Has an NHL team ever gone undefeated in the Stanley Cup Playoffs?

The New York Rangers are 7-0 in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. They defeated the Washington Capitals in four straight games to move on to the second round of the playoffs. Now, they’re up 3-0 over the Carolina Hurricanes. Games 2 and 3 went to overtime, the Hurricanes threatening to end the undefeated streak, but the Rangers prevailed. Will they complete the sweep, or will the Canes spoil their scorching run? 

It’s been 30 years since the Rangers started off the playoffs 7-0. That was 1994 … the last time they won the Stanley Cup. The Rangers’ playoff run has us wondering if an NHL team has ever gone undefeated in the playoffs. 

Under the current playoff format of four best-of-7 rounds, a team would need to go 16-0 to remain undefeated in their quest for the Stanley Cup. That’s quite the tall order, especially considering it means sweeping four playoff teams in a row.

Has an NHL team gone 16-0 in the playoffs?

The magic number for the Cup is 16 wins. No team has ever gone 16-0 in the playoffs. But the road to the Stanley Cup didn’t always consist of four rounds. Prior to 1968, there were two rounds: the semifinals and the finals. In 1968, the NHL shifted to a three-round format. Then in 1975, the NHL moved to the four-round format. 

The playoff format has changed a lot over the years, and it wasn’t always best-of-seven for each round. Therefore, even with four rounds, the magic number of wins to earn the Stanley Cup wasn’t always 16.

It’s been 64 years since an NHL team went undefeated in the playoffs. The last team to do it was the Montreal Canadiens, who went 8-0 in 1960. The 1952 Detroit Red Wings also went 8-0 in the playoffs. With the modern playoff format, a team would need to win twice as many games to remain undefeated as the Canadiens did 64 years ago.

Other teams have come close. The Canadiens went 12-1 in the playoffs in 1968 and 1976, and 12-2 in 1969 and 1977. The Boston Bruins also went 12-2 in 1970. The New York Islanders went 15-3 in 1981, and so did the Oilers in 1985.

In modern history, the Edmonton Oilers went 16-2 in 1988. The Los Angeles Kings went 16-4 in 2012, as did the Canadiens in 1993, the New Jersey Devils in 1995, the Red Wings in 1997, and most recently, the Colorado Avalanche in 2022. 

So while teams have gone undefeated in the playoffs, no team has gone 16-0. The Rangers’ current streak is impressive, but they still have plenty of games ahead of them. Will an NHL team ever go 16-0 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs? It’s an extremely unlikely feat, but it’s not impossible.