The 1996 Stanley Cup playoffs, the championship of the National Hockey League (NHL), began on April 16, 1996. The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference, played best-of-seven series for conference quarterfinals, semifinals and championships, and then the conference champions played a best-of-seven series for the Stanley Cup. These playoffs are noted as being the first playoffs in which all Canadian teams were eliminated after the first round. The New Jersey Devils, who had won the cup the year before, missed these playoffs. This was the first time that both Florida teams made it to the playoffs.