A PGP Guide to: The Montreal Canadiens

A PGP Guide to: The Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens aesthetic is hockey royalty, red sweaters, French-Canadian culture, ghosts at the old Forum, 24 Stanley Cup banners, impossible expectations, legendary goalies, generational stars, rivalries that are older than some NHL franchises, and an entire city treating hockey like both a sport and a civic institution. The Canadiens predate the NHL itself, are the most successful franchise in Stanley Cup history, have produced some of the greatest players the sport has ever seen, and carry history that makes playing in Montreal feel different. For a long time, though, the modern Canadiens existed mostly in the shadow of all that history, but that might finally be changing.

The Basics

Team: Montreal Canadiens

Conference: Eastern Conference

Division: Atlantic Division

Home Arena: Bell Centre

Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Franchise Founded: 1909

Joined the NHL: 1917

Team Colors: Red, white and blue

Stanley Cups: 24*  – 1916, 1924, 1930, 1931, 1944, 1946, 1953, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1986, 1993

Biggest Rivals: Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, historically the Quebec Nordiques

Montreal currently plays at Bell Centre, which opened in March 1996 as the Molson Centre and replaced the legendary Montreal Forum. The building celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2026 and remains one of the NHL's largest and loudest arenas. 

* The Canadiens technically have 23 Stanley Cups as an NHL member plus the 1916 Stanley Cup they won before the NHL existed, giving the franchise 24 total. No NHL team has more.

The Origin Story

The Montreal Canadiens are older than the NHL itself. The club was founded in 1909 as part of the National Hockey Association, one of the leagues that existed before the NHL. Montreal already had an established English speaking hockey club, the Montreal Wanderers, so the Canadiens were created specifically to represent the city’s French speaking population and give French-Canadian players and fans a team of their own. The original organization was even known as Le Club de Hockey Canadien.

Quebec was overwhelmingly French-speaking, but much of Canadian business and professional sports was still controlled by English-speaking interests. The Canadiens therefore became more than just a hockey team, they became a source of pride and representation for French Canadians, particularly once French-Canadian stars began becoming some of the biggest names in the sport. The team won its first Stanley Cup in 1916, one year before the NHL even existed. In 1917, the NHA essentially fell apart and representatives from Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec met in Montreal to create a new league: the National Hockey League. The Canadiens became one of the NHL’s founding franchises and played in the league’s very first season.

Even the team's name reflects that identity. “Canadiens” is the French spelling, while the famous CH logo stands for “Club de hockey Canadien", not “Canadiens Habitants,” despite the very persistent myth that the H stands for “Habs.”

The Vibe Check

Montreal is basically what happens when a hockey team becomes a religion. There are Stanley Cup banners and retired numbers everywhere. The statues outside of the arena are insane, coming from a Kings fan where we have statues of damn near everyone outside. Old players are treated like royalty in Montreal. Every promising teenager immediately becomes a national discussion topic. Every losing streak becomes a crisis and every playoff run turns the city insane. Because this franchise has won 24 Cups, the idea of rebuilding is historically not an idea Montreal fans have ever really had to envision.

The Canadiens have one of the prettiest uniforms in professional sports, one of the most recognizable logos in hockey, an incredible arena atmosphere, a bilingual identity and a level of pressure that can make simply playing for them feel like its own story.

The History You Need to Know

Where do I even begin? The Canadiens have existed for more than a century and have basically touched every era of NHL history.

One of their earliest superstars was Howie Morenz, one of hockey's first true celebrities. Then came players like Toe Blake and eventually Maurice “Rocket” Richard, who changed everything. He became the first player in NHL history to score 50 goals in 50 games in 1944-45 and eventually became one of the defining sports figures in Quebec history. Over the following decades, the connection between the Canadiens and French-Canadian identity only grew stronger. Players like Maurice Richard, Jean Béliveau, Henri Richard and Guy Lafleur weren't simply hockey stars in Quebec; they became cultural figures. Maurice Richard in particular became a symbol of French-Canadian pride, and the reaction to his controversial suspension in 1955 became so intense that it contributed to the famous Richard Riot in Montreal.

From 1956 through 1960, Montreal won five consecutive Stanley Cups. Five. In a row!! No team has ever won more consecutive Cups! That team featured names like Maurice Richard, Henri Richard, Jean Béliveau, Bernie Geoffrion, Doug Harvey and Jacques Plante.

Plante actually helped permanently change the position of goaltender when he began wearing a mask regularly during NHL games.

