[1] Due to a modified playoff format held in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Campbell Bowl was awarded to the Montreal Canadiens after they defeated the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup semifinals.

The Clarence S. Campbell Bowl was donated by the NHL's clubs in recognition of the contributions and services of its namesake, the League President at the start of the Modern Era expansion.

Throughout its history it has been a parallel to the Prince of Wales Trophy, using the same criteria in the opposite competitive grouping.

[1] A traditional superstition that is prevalent among many of today's NHL players is that no player should either touch or hoist the Campbell (Western Conference champion) or Prince of Wales (Eastern Conference champion) trophies after they have won the conference playoffs; these players feel that the Stanley Cup is the true championship trophy and thus it should be the only trophy that they should be hoisting.

Eventually, Montreal Canadiens (the only Eastern Conference team in that half of the "bracket") defeated the Vegas Golden Knights to win their first and (barring a further change in the playoff format) only Campbell Bowl in their history.