Top 10 Most Hated NHL Teams

Hockey fans are some of the most passionate in all of sports, and when it comes to the NHL, strong feelings aren't just reserved for their favorite teams. Some teams are so widely disliked that it becomes a major part of their identity. These are the teams that fans love to hate, whether it's because of their aggressive playing style, long-standing rivalries, controversial players, or maybe even their fanbase itself.

The list of most hated NHL teams gives fans a chance to weigh in on the teams that grind their gears the most.

Are you tired of seeing the same teams dominate? Does a particular team's history of cheap shots or questionable trades make them a permanent fixture on your blacklist? Or maybe you just can't stand hearing about them every time you turn on the TV. Whatever the reason, it's all about your opinion here.

The Top Ten

Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League as a member club of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division.

They've gone and accused teams like the Canucks and the Canadiens of dirty play and cheap behavior, yet are guilty of so much more of it. Then you've got a number of their fans, who always seem to be able to come out with some sort of convoluted, twisted way to defend their team's goons when they're caught cheap-shotting or injuring other players.
Every team has its share of objectionable conduct on the ice, but not only have the Bruins practiced an entire laundry list of it just within the past few seasons, they try to convince everyone that they play a clean, moral, respectable game. It's a shame that the talent is almost always overshadowed by some of the most hypocrisy, classlessness, and dirty play imaginable.
Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. They are members of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. The team was established in 1967 as part of the NHL's first expansion.

Flyers are the most dirty hockey team in the NHL. They play cheap shots, and their fans are just like the players. They are nuts.
Honestly, I think that Flyers should top the list and not the Penguins. The Penguins are hated not because they play dirty, but because people are jealous of them. But the Flyers never won the Stanley Cup in the last decade, so nobody is jealous of them.

24 Apr 2016.
Flyers down in the first round 3-2, fighting for their playoff life. As expected, 3 Flyer penalties in the first period. Two penalties put the Caps on a 5-3 power play. Cheap shot Wayne issues a dirty slash and forces the Flyers to spend the remainder of the period in their own zone. Way to go, Wayne!
The Capitals have lost their momentum and their game, but your cowardly, selfish, dirty play will push them to round 2. You are a disgrace to the league and an embarrassment to anything labeled as "professional."
Pittsburgh Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins, commonly known as the Pens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as part of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The Penguins are one of two NHL teams in Pennsylvania, with the other... read more

This team is the biggest joke in the league. After Mario left, this team was close to collapse. They couldn't win to save their lives, and their fan base basically abandoned them. The only thing that saved them was the bandwagoners who jumped on board after their up-and-coming players managed to win two cups. From then on, the only thing that has kept this team afloat is the league's constant praise of the biggest joke of a hockey player ever to put on a pair of skates. You all know him, you all hate him. It's Crybaby Crosby.
This guy probably holds more league-wide hatred than the team itself. He is the biggest diver ever to play in the league. He takes cheap shots left and right and doesn't get called on them because "he's Crosby." He loves to try and play the body and start drama on the ice but then cries when he gets hit. He's a joke, but all of his bandwagon fans will say, "oh, you just hate him because he's good." But anyone can be good if you dive and cry as much as this guy does. In short, this team is a laughingstock with the biggest joke of a player as their captain, plain and simple, a joke!
Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs, officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often simply referred to as the Leafs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was... read more

It's more the fans and city than the team itself. Toronto thinks it's the center of the universe and everything it does is gold. Their fans are terrible and mocked survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing by making t-shirts that said "Toronto Stronger" (to counter "Boston Strong" in support of the survivors). Most recently, their fans started chanting in Vancouver during a moment of silence for Ted Lindsay, who had just passed away.

The Leafs are the most overrated team in the NHL by a mile. Just because Toronto is Canada's largest city doesn't make the Leafs Canada's team. Sportsnet and especially TSN seem to forget that there are actually more Canadian teams in the NHL other than the Leafs. Literally all people talk about are the Leafs and this really makes me want to throw up considering how terrible the Leafs are. Probably stupid Leafs fans don't even know who the Canucks or even the city of Vancouver are. They think Toronto IS Canada. That's why I hate the Maple Leafs more than any other NHL team.
Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens (French: Les Canadiens de Montréal) are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1909, they are the oldest continuously operating professional... read more

The Montreal Canadiens should be way, way higher on this list than seventh. Are you kidding me? Never mind the fact that referees always seem to cater to their continuous whining. They also ignore the constant slashing, cross-checking, holding of the stick, falling down, instigating, and then refusing to answer the bell.
But then you have to listen to them talk about how much class and dignity they have, and how they play the game the right way. Is that like the Ice Capades? I'd put them at number one without question.

