The Best NHL Teams Know Not to Cheat the Game

As the 2024-25 NHL Season continues, teams that specialize in certain styles of hockey are positioning themselves near the top of their respective standings. These teams understand it’s critical to start playing playoff-caliber hockey now by being patient and not cheating the game. NHLRumors.com recently unveiled an intriguing post, detailing those teams which embody excellence with regard to playing their style near the top of the standings. Let’s dive in. Four NHL Teams That Don’t Cheat the Game * Florida Panthers It would be easy to point the finger at Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers as an example of playing hockey without cheating, yet head coach Paul Maurice has his team buying into their system with total dedication and buy-in from each member of his roster. No matter the scoreboard or where they stand in their season, Florida Panthers know they must stick to their plan no matter the outcome of games or matches. Florida is well aware that many other teams are hunting them down so the Panthers must stay true to themselves as opposed to deviating from their strategy and cheating the system by cheating during matches or abandoning it entirely. Even when they find themselves trailing by multiple goals – something which rarely occurs – Florida remains a difficult team to play against, due to their physical style of play that sends messages until the final buzzer sounds. Florida Panthers players embraced what their head coach was preaching and executed it flawlessly to reach consecutive Stanley Cup Finals before winning it all in 2024. They not only bought in, but they executed every plan perfectly as planned by him. Paul Maurice said it best during the 2024 Stanley Cup Final; Florida Panthers players do what their coaching staff instructs. That explains why this year could be another Stanley Cup win! Winnipeg Jets (Under) The surprising Winnipeg Jets have emerged as an NHL team which doesn’t resort to cheating this year and are finding new styles in which to compete. They may eventually overtake Florida Panthers. After successive first-round exits, the Winnipeg Jets realize they must build playoff preparation at the outset of each regular season instead of waiting until late into it to buy into playoff hockey and buy into first round action at playoff time. The Winnipeg Jets Have Established Credibility Within the NHL Scott Arniel has successfully employed four lines under his watch to form an effective four-line attack, producing balanced scoring among each line while emphasizing defense-first play. This has made them tougher opponents to face off against than expected. Keep in mind this team amassed 110 points last season with the best goals against average in their league, creating an atmosphere in which their players and coach were comfortable – leading them to buy into their system that must be executed later when it matters most. No question, having Connor Hellebuyck between the pipes certainly helps, but even his greatest assets may become exposed when his team doesn’t play defense or cheat the game. Winnipeg seems content playing patient hockey where offense won’t necessarily come as easily anymore if things don’t go their way. Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes’ demise was severely underestimated; NHLRumors.com projected them as finishing third in their division prior to kick-off of this year. Why did that occur? Due to their style of play and coach Rod Brind’Amour’s tenure in the NHL, Carolina Hurricanes play in exactly the same manner regardless of player personnel changes. NHL Rumors: Carolina Hurricanes Could See A Late Season Boost From Their Prospect The Carolina Hurricanes play with similar principles as Brind’Amour did while coaching his previous NHL teams despite significant player personnel shifts during each season. Carolina limited their team’s time and space with aggressive forechecks and sound defensive structures that left little time or room for error, leaving only goal scoring as an area for concern; could Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechknikov provide enough scoring depth? Yes they could. Jack Roslovic has been an unexpected treat while Martin Necas has really upped his game since signing a two-year bridge deal. Carolina also features familiar players on its back end who provide great goaltending – they’ve won eight straight games! Similar to Winnipeg, Carolina will be judged based on playoff performance – that’s when their offense will likely falter – but anyone thinking they were going away due to their style of game would be misinformed. Dallas Stars Take your pick on Pete DeBoer as head coach; whether or not his teams win the Stanley Cup may depend on him – his teams play to his rules without deviating. NHL News: Dallas Stars Sign Jake Oettinger to an Eight-Year Contract Extension Looking at the Dallas Stars is enough to demonstrate why they advanced so consistently through Western Conference playoffs over multiple years, especially thanks to goaltender Jake Oettinger and their structured game play. Dallas becomes a formidable opponent once playoff time arrives because their understanding is that to succeed in the post-season you need to start building foundation early in the regular season. While their structure might falter occasionally like most teams do, Dallas always stands strong regardless. DeBoer has long relied upon this style since his days with New Jersey Devils and San Jose Sharks; even with all their offensive talent onboard it remains about creating a tight defensive structure – be patient and wait for them to come to you. Dallas continues to stay true to their structure; even if a play fails on occasion, they stay true to it as the Stars never find themselves out of any game. Honorable Mentions for Vegas Golden Knights Offseason If we take a closer look around the NHL there are a couple of teams who didn’t make the cut but could easily have made an impressionful showing – including Bruce Cassidy’s Vegas Golden Knights with their aggressive yet physical defense style. But they possess enough talent for them to have a competitive offensive punch, especially with teams like Jim Hiller’s Los Angeles Kings and Jon Cooper’s Tampa Bay Lightning also involved. In 2019, the Lightning learned their lessons when their four-game series loss against Columbus taught them they need to improve defensively and not try any trickery or cheating in order to compete on any level. Here at NHLRumors.com we feel there are certain teams which don’t resort to cheating tactics when competing – can you think of others that we should include here? Let us know.