It was an Underwhelming Year for these NHL Teams…

By: Meghan Lipscomb

The world of hockey is at its best during the Stanley Cup playoffs. Over the past six months, we have seen teams battle it out throughout the regular season to prove why they could be the next Stanley Cup winners. Some teams were at the top of their games, and others couldn’t keep up with their competition. Today, we will look at an upset team from each division that did not make the Stanley Cup playoffs this season, and a little recap of their disappointing season.

Atlantic Division: Boston Bruins 

First, let’s take a trip up to the Boston Bruins. Not making the playoffs was already a shock for the rowdy Boston fans, but their downfall was at the beginning of the season. Like other sports, you cannot start the season by losing the first couple of games in hockey. Unfortunately, that is what the Bruins did. In their first game of the 2024-2025 season, they lost to the Florida Panthers 4-6. The Bruins developed momentum, winning against the Montreal Canadiens and the Los Angeles Kings. But after that, they would continue that pattern of winning two to three games, then losing one important game or three games back to back.

Metropolitan Division: New York Rangers 

Taking a trip to the city that never sleeps, to the home of the New York Rangers. It was not the beginning of the season that cost them; it was towards the middle of the season. The Rangers looked dominant from October to mid-December, as they usually do. Their biggest mistake was not having enough endurance before and during Christmas and New Year’s. The Rangers would win one game, then go on four to five-game losing streaks. This pattern would start on December 20th after winning against the Dallas Stars 3-1. Their four-game losing streak would start on December 22nd and carry over until January 2nd. This would be the pattern for the rest of the season: win one easy game, then lose the important games.  This would be the first time in four years that the Rangers did not make the playoffs.

Central Division: Utah Mammoth 

Taking a trip out west to the newly named Utah Mammoth. The Mammoth, formerly the Arizona Coyotes, went into this season to bring ice hockey to Utah. It was not so much the beginning or middle of the season that cost the Mammoth, it was the end of the season. The last few games of the season in the Western Conference were a tight competition to see who would secure the final wildcard spot of the Western Conference. The final regular-season game against the St. Louis Blues on April 15th is what secured the Mammoth’s fate. Utah lost 1-6 to the Blues, and this win for the Blues would secure them the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

Pacific Division: Calgary Flames

Taking a trip up north to visit the Calgary Flames. The Flames had a fireball of a season, but it would be the same case for them as it was for Utah—the pressure of securing that wildcard spot. Due to the win, the St. Louis Blues had against the Utah Mammoth on April 15th. Along with the Minnesota Wild winning against the Anaheim Ducks 3-2 in overtime that same day.  The Wild and the Blues would strip the Flames of making the Western Conference wild-card spots.