1976–77 Montreal Canadiens season

NHL hockey team season (won 20th Stanley Cup) March 2026 August 2023 Montreal Canadiens NHL 1976–77 1976 Wales 1st Norris 1st 60–8–12 33–1–6 27–7–6 387 171 Sam Pollock Scotty Bowman Yvan Cournoyer None Montreal Forum Steve Shutt (60) Guy Lafleur (80) Guy Lafleur (136) Doug Risebrough (132) Ken Dryden (41) Michel Larocque (2.09) Yes Yes yes The 1976–77 Montreal Canadiens season was the Canadiens' 68th season. The team is regarded to be one of the greatest NHL teams ever composed. The Canadiens won their 20th Stanley Cup in 1976–77, taking the NHL championship. Montreal set new records for most wins (60) and points (132) in a season.Campbell Ken January 3, 2014 GREATEST TEAMS OF ALL-TIME: 1976-77 MONTREAL CANADIENS https://thehockeynews.com/news/news/greatest-teams-of-all-time-1967-77-montreal-canadiens April 9, 2023 The Hockey News Those records were not broken until the re-introduction of regular season overtimeWhereas the 1976–77 Canadiens recorded twelve points for games that ended tied after the third period, under current rules a team earns one point for losses incurred in overtime or a shootout. Notably, the 2022–23 Boston Bruins, who are the current NHL record holders with 65 wins and 135 points, won only 54 games in regulation, winning an additional eleven games and thus recording an additional 11 points in overtime and shootouts. and the extension of the schedule to 82 games. The 1976–77 Canadiens continue to hold the all-time records for regulation winsPrior to the 2022–23 Bruins, two other teams had won more than sixty games under an 82-game schedule, these being the 1995–96 Detroit Red Wings (62 wins, 59 in regulation) and the 2018–19 Tampa Bay Lightning (62 wins, 49 in regulation). as well as points per game (1.650).The closest any team has come to the 1976–77 Canadiens' 1.650 PpG is the 2022–23 Bruins, who recorded 1.646 PpG. They outscored their opponents by 216 goals (also a league record), a differential average of 2.7 goals per game. The 1976-77 Canadiens team has been widely regarded as one of the greatest teams in NHL history. Of the 24 players on the roster, 14 were drafted by the Canadiens: Pierre Bouchard, Rick Chartraw, Brian Engblom, Bob Gainey, Réjean Houle, Guy Lafleur, Michel Larocque, Pierre Mondou, Bill Nyrop, Doug Risebrough, Larry Robinson, Steve Shutt, Mario Tremblay, and Murray Wilson. The only player on the roster not developed by the Canadiens was Pete Mahovlich. Montreal lost only eight games, a modern-era record that has never been tied or broken even when counting only regulation losses and including lockout and pandemic-shortened seasons. They earned at least a point in 72 games, which also still stands as an all-time record.The closest any teams have come to this record are the 2022–23 Bruins (who earned a point in 70 games) and the 1995–96 Red Wings (who earned a point in 69 games and also lost one game in overtime, which would have earned a point under current rules.) The Canadiens earned their 100th point in the 62nd game of the season with a victory over the Atlanta Flames on February 23, 1977. This was an NHL record for fastest team to 100 points for 45 seasons.March 2, 2023 Bruins rout Sabres 7-1, become fastest team to 100 points https://apnews.com/article/sabres-bruins-nhl-hockey-pastrnak-e32b311eed018dd0e2f699daf3467d0e March 2, 2023 Associated PressRusso Eric Bruins Make History, Become Fastest Team to 100 Points https://www.nhl.com/bruins/news/bruins-make-history-become-fastest-team-to-100-points-341766578 2023-06-13 NHL.com 2 Regular season Final standings MON Record vs. opponents MTL Schedule and results background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 5px solid; border-bottom:#192168 5px solid; 1976–77 regular season1976-77 Montreal Canadiens Schedule https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/MTL/1977_games.html Hockey-Reference.com April 6, 2025 y background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 2px solid; border-bottom:#192168 2px solid; October Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |1||W||October 7, 1976||10–1 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1976–77) ||1–0–0 |- |2||W||October 9, 1976||3–0 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) ||2–0–0 |- |3||L||October 10, 1976||1–3 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) ||2–1–0 |- |4||W||October 12, 1976||4–2 