Montreal has easily the worst general manager in the league. For example, the PK Subban-Shea Weber trade turned out awful for Bergevin.
Second, Montreal is terrible at drafting. The majority of their first-round picks turn into bottom six forwards, with the two exceptions of Kotkaniemi and Price.
Plus, Montreal fans always think their team is better than yours. Never will a Montreal fan say their team is less likely to win. For example, Alexander Radulov was straight up a bad person. Montreal fan: Oh, he's changed. He's a great guy now.
Washington Capitals

The Washington Capitals, commonly known as the Caps, are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They compete in the National Hockey League as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference. The team is owned by Monumental Sports and Entertainment, led by Ted Leonsis.... read more

The Caps don't even pretend to play the puck. They just slash, clothesline, cross-check, and thug it up out there in pursuit of trying to maim or kill their opponent whenever they face a team who is better than they are, who is playing better than they are, or who is winning at any given moment (which is a lot). Not just the dirtiest hockey team, but the dirtiest sports team.
Side note: Their most prominent player brags about driving drunk and speeding, and getting away with it by giving away game tickets. So, I'd like to thank law enforcement in the DC-Capitol area for placing their personal off-duty recreational pursuits ahead of their actual on-duty obligations to keep the roads safe.
Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. They compete in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League. The team was founded in 1970 and has appeared in the Stanley Cup Finals three times.

All Canucks fans do is complain about the refs during the 2011 Final against Boston, when they were lucky the series even went seven games. It should've been a sweep, given the very lopsided goal differential, as they were outscored 23-8 by Boston.
Whenever the Bruins won, they dominated the Canucks, but whenever Vancouver won, they scraped by with one-goal games that took everything they had. They even had a 3-2 series lead at one point, despite being outscored 14-6 in the first five games, which was a miracle in itself. They had two chances to close it out but failed miserably both times, and fans are too stubborn to admit they simply choked. They even went as far as to riot, even worse than in 1994.
Fans also have a habit of cheering when opposing players get hurt. Come on, what if that was you or someone close to you?
New York Rangers

The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as part of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference.
The Rangers play their home games at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, which they share with the New... read more

I hate this team, their arrogant fans, and their homer announcers. This organization is pathetic, with only four championships in the 100 years they've been around. Now, they are trying to sign every big name to buy championships.
Lundqvist is definitely the most overrated goalie in the league. The guy is huge in that net. He is most likely wearing twice as many pads as any other goalie to take away shooting areas. I can't stand it.

The New York Rangers are the second-worst team in the NHL, behind the Boston Bruins, but I vote for NYR because they need to be second and because they are violent against the Montreal Canadiens. They injured Carey Price in 2014 and have injured a lot of players from the Habs.
They have no respect for the Canadiens and they should not even be a team, those damn Rangers cheaters.
Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They compete in the Central Division of the Western Conference in the National Hockey League. Since their founding in 1926, the Blackhawks have won six Stanley Cup championships, with their most recent title coming... read more

Simply put: very few current supporters are long-time fans. Most are bandwagon fans. Look at their attendance in the first three post-lockout years: 65%, 62%, and 82%. They were bad all three years. Then in 2008-09, Toews becomes captain, Quenneville becomes coach, suddenly they start winning, and people who never supported them before claim they have been fans forever.
The "fans" are arrogant, the NHL sucks up to the team, Toews is a cocky captain, Kane is selfish and a terrible role model, Crawford is a drunk, and I could go on.

Arrogant, bandwagon fans, most of whom don't know much about this team before 2007. They think that just because they're a strong team now, their team has always been like this.
They use their current streak to belittle teams that are actually worthy of being in the NHL. Dirty team, nasty hits, and they've paid off the officials so much that they're practically blind to the illegal hits and plays this team makes. Chicago doesn't deserve a team.
Tampa Bay Lightning

The Tampa Bay Lightning are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. The Lightning have won three Stanley Cup championships during the 2003-04, 2019-20, and 2020-21 seasons.

I've always hated this team, but with them winning the 2021 cup almost 20 million dollars over the cap, and stopping the legendary Cinderella run of my team, I've grown to absolutely despise them. Not to mention Calgary being my second favorite team, and how they were supposed to win the Cup in 2004.
But, of course, Tampa won and stopped the Flames' legendary Cinderella run. Tampa Bay just sucks so much.

