Lord Stanley’s Cup. The oldest trophy in North American sports, 34.5 pounds of silver and nickel, and hockey’s ultimate prize. Year after year all 32 teams play for a chance to participate in the playoffs. Sixteen of those teams make it and get a chance to win the Cup. Only one team will hoist it over their heads. Players spend their entire lives dreaming and working towards the moment they get to place their hands on that magnificent trophy.
Years of hard work, dedication, heartbreak, and sweat are put into it, and when a player finally gets his chance it’s a moment full of emotion. Etched into the cup are the names of the teams that won it, as well as the players and staff that got them to that point. Etched into that cup are some of the greatest names in hockey history. However, hockey is a cruel sport, and not every player gets the chance to lift Lord Stanley’s Cup. Here are the ten best NHL players who never won a Stanley Cup.
10. Marcel Dione
Marcel is a Kings legend. A member of the famous and beloved Triple Crown line, he had a glorious career in LA, Detroit, and New York, with the vast majority of his time spent in Los Angeles. In those eighteen seasons, Marcel played 1,348 games, where he scored 731 goals, and 1,040 assists, all for a total of 1,771 points. That’s insane numbers. He scored 50-plus goals six times and totaled 100 points seven times. Marcel currently rests in the top 15 scorers of all time. He’s won an Art Ross trophy, two Ted Lindsay Awards, a Lester Patrick Trophy, and two Lady Byng Memorial Trophies. Despite all of this, Marcel never captured the ultimate prize.
In his eighteen seasons, Marcel never advanced past the second round of the playoffs. His teams only gathered over forty wins one time, and he only made it past the first round three times. Marcel’s name will forever be etched in history as one of the all-time great scorers, but sadly he never will get to wear that ring.
9. Roberto Luongo
No one can say Luongo didn’t try. The man put his best effort in day in and day out for every team he played for. Winning the William M. Jennings trophy in 2011, Luongo was a fan favorite in Florida and Vancouver. He played his inaugural season with the Islanders, before spending the rest of his career in Florida, Vancouver, and then Florida again. He played 1,044 games and won 489 of them. He had a goals-against average of 2.52 with a save percentage of .919 all while tallying 77 career shutouts.
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Luongo managed to make the Stanley Cup Finals with the Canucks in 2011 but fell short in seven games to the Bruins. He never made it back to the finals despite Vancouver winning the Presidents Trophy again the next season, and hence never got the chance to lift the cup. His time with Florida was even less successful, as the team never won a playoff series with him in net. Maybe if he had gotten the chance to play on another team, then Luongo may have gotten the chance to lift the Cup.
8. Jarome Iginlia
Here we have another top all-time scorer who never got to touch the Cup. The long-time captain of the Calgary Flames won the Mark Messier Award, the NHL Foundation Player Award, the Art Ross trophy, the Maurice Richard trophy twice, the Ted Lindsay Award, and the King Clancy Memorial trophy. He played twenty seasons in the NHL, playing with the Flames, Penguins, Bruins, Avalanche, and Kings. In those twenty seasons, he played 1,554 games, scoring 625 goals and tallying 675 assists for a total of 1,300 points.
Despite all these stats and awards, Iginla never got to have the ultimate prize. He made the Finals with the Flames in 2004 but fell short in an extremely hard-fought and close series against the Lightning. Iginla will forever have his name etched in history as he sits at 34th on the all-time scorer’s list and has his own place in the Hall of Fame, but he will never know the glory of being a Stanley Cup champion.
7. Mike Gartner
Gartner is one of the more unlucky entries on this list. Drafted by the Capitals in 1979, Gartner played until 1998 for the Capitals, Rangers, Maple Leafs, North Stars, and the Coyotes. A multiple-time forty-goal scorer, and a one-time fifty-goal scorer, Gartner is one of only eight players to have over 700 career goals. In 1,432 games played, he scored 708 goals and tallied 627 assists for a total of 1,335 career points.
What makes Gartner unlucky is that had he not been traded in 1994, then he would’ve won a Stanley Cup. The Rangers would deal Gartner to the Maple Leafs at the deadline and would go on to win the Cup later that year. If that trade never happens, Gartner never gets on this list. Instead, the farthest Gartner would go in the playoffs is the conference finals before retiring in 1998, never having touched that glory.
6. Ryan Miller
Miller was drafted in 1999 by the Buffalo Sabres, the same team he would spend most of his career with. From 2002-2014 played in Buffalo, before being dealt to St Louis. From there Miller would go to Vancouver and then to Anaheim where he would end his career. He would play 796 games, starting 772, and winning 391, the most wins by an American-born goaltender. He had a GAA of 2.64 and a save percentage of .914 with 44 career shutouts.
