i will never forget Florida Panthers Coach Paul Morris lifted the Stanley Cup for the first time.
A coach in the NHL since 1995, when he took his first bench boss gig with the Hartford Whalers at the age of 28, Maurice finally took over Lord Stanley’s mug in 2024. The most beautiful trophy in sports was given to him in the middle of the interview; He stopped what he was saying, grabbed the cup and lifted it up, and exhaled the longest and most satisfying exhale in sports history.
Even if you weren’t a Panthers fan, in that moment you were thrilled for Maurice – a man who dedicated his life to hockey and ultimately achieved his dreams.
There have been some iconic moments in NHL history. The most famous example is Ray Bourque winning the Cup. colorado avalanche In 2001 Joe Sakic made the most famous “pass” in hockey history without even picking up the Cup before delivering it into Bourque’s waiting hands. Lanny McDonald retires as a champion calgary flames In 1989 and was the subject of my favorite hockey photo of all time, it’s a perfect example of how hard it is to win the Cup and how enjoyable it feels to finally do so:
Every year, hockey fans love to identify a veteran player who has yet to win a Cup to cheer on in the playoffs (especially if their team doesn’t make the postseason). Who has the feel-good story? Who has been in the league so long that you think they deserve?
Some people call it OGWAC, or “old man without a cup.” The same year Paul Morris first won it in 2024, Kyle Okposo was also one of the strongest candidates for the OGWAC. He won his first cup with the Cats after an 18-year career New York Islanders And buffalo saber.
As we head towards the Stanley Cup Playoffs, here are my OGWAC picks for this season:
Could this be the season for the NHL and the league’s most majestic beard most colorful character? He would garner a lot of OGWAC votes as one of the few NHL players over the age of 40.
The good news for Burns is that he plays for the Avalanche, the team that has the lowest odds to win the Stanley Cup, per DraftKings Sportsbook at +290. Burns made one Cup final with the Sharks and had playoff success with a Hurricanes team that had yet to get over the hump. Now, he’s a candidate to finally get a Cup while skating with the best team in the NHL.
What kind of story will this be?
Although Nick Foligno has captained two NHL clubs (Columbus then Chicago), he has never played more than 10 playoff games in a season. He was part of that record-setting boston bruins 2023 roster that lost in dramatic fashion to the Panthers in the first round. while playing for Toronto Maple LeafsHe was the first to take off the gloves corey perry When Perry’s knee took an accidental but damaging knee strike while on a prone John Tavares During the playoffs. Simply put, Nick is one of the great sports leaders of our generation.
Now the 38-year-old, for the first time, is in the same team with his younger brother (34). They are part of a stacked Wild team that is looking for its first Stanley Cup in franchise history. The image of the Foligno brothers hoisting Lord Stanley’s mug in the air will be an all-time hockey photo.
The Stars captain also gets the vote to “spend his entire NHL career with the same team”, truly becoming the heartbeat of the Stars franchise. He’s relatively young compared to some of the guys on this list, but the 36-year-old signed a one-year, $1 million deal with Dallas last offseason to get another chance at the Cup. If the Stars win it will also create a wonderful moment, as Ben, as captain, will be the first to skate to the Commissioner to collect the trophy.
Ben captained the team to the Cup final in 2020 and the Conference final in the last three seasons. Not many hockey fans will be disappointed to see Ben lift the Cup.
“Revo” will definitely get votes from fans of his former teams, given how much effort he has put into signing star players over the past season – and continues to do so. McLean Celebrini, Will Smith And this season’s other young sharks.
Reeves, 39, scored the Western Conference Finals-winning goal for Vegas in 2018, sending the Golden Knights to the Cup final; ultimately they lost washington capitals (is giving Alex Ovechkin their first Stanley Cup).
The Sharks are fun to watch and firmly occupy the status of “second favorite team” for many hockey fans. So if San Jose advances and secures a playoff spot, he’ll no doubt get a lot of love, with Reaves getting some of the OGWAC votes.
Yes, there are many candidates on Wild’s list!
In 2014, Zuccarello became the first Norwegian NHL player to play in a losing effort in the Stanley Cup Finals. New York Rangers. Although we are seven years away from his last game in a Broadway blueshirt, some Rangers fans still have a soft spot for Zuck and would love to see him win the Cup.
