NHL Power Rankings: Every franchise statistically ranked all-time
By Daniel
15. Calgary Flames (1972): 1.666 Points
Calgary is known for having some of the best fans in the NHL and since their inception into the league they’ve seen a decent amount of success. They’ve taken home one Stanley Cup championship, three conference championships, five division championships, and two Presidents’ Trophies. Their best all-time players include Jarome Iginla, Lanny McDonald, Mike Vernon (goalie), Theoren Fleury, and Al MacInnis. Today the Flames are captained and led by Mark Giordano and new goaltender Jonas Hiller. They’re in a little bit of a down time, but look for this franchise to resurrect itself soon. They have a lot of young talent that could develop swiftly. If it does, expect to see more impressive images of the “C of Red” (fans in downtown Calgary wearing shirts with the Flames’ logo) in the near future.
(Formerly Atlanta Flames 1972-1980)
14. Vancouver Canucks (1970): 1.727 Points
The Canucks are the highest franchise on this ranking to never win a Stanley Cup. That’s not exactly the label they’d prefer, but it does speak to the fact that they’ve been a successful organization despite never winning the Cup. This franchise has had a lot of regular season success, but always seems to falter in the playoffs. They’ve won 10 division championships, three conference championships, and two Presidents’ Trophies yet have nothing to show for it. They’ve recently acquired Ryan Miller to be their goalie and feature the Sedin Brothers (Henrik the captain and Daniel) as the leaders. The top players in franchise history include Pavel Bure, Markus Naslund, Stan Smyl, and Trevor Linden.
13. Carolina Hurricanes (1979): 1.809 Points
The team that was originally known as the Whalers has seen good level of success since joining the NHL. They’ve captured one Stanley Cup, four conference championships, and seven division crowns. They’re led by Eric Staal and his brother Jordan (their younger brother Jared plays with them, too). But their talent reaches deeper than that including forward Alexander Semin, Cam Ward at goalie, and other younger talent. Historically Keith Primeau, Ron Francis, Rod Brind’Amour, and Blaine Stoughton have stared for this franchise. This franchise isn’t a powerhouse at the moment, but don’t sleep on them in the coming years.
(Formerly Hartford Whalers 1979-1997)
12. Chicago Blackhawks (1942): 1.196 Points
The Blackhawks’ lack of high-end postseason success between 1962 and 2008 dug them big enough of a hole to land just out side the top 10 of this ranking. That said, they’ve had a lot of success in their history. They’ve won an impressive 15 division championships, three modern day Stanley Cups, three conference championships, and two Presidents’ Trophies. They’re led by a plethora of talent today and are one of the best teams in the league. That talent includes forwards Jonathan Toews (captain), Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa, Brad Richards, and more. Not to mention defensemen Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Corey Crawford at goalie. This team is stacked. Over the course of its history Stan Mitika, Bobby Hull, and Denis Savard have led this franchise. They’re a proud “Original Six” team that despite their inconsistencies are still ranked highly in overall greatness. Their sweaters are one of the best jerseys in all of sports, that cannot be debated.
11. Dallas Stars (1967): 2.000 Points
One of the “Second Six” teams was the California Golden Seals which eventually became the Cleveland Barons. That franchises then amazingly merged with the Minnesota North Stars — another proud “Second Six” team. The North Stars later became the Dallas Stars and Minnesota got a new franchise in called Wild in the year 2000. Dallas is the continuation of the North Stars’ and Golden Seals’ collective histories. The Stars won one Stanley Cup and four conference championships. To go along with that success they’ve won nine division championships and two Presidents’ Trophies in their 47 year existence. Dallas currently boasts a young and exciting squad led by captain forward Jamie Benn, forwards Tyler Seguin and Jason Spezza and defenseman Alex Goligoski. They may add a good deal of points to their total over the coming years with this point system. The Stars’ best players all-time are forwards Mike Modano, Neal Broten, Brett Hull, Dino Ciccarelli and many others. Look out Western Conference, this is a franchise on the rise.
(Formerly Minnesota North Stars 1967-1993)