The St. Louis Blues took 52 years to win a Stanley Cup — as many as the Toronto Maple Leafs have waited to repeat as champions.
Out of the first 14 clubs to join the National Hockey League (NHL) starting with the Original Six era, the Blues ranked among three that hadn’t yet hoisted a cup earlier on Wednesday night (if you don’t count the defunct California Seals).
WATCH: Blues beat Bruins in Game 7 to win first Stanley Cup
Of that group, there are only two teams left: the Vancouver Canucks and the Buffalo Sabres.
The Canucks and the Sabres joined the NHL in 1970.
READ MORE: St. Louis Blues win first Stanley Cup with 4-1 victory over the Boston Bruins
Vancouver and Buffalo have since come close to cup glory, but they’ve never quite captured hockey’s biggest title.
Vancouver had a Stanley Cup in the past, when the Millionaires won in 1915, but the city would find itself hard-up for the trophy when it joined the NHL in the late 20th century.
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The Canucks first made the playoffs in 1974, only to be eliminated by the Montreal Canadiens in the first round.
They would reach their first Stanley Cup final in 1982, eventually losing to the New York Islanders in four games.
The Canucks would next reach the Stanley Cup final in 1994, facing the New York Rangers.
Vancouver, down three games to one, managed to push it to seven before losing 3-2 in the last matchup. Forward Nathan LaFayette beat Rangers goalie Mike Richter and nearly tied the game, but he hit the post.
READ MORE: Canucks will be better next year — coach
The Canucks reached the final once more in 2011, having come into the playoffs as the NHL’s best regular season team.
Facing the Boston Bruins, Vancouver won the first two games but only managed one more victory en route to a 4-0 defeat in Game 7.
WATCH: St. Louis Blues players return home to hero’s welcome
The Buffalo Sabres, meanwhile, have made it to the Stanley Cup final twice.
Their first journey to the final came in 1975, when they faced the Philadelphia Flyers and bowed out of the series, having lost four games to two.
The Sabres would make the final again in 1999, facing the Dallas Stars.
READ MORE: Buffalo Sabres seal 5-2 win over Ottawa Senators
The Stars won after Brett Hull scored a controversial goal with his foot in the crease in triple overtime of Game 6. The goal counted, and Dallas won the cup.
Sabres coach Lindy Ruff would end a team celebration that summer with two words: “no goal.”
Both teams, however, are in good company when it comes to clubs without a Stanley Cup.
The Canucks are one of four Canadian teams that haven’t hoisted the silverware since the Original Six era, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets and the Ottawa Senators.
And there are plenty of other teams that haven’t done it since that time.
However, that doesn’t mean the cup won’t come to Canada.
The Blues lifted the cup with the help of nearly 20 Canadians on their roster.
So Canadian teams may not have secured the trophy. But Canadians certainly did.
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