Montreal remained ridiculous after that. They won Cups in 1965 and 1966, then again in 1968 and 1969, and again in 1971 and 1973. After that came another mini dynasty. The Canadiens won four consecutive Stanley Cups from 1976 through 1979 with a team featuring Guy Lafleur, Larry Robinson, Ken Dryden, Steve Shutt, Jacques Lemaire and Bob Gainey under coach Scotty Bowman.

By the time that era ended, Montreal's trophy case looked fake, and then came 1986 when a rookie goalie named Patrick Roy helped carry Montreal to another Stanley Cup and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP at just 20 years old. Seven years later, he did it again. The 1993 Canadiens entered the playoffs without being the obvious favorite but became basically unbeatable in overtime. Montreal won a record 10 consecutive overtime games during the postseason and defeated Wayne Gretzky's Los Angeles Kings in five games to win the franchise's 24th Stanley Cup. Roy won another Conn Smythe, and as of 2026, that remains the last Stanley Cup won by any Canadian NHL team, which is WILDDDD!!

Montreal did have a modern drought where they had good teams and great players like Carey Price, Saku Koivu, P.K. Subban, and Shea Weber, but the Cup never came back. The Canadiens unexpectedly reached the 2021 Stanley Cup Final, eliminating Toronto, Winnipeg and Vegas before losing to Tampa Bay, and the aging roster collapsed when Carey Price's career essentially ended because of knee problems, Shea Weber stopped playing, General manager Marc Bergevin was replaced, and Montreal finally committed to an actual rebuild.

That rebuild suddenly looks very different now.

The Icons

Maurice “Rocket” Richard

You cannot explain the Montreal Canadiens without Maurice Richard. The Rocket was one of hockey's first true superstars, the first NHL player to score 50 goals in 50 games, an eight time Stanley Cup champion and an enormously important figure in Quebec culture. The NHL's annual goal-scoring trophy is literally named the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy. 

Jean Béliveau

Jean Béliveau feels less like a former hockey player and more like Montreal hockey nobility.

He was graceful, dominant, respected and incredibly successful. Béliveau won 10 Stanley Cups as a player, captained the Canadiens for ten seasons and became one of the defining faces of the franchise.

Guy Lafleur

The Flower! Guy Lafleur was the superstar of Montreal's 1970s dynasty. He had flowing hair, ridiculous speed, huge offensive numbers which brought him five Stanley Cups. He became the first NHL player to record six consecutive seasons with at least 50 goals and 100 points. If you want the pure glamorous superstar version of Canadiens history, it's Lafleur.

Henri Richard

Yes, another Richard! Maurice's younger brother Henri somehow won even more championships. Henri Richard won 11 Stanley Cups as a player, the most by any player in NHL history. 11… take that in for a second before we move on. Some franchises would like one and Henri won ELEVEN.

Jacques Plante

One of the most important goalies in hockey history. Plante won six Stanley Cups with Montreal and helped normalize the use of the goalie mask after returning to a game wearing one following a facial injury in 1959. 

Ken Dryden

Ken Dryden's NHL career sounds fake…he played just a handful of regular season games before helping Montreal win the 1971 Stanley Cup and winning the Conn Smythe Trophy, and in the following season, he won the Calder Trophy. He ultimately won six Stanley Cups and five Vezina Trophies before retiring at only 31.

Larry Robinson

Larry Robinson was one of the great defensemen of Montreal's 1970s dynasty. He was huge, mobile, offensively talented, physically intimidating and somehow finished his career with an absolutely ridiculous plus-minus. He won six Cups with Montreal, two Norris Trophies and a Conn Smythe.

Patrick Roy

Patrick Roy completely altered Montreal's modern history. He won the Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe as a 20 year old rookie in 1986, then he did it again in 1993. Roy eventually left Montreal after one of the most infamous player/team breakups in NHL history, but that doesn't change what he means to the franchise.

Carey Price

Price is one of the greatest goalies without a cup, but he still belong here. Price spent his entire NHL career with Montreal and became the face of an era where the Canadiens frequently relied on him to make them look significantly better than they actually were. He won the Hart Trophy, Vezina Trophy, Ted Lindsay Award and Jennings Trophy in 2014-15, led Montreal to the 2021 Stanley Cup Final and became the franchise's all time leader in goalie wins. For a team with Jacques Plante, Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy in its history, becoming one of its most beloved goalies is saying a lot, and Montreal has announced that Price will be honored at Bell Centre on November 10, 2026!

The Current Era

For the first time in a while, Montreal's rebuild no longer really feels like a rebuild. The Canadiens returned to the playoffs in 2025 but lost to Washington in the first round. Then the 2025 offseason changed expectations.