I hate this team. I hope they get kicked out and banished forever from the NHL. I mean, I know it's bad sportsmanship to say that, but for one, the Lightning and Panthers are both in Florida. Florida does not get hockey weather. They should focus way more on football and baseball than hockey.
Steven Stamkos is probably their only Canadian player. All the others are Russians, Slovakians, Americans, and Czechoslovakians.

The Newcomers

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Seattle Kraken

The Seattle Kraken are a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference. The team began play during the league's 2021-22 season and plays its home games at Climate Pledge Arena.

So, I'm a Sharks fan, and I once saw a game where Seattle started a fight, won, and a Sharks player lost his helmet. Then the refs gave Seattle a two-man advantage! How stupid!

No true fanbase.
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California Golden Seals

The Contenders

Anaheim Ducks

The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Since their inception in 1993, the Ducks have played their home games at the Honda Center. The team was originally... read more

This team cheated against the Oilers in the 2016-2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. Stupid referees! The Oilers should have won in five games - that is crazy! And the Ducks won in a flat seven games. I also hate this team so much that they are my least favorite team.
Wow, this team should be number one. I am so happy from the rivalry beatdown with San Jose winning, but not just that, sweeping the stupid Ducks. San Jose is definitely not the best team, but they are worth it.

They're the worst. Corey Perry goes out and tries to start fights, then lets the enforcer finish it.
The arena is terrible too. I've been to many Ducks games, and the upper section cannot see the game.
Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area, specifically in Sunrise, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. As of 2025, the team has won consecutive Stanley Cup championships... read more

I hope this team gets kicked out and banished forever from the NHL. Who cares about bad sportsmanship? Tell me how many people even care about hockey down there.

Florida should not have two teams. The Panthers don't even have fans. Tampa, at least, is a good team.

They get a team, but us in Hartford got ours taken away? Makes sense.
Los Angeles Kings

The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League. The team was founded in 1967 and has won two Stanley Cup championships, in 2012 and 2014.

The team has a level of classlessness from the organization to their fans. The organization even encourages them to be classless. They spend the entire time chanting the goalie's name like a bush league team would do.
During play stoppage, they show fans of the opposing team, and everyone points and laughs at them, making fun of them. Bunch of clowns on skates.
Oh, and if you say anything that isn't "the Kings play like Gods," then the fans get offended.

A boring, no-offense playing team that relies heavily on a stifling defense and goalie. Also, cheap tactics from players like Dustin Brown, Jordan Nolan, and Kyle Clifford have made this team a loathsome one.
Colorado Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League. The Avalanche and the Coyotes are the only two teams in the division located in the Mountain Time Zone, setting them apart... read more

I've hated them since they played the Wild in the postseason and Forsberg was dirty and never got called for anything.

Unbearable, scummy fan base that just can't shut up about how good MacFraud is. This is what happens when basement dwellers suddenly become contenders. I will quit watching hockey the day this franchise wins the Stanley Cup.

Second round chokers. They suck.
St. Louis Blues

The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League. The Blues won their first Stanley Cup championship in 2019.

The team totally sucks! It's anger-generating to see how outrageous the fans are for a team that hasn't even won the Stanley Cup and is located in a baseball city (hint - the Cardinals). Enough said! The Blues fans are giving themselves the "blues." Let's put them out of their misery. Dear NHL, please relocate the team!

I hate the Blues because they play a very annoyingly physical game and because they have very unsportsmanlike players that take out their anger on other players. It's not safe for the players and it's just not fun to watch.
Although, I must admit they have a really good penalty kill.
New York Islanders

The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York metropolitan area. They are members of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Hockey League (NHL). The team has won four consecutive Stanley Cups from 1980 to 1983.

When this team was bad from 2017 to 2018, John Tavares left for the Leafs. Then in the 2018-19 season, they had a good run. The fans blamed John Tavares for the bad seasons prior. They first swept the Penguins in the first round, then got swept by Carolina. This team is garbage anyway.

The worst fans. I have nothing against the team, really. But the fans make them intolerable. They just hate other teams because they sucked for so long. They are obnoxious and loud.

Islanders fans think they're great because they won four straight cups in the 80s. Meanwhile, they're the worst team in the NHL since then, making a franchise like the Rangers, with all their failures, seem great in comparison.
Buffalo Sabres

The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). The team was established in 1970 and has made multiple playoff appearances.

Growing up with the Sens and Sabres rivalry and Hasek should explain it.

Their fans love to talk trash on social media.

