that Carolina wasn't exciting in there.... But a healthy Oilers/healthy Sabres finals last year would have probably been nerve racking from the drop in game 1 to the end.

 

[Granlund2Pulkkinen*]

Right now:
Vancouver vs New Jersey.

Goaltending titans duke it out.

In 10 years:
Chicago vs Pittsburgh

Prospect gold mines face off to see who ran away with the most valuable picks.

 

[DaveG]

Colorado vs Pittsburgh in 1996. Would have been an absolute dream matchup, probably would have been a 7 game series.

 

[reckoning]

In 10 years:
Chicago vs Pittsburgh

Prospect gold mines face off to see who ran away with the most valuable picks.

No. Wirtz will manage to somehow screw everything up so none of those picks are still with Chicago 10 years from now.

 

[Kenadyan]

1986: Montreal-Edmonton

Oh, if not for Steve Smith's "own" goal against the Flames in the conference finals, could the Oilers run from '84-'88 have possibly matched Montreal's 5 straight Cups ('56-'60)??

Or would Patrick Roy have shut down the high powered Oilers offense as easily as he did the Flames in the Finals?

 

[Granlund2Pulkkinen*]

No. Wirtz will manage to somehow screw everything up so none of those picks are still with Chicago 10 years from now.

Actually he's gotten better.

Got rid of Aucoin


And picked up

Kane
Sweatt
Aliu
Tanguay

All top 50 players according to the hockey news.

 

[tony d]

1993 between Montreal and Toronto; How fitting would it have been if in the 100th anniversary of the Stanley Cup final, the teams with the best NHL history meeting in the Stanley Cup finals? Then you had to have that famous non-call in the Conference finals and an underwhelming final between Montreal and Los Angeles.

 

[Blades of Glory]

1986: Montreal-Edmonton

Oh, if not for Steve Smith's "own" goal against the Flames in the conference finals, could the Oilers run from '84-'88 have possibly matched Montreal's 5 straight Cups ('56-'60)??

Or would Patrick Roy have shut down the high powered Oilers offense as easily as he did the Flames in the Finals?

That's one matchup that I regret never happened. The greatest goaltender ever against the Oilers dynasty in the Cup Finals.

 

[Granlund2Pulkkinen*]

In history: the Gretzky Oilers vs the Lemieux Penguins

 

[mrhockey193195]

2000, I wanted PHI-DAL (the PHI-NJ conference finals was awesome, I personally think that playoffs was the best of the "dead-hockey" years between 97 or 98 and the lockout)

 

[Killiecrankie*]

Pittsburgh-Los Angelos 1993,
Pittsburgh-Colorado 1996
Pittsburgh-Colorado 2001
Toronto-Detrio 2002 (dang canes)

 

[FissionFire]

Right now:
Vancouver vs New Jersey

You are joking, right? Last thing I'd want to watch is a 7 games series where each team averages 15 SOG and the total combined goals scored is 7. Well, maybe 8 if Brodeur scores on an EN.

Much rather see a team like Buffalo play another offensive team like Detroit, San Jose, etc. where each team averages around 4 goals/game in the series.

 

[ToneLöc]

2002: Avs and Leafs

But nope, neither makes it. BOO that

 

[Blackhawkswincup]

Blackhawks v Bruins (1990)

Would have been great to see that original 6 final. Unfortunately the hawks legacy of the 80's was a team that couldn't beat Edmonton to reach the next step. 5 Conference finals appearances between 82-90. 3 loses to Edmonton, 1 to Calgary and 1 to Vancouver.

If hawks make the finals in 90 i think Hawks would have won cup.

 

[zepps]

92-93: Leafs vs Habs

06-07: Canucks vs Sens

 

[ColoradoSportsFan]

1995-96: The Avs vs. The Habs
1996-97: Gretzky's Rangers vs. Sakic's Avs
1997-98: Hasek vs. Roy (Avs vs. Sabres)
2000-01: Lemieux vs. Bourque (Avs vs. Penguins) That could have been the biggest finals in Hockey for the decade what with Lemieux making his big return going up against Bourque in his final quest.

 

[Jinsell]

1992-1993: Montreal vs. Toronto

1994-1995: Vancouver vs. New Jersey (would've been nice to see Canucks do it again)

2002-2003: Vancouver vs. Ottawa

2003-2004: Philadelphia vs. Calgary

 

[EatSleepJeep]

2003 West Semis: Dallas defeats Anaheim instead

...which prompts the...

2003 West Finals: Dallas vs. Minnesota
Oh, yeah

I could get behind either winner vs. NJ:
Dallas for rematch of 2000
Minnesota for the sheer fun of watching a replacement expansion team in their 3rd season who just defeated their former team make a run at the Cup

Of course NJ gets destroyed in this scenario as the west is riding the wave

 

[doc5hole]

Blackhawks v Bruins (1990)

Would have been great to see that original 6 final. Unfortunately the hawks legacy of the 80's was a team that couldn't beat Edmonton to reach the next step. 5 Conference finals appearances between 82-90. 3 loses to Edmonton, 1 to Calgary and 1 to Vancouver.

If hawks make the finals in 90 i think Hawks would have won cup.

They were better than the Bruins in '91 but not in '90. Bruins were first overall in 89-90 and handled the Hawks with ease at the Stadium when Boston was just digging out of a slump.

 

[Blackhawkswincup]

They were better than the Bruins in '91 but not in '90. Bruins were first overall in 89-90 and handled the Hawks with ease at the Stadium when Boston was just digging out of a slump.

Hawks were clicking on all cylinders going into series with the Oilers and Belfour was having a breakthrough playoff year.