Montreal acquired defenseman Noah Dobson from the Islanders for Emil Heineman and the number 16 and 17 picks in the 2025 Draft, then immediately signed Dobson to an 8 year, $76 million contract. When the season started, the kids exploded! Montreal went 48-24-10 in 2025-26, finished third in the Atlantic Division and scored 3.44 goals per game, sixth-best in the NHL. Nick Suzuki had 101 points, Cole Caufield scored 51 goals, Lane Hutson had 78 points as a defenseman, Juraj Slafkovský scored 30 goals, Ivan Demidov led all rookies with 62 points, and rookie goalie Jakub Dobes suddenly became the postseason starter. Montreal then beat Tampa Bay in seven games, Buffalo in seven games, and reached the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 2021. They actually crushed Carolina 6-2 in Game 1, but Carolina won four straight.

While the Habs season was over, it was obvious that this team had gone from a rebuilding stage to being 3 wins away from the Cup Final.  The Canadiens aren't really allowed to hide behind youth anymore and this summer reinforced that. Montreal traded longtime Hab Brendan Gallagher to Vancouver, ending his 14 season run with the franchise. The Habs gave Ivan Demidov an 8 year, $73.2 million extension beginning in 2027-28. They also extended Jakub Dobes for three more years beyond this coming season. Finally, just a few days ago, Montreal signed veteran forward Chris Kreider to a 1 year deal after his contract with Anaheim was terminated. 

The Players You Need to Know

Nick Suzuki

The captain & actual superstar now.

Nick Suzuki became Montreal's captain in 2022 at only 23 years old, making him the youngest captain in franchise history. At first, part of his identity was basically being a responsible young leader on rebuilding team, but we’re past that. Suzuki recorded 29 goals, 72 assists and 101 points in 2025-26, becoming only the fifth player in Canadiens history to reach 100 points and the first since Mats Näslund in 1985-86. He was also the first Canadiens captain ever to have a 10 -point season! He also won the 2026 Selke Trophy as the NHL's top defensive forward!

Cole Caufield

The tiny goal scoring menace.

Cole Caufield is 5-foot-8 and apparently decided that didn’t prevent him from becoming one of the NHL's best goal scorers. He scored 51 goals in 2025-26, second most in the entire NHL, while finishing with 88 points. He became the first Canadiens player to score 50 in a season since Stéphane Richer in 1989-90. He also won the Lady Byng Trophy!

Lane Hutson

The tiny defenseman who refuses to play like one.

Lane Hutson is one of the most entertaining young defensemen in hockey. He's undersized by traditional NHL defenseman standards, but he doesn’t care. Hutson followed his Calder winning rookie season with 12 goals, 66 assists and 78 points in 2025-26, finishing fourth among all NHL defensemen in scoring. His 66 assists tied Larry Robinson's Canadiens record for assists by a defenseman in one season. He skates, creates, carries the puck, and does things that occasionally make coaches nervous and fans extremely happy.

Ivan Demidov

The future superstar who might already be arriving.

Montreal drafted Ivan Demidov fifth overall in 2024 and immediately there was enormous hype around him. Demidov scored 19 goals and 62 points in all 82 games as a rookie in 2025-26, leading all NHL rookies in points and assists. He finished second in Calder Trophy voting behind Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer and was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team.Montreal responded by giving him an 8 year extension before his entry level contract is even finished!

Juraj Slafkovský

The former 1st pick becoming the player Montreal hoped for.

Montreal selected Juraj Slafkovský first overall in the 2022 NHL Draft, and because this is Montreal, everybody immediately had opinions. The development wasn't instant, but now, it’'s working so take that, haters! Slafkovský had 30 goals, 43 assists and 73 points in 2025-26, all career highs. He also became the first Canadiens player ever to record three 50 point seasons before his 22nd birthday. He's huge, skilled, and works extremely well alongside Suzuki and Caufield.

Noah Dobson

The expensive blue line addition.

Montreal wanted another high end defenseman, so they paid for one. The Canadiens traded two first round picks plus Emil Heineman to the Islanders for Noah Dobson in 2025 and immediately signed him for eight years at a $9.5 million annual cap hit. In his first Montreal season, Dobson had 12 goals and 47 points in 80 games while averaging more than 22 minutes per night. Between Dobson and Hutson, Montreal's defense can generate a LOT of offense.

Arber Xhekaj

The human warning label

An undrafted defenseman who fought his way into the NHL, he plays a heavy, physical game, is always willing to drop the gloves and gives the Canadiens an edge they don’t really get from anyone else. He isn’t their most polished defenseman, but he is one of their most intimidating and definitely one of the easiest players on the roster to notice.

Jakub Dobes

The rookie goalie who stole the crease.