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) ||3–1–0 |- |5||W||October 14, 1976||7–1 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) ||4–1–0 |- |6||W||October 16, 1976||7–4 || align="left"| New York Rangers (1976–77) ||5–1–0 |- |7||L||October 17, 1976||3–5 || align="left"| @ Boston Bruins (1976–77) ||5–2–0 |- |8||W||October 19, 1976||6–0 || align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1976–77) ||6–2–0 |- |9||W||October 21, 1976||5–3 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) ||7–2–0 |- |10||W||October 23, 1976||9–1 || align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1976–77) ||8–2–0 |- |11||W||October 25, 1976||4–1 || align="left"| New York Islanders (1976–77) ||9–2–0 |- |12||T||October 27, 1976||4–4 || align="left"| @ Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) ||9–2–1 |- |13||L||October 30, 1976||3–4 || align="left"| Boston Bruins (1976–77) ||9–3–1 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 2px solid; border-bottom:#192168 2px solid; November Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |14||W||November 1, 1976||3–2 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) ||10–3–1 |- |15||W||November 3, 1976||5–2 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) ||11–3–1 |- |16||W||November 6, 1976||11–3 || align="left"| Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) ||12–3–1 |- |17||W||November 9, 1976||8–1 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1976–77) ||13–3–1 |- |18||T||November 10, 1976||2–2 || align="left"| @ Atlanta Flames (1976–77) ||13–3–2 |- |19||T||November 13, 1976||3–3 || align="left"| Colorado Rockies (1976–77) ||13–3–3 |- |20||W||November 15, 1976||4–2 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1976–77) ||14–3–3 |- |21||L||November 17, 1976||0–1 || align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) ||14–4–3 |- |22||W||November 19, 1976||6–3 || align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) ||15–4–3 |- |23||W||November 21, 1976||9–5 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) ||16–4–3 |- |24||W||November 23, 1976||5–1 || align="left"| @ New York Islanders (1976–77) ||17–4–3 |- |25||W||November 24, 1976||8–1 || align="left"| @ Cleveland Barons (1976–77) ||18–4–3 |- |26||W||November 27, 1976||4–3 || align="left"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) ||19–4–3 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 2px solid; border-bottom:#192168 2px solid; December Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |27||T||December 2, 1976||3–3 || align="left"| Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) ||19–4–4 |- |28||W||December 4, 1976||3–1 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1976–77) ||20–4–4 |- |29||W||December 6, 1976||1–0 || align="left"| Cleveland Barons (1976–77) ||21–4–4 |- |30||W||December 8, 1976||4–3 || align="left"| @ Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) ||22–4–4 |- |31||W||December 11, 1976||5–0 || align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) ||23–4–4 |- |32||L||December 12, 1976||2–5 || align="left"| @ New York Rangers (1976–77) ||23–5–4 |- |33||W||December 15, 1976||8–2 || align="left"| @ Colorado Rockies (1976–77) ||24–5–4 |- |34||W||December 18, 1976||2–0 || align="left"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) ||25–5–4 |- |35||W||December 20, 1976||5–4 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) ||26–5–4 |- |36||W||December 27, 1976||4–2 || align="left"| Cleveland Barons (1976–77) ||27–5–4 |- |37||T||December 29, 1976||3–3 || align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1976–77) ||27–5–5 |- |38||T||December 30, 1976||5–5 || align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) ||27–5–6 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 2px solid; border-bottom:#192168 2px solid; January Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |39||W||January 2, 1977||7–0 || align="left"| Atlanta Flames (1976–77) ||28–5–6 |- |40||W||January 3, 1977||6–4 || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) ||29–5–6 |- |41||W||January 6, 1977||9–2 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) ||30–5–6 |- |42||W||January 8, 1977||7–2 || align="left"| Washington Capitals (1976–77) ||31–5–6 |- |43||W||January 11, 1977||6–0 || align="left"| @ Colorado Rockies (1976–77) ||32–5–6 |- |44||L||January 12, 1977||2–7 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1976–77) ||32–6–6 |- |45||W||January 