Coming out of the lockout, the NHL did everything within its power to enable the hockey’s offensive stars to retake center stage. And by all rights, the crackdown on obstruction and interference did just that, as regular-season goal scoring rose to levels not seen since the mid-1990s. But as the adage goes, “defense wins championships,” and that couldn’t be truer than during the NHL playoffs.

Last spring, the first post-lockout playoffs saw the Carolina Hurricanes defeat the upstart Edmonton Oilers. While it’s true that the ‘Canes triumphed with a no-name blue-line corps, goaltender Cam Ward won the Conn Smythe Trophy (playoff MVP) and Rod Brind’Amour (a perennial Selke Trophy candidate for the league’s best defensive forward) delivered the performance of a lifetime for Carolina.

At the other end of the ice, the eighth-seeded Oilers’ improbable run took them all the way to Game 7 of the finals. While goaltender Dwayne Roloson played a huge role in the Oilers’ run, it was their defense — fortified by the presence of recent acquisitions Chris Pronger and Jaroslav Spacek — that carried them to within a whisker of Lord Stanley’s cherished chalice.

Unfortunately for the Oilers, neither Pronger nor Spacek stuck around for this season, and it came as little surprise when they missed the postseason. Pronger demanded a trade shortly after last spring’s playoffs concluded; he was dealt to the Anaheim Ducks for a package of youngsters and draft picks. In Anaheim, Pronger has thrived, as has new teammate Scott Niedermayer; both players were named finalists for the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s finest defenseman, only the third time this occurred in the trophy’s 53-year history.

Spacek, an unrestricted free agent, signed with the Buffalo Sabres. Last spring, the Sabres took the ‘Canes to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals, even holding a lead entering the third period of Game 7, but their injury-riddled defense corps did them in. With four of their blueliners out of the starting lineup, by Game 7, the short-handed Sabres had little chance of containing Carolina’s talented forwards.

This spring, Spacek is providing valuable veteran leadership, and the now-healthy Sabres’ defense has been a key reason why the President’s Trophy winners are well positioned for a run at the Cup. Their group of forwards remains one of the fastest in NHL history, and goaltender Ryan Miller is a superstar-in-the-making, but it’s Buffalo’s defense that will make the difference for them this spring if they’re to host a Stanley Cup parade.

Just as the Ducks and Sabres prioritized defense, so too did their Conference Finals opponents. All season long, the Detroit Red Wings focused on reducing the shots against 42-year-old netminder Dominik Hasek. During the regular season, they led the entire NHL in this category, allowing 24.6 shots against per game. In the postseason, they’ve been even better, reducing their opponents to only 22.8 shots per game, by far the best among all playoff teams.

The centerpiece of the Red Wings is 37-year-old Nicklas Lidstrom, the favorite to win the Norris Trophy for what would be the fifth time in six seasons. His value was never more evident than on Monday night. Hasek made what turned out be his only mistake in the Wings’ seriesclinching victory over the Sharks, coughing up the puck behind his net and giving Sharks forward Mike Grier a great opportunity to score on a wraparound. But Lidstrom executed what might well go down as the finest defensive play of the year, diving and blocking Grier’s shot with his outstretched stick and preserving the Wings’ lead.

Unfortunately for the Wings, they will have to do without defenseman Mathieu Schneider for the duration of the postseason, for he is out with a broken wrist. Schneider’s shot from the point was one of the Wing’s most critical power play weapons, and without him, it will be up to Lidstrom and 45-year-old Chris Chelios to shoulder the burden, making it likely that the younger and stronger Ducks will advance to the Cup finals.

Looking east, the Ottawa Senators beat the Devils at their own game in the playoffs’ second round, their tenacious rearguards stifling the creativity of the Devils’ top-line forwards. In the first round of the playoffs, Devils forward Scott Gomez wreaked havoc on the Tampa Bay Lightning. But Gomez was neutralized by the Sens’ thicket-like defense, their high-pressure coverage offering him precious little time and space with which to utilize his playmaking skills.

Though the Senators’ blue line suffered a huge loss when Zdeno Chara departed for the division rival Boston Bruins as a free agent, this year’s group has proven to be greater than the sum of its parts, a number of the Sens’ rearguards successfully taking on larger roles in Chara’s absence. In particular, hard-hitter Anton Volchenkov has really stepped up his game, emerging as one of the NHL’s most fearsome shutdown defensemen.

Of course no discussion of the Ottawa defense is complete without mention of Wade Redden, one of the NHL’s finest two-way blueliners. The quarterback of the Sens’ top power play unit, Redden is the glue that holds the blue line corps together, and he is part of the next generation of Norris Trophy candidates, ready to take the mantle when the incomparable Lidstrom and Niedermayer retire.

Rounding out the Sens’ defense corps are the ever-steady Chris Phillips, talented sophomore Andrej Meszaros, and two off-season acquisitions, Joe Corvo and Tom Preissing. What Ottawa’s defense lacks in Norris Trophy finalists, they make up for with tremendous depth.

If goaltender Ray Emery keeps playing at an elite level, it will be the Sens’ defense that makes the difference as they defeat first the Sabres and then the Ducks to capture the Stanley Cup. The last time a Canadian team won the Cup was back in 1993, when the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Los Angeles Kings. But the Canadians’ wait is nothing compared to what the fans of Ottawa have had to endure.

The original Ottawa Senators won the Stanley Cup on six separate occasions, the last victory coming all the back in 1927; that franchise disbanded in 1934, and 58 years later was revived as an expansion team. While the Rangers’ 54-year drought provided tremendous drama back in 1994, it pales in comparison to the 80 years Ottawa fans have anxiously waited for the Cup’s return.

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.