The 1980 Stanley Cup Champion New York Islanders were a 5-seed. (Hockey Hall of Fame)

Following the 1966-67 season, the NHL expanded from “The Original Six” to 12 teams, doubling in size.

In the intervening 43 years, 22 No.1 seeds went on to win the Stanley Cup.  Here’s a breakdown of the non-No. 1 seeds to win the championship.  There are 20.  There was no Stanley Cup in 2005 due to a lockout.

Note that before the 1993-94 season, there were various playoff formats that ranked teams either from 1-4 (by division) or from 1-16 (everybody), or even had preliminary rounds with high-seeded teams receiving byes.  Since then, eight seeds from each of the two Conferences make the playoffs.

No seed higher than five has ever won the Stanley Cup.*

* UPDATED LIST: No longer true. In 2012, The Los Angeles Kings, an 8th seed, won the Cup. Original post above from Apr. 23, 2011. Updated to include 2011 Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins and 2012 Stanley Cup Champion L.A. Kings.

No. 2 Seeds

1. 1970 Boston Bruins

2. 1979 Montreal Canadiens

3. 1983 New York Islanders

4. 1986 Montreal Canadiens

5. 1988 Edmonton Oilers

6. 1990 Edmonton Oilers

7. 1996 Colorado Avalanche

8. 2003 New Jersey Devils

9. 2006 Carolina Hurricanes

10. 2007 Anaheim Ducks

11. 2010 Chicago Blackhawks

No. 3 Seeds

1. 1971 Montreal Canadiens

2. 1992  Pittsburgh Penguins

3. 1993 Montreal Canadiens

4. 1997 Detroit Red Wings

5. 1998 Detroit Red Wings

6. 2011 Boston Bruins

No. 4 Seeds

1. 2000 New Jersey Devils

2. 2009 Pittsburgh Penguins

No. 5 Seeds

1. 1980  New York Islanders

2. 1995 New Jersey Devils

No. 6 Seeds

None

No. 7 Seeds

None

No. 8 Seeds

1. 2012 Los Angeles Kings