Will the 2020 Stanley Cup have an asterisk next to it?

[bobholly39]

I can see people putting an asterisk if its one of those teams that was say in 20th-24th when the seasons topped, only because they weren't actually in a playoff spot (even if there was 10-12 games to go)

Even the 24th place team....it's not like they were rewarded. Habs have to play 5 rounds (most ever in history of NHL) and face the top seed each round. If they win the cup it'll be the toughest path to a cup of all time and they should get a thumbs up instead of an asterisk

If NHL had done something stupid like made it single-game knockout elimination, or best of 3 rounds because of pandemic delays - sure, I could hear arguments for asterisk.

Not when it's harder.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

no

winner has to win a minimum 16 games to win the Cup, just like every playoff year

 

[Beau Knows]

No, fans of the winning team will be thrilled, they won't care that the format was different this year, they still won. Hell if they have to play in the qualifying series too they had an even tougher route than usual.

Fans of other teams, especially rival teams, will try to hold it against them. But who cares?

We're lucky if we get to a see a post-season this year, so I don't get the point of trying to say it doesn't count.

 

[Krewe]

Only an asterisk for me if a team seeded 10-12 wins

 

[bobholly39]

Only an asterisk for me if a team seeded 10-12 wins

Would love to see the Habs beat Pittsburgh, Boston, Tampa, Washington & St Louis in that order and have someone try to argue they don't deserve their cup lol. I'd argue they deserve 2.

 

[Pyrophorus]

Now that Bettman has said it is a one off. Yes.

 

[Krewe]

Would love to see the Habs beat Pittsburgh, Boston, Tampa, Washington & St Louis in that order and have someone try to argue they don't deserve their cup lol. I'd argue they deserve 2.

I agree it would be an awesome run, and deserving of a cup, but they had no chance of making the playoffs beforehand, so IMO it would be undeserved, and it would be a bad look for the sport

 

[Big Phil]

I'll admit I am a little surprised there are so many people thinking that this year is as worthy as any other. There will be no dynamic with the fans, no atmosphere, no home ice advantage, etc. It will be the most anti-climatic Cup in history.

I am seeing a lot of "well if my team doesn't win, then yes" sort of thing. Forget that. I'm a Leaf fan and I really hope they don't win this year because it would be depressing. People should vote on this regardless of whether it is their team or not, because chances are they won't.

 

[Mulletman]

I'll admit I am a little surprised there are so many people thinking that this year is as worthy as any other. There will be no dynamic with the fans, no atmosphere, no home ice advantage, etc. It will be the most anti-climatic Cup in history.

I am seeing a lot of "well if my team doesn't win, then yes" sort of thing. Forget that. I'm a Leaf fan and I really hope they don't win this year because it would be depressing. People should vote on this regardless of whether it is their team or not, because chances are they won't.

Well wouldn't you say it depends on how our Leafs would win the cup?! I mean with an extra round there's a good chance that Auston Matthews might end up making history by becomming the first player to score 20 goals in a playoff run. Seeing Matthews score 20 goals in the playoff, win the cup and win the Conn Smythe would make it pretty sweet don't you agree? Especially since he missed out on breaking Rick Vaive's record because of the pandemic.

 

[Big Phil]

Well wouldn't you say it depends on how our Leafs would win the cup?! I mean with an extra round there's a good chance that Auston Matthews might end up making history by becomming the first player to score 20 goals in a playoff run. Seeing Matthews score 20 goals in the playoff, win the cup and win the Conn Smythe would make it pretty sweet don't you agree? Especially since he missed out on breaking Rick Vaive's record because of the pandemic.

I guess I am one of those rare guys that doesn't change his mind to how it suits his team. I usually remain pretty consistent with things. If I don't like something I don't like it even if my team is the beneficiary. It won't feel like the playoffs. It is already June. I am always happy to see the Cup final finish off when the weather gets nicer. So to watch hockey with horrible atmosphere in July? Yeah, it will just have this "exhibition" feel to it. It won't feel real.

 

[Mobiandi]

I don't think I could care less about these playoffs. The sporting world might be bottom of the list of priorities for 2020.

I think if you polled players anonymously, you'd get mixed results as to whether they even want to return to this current season

 

[JuneauRiley05]

It

Fair question, if they ever get it underway, will the winner of the 2020 Cup have an asterisk next to it and be noticeably separate from every other year?

With no fans in the buildings, no atmosphere, the removal of home ice advantage and everything a team has done in the regular season, the players out of shape, the most likely poorer ice than normal because of the heat and so on and so forth I say a very resounding yes!

I love hockey, but I love the NHL we know, not this version. They should be pushing to get fans in the stands by October and focus on starting that on time. That's my thought.

Put it this way, how serious am I about my answer? The Leafs haven't won a Cup in 53 years and I pray to God that 2020 with all of these shenanigans isn't the first time this century that we see it happen. Because that will just be a shame. So that's my team, and I would rather see a non-descript team like the Hurricanes (sorry Carolina) win it rather than seeing perhaps the only time John Tavares and co. ever win it.

it will depending on who wins. For example if Montreal somehow won the cup there would be a huge asterisk attached to it for the simple reason they didn’t deserve to be competing for it. Yes if they win they would have gone through 4 rounds plus play in but it doesn’t matter. Regular season play and wins is what separates playoff teams from lottery teams. The ability to sustain winning over the course of a season enough to EARN the right to compete for the Stanley cup. Everyone knows any team can get hot and beat any team in the league.

