He Hasn't Won Yet? 5 Guys Vying For Their First Stanley Cup
Ryan Suter, Joe Pavelski and Jamie Benn celebrate a goal
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
The order in which Stanley Cup winners pass the hardware between one another is one of the best traditions in hockey.
After the captain, the hierarchy for who hoists the Cup next is usually decided by seniority.
It makes for priceless moments, like when Joe Sakic handed the Cup over to longtime veteran Raymond Bourque, who was finishing his 22nd and final season in the NHL.
Year after year, there’s always some version of that legendary Bourque hoist, even if nothing may ever come close to that moment.
So, who will it be this year? Here are five people who have gone a long time without winning a Stanley Cup. For some of them, it might even be their final chance to win it.
Zach Parise, LW, Colorado Avalanche
Parise signed a one-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche in January for one more kick at the can.
Ever since losing in the Stanley Cup final with the New Jersey Devils in 2012, the 39-year-old hasn’t advanced past the second round over his last 11 seasons. After a nine-year stint with the Minnesota Wild – which ended with him being bought out at the end of the 2020-21 season – Parise carved out a role as a dependable bottom-six forward with the New York Islanders over the last two years.
While Parise is nowhere near the talent he was in his prime, he has carved out a role on Colorado’s second line – alongside Casey Mittelstadt and Artturi Lehkonen – and has recorded two goals in six playoff games thus far.
“This is a guy that's come out of retirement, that had multiple options on teams where he could go and he decided to come to us,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. “We'd love to win for him.”
Joe Pavelski, C, Dallas Stars
Only Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Nikita Kucherov and Alex Ovechkin have recorded more playoff points than Joe Pavelski (140) has since entering the NHL in 2006.
The 39-year-old ageless wonder — who has flirted with the 30-goal mark in each of his last three seasons – has twice suffered the heartbreak of losing in the Stanley Cup final, with San Jose in 2016 and Dallas in 2020.
“It keeps you going,” Pavelski told The Athletic early in the 2022-23 season. “It’s always in the back of your head.”
Could this year be the year? Pavelski finished second on the Stars in scoring with 27 goals and 67 points. But more importantly, he's also been a mentor to a Dallas team that has relied on Wyatt Johnston and Logan Stankoven for offensive contributions.
“Joe's story is much more about leadership and leading by example and taking the young guys under his wing and showing them the way and playing the right way,” Stars coach Pete Deboer told The Hockey News in March.
Ryan Suter, D, Dallas Stars
No active player has played more games in the NHL without winning a Stanley Cup, than Ryan Suter.
Over the course of his 19 NHL seasons split between the Nashville Predators, Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars, the 39-year-old has averaged 25:42 minutes per night in 124 career playoff games.
But despite his near-two decades worth of experience, the closest Suter ever came to winning a cup was last spring when the Stars were knocked out in the Western Conference Finals.
Suter, who averaged less than 20 minutes per game for the first time since his 2005-06 rookie season this year (18:56), has one more year remaining on his contract after this season.
Brent Burns, D, Carolina Hurricanes
It’d be awesome to see Burns win the cup, purely based off vibes alone.
The grizzled and bearded veteran is one of the leauge's most interesting personalities and he’s somehow still an effective top-pairing defensemen at the age of 39.
“He's the biggest kid in this locker room and just loves the game,” Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin told ESPN. “He's just one of a kind.”
Burns has made the conference finals on three occasions – including last year with Carolina – and lost in the 2016 Cup Final with San Jose.
“He knows he doesn’t have too many more kicks at it,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour told The Dallas Morning News. “But I think our whole group knows that. We appreciate that. We have for a while.”
Paul Maurice, Coach, Florida Panthers
Can you imagine the soundbites that would come from Maurice if he finally won a Stanley Cup?
Or the powerful fist-pump he’d unleash on a potential cup-clinching goal?
Paul Maurice is an enigma in a profession where personality is rarely given much leash to be on display. But despite spending a quarter of a century as an NHL bench boss, he’s never won a championship.
The youngest coach to reach both 1,000 and 1,500 games in league history, Maurice had never been closer than last year when the Panthers went on an improbable run to the Cup final – losing in five games to Vegas.
“He coaches in a way that makes the players feel like they can coach the team,” Panthers forward Sam Reinhart told The Miami Herald. “He’s so straightforward in teaching. He was on us every day, right from Day 1 in training camp two years ago. That provides the confidence with the players that they can go out and execute.”