I imagine Zuccarello may be first in line on the Wild, right after the captain, in order of who reaches the cup first. Jared Spurgeon. Nick Foligno would probably be right behind Matts (Zuk wins due to Minnesota tenure and both being similar ages – that would be my guess).
honorable mentions
Although ineligible for OGWAC classification, two other players who will certainly draw attention as they chase the Cup this spring:
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corey perry. This is simply due to the fact that although Perry, who is 40, won a Cup with the Ducks in 2007, he has lost in the Cup final in five of the last six seasons.
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connor mcdavid. The “always a bridesmaid, never a bride” narrative is in full swing after the Olympics. But that feeling has been there for the 29-year-old McDavid the last few seasons, simply because he is the best hockey player on the planet. He signed one of the NHL’s most team-friendly contracts, which is a big factor in those high expectations.
Proceed:
games of the week
what i liked this weekend
Hart Trophy candidates
social post of the week
paste tap
biggest games of the week
This week, after missing out the past few years, I’m stuck with two teams trying to make the playoffs:
columbus blue jackets Sit one point behind in the Eastern wild-card race – but will remain in first place in the Pacific Division. they host carolina storm on Tuesday, the New York Rangers on Thursday and seattle kraken on Saturday before traveling to Long Island to meet the New York Islanders on Sunday.
A win streak would be beneficial here as they try to catch the Boston Bruins detroit red wings And also kept the teams behind him in check.
The San Jose Sharks climbed into the second West wild-card spot over the weekend; Imagine an Avalanche-Sharks first-round matchup! This will be a joy to watch.
Macklin Celebrini & Company Visit edmonton oilers on Tuesday before hosting the Buffalo Sabers on Thursday and philadelphia flyers On Saturday. These are two tough games against playoff-bound clubs, and then at this point in the season they will face a team begging for points.
Hart Trophy contenders if the season ended today
I wonder how many Hart Trophy votes go to players like McLean Celebrini and Matthew Schaefer They will get to know how valuable they are to their team. Maybe winning the Calder will be enough for Schaefer in the voters’ eyes, and even if the Sharks claim a postseason berth, Celebrini can’t clean up the overwhelming amount of points the big three have (even though he’s a major reason the Sharks will make the playoffs in the first place).
My list is unchanged, but unstable; I’m a big “literal definition” of the Hart Trophy guy and that’s why I’m monitoring the standings.
Connor McDavid has 111 points, including six in his last five games, as the Oilers fight for the Pacific Division lead.
nathan mackinnon The Avs are at 109 with 12 points in seven games during March, including a four-point night against Seattle on Thursday, and the Avs remain on top of the overall league standings.
Nikita Kucherov He is the only other player with north of 100 points in the NHL this season (106), and he had the most points in his last five games among the big three (10). The Lightning are four points behind the Sabers at the top of the Atlantic Division.
what i liked this weekend
The Sabers and Maple Leafs are going in opposite directions. The Sabers are a “wagon” and possibly playoff bound (finally!), while the Leafs are in various stages of rebuilding/rebuilding/rebuilding.
Before the Sabres-Leafs matchup in Buffalo on Saturday, Sabers coach Lindy Ruff was asked about the status of the long-standing tradition of hockey fans in Toronto buying Sabers home game tickets (even against non-Toronto teams) given the new dynamic, which elicited an odd response from Ruff:
With the Leafs and Sabers having somewhat contrasting seasons, Lindy Ruff was hoping that Leafs fans would be willing to sell their tickets to Sabers fans in Buffalo. pic.twitter.com/iPMmIbl3fB
– Bardown (@bardown) 14 March 2026
weekend social media posts
Team USA’s official Sometimes you just have to tip your hat.
Appointment television. 🍿#WinterParalympics pic.twitter.com/lh0DWUc3qQ
– Team USA (@TeamUSA) 13 March 2026
paste tap
Congratulations to the Under-10 C2-2 Kirkwood Stars from the Kirkwood Youth Hockey organization in the St. Louis area, winners of the 2026 Blue Note Cup!
No. 56 Adeline McKenna is on the team; His father is former NHL goaltender Mike McKenna, who is also part of the Kirkwood coaching staff.
The team entered the tournament with the No. 3 seed, needing to win three consecutive games to take the trophy and did so, including a 4–3 win over Lady Liberty.
Coach McKenna said, “The improvement throughout the season was incredible.” “[We had] Four players who came through the Learn to Play program. …They’ve grown and become outstanding players.”
Go stars!
