Cupless Team Most Likely To Win A Cup

[JagerMeister]

 

Which Cupless team has the highest probability of winning a cup?

 

 

 

Here are the ones most likely to qualify for playoffs

 

Vancouver Canucks

Minnesota Wild

Washington Capitals

Ottawa Senators

St Louis Blues

Nashville

San Jose

 

Although if Vancouver qualifies, you know they wont contend for the Cup. Simply because.

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

Which Cupless team has the highest probability of winning a cup?

 

I presume you mean which team is the most likely to win a Cup next before the OTHERS on the list?

 

I mean, to simply say which team has the "highest probability" is just a matter of looking at who currently is in the best shape to do so NOW.

Because, theoretically, the team who is best constructed currently, has the highest probability to win next.

But of course, just because a team is built to win now, doesn't mean they are GOING to.

 

Anyways, of the group above, IMO, the most likely Cup-less team to win one next BEFORE the others, would probably be the Nashville Predators.

 

To me, they have the best combination of competitive goaltending, long term viability of players (i.e. good young talent), mixed in with guys who are in their primes ready to win now, roll out four good lines on a nightly basis, and are in great shape cap-wise so that they are virtually unencumbered if they feel they need to add a big piece or two.

They are also very well coached with Peter Laviolette calling the shots behind the bench....good mix of offensive vs defensive thinking with that coach.

 

Other teams such as Washington and St. Louis for instance, certainly are built well to win now, however, I feel with those two teams, its either now or wait a long while more as their main cores are either in their primes now or are soon going to exit their primes, and both are teams near the cap ceiling so they can't really add major pieces without subtracting from their team first.

 

Closely behind the Predators, I would say the Minnesota Wild for the same reasons as Nashville, however, the Wild are much closer to the cap ceiling (although they offset that with very good young talent who could be around for quite awhile), in-his-prime goaltending with Devan Dubnyk, but again, have a strike against them due to not really having a true number one center.

 

If they can develop that (Granlund is their best hope still), then that boosts their chances significantly.

 

But for my money, weighing the current state of the above teams vs what they can become in short order and win before the others, I am going with Smashville.

Just a very nicely constructed, well rounded team for winning now and for some time.

[Podein25]

Ok, when I first looked at the thread title I read "Clueless Team..."

Flyers!!

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

Ok, when I first looked at the thread title I read "Clueless Team..."

Flyers!!

 

LOL.... Well, the Flyers are safe from THIS particular poll because they are not a Cup-less team...err, even if they are clueless...

 

But you know, if we are gonna go the 'clueless' route, even though I mentioned the Blues to be built to win now, I'd put them in there.

I mean, a team who feels goaltending has been their main issue when they have traditionally have had trouble scoring goals and simply not being a fast enough team?

 

Yeah, clues are rare in St. Louis, MO.....

[Podein25]

LOL.... Well, the Flyers are safe from THIS particular poll because they are not a Cup-less team...err, even if they are clueless...

But you know, if we are gonna go the 'clueless' route, even though I mentioned the Blues to be built to win now, I'd put them in there.

I mean, a team who feels goaltending has been their main issue when they have traditionally have had trouble scoring goals and simply not being a fast enough team?

Yeah, clues are rare in St. Louis, MO.....

Lol, I'm inclined to agree

[NRH]

This year? Senators seem like the most likely team to win every year.

 

First team in this list to win a cup? Buffalo.

[FD19372]

Very good, if not excellent goalie, solid defense and then you have Backstrom, Ovie, Justin Williams (aka Mr. Clutch) and Kuznetsov. Really good firepower. Oh, and now they have a really good coach. To me, the Caps have the most balance, and the best chance to win a Cup this year or next.

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

Very good, if not excellent goalie, solid defense and then you have Backstrom, Ovie, Justin Williams (aka Mr. Clutch) and Kuznetsov. Really good firepower. Oh, and now they have a really good coach. To me, the Caps have the most balance, and the best chance to win a Cup this year or next.

 

I like all those things you said about the Caps....and fact is, I believe Washington to be a very dangerous playoff team.

However, and far be it from me to be Ms. Consensus, but I gotta go with the majority of people who believe that until Ovie proves he can help carry his team in the post season, his team isn't winning anything with him on it.

 

Kinda silly, maybe superstitious even....but the Great 8 HAS established himself as mostly a non factor in the post season with regards to leading the way for his team.

[flyercanuck]

[JagerMeister]

Yes, the Marchand beating has not been perceived in a positive light by many. However, what people fail to understand is that the Sedin getting pummelled was actually trying to draw a penalty as well as to display courteousness to his children watching at home...

 

 

[Blue Line]

1.The Ottawa Senators

2.Minnesota Wild

3.Buffalo Sabres

[ashtasticness]

Panthers I think. I thought the preds would be stronger than they have been in the playoffs. They seem to drop the ball a lot. 

[BluPuk]

Just for the record, the Ottawa Senators have won the Stanley Cup 4 times....

[WordsOfWisdom]

41 minutes ago, BluPuk said:

Just for the record, the Ottawa Senators have won the Stanley Cup 4 times....

I've never quite understood how/why a team's history can be "deleted" when it relocates or folds. Case in point: When the Jets moved to Phoenix, their history as the Jets should have been paused and then resumed with this latest incarnation of the Jets.

Example: 

Winnipeg Jets -> Phoenix Coyotes

(History of Phoenix Coyotes should begin at zero. It should be treated as a new franchise. Pause button is pressed on Jets history.) 

Atlanta Thrashers -> Winnipeg Jets

(Winnipeg Jets resume/continue the history they had in their first go-around. Thrashers history is paused.)

[radoran]

1 hour ago, WordsOfWisdom said:

I've never quite understood how/why a team's history can be "deleted" when it relocates or folds. Case in point: When the Jets moved to Phoenix, their history as the Jets should have been paused and then resumed with this latest incarnation of the Jets.

The simplest answer is that the NHL leadership has their collective heads rectally inserted.

More complex is when the owner of the team that is moving wants to keep the "franchise" history attached to it.

I really don't think anyone in Phoenix particularly cares about the "Winnipeg" history of the franchise.

And, of course, no one in Atlanta gives a rat's ass about hockey.

The most egregious examples are, of course, in the NFL. They should have made Irsay leave the Bawlmer Colts name and records in Bawlmer, for example.

That said, the only real good thing they ever did in terms of relocation was to make Modell leave the Browns' name and history in Cleveland.

[radoran]

Oh and: LET'S GO BUFF-A-LO!

[BluPuk]

The fact that the Sens have previously won Stanley Cups is important to me because their last win was 1927. As a Leafs fan that means there is a team in the league who's Stanley Cup drought is longer than ours!!