Predicting when every NHL team will win its next Stanley Cup

Florida Panthers

Entering 2019, this group of Florida Panthers are the most competitive and closest thing that the Cats have had to the 1996 team that advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.

Florida hasn’t won a Stanley Cup Playoff series since that time, either. But expect things to finally change for the better in South Florida. The Panthers were the NHL’s best team after the all-star break last season, and missed out on the playoffs by one point.

With an integral group intact that entails the likes of Aaron Ekblad, Aleksander Barkov, Vincent Trochek and Jonathan Huberdeau the Panthers have the makeup to be a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.

Ekblad is on the verge of blossoming into one of the league’s top defenseman for years to come, and other key skaters will play a key role in Florida’s success that’s on the horizon. Nick Bjugstad and Evgeni Dadanov are two other forwards that offer the necessary depth to improve the team’s chances at making a deep run in the playoffs sooner rather than later. The Cats are also young on defense and have depth at the goaltending position. Though, one big question mark is if Roberto Luongo can stay healthy and if Father Time will finally impact the 39-year-old.

However, Florida’s hoping that former legend, Jaromir Jagr shared the fountain of youth with Luongo and that 2010 Canadian Olympic Gold Medal winner can still have an impact for another two years.

Panthers fans have been waiting since 1993 for this moment, and the time is upon the Sunshine State. The Panthers win the Stanley Cup in 2019.