Perhaps the biggest surprise of the 2025–26 season is that the Buffalo Sabres look unstoppable right now. Winners in 18 of their last 22, absolutely no one wants to play them.
But what about teams that carry this momentum into the playoffs? Are they more likely to go on a deep run? Let’s take a look.
I found the 34 teams with a points percentage above .700 in their last 20 games of the regular season since 2014–15 (last 10 seasons). I excluded 2019–20 due to the COVID-19 pandemic halting play for several months, thus stifling momentum.
Of the 34 teams, 33 qualified for the postseason, 20 got past the first round, 10 got past the second round, two got past the third round, and two won the Stanley Cup.
Traditionally, 50% of playoff teams make it out of the first round, 25% make it out of the second, 12.5% make it out of the third, and 6.25% win the Stanley Cup. These “hot-streak” clubs’ percentages are 60.6%, 30.3%, 6.06%, and 6.06%.
So, while there is a boost, it’s not by much. The only teams in the sample to reach the Stanley Cup Final were the 2023 Vegas Golden Knights and 2016 Pittsburgh Penguins (and both won, of course).
Let’s get into some specific examples.
The best team to close out 2014–15 was the Columbus Blue Jackets (16–3–1). Sergei Bobrovsky carried the load, appearing in 18 games and putting up a stellar .927 save percentage. However, the Blue Jackets missed the playoffs anyway. On March 3, they had the fifth-worst record in the NHL—their fate was already sealed.
At 16–4–0, the Penguins were on top of the world to end 2015–16. As mentioned, they won a Stanley Cup two months later. Between the pipes, Matt Murray wasn’t busy (eight appearances), but he put up a .927 save percentage, foreshadowing his incredible playoff run. Meanwhile, Sidney Crosby led the way up front, putting up 25 points in 19 games. Midseason hire Mike Sullivan had this team playing at its best.
Another team that changed its coach midseason, the St. Louis Blues advanced to the second round with Mike Yeo behind the bench, going 15–3–2 in their last 20. Vladimir Tarasenko tied for 16th in league point-scoring over this stretch (19), and Jake Allen was a huge help for this run. In 15 appearances, he had a whopping .942 save percentage.
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