SN 140: The 20 greatest NHL teams of all time

The Sporting News is celebrating its 140th anniversary, and to mark the occasion, we are looking back at some of the greatest events, players, and teams from that span. 

This installation focuses on the 20 greatest NHL teams of all time. Only one team per era was selected, so we could choose only one Montreal Canadiens roster from the 1970’s or one Edmonton Oilers squad from the 1980’s. 

Without further ado, let’s look back at the greatest NHL teams of all time.

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The Sporting News' 20 greatest NHL teams of all time

1. 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens

The greatest team of all time, the Montreal Canadiens in the 1976-77 season, not only had the names but also backed them up with a dominant regular-season and post-season campaign.

With a roster highlighted by Guy Lafleur, Steve Shutt, Larry Robinson, Guy Lapointe, Jacques Lemaire, and goaltender Ken Dryden, the Habs posted 60 wins in 80 games, losing just eight games and tying 12. On an individual basis, Guy Lafleur took home the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s MVP, the Ted Lindsay and the Art Ross trophy, before winning the Conn Smythe trophy in the playoffs. Larry Robinson took home the Norris Trophy, and Ken Dryden won the Vezina Trophy. 

In the playoffs, the Habs would sweep the St. Louis Blues in the quarterfinals, defeat the New York Islanders in six games, and then sweep the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup final. 

2. 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers

The 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers finally ended the New York Islanders dynasty and started their own. Wayne Gretzky, Paul Coffey, Jarri Kurri, Mark Messier, Glenn Anderson, and goaltender Grant Fuhr would go on to win four of the next five Stanley Cups, but this year’s team started it all. 

Gretzky was dominant, scoring 87 goals and 205 points, becoming the first NHL player to eclipse the 200-point mark. 

The Oilers finished 15 points ahead of the next-best team in the regular season standings, posting a 57-18-5 record and 119 standings points. In the playoffs, the Oilers swept the Winnipeg Jets in the first round, defeated rivals Calgary Flames in seven games, then swept the Minnesota North Stars, and defeated the Islanders 4-1 in the Stanley Cup finals.

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3. 1982-83 New York Islanders

The New York Islanders may have had their dynasty ended in the next season, but the 1982-83 Islanders squad was still far too much for the Oilers to handle. In the playoffs, the Islanders defeated the Washington Capitals 3-1, then defeated the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins in six games, and finally swept the Oilers in the finals.

The Islanders’ squad had plenty of depth, but the star players were highlighted by Mike Bossy, Brian Trottier, and Denis Potvin. This may have been the final of four consecutive Stanley Cups for the Islanders, but they were a dynasty that ruled the NHL. 

4. 1955-56 Montreal Canadiens

Jean Beliveau, Maurice Richard, Doug Harvey, and Jacques Plante. You don’t need much more to win a Stanley Cup than that. Beliveau produced some outstanding offensive seasons, but his 47 goals were a career high, and his 88 points helped him win the Art Ross and the Hart Trophy. 

The Canadiens unsurprisingly were the best team in the NHL that season, recording 100 points in just 70 games. In the playoffs, they took care of the Rangers in five games before besting the Red Wings in five games as well. 

5. 1951-52 Detroit Red Wings

A 23-year-old Gordie Howe, alongside a 22-year-old Terry Sawchuk, dominated the NHL. The Red Wings finished first in the NHL standings with 100 points, and in the playoffs, they swept the Maple Leafs in the first round and swept the Habs in the finals.

Howe finished the regular season with 47 goals and 86 points in 70 games, winning the Hart and Art Ross Trophies. As for Sawchuk, he played in all 70 games, posting a 1.90 GAA, winning the Vezina Trophy, and finishing fourth in Hart Trophy voting.

The Red Wings won four Stanley Cups from 1950 to 1955, and it was Howe and Sawchuk who led the way. 

6. 1971-72 Boston Bruins

Led by Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr, the Boston Bruins were uncontainable in the 1971-72 season. While Esposito and Orr’s best statistical seasons came in the year prior, the Bruins as a whole were a better team, and it’s why they won the Stanley Cup.

In the regular season, the Bruins were 10 points better than the next-best team, and their playoff run saw them beat the Maple Leafs in five games in the quarterfinals, sweep the St. Louis Blues in the semifinals, and defeat the New York Rangers in six games in the finals. Esposito and Orr were dominant in the playoffs, each recording 24 points in 15 games.

In addition to Esposito and Orr, the Bruins had key contributions from Johnny Bucyk, Fred Stanfield, and Ken Hodge. Throughout the history of the NHL, it’s hard to find a better center and defenseman duo than Esposito and Orr.

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7. 1974-75 Philadelphia Flyers

The Broad Street Bullies had everyone scared, but they did more than just fight. Although they led the NHL in penalty minutes by 692, highlighted by Dave Schultz’s 472, the Flyers finished in a three-way tie for first place in the NHL with the Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres.

Led by Hart Trophy-winning Bobby Clarke and star goaltender Bernie Parent, the Flyers were the NHL’s best defensive team in the regular season, allowing just 181 goals in 80 games. 

In the playoffs, they swept the Maple Leafs in the quarterfinals, defeated the Islanders in seven games in the semifinals, and defeated the Sabres in six games in the finals. Parent took home the Conn Smythe trophy after posting a 10-5 record, 1.89 goals-against average, 924 save percentage, and four shutouts. 

8. 2001-02 Detroit Red Wings

Throughout the history of the Detroit Red Wings, they’ve never really struggled to attract high-end talent, and no roster provides better proof than the 2001-02 Red Wings.