15, 1977||6–0 || align="left"| Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) ||33–6–6 |- |46||L||January 17, 1977||3–7 || align="left"| @ Boston Bruins (1976–77) ||33–7–6 |- |47||W||January 18, 1977||3–0 || align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1976–77) ||34–7–6 |- |48||W||January 20, 1977||6–2 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) ||35–7–6 |- |49||W||January 22, 1977||5–2 || align="left"| Washington Capitals (1976–77) ||36–7–6 |- |50||T||January 23, 1977||2–2 || align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) ||36–7–7 |- |51||T||January 29, 1977||3–3 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) ||36–7–8 |- |52||W||January 30, 1977||2–1 || align="left"| New York Islanders (1976–77) ||37–7–8 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 2px solid; border-bottom:#192168 2px solid; February Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |53||W||February 1, 1977||7–3 || align="left"| @ Cleveland Barons (1976–77) ||38–7–8 |- |54||W||February 3, 1977||6–4 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) ||39–7–8 |- |55||T||February 5, 1977||3–3 || align="left"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) ||39–7–9 |- |56||W||February 9, 1977||6–0 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) ||40–7–9 |- |57||W||February 12, 1977||8–3 || align="left"| Boston Bruins (1976–77) ||41–7–9 |- |58||W||February 13, 1977||5–3 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) ||42–7–9 |- |59||T||February 16, 1977||4–4 || align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1976–77) ||42–7–10 |- |60||W||February 19, 1977||5–2 || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) ||43–7–10 |- |61||W||February 21, 1977||3–2 || align="left"| Atlanta Flames (1976–77) ||44–7–10 |- |62||W||February 23, 1977||4–2 || align="left"| @ Atlanta Flames (1976–77) ||45–7–10 |- |63||W||February 26, 1977||5–3 || align="left"| Cleveland Barons (1976–77) ||46–7–10 |- |64||W||February 27, 1977||8–1 || align="left"| @ New York Rangers (1976–77) ||47–7–10 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 2px solid; border-bottom:#192168 2px solid; March Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |65||W||March 1, 1977||5–4 || align="left"| @ New York Islanders (1976–77) ||48–7–10 |- |66||W||March 3, 1977||5–1 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1976–77) ||49–7–10 |- |67||W||March 5, 1977||7–2 || align="left"| New York Rangers (1976–77) ||50–7–10 |- |68||L||March 6, 1977||1–4 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) ||50–8–10 |- |69||T||March 9, 1977||2–2 || align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) ||50–8–11 |- |70||W||March 10, 1977||7–1 || align="left"| Colorado Rockies (1976–77) ||51–8–11 |- |71||W||March 12, 1977||5–1 || align="left"| Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) ||52–8–11 |- |72||W||March 14, 1977||3–0 || align="left"| Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) ||53–8–11 |- |73||W||March 16, 1977||5–2 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) ||54–8–11 |- |74||W||March 21, 1977||5–1 || align="left"| @ Boston Bruins (1976–77) ||55–8–11 |- |75||W||March 24, 1977||6–1 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1976–77) ||56–8–11 |- |76||W||March 26, 1977||4–0 || align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) ||57–8–11 |- |77||W||March 27, 1977||6–0 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) ||58–8–11 |- |78||T||March 30, 1977||3–3 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) ||58–8–12 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#AF1E2D 2px solid; border-bottom:#192168 2px solid; April Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |79||W||April 2, 1977||11–0 || align="left"| Washington Capitals (1976–77) ||59–8–12 |- |80||W||April 3, 1977||2–1 || align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1976–77) ||60–8–12 |- |- | Legend: #cfc Win (2 points) 1px solid black #fcc Loss (0 points) 1px solid black #ffc Tie (1 point) 1px solid black Playoffs Stanley Cup Finals 1977 Stanley Cup Finals Jacques Lemaire scored three game-winning goals, including the Cup winner in overtime. Guy Lafleur won the Conn Smythe Trophy for scoring 9 goals and 17 assists during the playoffs. Boston Bruins vs. Montreal Canadiens Date Visitors Score Home Score NotesMay 7 Boston 3 Montreal 7 May 10 Boston 0 Montreal 3 May 12 Montreal 4Boston 2 May 