The State of Canadian Hockey

Toronto and Vancouver were amongst six Canadian sides that missed the playoffs in 2014.

The 2013-14 NHL season was a disappointing one for hockey fans north of the border.

Not since 1973 had only one Canadian side advanced to the Stanley Cup playoffs, but that was exactly how things played out this past season.

Of the seven Canadian sides in the National Hockey League, only the Montreal Canadiens made the postseason. The remaining six clubs could be found languishing in the bottom third of the league standings.

This out of the ordinary phenomena has some questioning the state of hockey in Canada, at least at club level.

While the national side was successful in taking gold at the Sochi Olympics in February, the fact that six Canadian sides finished up the season in April is somewhat alarming for a nation that prides itself on its hockey.

What’s more alarming is the nation’s recent record in the Stanley Cup.

In history, Canadian sides have fared well in the cup, combining for 64 appearances and 44 championships. Two of the three most decorated sides in the league – Montreal with 24 cups and the Toronto Maple Leafs with 13 – come from north of the border, yet recently things have turned sour.

A Canadian team has not won the Stanley Cup since 1993, the year in which the Habs won their 24th championship. Five Canadian sides have played in the Stanley Cup Finals since then, but all have come up short.

You could say that the closest Canada has come to a Stanley Cup in the last 21 years was when the Colorado Avalanche – less than a year removed from their existence as the Quebec Nordiques – lifted the trophy in 1996.

P.K. Subban is the bookmakers favorite to be named the next captain of the Montreal Canadiens, the only Canadian side to make the postseason in 2014.

With the question of expansion always on the horizon, and with the likes of Quebec City and Hamilton potential destinations for NHL franchises, this isn’t exactly a glowing reference for playing in the Great White North.

Before anybody sets about throwing snow on the camp fire of Canada’s NHL teams though, it’s worth asking a simple question:

Was the 2013-14 season a harbinger of what’s to come or was it simply an anomaly?

At first glance, it appears to be an anomaly. In the 20 seasons that have followed the Habs’ last Stanley Cup triumph, 66 Canadian sides have made the postseason, which equates to an average of 3.3 teams every postseason.

In 2004, no fewer than five Canadian sides appeared in the postseason, while eight of those 20 seasons saw four sides advance to the playoffs, including in the 2012-13 season.

But there may be a dark cloud waiting to shed its heavy snow amidst these records.

Between 1994 and 2010, no fewer than three Canadian sides advanced to the playoffs each year, excluding 2005’s lockout year of course. Since 2011, two or fewer teams have done likewise in three of four years. That’s a downward trend, but is it one that will continue?

To answer that question, we’ll have to wait to see what the 2014-15 campaign ushers in.

Of course, the bookmakers have their own opinions on the state of Canadian hockey, which has led this week to Bovada offering a number of Canadian-centric prop bets.

Perhaps the most interesting of these prop bets are those that revolve around which Canadian teams will make the postseason.

As things stand, Bovada expects the Canadiens and Vancouver Canucks – coincidentally, the last Canadian side to appear in the Stanley Cup Finals – to make the postseason, while Toronto is listed as even money to advance.

The remaining four teams – the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Ottawa Senators and Winnipeg Jets – are all expected to miss the postseason.

You can find a list of the odds below.

Meanwhile, Calgary – a team that upped sticks from Atlanta to move to Canada way back in 1980 – is listed at 75/1 to win the 2015 Stanley Cup. That puts the side at the bottom of the heap as far as the NHL futures go, albeit with company from a trio of American sides.

If you’re yearning for some hockey betting action, or if you think you have the inside track on the state of Canadian hockey, maybe it’s worth laying some cash down.

As for how Canada’s teams will fair come October? We’ll just have to wait and see.