| TEAM |
GP
Games played - Number of games the team has played
|
W
Wins - Games the team has won, either in regulation or in overtime
|
L
Losses - Games the team has lost in regulation
|
T
Ties - Games that have ended in a tie
|
PTS
Points - Team points, calculated from W, L, T, OTL and SOL; used to determine standings
|
GF
Goals for - Number of goals the team has scored
|
GA
Goals against - Number of goals scored against the team
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montreal Canadiens | 74 | 42 | 22 | 10 | 94 | 236 | 167 |
| New York Rangers | 74 | 39 | 23 | 12 | 90 | 226 | 183 |
| Boston Bruins | 74 | 37 | 27 | 10 | 84 | 259 | 216 |
| Chicago Blackhawks | 74 | 32 | 26 | 16 | 80 | 212 | 222 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 74 | 33 | 31 | 10 | 76 | 209 | 176 |
| Detroit Red Wings | 74 | 27 | 35 | 12 | 66 | 245 | 257 |
| # | SKATERS |
GP
Games played - Number of games the player has set foot on the ice
|
G
Goals - Number of goals the player has scored
|
A
Assists - Number of goals the player has assisted in
|
PTS
Points - Scoring points, calculated as the sum of G and A
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Jean Béliveau | 59 | 31 | 37 | 68 |
| 15 | Bobby Rousseau | 74 | 19 | 46 | 65 |
| 12 | Yvan Cournoyer | 64 | 28 | 32 | 60 |
| 21 | Gilles Tremblay | 71 | 23 | 28 | 51 |
| 8 | Dick Duff | 66 | 25 | 21 | 46 |
| # | #1 GOALIE |
GP
Games played - Number of games the player has set foot on the ice
|
RECORD
Record - Goalie record (W-L-T)
|
SO
Shutouts - Number of games where the goaltender has not allowed a goal
|
GAA
Goals against average - Mean goals-per-game scored on the goaltender
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rogatien Vachon | 39 | 23-13-2 | 4 | 2.48 |
| DATE | AWAY | HOME |
|---|
THE REGULAR SEASON
The start of the 1967-68 season makes it hard for Canadiens fans to keep up with all the new players in the league, following the expansion draft that allows the NHL to double in size and form two divisions, made up of six teams apiece.
More than 15 Habs players have moved on to other teams, including goalie Charlie Hodge and defenseman Jean-Guy Talbot. Wily general manager Sam Pollock, though, has positioned himself to protect and retain the team’s core players while adding promising rookies such as forward Jacques Lemaire and defenseman Serge Savard.
After winning a few games to start the season, the Habs hit the skids and begin to pile up losses. After 33 games, the team is 12th overall, dead last in the league. All that changes on December 27 in Toronto as Toe Blake’s squad skates to a 2-2 tie after overcoming a two-goal deficit.
The Canadiens begin one of the greatest regular season comebacks in NHL history. After two wins and a tie in their next three games, the team posts 12 straight wins beginning on January 6 to break the previous team record of 11 straight victories set in 1926-27. After losing to the Rangers, the Canadiens win another eight games in a row.
From December 27 to February 22, the Habs put together an incredible 22-1-2 record, rising from worst to first in the league. Over that stretch, Rogatien Vachon excels in goal and allows only 15 goals in 21 games. Jean Beliveau records 13 goals and 34 points in 23 games.
Beliveau reaches a couple of historic milestones during the course of the 1967-68 season. In October, he scores his 400th career goal. He becomes the first player in Canadiens history to reach 1,000 career points at the beginning of March.
Despite losing their last three games of the regular season, the team finishes in first place with a 42-22-10 record.
Beliveau leads the team with 68 points, including 31 goals. Claude Provost becomes the first recipient of the Bill Masterton Award, which is presented to the NHL player who has demonstrated the most perseverance and team spirit during the season.
THE PLAYOFFS
Entering the playoffs on the strength of their regular season title, the Habs begin the first round with confidence and face the Boston Bruins in the postseason for the first time since losing to the Canadiens in the 1958 Stanley Cup Final.
During the regular season, Toe Blake’s squad maintained a record of five wins and five losses against Boston. Those five defeats are the only ones the team will suffer at the Bruins’ hands that season as the Canadiens sweep the series in four straight.
In their semifinal, the Canadiens take on the Chicago Blackhawks, who beat the New York Rangers in the other Eastern quarterfinal.
The Habs continue their streak and win three more games, including the first of the series by a score of 9-2, backing the Blackhawks into a corner. Chicago avoids elimination with a 2-1 win in Game 4. Montreal, however, dashes the Blackhawks’ comeback hopes in the following game when Jacques Lemaire scores the winning goal in overtime to give the Canadiens a 4-3 victory.
Winners of the other semifinal, the expansion St. Louis Blues, coached by Scotty Bowman, reach the Stanley Cup Final in their first season in the league after eliminating Philadelphia and Minnesota. The Blues’ playoff celebrations come to an abrupt end in the Final as the Canadiens sweep the series in four straight games to capture the team’s 15th Stanley Cup.
The short series belies the closeness of the games, with all four being decided by just one goal. Yvan Cournoyer, Serge Savard, and Bobby Rousseau, in overtime, and Jean-Claude Tremblay in regulation account for the game-winning goals throughout the Finals.
It is the eighth and final Stanley Cup behind the Canadiens’ bench for Toe Blake, who also won three Cups during his playing career.
| Quarter-finals - Boston Bruins | ||||
| Date | AWAY | HOME | ||
| April 4th, 1968 | BOS 1 | MTL 2 | ||
| April 6th, 1968 | BOS 3 | MTL 5 | ||
| April 9th, 1968 | MTL 5 | BOS 2 | ||
| April 11th, 1968 | MTL 3 | BOS 2 | ||
| Canadiens won best-of-seven series 4-0 | ||||
| Semi-finals - Chicago Blackhawks | ||||
| Date | AWAY | HOME | ||
| April 18th, 1968 | CHI 2 | MTL 9 | ||
| April 20th, 1968 | CHI 1 | MTL 4 | ||
| April 23rd, 1968 | MTL 4 | CHI 2 | ||
| April 25th, 1968 | MTL 1 | CHI 2 | ||
| April 28th, 1968 | CHI 3 | MTL 4 | ||
| Canadiens won best-of-seven series 4-1 | ||||
| Stanley Cup Finals - St. Louis Blues | ||||
| Date | AWAY | HOME | ||
| May 5th, 1968 | MTL 3 | STL 2 | ||
| May 7th, 1968 | MTL 1 | STL 0 | ||
| May 9th, 1968 | STL 3 | MTL 4 | ||
| May 11th, 1968 | STL 2 | MTL 3 | ||
| Canadiens won best-of-seven series 4-0 | ||||
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