The Buffalo Sabres are terrible.
Vegas Golden Knights

The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League as part of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference. The team was established in 2017 as an expansion franchise.... read more

I liked them during the Fleury era, but now they're just unlikable. They never truly had to suffer through a bad season, and everything is handed to them on a silver platter.
They've also got horrible and arrogant fans, which just brings the whole vibe down. The GM is pretty cutthroat, treating their players like toys. They'll just trade them around until they have shinier new toys to play with.
Off topic, but Mark Stone looks like a Wish.com version of Lord Farquaad.

Classless whiners with a sense of entitlement after being handed one of the best expansion rosters in history.
Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They are members of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. The team won its first Stanley Cup championship in 2006.

The city is too hot, no one supports them, their jerseys suck, their logo is disgraceful, and they are just horrible!

Act like Whalers fans should embrace them after they essentially replaced the team. No thanks.

Horrible goal horn. Horrible fan base. Horrible everything. Nothing else needs to be said.
Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta. They compete in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Hockey League. The team has a rich history, including multiple Stanley Cup victories during the 1980s with Wayne Gretzky.

SO. MUCH. MCDAVID D-RIDING.
The fans are also insufferable when it comes to social media platforms, and I've heard plenty of stories about them throwing beer or sucker-punching people because they didn't root for Edmonton.
Also, that video of an Edmonton fan grabbing at McDavid and invading his personal space while he was just picking up some drinks? Yikes. Even though I'm a massive McPrincess hater, it's disrespectful to touch his things without permission.
In short, Edmonton's team is overrated, their fans are a chore to deal with, and I honestly hope they never get a Stanley Cup again.

The Oilers definitely have a chance at winning the 2018 cup. A lot of people are thinking about the past Oilers. They are a totally different team than two years ago. They can easily win the Pacific Division and are only going to get better.
A lot of people hate them because they are actually good now, and because they might be Leafs fans. They are a young team with lots of potential.
New Jersey Devils

The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference.
The franchise began in 1974 as the Kansas City Scouts in Missouri. It then moved to Denver... read more

What is this team doing so low? They're the most boring active team. All they do is "the trap." Sure, it marginally works, but it sure makes for one dull, slow game. Hockey is meant to be entertaining. The trap is not entertaining to watch. Defensive hockey is boring hockey.

This team is not annoying like most teams. Most teams that are worse play dirty, are arrogant, and even just do so consistently well that they start to annoy you. But this team is none of those things. They are just so boring to watch. The game seems to drag on forever.
San Jose Sharks

The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League. The team was founded in 1991 and plays its home games at the SAP Center at San Jose, often referred to as the Shark Tank... read more

From childish low IQ juvenile fans to a whiny coach and players, this franchise is an embarrassment to the league. Also, their commentators are just as pathetic and delusional as their fanbase. Just listen to Brody Brazil and Teal Town USA.
It's pretty funny to watch the San Jose Sharks getting stomped by a brand new expansion team, and their salty fans, coaches, and players constantly whining about the Vegas Golden Knights.

I don't understand why fans of teams like the Sharks beat up on teams like Toronto because they can't get out of the first round, and you don't have a cup in the last 55 years. Like seriously, this team is a walking excuse.
They've had the teams to win the cup almost every year and they choke. Come talk to me when you win a cup because if you don't win, it doesn't matter what round you go out in.
Ottawa Senators

The Ottawa Senators (French: Sénateurs d'Ottawa) are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The Senators play their home games at the Canadian Tire Centre, an 18,652-seat... read more

Definitely top five for the dirtiest team in the league. They like to hit men while they're down and let the refs give them the go-ahead. It's almost like they pay off the refs. They take a cheap hit whenever they can get away with it.

Worst fan base. All they do is complain, and the team is a bunch of dirty players.

Horrible team. Can't play for anything. Extremely boring to watch them play.
Winnipeg Jets

The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are members of the Central Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League. The current franchise was established in 1999 and relocated to Winnipeg in 2011 from Atlanta, where they were previously... read more

What is there to say? I hate this team because I was an Atlanta Thrashers fan. I'm still mad at the team for moving to Winnipeg.

I'd keep them in Winnipeg, but now our rivalry with the Avalanche got worse. I hate Winnipeg for life now.

Why are they even in the league?
Calgary Flames

The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Hockey League. The team was founded in 1972 and relocated from Atlanta to Calgary in 1980.

They are like the Washington Crapitals in the Pacific Division. A bunch of talentless goons with god-awful, inconsistent goaltending is the reason why they haven't won a Cup in 30 years.

Calgary is unique, which is the only good thing I can come up with. Everything else, including their style of play, is meh.

They are the worst team in the NHL. The Oilers are the best. I can't stand the Flames!