Sports Logic

written by Shaun Deering

All day yesterday I had been researching the New York Rangers for a blog about why they are struggling. So what do the Rangers do last night? They win and take the wind out of those sails. But when one door closes, a new, some would say more interesting door opens.

As I was watching the Montreal vs. Edmonton game last night, struggling to find an answer to what’s wrong with the Canadiens, a thought came into my head. On a whim, I checked the history of teams who finish first overall in the Eastern Conference, and also the history of teams who represent the East in the Stanley Cup Finals. The results were a little surprising.

Let’s go on a journey back to a time when teams could spend freely, 35 year olds were prime free agents, and a young Darren Dreger wasn’t a mindless robot on TSN.

In 2000-01 the New Jersey Devils finished first overall and also represented the East in the Cup Finals. The following season they did so well, they fired their coach half way through the year and finished 6th in the East. You want to know the scary part? With the exception of one team, 6th place is the best any team has placed when finishing first overall or winning the East the following season.

In 2001-02, Boston finished first overall and Carolina represented the East in the Finals. The following season, Boston finished 7th, and were ousted in the first round. The same could not be said for the Hurricanes however. They finished a respectable 15th in the East, which some people call “last place.”

In 2002-03, the Senators were first overall, and the Devils represented the East in the Finals. The Devils actually won the Cup that year, and both teams went onto decent seasons the year after. Ottawa finished 5th in the East and New Jersey finished 6th, but both were ousted in the first round of the playoffs.

The Tampa Bay Lightning dominated the East in the 2003-04 season on their way to a first overall finish, and a berth in the Stanley Cup Finals. The following season, which was 2 years later (thanks Gary) they scraped into 8th place in the East and were golfing 6 games later.
Carolina won the Cup in 05-06 and promptly missed the playoffs the following season. Buffalo missed the playoffs in 07-08 after finishing first overall the year before