Jakub Dobes entered 2025-26 without being treated like the obvious future franchise starter. Then he went 29-10-4 as a rookie, so Montreal started him for all 19 playoff games during its run to the Eastern Conference Final. He finished the postseason with a .908 save percentage and became just the fifth Canadiens goalie ever to win a Game 7.

Chris Kreider

The extremely new veteran.

This addition is so new that we need to discuss it. Kreider signed with Montreal on September 12 after Anaheim terminated the final year of his previous contract. He scored 22 goals and 50 points in 75 games in 2025-26 and has scored at least 20 goals in eight consecutive seasons. At 35, he's obviously not part of the young core, but that's kind of the point. Montreal just reached the Eastern Conference Final with a very young roster and Kreider gives them another veteran scorer with a ton of playoff experience for a team whose expectations have suddenly changed.

Kirby Dach

The perpetual question mark.

Kirby Dach remains one of the stranger pieces of Montreal's roster. The talent has always been obvious, but the health has not. Injuries have repeatedly interrupted his Canadiens career, which has made it difficult to know exactly where he fits long term. Montreal brought him back on another 1 year contract, meaning this season feels important for determining what his future with the team actually looks like. 

The Rivalries

Boston Bruins

Canadiens-Bruins is one of the, if not THE, greatest rivalries in NHL history. The teams have spent generations annoying each other. There’s Original Six history, way too many playoff series’, fights, comebacks, controversial moments, Hall of Famers, fanbases that genuinely don’t need encouragement to dislike each other. Even Canadiens owner Geoff Molson has called Boston the biggest rivalry he has experienced during his lifetime. Montreal historically had the upper hand for a very long time, which, as you can imagine, didn’t make Bruins fans like them more. Habs fans are born to hate Boston, just as Boston fans are born to hate the Habs. It’s in your blood… what can you do?

Toronto Maple Leafs

This is hockey + culture + geography + Canadian national identity. Montreal and Toronto are the NHL's two most successful franchises historically, with 24 and 13 Stanley Cups, respectively. They're both Original Six teams, in the same division, and their rivalry became especially intense during the 1940s, '50s and '60s when the two franchises were regularly competing for championships. Ken Dryden has described it as not merely a sports rivalry but also a linguistic, cultural and business rivalry between Canada's two major cities. Toronto’s most recent Cup was in 1967 when they beat Montreal!

Ottawa Senators

Montreal-Ottawa is the modern all Canadian Atlantic Division rivalry. It doesn't have the century of history that Toronto does or the legendary hatred of Boston, but the geography helps enormously. The fanbases overlap, games attract traveling fans, and their playoff meetings, specifically 2013, gave the matchup considerably more hostility. Basically, if you're putting two Canadian teams relatively close together in the same division, eventually everybody becomes annoyed.

Quebec Nordiques

This rivalry no longer technically exists, but it still deserves to be here! The Canadiens and Quebec Nordiques represented two cities and two different pieces of Quebec identity. Montreal was the old establishment and Quebec City had the new team trying to challenge it. They played constantly, met in the playoffs, and they legitimately hated each other. The most infamous moment came during the 1984 Good Friday Massacre, when a massive bench clearing brawl resulted in 252 penalty minutes and 10 ejections. The Nordiques relocated to Colorado in 1995, ending the rivalry. Montreal literally brought the memory back in January 2026 when Colorado wore Nordiques throwback uniforms at Bell Centre for a special “Battle of Quebec” game. 30 years later and people are still talking about it which should tell you everything.

The Fanbase

Montreal fans are intense in a very specific way because they aren't just following a hockey team, they're following the Canadiens. There are generations of family history tied into this team. Their grandparents watched Maurice Richard, and parents watched Guy Lafleur or Patrick Roy. Younger fans grew up with Carey Price, now they have Suzuki, Caufield, Hutson and Demidov, and every generation is inevitably compared to the ones that won everything.

Bell Centre is famous throughout the NHL for its atmosphere. Even visiting players routinely describe it as one of their favorite buildings to play in because of how loud and emotionally invested the crowd is. Playoff Montreal is another level entirely!

One of the most important symbols is the torch. When Montreal left the Forum in 1996, every living Canadiens captain helped pass a physical torch from captain to captain until it reached Pierre Turgeon, symbolically transferring the franchise into its new home. The tradition comes from In Flanders Fields: “To you from failing hands we throw the torch; be yours to hold it high.” Those words have been displayed in the Canadiens dressing room since 1952. During the 2026 playoffs, Canadiens alumni carried the torch into Bell Centre before home games.

The crowd also loves chanting “Olé, Olé, Olé.” You will hear it a lot, and you will love it.

