It’s tough times for OGWAC fans.
I won’t sugarcoat it. It’s been a bumpy year for us here in the OGWAC world. For those of you who are new, that would be Old Guys Without a Cup, the beloved NHL playoff trope that’s served up classic stories like Ray Bourque, Teemu Selanne and Lanny McDonald. Everyone loves an OGWAC story — especially one that ends with a Stanley Cup.
It happened last year, with Kyle Okposo. He won his first Cup at age 36 in what would turn out to be the final game of his 17-season career.
But while seeing Okposo get his lap with the Cup was a great moment, it’s been largely downhill since then for the OGWAC community. We lost Joe Pavelski, the patron saint of active OGWACs, to retirement. We’ve also said goodbye to Zach Parise, Sam Gagner, Blake Wheeler and Mark Giordano. And this year’s playoff field means we can’t root for names like Chris Kreider, Anders Lee or Tyler Myers.
That said, change can be good, even when it comes to old guys. All those absences should clear the way for some new names on this year’s list, and maybe a few older ones we haven’t seen in a while.
Let’s see where this takes us — and see where the Leafs’ John Tavares lands.
GO FURTHER
Old Guy Without a Cup rankings, 2025 edition: John Tavares, Brock Nelson and more
