The Stanley Cup final starts today, but for teams near the bottom of the league standings, how quickly could they end up reaching that same Cup contender status?

Tanner Pearson and Rafael Harvey-Pinard throw souvenirs to fans

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It may feel like an eternity away, but for some NHL teams at the bottom of the standings, a return to the Stanley Cup playoffs is closer to a reality than it is for some others. Let’s look at which three teams currently in or near the basement of their division could contend for a Cup the soonest:

1. Montreal Canadiens

The Canadiens have been open about their massive rebuilding process, one that saw them finish dead last in the Atlantic Division and second-last in the Eastern Conference. But executive vice-president of hockey operations Jeff Gorton and GM Kent Hughes have diligently put in the work for Montreal. And while there’s still probably at least one more season which sees the Habs suffer near the bottom of the standings, there’s clearly a foundation in place with youngsters Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, Kirby Dach and David Reinbacher – as well as two first-round picks in this summer’s NHL entry draft – to build around.

Montreal will eventually be looking to spend their salary cap space on some high-impact veterans, but for now, they’re smart to keep quietly building their core. It may take until 2025 or 2026 for them to make the jump to being a playoff team, but once they’re there, the Canadiens are going to be a handful for opponents.

The way they look today will be very different than the way they’ll look as true Cup contenders, but there are many pieces of the puzzle now in place for success to come the Habs’ way. A little more patience should yield terrific results.

2. Chicago Blackhawks

Chicago lucked out last year by winning the Connor Bedard sweepstakes, and they nearly did so again this year, landing the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 entry draft. Whether that lands them an elite prospect at forward – THN editor-in-chief and draft expert Ryan Kennedy has Russian winger Ivan Demidov ranked second-best in his draft rankings – or a defenseman such as Anton Silayev is still up for debate, but there’s no question the Blackhawks are going to be adding a long-term piece to the puzzle.

The Hawks were the worst team in the Central Division, and not by a small amount, as they had 25 fewer standings points than the seventh-best team in the Central, the now departed Arizona Coyotes.

Imagining Chicago suddenly elevating their game to the point they’re playoff contenders is not realistic for them next season. However, give them a couple of years to allow Bedard and the rest of the core to develop their individual games, and the Blackhawks could accelerate their rebuild.

They’ll certainly spend to the cap ceiling once they’re close, and this coming season should see them improve. It’s just a matter of how much they improve in short order that’s up for discussion. We can see them being much better in 2026 or 2027, and once their young players hit their prime, the sky is going to be the limit for Chicago.

3. New Jersey Devils

Nobody expected the Devils to finish second-last in the Metropolitan Division, but thanks in part to health problems and a lack of a clear No. 1 goaltender, New Jersey severely underperformed this past season. That said, Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald and new coach Sheldon Keefe will take their team to the ice next year with a focus on not only making the playoffs, but going on a deep post-season run once they get there. There’s simply too much talent in New Jersey for the Devils to miss out on the playoffs again.

Indeed, New Jersey has a fantastic balance of young talent and veteran know-how to go with next season. Then once Fitzgerald figures out his goaltending picture, and Keefe takes the reins behind the bench, there’s no excuse for the Devils not to be at or near the top of the Metro.

With forwards Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Dawson Mercer and Jesper Bratt and defensemen Luke Hughes and Dougie Hamilton on board, New Jersey has a bevy of different above-average players, and they are going to want to atone for this past lost season. Of the three teams on this list, the Devils are closest to a Cup win, but a drastic turnaround will be necessary for them to do so.