14 Montreal 2 Boston 1 OT Montreal wins the series 4–0. Guy Lafleur won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. Player statistics Regular season Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG Guy Lafleur RW 80 56 80 136 20891408 Steve Shutt LW 80 60 45 105 2888809 Larry Robinson D 77 19 66 85 45120303 Guy Lapointe D 77 25 51 76 53691006 Jacques Lemaire C 75 34 41 75 2270524 Pete Mahovlich C 76 15 47 62 4536301 Doug Risebrough C 78 22 38 60 13233106 Yvan Cournoyer RW 60 25 28 53 827602 Yvon Lambert LW 79 24 28 52 5030205 Rejean Houle W 65 22 30 52 2439203 Mario Tremblay RW 74 18 28 46 6125403 Serge Savard D 78 9 33 42 3579001 Doug Jarvis C 80 16 22 38 1430002 Bob Gainey LW 80 14 19 33 4131013 Murray Wilson LW 60 13 14 27 2625101 Bill Nyrop D 74 3 19 22 2142001 Jim Roberts Jim Roberts (ice hockey, born 1940) D/RW 45 5 14 19 1822011 Pierre Bouchard D 73 4 11 15 5233010 Rick Chartraw D/RW 43 3 4 7 5927001 Ken Dryden G 56 02 2 00000 John Van Boxmeer D 4 0 1 1 01000 Michel Larocque Michel Larocque (ice hockey, born 1952) G 26 0 0 0 00000 Goaltending PlayerMINGPW LTGAGAA SO Ken Dryden 3275 56 41 6 8 117 2.14 10 Michel Larocque Michel Larocque (ice hockey, born 1952) 1525 26 19 2 4 53 2.09 4 Team: 4800 80 60 8 12 170 2.12 14 Playoffs Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG Guy Lafleur RW 14 9 17 26 6102 Jacques Lemaire C 14 7 12 19 6103 Steve Shutt LW 14 8 10 18 2203 Guy Lapointe D 12 3 9 12 4100 Larry Robinson D 14 2 10 12 12100 Pete Mahovlich C 13 4 5 9 19201 Serge Savard D 14 2 7 9 2101 Murray Wilson LW 14 1 6 7 14000 Doug Jarvis C 14 0 7 7 2000 Yvon Lambert LW 14 3 3 6 12100 Bob Gainey LW 14 4 1 5 25011 Doug Risebrough C 12 2 3 5 16000 Jim Roberts Jim Roberts (ice hockey, born 1940) D/RW 14 3 0 3 6011 Mario Tremblay RW 14 3 0 3 9000 Rick Chartraw D/RW 13 2 1 3 17000 Bill Nyrop D 8 1 0 1 4000 Pierre Bouchard D 6 0 1 1 6000 Rejean Houle W 6 0 1 1 4000 Ken Dryden G 14 0 0 0 0000 Brian Engblom D 2 0 0 0 2000 Pierre Mondou C 4 0 0 0 0000 Mike Polich C/LW 5 0 0 0 0000 Goaltending PlayerMINGPW LGAGAA SO Ken Dryden 849 14 12 2 22 1.55 4 Team: 849 14 12 2 22 1.55 4 hockey-reference.com 2009-05-28 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/MTL/1977.html Awards and records Prince of Wales Trophy Ken Dryden and Michel Larocque, Vezina Trophy Ken Dryden, Goaltender, NHL First Team All-Star Guy Lafleur, Art Ross Trophy Guy Lafleur, Conn Smythe Trophy Guy Lafleur, Hart Memorial Trophy Guy Lafleur, Lou Marsh Trophy Guy Lafleur, right wing, NHL First Team All-Star Guy Lafleur, NHL leader, assists (80)National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 204, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 0-920445-98-5. Guy Lafleur, NHL leader, points (136) Guy Lapointe, defence, NHL Second Team All-Star Larry Robinson, defence, NHL First Team All-Star Steve Shutt, left wing, NHL First Team All-Star Steve Shutt, NHL leader, goals (60) 132 points, NHL record for most points in a season by a team +216 goal differential, NHL record for highest team differential Draft picks 1976 NHL amateur draft Round # Player Nationality College/junior/club team112Peter LeeUnited KingdomOttawa 67's (OHA)113Rod SchuttCanadaSudbury Wolves (OMJHL)118Bruce BakerCanadaOttawa 67's (OMJHL)236Barry Melrose Canada Kamloops Chiefs (WCHL)354Bill Baker United States University of Minnesota (WCHA)472Ed Clarey Canada Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)590Maurice Barrette Canada Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)6108Pierre Brassard Canada Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)7118Rich Gosselin Canada Flin Flon Bombers (WCHL)8123John Gregory Canada University of Wisconsin (WCHA)9125Bruce Horsch United States Michigan Tech University (WCHA)10127John Tavella Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL)11129Mark Davidson Canada Flin Flon Bombers (WCHL)12131Bill Wells Canada Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)13133Ron Wilson Canada St. Catharines Black Hawks (OMJHL) Notes Citations References Canadiens on Hockey Database Canadiens on NHL Reference Canadiens on Hockey Reference Category:Stanley Cup championship seasons Category:Norris Division champion seasons Category:Montreal Canadiens seasons Montreal Canadiens Category:Eastern Conference (NHL) championship seasons Montreal Category:1976 in Montreal Category:1977 in Montreal Category:1976 in sports in Quebec Category:1977 in sports in Quebec