Miller would win the Vezina trophy in 2010 as well as the NHL Foundation Player Award. Despite these awards and some very impressive stats, Miller never did win the Stanley Cup. Season after season Miller saw his team fall short and/or fail to make the playoffs for much of his career. Miller is one of the best American-born goalies of all time and his win count backs that title, but he sadly will always lack the championship ring on his mantle.
5. Keith Tkachuk
The Tkachuk name is very popular in the hockey world. Keith is the father to not one, but two current NHL superstars Brady and Matthew, and hopefully he will get to watch them capture the glory that he never could. Keith played 18 seasons in his career, from 1991 to 2010. He played with the Jets, the Blues, the Thrashers, and the Blues again. He played 1,201 games in which he scored 538 goals and tallied 527 assists for a total of 1,065 points.
Keith was the first American-born player to score fifty goals in one season. He was also the first to score fifty goals and rack up 200 penalty minutes in the same season. Keith was a potent scorer but wasn’t afraid to drop the gloves either. Despite this, however, Keith found himself Cupless when he finally hung up his gloves. A beloved and wonderful player in his prime, Keith sadly never got to touch Lord Stanley’s Cup. Here’s hoping one of his sons can bring it home to him.
4. Adam Oates
Oates was very accustomed to the playoffs. In his 19 seasons, his team made the playoffs in 15 of them. He was undrafted, making his NHL debut for the Red Wings in 1985. He would play for the Blues, the Bruins, and the Capitals, and then finish his last three seasons with the Flyers, Ducks, and Oilers before retiring in 2004. He played 1,337 games, scored 341 goals, and tallied a whooping 1,079 assists for a total of 1,420 points. He finds himself as number 18 in the all-time scorer’s list.
Despite regularly visiting the postseason, and making the Finals twice, Oates never went all the way. He drove Washington to its first-ever Stanley Cup Final in 1998, where they were swept by the defending champ Red Wings. He returned to the Finals in 2003 with Anaheim but would lose in seven games to the Devils. He would then retire the following season. Oates made a career of helping others score goals, but sadly nobody was able to help him win the Cup.
3. Dale Hawerchuk
Being the Winnipeg Jets in the 80’s was no easy task. In order to make it anywhere in the playoffs you would have had to get past the powerhouses that were the Edmonton Oilers and the Calgary Flames. Dale Hawerchuk learned this firsthand. Drafted in 1981 by Winnipeg, Dale spent nine seasons there before heading over to Buffalo. From Buffalo, he would go to St Louis, and then end his career in Philly. He played 1,188 games, where he scored 518 goals and tallied 891 assists. He won the Calder Trophy in 1981.
Despite playing on some good Winnipeg teams, they never were able to overcome the Alberta teams. Dale would find no less success in Buffalo and St Louis, regularly scoring 80 points or more. He would make his only Stanley Cup Final in 1997, the final year of his career, with the Flyers. They would lose to the dynasty Red Wings in four games. When Dale retired, he had only missed the playoffs once in his career, but sadly never had a Cup to show for it.
2. Patrick Marleau
Marleau deservingly had his number retired by the Sharks. Drafted in 1997 by the Sharks, Marleau wore a San Jose uniform for 20 of his 23 NHL seasons. He would spend two seasons with Toronto, and only one with Pittsburgh. He would retire in 2022 as a member of San Jose. He broke Gordie Howe’s record for the most regular season games played in NHL history. He played 1,723 games where he scored 562 goals and tallied 626 assists for a total of 1,188 points.
Despite his longevity, Marleau would only ever make it to the Stanley Cup Final once in his career. In 2016 the Sharks made a good run but would lose to the Penguins in six games. This was the closest Marleau ever came to being a champion in the NHL. His number rests in the SAP center’s rafters, and his name is etched in the history books hailing his longevity and dedication, but it’s safe to say he probably would’ve liked his name on the Cup as well.
1. Gilbert Perreault
Maybe the most underappreciated entry on this list, we have Gilbert Perreault. Drafted first overall in 1970 by the Buffalo Sabres, Perreault would spend his entire 17-season career in Buffalo as the face of the franchise. An underappreciated superstar in his time, Perreault was a two-time 100-point scorer, and very rarely had under 70 points in his career. In 1,191 games played, he scored 512 goals and tallied 814 assists for a total of 1,326 points. He won the Calder trophy and the Lady Byng Memorial trophy.
Unfortunately for Perreault, even his talent wasn’t enough to carry Buffalo to a championship. He did make the Finals in 1975 but would lose in six games to the Broad Street Bullies. After that, Perreault never found himself anywhere close to a Cup again. With powerhouses like Montreal and Philadelphia being their competition every year, as well as Buffalo having a relatively mediocre roster, Perreault unfortunately was never rewarded for his dedication to the Sabres. His number is retired by Buffalo as an honor to him, but he never did get his name on the Cup.
