DETROIT – The Canadiens exorcized their Motor City demons on Thursday night, and the line of Max Pacioretty, David Desharnais and Thomas Vanek played a central role in handing their Atlantic Division rivals a devastating blow. The trio generated a combined seven points (4G, 3A) between them in a 5-4 victory over the Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena, pacing the bleu-blanc-rouge to their fourth consecutive...
DETROIT - Here's a numerical look at the Habs-Red Wings game at the Joe Louis Arena on Thursday night. 24 – Number of years that have elapsed since the Canadiens last visited Detroit twice in a single season. The last time the bleu-blanc-rouge set foot on Joe Louis Arena ice on multiple occasions in one year was during the 1990-91 campaign. 40 – Number of times the Canadiens have scored the game’s...
PRESS RELEASE MONTREAL - Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin announced Wednesday the signing of defenseman Mac Bennett to a two-year, entry level contract (2014-15 and 2015-16). In 31 games with the NCAA Big Ten’s University of Michigan in 2013-14, Bennett recorded 14 points (2 goals, 12 assists). He led his team’s defensemen in assists and points. The Wolverines captain served 10 penalty...
MONTREAL – The Canadiens’ history of success ranks the franchise among the top professional sports teams in North America. Read on to find out which winning tradition the Habs share with the All Blacks and Rafael Nadal. For the sports connoisseur, the Montreal Canadiens firmly rank amongst the great major league franchises in history, alongside the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Kings and Green Bay...
MONTREAL - Here's a numerical look at the Habs-Sabres game at the Bell Centre on Tuesday night. 1 – Max Pacioretty came into Tuesday’s game against the Sabres with 99 career regular season goals. The two-time 30-goal scorer will need only one more to crack triple digits. 2 – Daniel Briere faces off against his former team with 298 career goals to his credit. 12 – Games missed in four NHL seasons as...
MONTREAL – The Habs beat the Sabres thanks to two goals from its snipers and a shutout from Carey Price, but it was the team’s foot soldiers who paved the way. With only ten forwards at his disposition for most of Monday night’s tilt against the Boston Bruins, head coach Michel Therrien pushed his charges to the limit of their energy levels. In the absence of Dale Weise and Travis Moen, both injured...
CANADIENS (40-26-7) vs. SABRES (20-43-8) 24 hours after knocking off the Boston Bruins in a shootout, the Canadiens are back in action Tuesday night against the Buffalo Sabres at the Bell Centre. The Bruins, undefeated in its last 12 games, were riding high at the TD Garden. However, Alexei Emelin set the tone early with a thundering bodycheck on Milan Lucic and a goal from the point which put the...
BOSTON – The Canadiens came into Boston and snapped the Bruins’ 12-game win streak with a gritty road performance. The Habs entered TD Garden on Monday night well aware of the challenge they were about to face. Lining up against the NHL’s hottest team, the Canadiens were able to do what no other team had been able to accomplish since March 1: earn two points off the Boston Bruins. Buoyed by some clutch...
BOSTON -- Here's a numerical look at the Habs-Bruins rivalry game at the TD Garden on Monday night. 14 – Number of Canadiens games Michael Bournival missed with a concussion prior to being recalled by the team from his conditioning assignment in Hamilton in time to make his return to the lineup on Monday night in Boston 3 – Number of times Peter Budaj has been assigned the starting role against the...
CANADIENS (39-26-7) @ BRUINS (49-17-5) After leaving Toronto with a win on Saturday, the Canadiens have another rivalry game on tap on Monday at the TD Garden in Boston as Michel Therrien’s troops prepare to take on the NHL’s hottest team. Saturday’s game got off to a quick start for the visitors in Toronto as Max Pacioretty and Rene Bourque gave the Habs a 2-0 lead less than halfway through the first...
TORONTO -- Here's a numerical look at the Habs-Leafs rivalry game at the Air Canada Centre on Saturday night. 242 – Number of times the Habs have faced the Leafs (and St. Pats) on a Saturday night in NHL history, averaging out to a total of 2.52 Saturday night tilts per season over the years. 12 – Number of points racked up by David Desharnais in 13 games since coming back from the Olympic break, chipping...
TORONTO – Rene Bourque helped the Habs leave the ACC with two big points by chipping in with a pair of his own. After watching the past five games as a healthy scratch, Bourque made a triumphant return to the lineup on Saturday against the Leafs. With a goal, an assist and six shots in his first game since March 8 in San Jose, the 32-year-old winger was on a mission to make sure he won’t be watching...
CANADIENS (38-26-7) @ MAPLE LEAFS (36-27-8) A classic rivalry will be renewed on Saturday night when the Canadiens visit the Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre in Toronto. On Thursday night, the Habs killed off seven penalties but could not hold off the Columbus Blue Jackets, who won 3-2 at the Bell Centre on the strength of a late goal by leading scorer Ryan Johansen. Brendan Gallagher and Thomas Vanek...
BROSSARD – On Friday, the Habs’ head coach received news that one of his pivots will be out until the playoffs. To fill the void, he decided to promote from within. “Our medical team decided that it would be best if Brandon Prust did not play the rest of our regular season schedule,” announced Michel Therrien after the morning practice. “The time off will give him a chance to heal and come back one...
MONTREAL – Every season has its fair share of ups and downs. Head coach Michel Therrien classified Thursday night’s tilt – a 3-2 loss to the Blue Jackets – among the latter. After watching his troops come away empty-handed on Bell Centre ice, the Canadiens bench boss didn't mince words when evaluating the 70th game of the regular season from start to finish, one that snapped the club's three-game winning...
MONTREAL - Here's a numerical look at the Canadiens-Blue Jackets game at the Bell Centre on Thursday night. 1 – Number of seasons since the Columbus Blue Jackets’ inaugural campaign in 2000-01 in which the Ohio-based club has visited the Bell Centre on more than one occasion in the same season. The Blue Jackets made their second stop of the year in Montreal during the 2013-14 campaign on Thursday night....
CANADIENS (38-25-7) vs. BLUE JACKETS (35-27-6) The surging Montreal Canadiens will take on the surprising Columbus Blue Jackets at the Bell Centre on Thursday night. Last time the two teams met, during the second month of the season, Montreal was finding its bearings and playing 0.500 hockey while Columbus was struggling with a 6-10-2 record. Since then, the Habs have solidified its playoff spot while...
MONTREAL – After going five games and 20 shots without a goal, Thomas Vanek broke out in a big way against the Avs. Is that an exception, or the rule? Without a doubt, a natural goal scorer running hot is a sight to behold. On March 18, 2014, Vanek converted on two chances from the high slot before tipping home an Alexei Emelin point shot to draw a wild ovation from the Bell Centre faithful. The Austrian’s...
Montreal – Thomas Vanek may be the first Austrian to ever suit up for the Habs, but he’s not the only player in the franchise’s history to hail from an unlikely hockey country. Throughout the team’s recent history, three other countries from a narrow corridor between Western and Eastern Europe, going from the Baltic to the Alps, have seen one of theirs perform in the NHL as a member of the Montreal...
MONTREAL – After being held scoreless in his first five games as a Hab, Thomas Vanek made up for lost time in Game 6. Just under two weeks after being traded for the second time in the 2013-14 campaign, Vanek was already starting to feel the heat in Montreal for failing to find the back of the net. He responded by using his 17:18 workload to score his first, second and third goals as a Hab while helping...