Presidents' Winners & Defending Cup Champions

Since the inaugural offering of the Presidents' Trophy in 1986, awarded to the team with the best regular season record, its recipient has drawn the defending Stanley Cup champion nine times. The chart below shows each meeting by year, matchup and outcome.

Year	Matchup	Outcome
1988	Edmonton Oilers* over Calgary Flames	4-0 (Q)
1992	Pittsburgh Penguins* over New York Rangers	4-2 (Q)
1998	Detroit Red Wings* over Dallas Stars	4-2 (S)
2001	Colorado Avalanche over New Jersey Devils*	4-3 (F)
2002	Detroit Red Wings over Colorado Avalanche*	4-3 (S)
2011	Vancouver Canucks over Chicago Blackhawks*	4-3 (P)
2013	Chicago Blackhawks over Los Angeles Kings*	4-1 (S)
2017	Pittsburgh Penguins* over Washington Capitals	4-3 (Q)
2022	Tampa Bay Lightning* over Florida Panthers	4-0 (Q)

* Defending Stanley Cup Champion

(P = Preliminary, Q = Quarterfinal, S = Semifinal, F = Final)

Of the nine meetings through 2023, five were won by the prior year's Stanley Cup champs (1988, 1992, 1998, 2017, 2022) and the other four saw the Presidents' Trophy winner prevail (2001, 2002, 2011, 2013). In the first three meetings, the winners went on to hoist consecutive Stanley Cups. Of the nine series winners through 2022, all advanced to skate in Stanley Cup Final with seven winning the Cup. Only Vancouver and Tampa Bay (2011, 2022) failed to hoist.

* See also NHL Consecutive Stanley Cup Wins.
* See also NHL Playoff Seeding And Stanley Cup Wins.
* See also NHL Stanley Cup Playoff First Round Upsets. 

* See also NHL Presidents' Trophy Winners & Playoff Success.