5 teams that won the Stanley Cup after losing first 2 games of Final
Beginning Game 3 on Saturday, the San Jose Sharks are going to attempt to accomplish what only five of 49 NHL teams have done before them: come back from a 2-0 hole in the Stanley Cup Final.
Related: On the Fly, NHL Roundtable: Are the Sharks finished?
Here's a quick look at those who blazed the trail of hope.
1942 Toronto Maple Leafs
This Toronto Maple Leafs squad is set apart from the rest for erasing a 3-0 series hole against the Detroit Red Wings, who finished 15 points behind them in the standings that season.
Toronto, of course, won four straight games after losing the first three, recording a shutout win over Detroit in Game 7 to win the Cup.
Only the 1975 New York Islanders, 2010 Philadelphia Flyers and 2014 Los Angeles Kings have repeated that feat in any playoff series, giving the Sharks a slim measure of hope should they lose Game 3.
1966 Montreal Canadiens
The Red Wings were victimized here again, this time at the hands of the Montreal Canadiens.
Montreal won four in a row over the Red Wings, becoming the only team in NHL history to win the Cup in six games after dropping the first two of the series.
1971 Montreal Canadiens
The year of Ken Dryden was capped by another comeback series win for the Canadiens in the Final.
Like San Jose this year, Montreal lost the first two games on the road at the hands of the Blackhawks, including one in overtime. They held court on home ice, however, and won Game 6 at home after losing Game 5 back in Chicago.
Montreal actually fell into a 2-0 hole in Game 7, but prevailed in the series-deciding game after scoring three goals in less than nine minutes.
2009 Pittsburgh Penguins
The Sharks need only to look across the ice to know that a comeback is indeed possible, as the Penguins did it themselves against the Red Wings in 2009.
Pittsburgh lost the first two contests on the road, but won the next two at home to even the series. The first four games were played with Detroit star center Pavel Datsyuk on the sidelines with an injury, and with two of three to be played at their rink. It appeared as though the Red Wings were poised to have the upper hand against the Penguins in the Final for the second year in a row.
After splitting the next two games, the clubs convened for a Game 7 in Detroit, which was won by the Penguins despite the fact Sidney Crosby missed the third period with a knee injury suffered earlier that night.
Max Talbot scored two goals and Marc-Andre Fleury made a legendary save off Nicklas Lidstrom in the dying seconds to preserve the win.
2011 Boston Bruins
The most recent squad to pull off the comeback was the 2011 Boston Bruins, who knocked off the Presidents' Trophy winning Vancouver Canucks and literally sparked a riot as a result.
Like this year's Final, the first two games were won by the home team by a margin of one goal in each, with the second being won in overtime.
The tide shifted mightily following dominant wins by the Bruins back in Boston, and while Roberto Luongo became only the second goalie to pitch two 1-0 shutouts in a single Final, it was Tim Thomas who stole the show with a 4-0 win in Game 7 in Vancouver.
Thomas, then 37, set an NHL record for most saves in a Final (238) and became the first goalie to post a shutout on the road in Game 7 of the championship series.
That Martin Jones has been excellent in defeat for the Sharks should be a great source of encouragement for the Sharks, who are by no means out of this series just yet.
HEADLINES
- Ullmark: 'It's going to be fun' returning to Boston, facing Swayman
- Crosby, Ovechkin relishing rivalry ahead of 70th meeting
- Norris Trophy Rankings: Makar, Hughes duking it out again
- Kings' Jeannot earns hearing for high hit on Boeser
- Brunette more concerned by Preds' play than record: Standard not 'upheld'