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Who are the last five NHL coaches to win the Stanley Cup?
The Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers have reached Game 5 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals. With Vegas leading 3-1, the series has reached its business end.
Behind the benches, neither Bruce Cassidy nor Paul Maurice has ever won the grand prize, with each reaching the finals just once prior to this season. Cassidy and the Boston Bruins fell to the St. Louis Blues in 2019, while Maurice and the Carolina Hurricanes lost 4-1 to the Detroit Red Wings in 2002.
But before either coach lifts the cup for the first time, let's take a look at the past five coaches to bring home a championship.
Many NHL coaches have won the Stanley Cup in their first trip to the Final
2016 & 2017: Mike Sullivan, Pittsburgh Penguins
In 2016, Mike Sullivan led Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins past the San Jose Sharks in the Stanley Cup Final. It was Crosby's second title and the first in the Steel City since only 2009.
In 2017, a very similar Penguins team returned with a very similar result.
After beating one underdog team, the Ottawa Senators, in the Eastern Conference finals, the Pens took down another unsung hero, the Nashville Predators. The Predators overcame a 2-0 series deficit in the finals before Pittsburgh won two straight, and the cup.
2018: Barry Trotz, Washington Capitals
Barry Trotz is a legend around the NHL. But despite beginning his coaching career back in 1998, he had still not won a Stanley Cup heading into the 2017-18 season. After reaching the finals with the Caps, Trotz faced the 'Cinderella' Vegas Golden Knights expansion team from the West.
Washington handled Vegas in five games to give Alexander Ovechkin and Barry Trotz their first cups.
2019: Craig Berube, St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues were at the bottom of the NHL over Christmas break during the 2018-19 season. Then, Jordan Binnington took over in net and the Blues went on to make the playoffs and advance past three good teams to reach the Stanley Cup Finals.
Berube was only in his third season as NHL bench boss and had never coached in the finals. St. Louis took down Bruce Cassidy and the Boston Bruins in seven games to win its first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
2020 & 2021: Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning
The nearly three-peat Tampa Bay Lightning story began in the bubble of 2020.
With Jon Cooper behind the bench for his second Stanley Cup Finals, the Bolts took on the Dallas Stars, who had ridden their backup goaltender on a magical run. Tampa Bay proved to be too much for Dallas, taking a 3-1 series lead in a pivotal Game 4, eventually winning the series in six games.
Tampa Bay came right back in the 56-game shortened 2020-21 season. Playing in the revised Central Divison, along with those same Dallas Stars, the Lightning eventually reached the finals for the second straight year. In the finals, they knocked off the Montreal Canadiens with relative ease in only five games.
Cooper led the Bolts to three straight Eastern Conference championships and two Stanley Cups.
2022: Jared Bednar, Colorado Avalanche
Tampa reached the finals in 2022 as well, but this time, with a different result.
Instead, it was Jared Bednar and the Colorado Avalanche that stood atop the hockey world in June.
The Avs took series leads of 2-0 and 3-1 before finally overcoming the Bolts 2-1 in Game 6 to win the first Cup for Colorado since 2001.
Bednar coached in his first Stanley Cup Finals in 2022, becoming the fourth coach of the past five to win on their first trip.
Now, it will either be Bruce Cassidy and the Vegas Golden Knights or Paul Maurice and the Florida Panthers that will come out on top in their second visit to the finals.
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