7 long-tenured NHL stars are looking for their first Stanley Cup win

The Conference Finals are off to an exciting start — games in each series so far have needed extra time to come to a conclusion. Between the four remaining teams (New York Rangers, Florida Panthers, Dallas Stars and Edmonton Oilers) there are only six players who have won a Cup previously, so lots of potential Cup-winning first-timers still remain.

Something that's incredibly interesting is there are even more players remaining who have notched over 1,000 regular season games played in the League and are on the quest for their first Stanley Cup compared to ones who have already reached this milestone. Each team left has at least one of these guys, with Dallas sitting on top with four of these veterans on their roster. Let's dive into the seven players who have notched 1,000+ regular season games and are looking for their first Cup.

Dallas Stars

Joe Pavelski:

Joe Pavelski is a 39-year-old US-born player from Wisconsin. He was drafted in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft by the San Jose Sharks, where he played 13 seasons until the Dallas Stars signed him as a free agent on July 1, 2019. The Sharks had a good post-season run in 2016, making the Stanley Cup Final and eventually losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Once with the Stars, he made it to the Final again in 2020, this time losing to the Tampa Bay Lighting. Both teams that Pavelski lost to in the Cup Final went on to win back-to-back Championships.

When the Sharks made the Cup Finals back in 2016, Pete DeBoer was the coach of the team. DeBoer is now the coach of the Dallas Stars, reunited with Pavelski, hoping to make a strong run to the Final.

NHL regular-season games played: 1,332

Ryan Suter:

Another 39-year-old US-born player from Wisconsin, Ryan Suter was drafted in 2003, in the first round with the seventh overall pick, by the Nashville Predators. He spent the first seven years of his career with the Predators where they were consistently good in the regular season therefore making the playoffs five times. He was picked up as a free agent by the Minnesota Wild in July of 2012, where he remained until the Dallas Stars signed him as a free agent in July of 2021 after the Wild bought him out of his four remaining years on his contract.

Suter has yet to make a Cup Final, although he came close last year, losing in the Western Conference Final. The Stars lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in six games, with the Knights going on to win the Cup vs. the Florida Panthers. Suter has one more year on his contract with the Stars, is time in dwindling in his window for a Cup?

NHL regular season games played: 1,444

Jamie Benn:

Jamie Benn is a 34-year-old Canadian-born player who was drafted by the Dallas Stars in 2007. Benn has played the entirety of his NHL career in the city of Dallas, becoming the sixth captain in franchise history before the 2013-14 season.

Benn won the Art Ross Trophy (league's top point-scorer) the season he was named captain. Benn is a physical player and a leader on and off the ice. The two-time All-Star is missing one big thing from his resumé though: his name etched into the Cup. Could this be his year?

NHL regular season games played: 1,112

Matt Duchene:

Matt Duchene is another Canadian-born player for the Dallas Stars, and at the age of 33, he's looking for his first Cup. He was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche with the third overall pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. He was a force right out of the gate — setting franchise numbers as a young player, making the NHL All-Rookie team his first year. The two-time All-Star has bounced around during his career making stops in Ottawa and Nashville, with a brief 23-game stint in Columbus with the Blue Jackets.

Duchene signed a one-year deal with the Stars in July 2023. Will he make his first Stanley Cup Final?

NHL regular season games played: 1,056

Florida Panthers

Kyle Okposo:

Kyle Okposo is a 36-year-old Minnesota-born forward who was drafted in the first round of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Islanders with the seventh overall pick. This is where Okposo stayed for nine seasons, making his mark in the American Hockey League first with Bridgeport before being sent up to the NHL in March of 2008, where he has stayed since. The Islanders named him alternate captain ahead of the 2009-10 season.

He was signed as a free agent by the Buffalo Sabres in July of 2016, where he became a first-time All-Star. This past March, after eight years with the Sabres, he was traded to the Florida Panthers.

Now he finally has a chance to contend for the Cup with this offensively-strong, Paul Maurice-led Panthers team.

NHL regular season games played: 1,051

Edmonton Oilers

Sam Gagne:

Sam Gagne was drafted sixth overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft by the Edmonton Oilers. He currently plays for the Oilers, but the 34-year-old has been on the move a lot during his NHL career, so he has not remained with this organization since then. Gagne played seven seasons in western Canada before being traded to the Tampa Bay Lighting, who immediately traded him to Arizona where he spent one season. He went on to play one season in Philadelphia and one in Columbus and just over a season in Vancouver before he was traded back to the Oilers.

Buckle-up, there's more. Gagne was once again traded by Edmonton, this time to the Detroit Red Wings, in February of 2020, where he stayed for two years. The Winnipeg Jets signed him as a free agent in 2022 and then, guess who called? The Oilers came knocking again, signing him as a free agent in October of 2023. This is where he remains now, battling it out in the Western Conference Finals.

Third time's a charm?

NHL regular season games played: 1,043

New York Rangers

Blake Wheeler:

Big boy, 6-foot-5 Blake Wheeler, was drafted by the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2004 NHL Entry draft with the fifth overall pick. He never played for the Coyotes though, he became a free agent and was signed by the Boston Bruins in July of 2008. If the Bruins hadn't traded him to Atlanta in February of 2011, he wouldn't be on this list (the Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2011).

The Thrashers relocated to Winnipeg starting in the 2011-12 season, his stint in the city of Atlanta lasted only 23 games. The Jets became his home for the next 12 years; he was named captain of the team in August of 2016, with his tenure as captain lasting for six years. The New York Rangers signed the winger as a free agent in July 2023, bringing size, skill, and physicality to the lineup.

Wheeler got injured in February 2024 after playing 54 regular season games with the Rangers. While injured, he was a constant at games and practice, now with rehab complete and his no-contact practice jersey gone. He is ready to go when coach Peter Laviolette is ready to put him in the lineup.

Will this be his year for a Cup?

NHL regular season games played: 1,172