Their forward group consisted of Steve Yzerman, Brendan Shanahan, Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille, Igor Larionov, and a rookie Pavel Datsyuk. On the blueline, they didn’t need much more than Nicklas Lidstrom, but they still rostered Chris Chelios, and backstopping them was no other than arguably the greatest goaltender of all time, Dominik Hasek.

The Red Wings ran away with the Presidents’ Trophy, as they recorded 116 points, 15 better than the Bruins. In the playoffs, they took care of the Vancouver Canucks in six games in the first round, then five games in the second round against the Blues, before defeating their bitter rival, the Colorado Avalanche, in seven games in the conference finals. In the Stanley Cup final, they defeated the Carolina Hurricanes in five games. 

9. 1991-92 Pittsburgh Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins’ regular season wasn’t all too impressive, as they finished with a 39-32-9 record, good enough for a three-way tie for sixth place. Some of that could be attributed to Mario Lemieux missing 16 games, but nonetheless, when the playoffs rolled around, the Penguins were unstoppable.

In the first round, the Penguins squeaked by in Game 7 against the Washington Capitals. In the second round, they handled the New York Rangers in six games, but they hit another level in the third round and the finals, sweeping the Boston Bruins in the conference finals before sweeping the Chicago Blackhawks in the finals.

The Penguins roster featured some of the most notable names in NHL history: Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Kevin Stevens, Mark Recchi, Ron Francis, Rick Tocchet, Joe Mullen, and Brian Trottier up front, with Paul Coffey and Larry Murphy running the show from the blueline, and Tom Barrasso backstopping. 

10. 1962-63 Toronto Maple Leafs

If you ever take a trip to Scotia Bank Arena in Toronto, you’ll see several of these players’ jerseys hanging from the rafters. Led by a 38-year-old Johnny Bower in goal, this Maple Leafs roster featured Frank Mahovlich, Red Kelly, Dave Keon, George Armstrong, and Tim Horton. The Maple Leafs also had Carl Brewer, who finished second in Norris Trophy voting, and Kent Douglas, who won the Calder Trophy.

The Maple Leafs finished in first place in the NHL standings during the regular season and set themselves up for a semifinal matchup against the Canadiens. They handled the Canadiens in five games before doing the same to the Red Wings in the finals. 

This Cup win was the second of three consecutive wins for the Punch Imlach-coached Maple Leafs. 

11. 2024-25 Florida Panthers

The most recent team on this list, the Florida Panthers, have changed the way NHL rosters are being built. The Panthers were a mean team, playing physical hockey and taking every inch of space away from their opponents. With stars like Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Brad Marchand, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad, Gustav Forsling, Seth Jones, and Sergei Bobrovsky in net, the Panthers faced just one elimination game in four rounds. 

12. 2000-01 Colorado Avalanche

Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, Milan Hedjuk, Alex Tanguay, and Chris Drury up front, with Rob Blake, Adam Foote, and 40-year-old Ray Bourque on the blueline, the Avalanche were built to handle any opponent. But with Patrick Roy in net, the 2000-01 Avalanche were almost unbeatable. 

13. 1938-39 Boston Bruins

The oldest team on this list is the 1938-39 Bruins, but they deserve to be on here. They finished the regular season in first place before defeating the Maple Leafs and the Rangers en route to their second Stanley Cup win. 

14. 1988-89 Calgary Flames

Before their 1989 Stanley Cup triumph, the Flames had given many Stanley Cup-winning teams fits in the playoffs. But finally, a roster that featured Joe Mullen, Hakan Loob, Doug Gilmour, Theo Fleury, Gary Roberts, Lanny McDonald, Al MacInnis, Gary Suter, and Mike Vernon got it done. 

15. 2012-13 Chicago Blackhawks

The 2012-13 Stanley Cup win was the second of the Blackhawks’ 2010s dynasty. In the shortened season, the Blackhawks won 36 of their 48 regular-season games and lost only seven times in regulation. In the playoffs, Patrick Kane was on a mission. Assisted by Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, Duncan Keith, and Brent Seabrook, the Blackhawks consistently scored timely goals. 

16. 1948-49 Toronto Maple Leafs

The 1948-49 Maple Leafs finished in fourth place in the NHL standings, just earning a playoff spot. Despite being the second-worst offensive team in the regular season, everything clicked for the Maple Leafs in the playoffs, as they defeated the Bruins in five games in round one and swept the Red Wings in the finals.

17. 2007-08 Detroit Red Wings

The old guard of Yzerman, Shanahan, and Sergei Fedorov was gone, and Hasek and Chelios were well into their 40s, but Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg picked up the pieces offensively, while Lindstrom remained potent on the backend. The Red Wings easily won the Presidents’ Trophy in the regular season and never faced elimination in the playoffs. 

18. 2006-07 Anaheim Ducks

You’d be hard-pressed to find a more balanced roster than the 2006-07 Ducks. With Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger running the defense core, they ate minutes with ease. Up front, the Ducks boasted a lineup containing a young Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, as well as veterans Teemu Selanne, Andy McDonald, and Chris Kunitz. They also had Conn Smythe winner Jean-Sebastien Giguere in between the posts. 

19. 1943-44 Montreal Canadiens

The 1943-44 Canadiens lost just five of their 50 regular-season games and then lost just one of eight in the playoffs, en route to their third Stanley Cup win. The Habs were led offensively by Elmer Lach, but the real star was rookie Bill Durnan, who finished second in Calder Trophy voting and won the Vezina. 

20. 2021-22 Colorado Avalanche

The 2021-22 Avalanche are the second most recent team to feature on this list, and for good reason. The Avalanche played at a pace no team may ever replicate, and they lost just four games throughout the post-season. With a roster built of Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Mikko Rantanen, Gabriel Landeskog, Nazem Kadri, and Devon Toews, the Avalanche were deep and skilled.