Montreal Canadiens’ Conn Smythe Trophy Winners – Hockey Writers – Canadiens History
The next Conn Smythe winner will be crowned Monday night after the epic game between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers finally came to an end after a seven-game battle. Although the Montreal Canadiens didn’t make it anywhere near the playoffs this season, the franchise has had its fair share of playoff MVP winners. Let’s take a look at these Trophy winners playing forward.
Roy and Dryden Clutch on the Net
We can argue for a long time about who was the best goaltender for the Canadiens, but one thing is for sure these two will be in the discussion. Fortunately arguing about one or the other is not our purpose today; we can only rejoice in the glory of these two amazing goalkeepers.
When anyone thinks of Ken Dryden, the first thing that comes to mind is his stoic stance in front of his net when the puck is in the opponent’s court or the game is stopped. He showed confidence in that situation, and it can be scary.
In winning his only Conn Smythe, he played in all 20 games the Canadiens played and had a 12-8 record, posting a 3.01 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage. Those numbers – especially the GAA – may not seem impressive but remember that goalies had much smaller equipment back then. Just six games into the playoffs, the leading scorer was a rookie when the following season began and, to no one’s surprise, won the Calder Trophy, which is awarded annually to the NHL’s top rookie. He remains the only rookie to win the Conn Smythe Trophy before Calder.
Related: Canadiens’ Ken Dryden – Truly One of a Kind
Dryden had a short hockey career; having won everything he left to seek new challenges in the legal field, he later became a successful politician and writer. He has written tons of hockey books, and if you haven’t read them, I highly recommend them Game Changer: The Life and Death of Steve Montador and the Future of Hockey talking about the fact that the game needs to be changed so that the players stay healthy.
As for Patrick Roy, he led the Canadiens to two Stanley Cups that they had no business winning and without “Saint-Patrick” they will continue to cling to 22 Cups. Like Dryden, he was a rookie when he led the Canadiens to their 23rd Cup with a 15-5 record, 1.93 GAA, and .923 SV%. It was a remarkable performance that he still managed to win in the 1993 Cup competition.
When fans think of Dryden’s situation when they think of him, they think of Roy’s eye on Tomas Sandstrom when “Casseau” was asked. It was the 1993 Cup finals when the Canadiens faced Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings. Roy was so strong in that postseason that Montreal won 10 consecutive overtime games, a record that may have been broken. It’s an impressive feat too, it takes 16 wins to win the Stanley Cup and the Canadiens won 10 of those in OT, meaning 63% of their wins came in overtime. It takes iron senses to handle that.
In those playoffs, Roy posted a 16-4 record with a 2.13 GAA and a .929 SV%, numbers that are even more impressive when you consider that he faced 647 shots in the postseason while facing only 504 in the loss to -1986 (diff. 143 shots). No wonder Roy is known as the “money player” who always shows up when the stakes are high.
Roy went on to win two more trophies in his career with the Colorado Avalanche and captured another Conn Smythe. To date, he is the only player who has won it with two different teams and has won it three times.
On the Blue Line Senator and Big Bird
The Conn Smythe trophy has been awarded since 1964 and so far 29 of the best pitchers, 17 pitchers and only 12 have won. Two of those 12 times were by Montreal Canadiens players; Serge “Senator” Savard and Larry “Big Bird” Robinson.
Both were members of the Canadiens’ dominant dynasty of the 1970s and were part of the “Big Three” – perhaps the best trio of defensemen any team has ever had in the NHL. Guy Lapointe was the third member of this unit and together they became the pillars of the dynasty.
Usually the Norris Trophy is awarded to the defenseman who produces the most points, something I find very annoying, there is more to being a blueliner than getting on the score sheet. However, in 1969, when Savard won the Conn Smythe, he was 11 years oldth in qualifying points, but his defensive brilliance was nevertheless considered worthy of the award.
As for Robinson, he won his Conn Smythe in 1978 and did so by tying Guy Lafleur for the most points in that playoff game. Both scored 21 points (four goals and 17 assists for “Big Bird,” as his teammates and the media often called him.) He went on to participate in two more Stanley Cups with the Canadiens before signing with the Kings as a free agent. agent in 1989.
