Most often, the Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded to a player on the team that wins the Stanley Cup. It is a rare occasion in which a player from the runner-up gets awarded this trophy. And it makes sense, as the award is treated as a playoff MVP, which logically would be given to a player on the winning team. One who helped and contributed the most to his team winning hockey’s ultimate prize.
But the Conn Smythe Trophy doesn’t have any qualifier excluding players from losing teams. And it has happened in the past where it is given to a player from the team that lost. Though this has only happened five times in NHL history, with only one such occurrence in the last 36 years.
Conn Smythe Trophy winners on losing teams
Roger Crozier (1966, Detroit Red Wings)
In one of the times a team has come back from being down 2-0 in the Stanley Cup Final, Roger Crozier was on the losing end of that as his Detroit Red Wings lost to the Montreal Canadiens. He was a workhorse for the Red Wings in those playoffs, leading the league in games played, saves, shots against, and minutes played. All of this with a .914 save percentage and 2.34 goals against average.
His efforts in the first round were what earned him this trophy. Against the Chicago Blackhawks, led by Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita, Crozier posted a 1.67 GAA, a .935 SV%, and one shutout in six games.
Crozier was the first goalie to win the trophy and the first from a losing team.
Glenn Hall (1968, St. Louis Blues)
One of the greatest goalies of all time, best known for his 502 consecutive games played as a goaltender, Glenn Hall took home the Conn Smythe at the tail end of his career with the newly formed St. Louis Blues. St. Louis was the underdog that made their way all the way to the Stanley Cup Final, ultimately getting swept by the Montreal Canadiens. That did not impact the views of Hall’s performance, however, as he was sensational.
That playoffs, Hall finished with a 2.44 GAA, .916 SV%, and one shutout. The peak of his play was holding the Canadiens, then entering a stretch where they won 10 of the next 15 Stanley Cups, to one goal wins in each of the four games.
Reggie Leach (1976, Philadelphia Flyers)
To this day, Reggie Leach remains the only skater to win the Conn Smythe on a losing team. In the 1976 playoffs, the Philadelphia Flyers were looking to win their third straight Stanley Cup against a Canadiens team that had won six times in 11 years. Although the series ended up being a sweep for the Habs as they won their first of four straight, Leach went on to set an NHL record that, to this day, has only been tied. He scored 19 goals, adding five more assists, for 24 points in 16 playoff games. In the second round against the Boston Bruins, Leach had nine goals in five games, including an NHL single playoff game record of five goals in one game.
Ron Hextall (1987, Philadelphia Flyers)
Another Flyer finds his way onto this list after Ron Hextall took home the 1987 Conn Smythe Trophy after losing to the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final. He fought and battled and dragged his injury plagued Flyers team to Game 7 of the Final against one of the best teams in NHL history. All of this as a rookie.
In his first NHL season, Hextall accomplished this. He played 26 games this playoff run, a record that stood for two decades. And along the way, he posted a 2.76 GAA, .908 SV%, and recording two shutouts. In the Cup Final against the Oilers, who had averaged nearly five goals per game until this point, Hextall had a 3.09 GAA in this series as he held them to under three goals in five of the seven games.
Jean-Sebastian Giguere (2003, Anaheim Ducks)
The fifth, and most recent, player to win the Conn Smythe as a member of the losing team is Jean-Sébastien Giguère of the 2003 Anaheim Ducks. He carried this team through the playoffs on a level of play that is an all-time great performance. An opening round sweep of the second seed Detroit Red Wings (1.24 GAA, .965 SV%), a second round win against the top seeded Dallas Stars (1.85 GAA, .936 SV%, one shutout), and possibly the best playoff series of any goaltender ever as he led the Ducks to sweep the Minnesota Wild (0.22 GAA, .992 SV%, three shutouts). He gave up one goal in that entire series.
The Ducks eventually lost in Game 7 to the New Jersey Devils in the Cup Final. But this entire playoff run, ending with a 1.62 GAA, .945 SV%, and five shutouts, was well worth awarding the Conn Smythe.
And this season, Oilers captain Connor McDavid should be added to this list.
McDavid Conn Smythe case
As we can see, it takes an incredible, record setting performance for a player on the losing team to win the Conn Smythe. One that makes it impossible to ignore how valuable this player was to the losing team, surpassing that of any player on the winning team. And we are at a point where McDavid is getting to that level.
For starters, let’s take a look at his statline. Through the team’s first 22 playoff games, McDavid has six goals, 32 assists, and 38 points. Eight more than the second highest scorer, teammate Leon Draisaitl, and 17 more points than the highest scoring Florida Panther, Aleksander Barkov. He is head and shoulders above everyone in this playoff run.
Averaging 23:01 in ice time per game, McDavid is fifth amongst all forwards, behind three members of the Colorado Avalanche and Vincent Trocheck. He is on the ice in any and all situations because his impact on the game is that significant.
Going back to his stats, from the list of other players who have won the Conn Smythe as a member of the losing team, one thing that stands out is some level of record setting performance. With his assists in Game 4 of the Cup Final, McDavid passed Wayne Gretzky to set the all-time record for most assists in a single postseason. Many of the records Gretzky set were thought to be untouchable, but here we have McDavid approaching, and even passing, some of them.
McDavid’s 38 points currently sits fifth all-time for points in a single postseason. The most since Mario Lemieux in 1990–91. He is putting his name in amongst the greatest players in NHL history with this postseason performance.
To help build his individual case, we can also look at the Panthers. They have a deeper team. Their contributions are far more spread out. As mentioned before, their leading scorer, Barkov, has 21 points. Behind him is Matthew Tkachuk (20), Carter Verhaeghe (18), and Anton Lundell (16).
The Panther with possibly the best case for the Conn Smythe is goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. His numbers, however, are good but not outstanding. His performance in the first three games of the Cup Final may be the best proof for his case. He has a .909 SV%, 2.76 GAA, but importantly, an 8.5 goals saved above average according to Moneypuck.
None of the Panthers have an outstanding player who has lifted his team to new heights in these playoffs. They have a lot of players who have all contributed to collectively succeed.
And although the Oilers have a lot of players with a lot of points, McDavid has gone above and beyond in his offensive performance in the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs and should win the Conn Smythe Trophy even in the event of an Oilers loss.
Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire
