THE COUNTDOWN

Which teams are consistently primed for a bright future? And why does that promise seemingly never come to fruition for many of those organizations?

BY JARED CLINTON

THE TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS have a gift for inspiring disparate reactions. Thus, when we declared on the cover of Future Watch 2018 that Toronto could “plan the parade,” it provoked both excitement and ire. Mostly the latter. But – and bear with us here – could this be the year? Barring the 2023 Vegas Golden Knights and 2006 Carolina Hurricanes, every Stanley Cup champion in the post-lockout era has had their victory preceded by a top-five finish in our annual Future Watch rankings. All but three of those 17 teams have also climbed to the NHL’s summit within nine years of finishing at or near the top of the Future Watch heap. And, finally, those teams’ average time-to-title from their nearest top-five FW finish is a shade under six years. By…

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The Hockey News (Digital) - 1 Issue, Future Watch 2025

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