During that time, Savard won two more Stanley Cups, in 1986 and 1993. He wasn’t on the ice, though – he was in the general manager’s office pulling the strings.
Jean Beliveau
“Le Gros Bill” had the distinct honor of receiving the first ever Conn Smythe Trophy in 1965. After the Canadiens won the Stanley Cup against the Chicago Black Hawks, it was Jean Béliveau’s turn to get the hardware: the Conn Smythe Trophy. Although he finished second in points to Bobby “Golden Jet” Hull, it was the captain of the Canadiens who received this title.
Béliveau’s illustrious career spanned 20 years, including 10 as team captain. He was a leader on and off the ice and can be credited with starting the Canadiens’ visits to sick children in hospitals at Christmas time. Today, he sits fourth in games played with the franchise, third in goals scored, second in assists, and second in points, behind only Guy Lafleur.
He didn’t win the Conn Smythe again, but that doesn’t mean his trophy case wasn’t full. He also won the Art Ross Trophy as the league’s leading scorer once, the Hart as the league’s most valuable player twice, and the Stanley Cup ten times.
Yvan Cournoyer
The Montreal speedster, nicknamed “The Runner,” won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1973. Yvan Cournoyer had 15 goals and 11 assists for 26 points, one point ahead of his closest competitor, Dennis Hull of the Black Hawks. However, in terms of goals, his nearest rival had only 10 of his 15.
Like Beliveau, he has 10 trophies to his name. In 968 games with the Canadiens, he scored 428 goals which ranks him fourth in Canadiens history and sits in sixth place with 863 points. The right-handed hitter also found his way into the NHL’s top 100 players of all time and Eric Engels’ all-time Dream Team in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.
Besides his achievements in the NHL, Cournoyer can also be remembered as the player who scored the tying goal in the eighth game of the Canada-USSR series in 1972, also known as the Series of the Century or the Summit Series. It was because of his goal that Paul Henderson had the opportunity to score the series winning goal.
Unfortunately, his career was cut short by a herniated disc. He underwent surgery with reduced results, forcing him to retire for a short time afterwards.
Bob Gainey
The best defensive tackle in the history of the game, Gainey even had a trophy built for him: the Selke Trophy. The lefty won the first four Frank J. Selke awards and also captured the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1979. It won the trophy that year even though it had only 16 points and four players had at least 20 points (Guy Lafleur, Jacques Lemaire, Don Maloney, and Phil Esposito). His defensive performance was noticed as he helped the Canadiens shut out two of the top five scoring teams in the regular season.
Related: Montreal Canadiens’ Conn Smythe Trophy winners
On their way to the Stanley Cup, the Canadiens held the Boston Bruins to two goals or less in four of seven games. Against the New York Rangers, he tripped Maloney and Esposito, who scored just three points apiece in seven games in the Stanley Cup Final.
It’s rare to see a defensive player awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy. Most of the time it is about goals scored and points scored. That’s how impressive Gainey’s defensive performance was; he defended well and kept getting overlooked.
Guy Lafleur
Finally, “Flower” or “Le Demon Blond” to French speakers, Lafleur captured the Conn Smythe Trophy in the 1977 Playoffs. The right winger led all players in scoring with 26 points (14 goals and 9 assists), finishing the playoffs with a plus-20 average.
That year, on top of the MVP Trophy playoffs, he also claimed the Lady Byng, Hart, Art Ross and Lester B. Pearson Trophies. He was selected to the first All-Star Team, which is hardly surprising given that he had 136 points in 80 games that season, a career best.
Lafleur was pushed into retirement by coach Jacques Lemaire, who reduced his ice time and forced him to retire. He was 33 when he left the ice and retired for the first time. The Canadiens organization then offered him a low-level front office job, which he eventually turned down before returning to the NHL with the Rangers in the 1988-89 season. When he returned to the Forum with the Rangers, he scored two goals against Patrick Roy as if to show the organization that he can still win in the NHL, but the Canadiens still won the game 7-5.
You don’t have to wonder who would win the Conn Smythe Trophy if the Canadiens won the Cup Final in 2021. Carey Price’s name was on it after the first round against the Toronto Maple Leafs. When will the Canadiens get there again and who will be the MVP award then? That is very hard to say right now, but I did it
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