The Retired Numbers

The Canadiens have retired 15 numbers honoring 18 players, which is what happens when your franchise history is essentially a Hockey Hall of Fame exhibit!

No. 1 — Jacques Plante

The legendary goalie and mask pioneer.

No. 2 — Doug Harvey

One of the greatest defensemen in NHL history and a 7 time Norris Trophy winner.

No. 3 — Émile “Butch” Bouchard

Longtime defenseman, captain and 4 time Stanley Cup champion.

No. 4 — Jean Béliveau

The elegant superstar captain and 10 time Stanley Cup champion.

No. 5 — Bernie “Boom Boom” Geoffrion

The goal scoring legend widely credited with popularizing the slap shot.

No. 7 — Howie Morenz

One of hockey's first superstars and one of the earliest great Canadiens.

No. 9 — Maurice Richard

The Rocket. Possibly the most culturally significant player in franchise history.

No. 10 — Guy Lafleur

The Flower. The superstar face of the 1970s dynasty.

No. 12 — Dickie Moore & Yvan Cournoyer

One number honoring two Canadiens legends. Moore was an elite scorer from the dynasty years and Cournoyer won 10 Stanley Cups and captained Montreal during its 1970s dynasty.

No. 16 — Henri Richard & Elmer Lach

Again, two legends share the honor. Henri Richard won his absurd 11 Cups while Lach centered Montreal's famous Punch Line with Henri’s brother Maurice Richard and Toe Blake.

No. 18 — Serge Savard

The Hall of Fame defenseman and 8 time Stanley Cup champion.

No. 19 — Larry Robinson

6 Cups, 2 Norris Trophies, 1 Conn Smythe and part of one of the greatest defensive groups ever assembled.

No. 23 — Bob Gainey

The elite defensive forward who won 5 Stanley Cups and became the player the Selke Trophy basically exists to celebrate.

No. 29 — Ken Dryden

6 Stanley Cups, 5 Vezinas, 1 Conn Smythe, and then he just retired.

No. 33 — Patrick Roy

The goalie who delivered the 1986 and 1993 championships and became one of the greatest postseason goaltenders in NHL history.

PGP says that with Carey Price's career over, number 31 is inevitably going to be part of the retirement conversation although how much longer can they keep this up? They’ll run out of numbers soon.

The Team Identity

For decades, Montreal's identity was simple – win the Stanley Cup. Montreal won so frequently that championship expectations became embedded in the franchise. The modern team has had to figure out what Canadiens hockey looks like when you can't just point at Maurice Richard and Guy Lafleur and assume another dynasty is around the corner. The current answer is starting to become clear since they're young, fast, creative and skilled. Suzuki is the brain, Caufield is the goal scorer, Slafkovský gives the top line size, Demidov gives them star potential, Hutson creates chaos from the blue line, Dobson gives them another high end puck mover, Dobes and Fowler give them a young goaltending future, and Martin St. Louis has encouraged the young players to play creatively rather than coaching every interesting instinct out of them.

The 2025-26 season was basically proof that the plan is working. Montreal didn't sneak into the playoffs like some teams. They won 48 games, had a 100 point center, a 50 goal scorer, a 78 point defenseman, the NHL's rookie scoring leader, the Selke winner, the Lady Byng winner and they went to the Eastern Conference Final! The hard part here is to do it again, because in Montreal, winning is the identity.

Why You Should Watch Them

You should watch the Montreal Canadiens because very few teams give you this combination of history and genuinely exciting current hockey. If you like hockey history, there may be no better team to learn from or about. Names like Maurice Richard, Jean Béliveau, Guy Lafleur, Jacques Plante, Ken Dryden, Patrick Roy, Carey Price line their history. They have 24 Stanley Cups, at one point winning 5 straight championships, then at another winning 4 straight championships. They have the Forum, the torch, Boston hatred, Toronto hatred, the Battle of Quebec, and if you prefer current players instead of history, you still win.

Nick Suzuki just became a 100 point Selke winner, Cole Caufield just scored 51 goals, Lane Hutson is one of the most entertaining defensemen in hockey, Juraj Slafkovský is becoming a legitimate star, Ivan Demidov just led every rookie in NHL scoring, Jakub Dobes just started 19 playoff games as a rookie, and now Chris Kreider has somehow been added to the mix two weeks before opening night. Most importantly, Montreal finally feels like it has moved out thinking they’ll be good someday to actually being good. They just went to the Eastern Conference Final with the kids! Now the Canadiens enter 2026-27 facing a very Montreal problem… once people realize you might actually be able to win, the expectation immediately becomes that you should.