Winning one Stanley Cup is difficult enough. The Chicago Blackhawks somehow won three in six seasons, with championships in 2010, 2013 and 2015 cementing one of the NHL’s last true dynasties. Many of the same stars participated in all three runs, but the teams were hardly identical. One overwhelmed opponents with depth, another controlled nearly the entire season and the final champion relied on experience to survive a brutal path through the playoffs. Ranking them means finding flaws in three teams that ultimately accomplished everything asked of them.
3. The 2015 Blackhawks
Let’s get the awkward part out of the way. The 2015 Blackhawks are last.
They weren’t bad. Obviously. Bad teams don’t win the Stanley Cup, and they certainly don’t survive the road Chicago took that spring. This group simply wasn’t as dominant as the other two.
The Blackhawks finished third in the Central Division with a 48-28-6 record and 102 points. They were stuck in the middle of the league in scoring and didn’t have the same depth that made the 2010 team such a nightmare.
By the time the playoffs arrived, Chicago was leaning heavily on four defensemen. At times, it seemed as though Duncan Keith never left the ice. He averaged more than 31 minutes per game during the postseason and somehow looked stronger as the run continued.
Chicago needed six games to get past Nashville and seven to eliminate Anaheim. The Blackhawks then beat Tampa Bay in six games, with each of the first five decided by one goal.
This team didn’t steamroll anybody. It hung around, waited for an opening and usually knew exactly what to do when it appeared.
The 2015 Blackhawks were the oldest, most tested version of the dynasty. They were also the least impressive during the regular season, which puts them third here.
2. The 2010 Blackhawks
The first championship team may have been the most talented.
Chicago won 52 games, collected 112 points and scored 271 goals. The lineup was deep enough that opponents couldn’t spend all night worrying about one line. Trouble was coming over the boards either way.
The Blackhawks also had size, speed and a nasty side. They could skate past an opponent one night and push it around the next. When San Jose met Chicago in the Western Conference Final, the top-seeded Sharks didn’t win a game.
This group wasn’t flawless.
Goaltending was the obvious question. Antti Niemi made important saves throughout the playoffs, but Chicago’s skaters often had to outscore their own problems. The Stanley Cup Final against Philadelphia included a 6-5 game and another that ended 7-4.
Nobody complained once Patrick Kane’s overtime goal in Game 6 ended the franchise’s 49-year championship drought.
The 2010 team had more depth than either group that followed. It lands second because the next champion was better from opening night through the final horn.
1. The 2013 Blackhawks
The 2013 Blackhawks didn’t lose in regulation until their 25th game.
That pretty much gives away the top spot.
Chicago opened the lockout-shortened season with a 21-0-3 record. It finished 36-7-5, won the Presidents’ Trophy and outscored opponents by 53 goals. The season was shorter, but the Blackhawks spent nearly every part of it looking like the NHL’s best team.
They could play any style. Open the game up, and Chicago had enough skill to win a track meet. Slow it down, and the defense and goaltending could take over.
Detroit nearly ruined everything in the second round. The Blackhawks fell behind 3-1 in the series and needed overtime in Game 7 to complete the comeback.
Once they survived that scare, they didn’t waste it. Chicago beat the defending champion Los Angeles Kings and then defeated Boston in six games. Two goals in 17 seconds late in Game 6 finished the job.
The 2010 Blackhawks were deeper, and the 2015 team survived a tougher road.
The 2013 team was the best for the longest. That makes it No. 1.
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