Topic summary
2026 Stanley Cup playoffs
The 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs was the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 2025–26 season. The playoffs began on April 18, 2026, and concluded on June 14, 2026, with the Carolina Hurricanes winning their second Stanley Cup in franchise history, defeating the Vegas Golden Knights four games to two in the Stanley Cup Final.
The Colorado Avalanche qualified for the playoffs as the Presidents' Trophy winners with the most points (i.e., best record) during the regular season. The Buffalo Sabres ended their NHL-record 14-year playoff drought, clinching a playoff spot for the first time since 2011. The Anaheim Ducks qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2018, ending their seven-year playoff drought. The Philadelphia Flyers also ended their five-year playoff drought by making the playoffs for the first time since 2020. The Toronto Maple Leafs failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since the 2015–16 season, ending what was the longest playoff streak in the NHL. The longest active playoff streak is now held jointly by the Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning, who have qualified for the playoffs every year since 2018. Additionally, the two-time defending champion Florida Panthers failed to qualify for the playoffs, becoming the first defending champions to fail to qualify since the 2014–15 Los Angeles Kings and also became the first two-time defending champion to miss the playoffs since the 1969–70 Montreal Canadiens. The Winnipeg Jets also became the fifth defending Presidents' Trophy winner to fail to qualify for the playoffs. This is also the first time in league history that consecutive defending Presidents' Trophy winners failed to make the playoffs. The Utah Mammoth tied the Seattle Kraken as the second-fastest expansion team to clinch their first playoff berth, doing so in their second season. For the first time since 1966, none of the New York metropolitan area-based teams (the New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, and New York Rangers) qualified for the playoffs.
For the first time since 2019, following Tampa Bay's elimination in the first round, neither of the NHL's Florida-based teams made it to the Stanley Cup Final. The Carolina Hurricanes became the first team to have a 12–1 record going into the Final, and the fewest number of losses since the 1975–76 Montreal Canadiens.
The Hurricanes finished the playoffs with a 16–3 record, the fewest amount of losses for a Stanley Cup winner since the 1987–88 Edmonton Oilers.