 

[JuneauRiley05]

Depends whether the team I root for wins the cup or not.

You won’t have to worry about your team winning

 

[JuneauRiley05]

No because the playoffs are 4 rounds best of 7 as usual. The winner of this year's cup should be held in even higher regard because of the unique circumstances. Winning with no home ice, no fans, no advantages will be the sign of a true champion.

No disadvantages either (away ice, opposing fans , travel etc.

 

[McRpro]

You won’t have to worry about your team winning

Doesn't matter what team I cheer for bud, that's basically what the answer is for most people.

 

[HyPnOtiK]

No, imo this will be the hardest cup to win in history given all the teams and variables. A very special championship.

 

[North Cole]

Petition to put an asterix next to this thread.

 

[Big Phil]

Petition to put an asterix next to this thread.

Oh come on, really? As if the playoffs are going to resemble anything we have ever seen before. It will be the worst atmosphere this side of a Florida Panthers game. It will be very, very hard to get up and get excited to watch an NHL playoff game when you will be able to hear tumbleweed. It will be depressing to be honest. No, I don't want my Leafs to win in 2020, it won't mean anything.

It

it will depending on who wins. For example if Montreal somehow won the cup there would be a huge asterisk attached to it for the simple reason they didn’t deserve to be competing for it. Yes if they win they would have gone through 4 rounds plus play in but it doesn’t matter. Regular season play and wins is what separates playoff teams from lottery teams. The ability to sustain winning over the course of a season enough to EARN the right to compete for the Stanley cup. Everyone knows any team can get hot and beat any team in the league.

The 4 month layoff will play into it as well. How many of us are busy in the summer and won't even have time to watch the games, even if we want to? It is just a joke. At least work with the governments in order to get full stadiums back up again in the fall. Watching an important game in an empty stadium is like if a tree fell into the woods and no one was there to hear it would it make a sound.................

 

[Isaac Nootin]

Oh come on, really? As if the playoffs are going to resemble anything we have ever seen before. It will be the worst atmosphere this side of a Florida Panthers game. It will be very, very hard to get up and get excited to watch an NHL playoff game when you will be able to hear tumbleweed. It will be depressing to be honest. No, I don't want my Leafs to win in 2020, it won't mean anything.

The worst atmosphere, can't get up for it or excited. You mention it being depressing and that you don't even want the team you cheer for to win.

So I take it you won't be watching?

 

[treple13]

I honestly don't take any fan seriously if they say they'd rather their team doesn't win this year.

For fans of teams that haven't won one in the last 20-30 years, we will take anything we can get.

For fans of teams that have won more recently, they'll be fine winning another as well.

Winning the Cup might be slightly less fun without your fans in the arena, but that won't make it not fun at all. There's still sports bars if you want the environment or watch with friends, etc.

 

[North Cole]

Oh come on, really? As if the playoffs are going to resemble anything we have ever seen before. It will be the worst atmosphere this side of a Florida Panthers game. It will be very, very hard to get up and get excited to watch an NHL playoff game when you will be able to hear tumbleweed. It will be depressing to be honest. No, I don't want my Leafs to win in 2020, it won't mean anything.



The 4 month layoff will play into it as well. How many of us are busy in the summer and won't even have time to watch the games, even if we want to? It is just a joke. At least work with the governments in order to get full stadiums back up again in the fall. Watching an important game in an empty stadium is like if a tree fell into the woods and no one was there to hear it would it make a sound.................

All of the bold is irrelevant to players legacies and what they work to achieve on a personal/team level. The players dont give a shit if any of us get up or not, they play to win the cup and be a part of history, to be remembered as champions. They might tow the company line and feed us some stuff about civic pride and community, but it's not the first priority. You staying in bed doesnt affect their goals. Auston Matthews doesnt practice his wrist shot only because he wants you to stand up and cheer. Like...haha.... "oh, I was gonna take 200 shots today, but Big Phil isnt interested so I guess I'll mail it in too..."

This crazy talk about putting an asterix there, that takes away from what they worked hard to achieve.

You make it sound like your presence in front of the TV is what matters when determining whether players earned a cup or not. Your entertainment is a by-product of their job, not the other way around.

 

[CanadienShark]

No. It's as difficult as ever. If a team like Montreal somehow goes all the way, they'll still have to get through real contenders like Boston, Tampa, St Louis, etc. If one of the aforementioned (except Montreal) wins, then no one bats an eye.

 

[JuneauRiley05]

All I know is as a leaf fan, if the leafs somehow won it wouldn’t matter how many contenders they beat along the way nobody here would acknowledge it. But that wouldn’t surprise anyone

 

[blundluntman]

If it does, it should reflect even more positively on whoever wins it tbh.

 

[CraigBillington]

Why are people so hellbent on asterisks?
The only time something should be highlighted is because of cheating