They were coming off back-to-back seasons in which they were eliminated by the Penguins in the second round of the playoffs despite winning the Presidents' Trophy as regular season champs.

When the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs got underway, the Capitals were considered perennial postseason choke artists. That's the only way you win a Cup with an offense that average. They were simply great at suffocating teams into submission, allowing just 1.50 goals per game over the course of their whole playoff run. The Kings weren't a fluke champion, as they proved a few years later, but they weren't exactly a sexy champion, either. Six games later they sealed the deal and the Cup belonged to the Kings for the first time in franchise history. Relying on their great defense and the strong goaltending of 26-year-old Jonathan Quick, the Kings entered the playoffs as an eight-seed and lost just two games through the first three rounds of the playoffs before meeting the Devils in the Cup Final. Not only did the 2011-2012 Kings accomplish that feat, they also went on to win the whole damn thing. It's not every day you see a team rank 29th out of 30 teams in goal scoring and they still qualify for playoffs. It's also important to remember that lists like these are subjective and the only thing that truly matters is whether you're on the list to begin with. It's important to remember that every team on this list was great - one needs to be hoist the most difficult trophy to win in sports - but not all greatness is created equal. Who are the championship teams and what are the championship moments you'll most remember from the last 10 years? It's fun to think about. Those rankings take into account the team's regulation season success as well as their playoff run, while also considering in a certain memorability factor. And, of course, there was plenty of immortality etched on the Stanley Cup.īefore we turn the page on the 2010s, we thought it'd be a fun exercise to take a look back at the 10 teams that won the Stanley Cup this decade and rank them. There has been plenty to take in across the hockey world over the past 10 years - including a dynasty, another lockout and some generational talents achieving greatness. With the 2010s coming to an end, now's a great time for a retrospective examination of the decade that was.

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