NHL Final’s Biggest Winners - And The Teams That Took The Hit

The Stanley Cup Final always leaves a trail of overachievers, regret, and a few executives staring at salary spreadsheets like they just saw a ghost. This postmortem digs into who cashed in, who slipped, and who now has a long summer of explaining themselves after Carolina’s title run. NHL.com’s coverage adds the championship backdrop, which matters because every shining moment in June usually has a hidden invoice attached by July.