Sometimes, wearing ‘C’ can become a curse
We don’t know yet who the next captain of the Canadiens will be, but it’s a pretty safe bet he won’t finish his career in Montreal.
The last captain to retire in bleu-blanc-rouge was Bob Gainey, who hung up his skates after the Canadiens lost to the Calgary Flames in the 1989 Stanley Cup Final after spending his entire 16-year NHL career in Montreal.
Since then, the Canadiens have gone through nine captains: Chris Chelios, Guy Carbonneau, Kirk Muller, Mike Keane, Pierre Turgeon, Vincent Damphousse, Saku Koivu, Brian Gionta and Max Pacioretty. They all were traded or allowed to leave after the Canadiens no longer wanted them.
The NHL has changed dramatically since the Original Six days and before free agency, when it was normal for players to spend their entire careers with one team. From 1948 until 1989, the Canadiens had only eight captains: Butch Bouchard, Maurice Richard, Doug Harvey, Jean Beliveau, Henri Richard, Yvan Cournoyer, Serge Savard and Gainey. Harvey (New York Rangers) and Savard (Winnipeg Jets) were the only two to play for another NHL team.
Teams changing captains is nothing new, but the Canadiens have a habit of turning the departure of their leader into a drama.
Chelios was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks for Denis Savard, in part because former Canadiens president Ronald Corey was worried about the future Hall of Fame defenceman’s off-ice activities. Carbonneau was traded to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Jim Montgomery after he gave the finger to a Journal de Montréal photographer — who was lurking in the trees while Carbonneau was playing golf with teammates three days following a playoff elimination and only a year after he had hoisted the Stanley Cup. Muller was in a state of shock after being traded to the New York Islanders shortly after former GM Serge Savard told him he wasn’t going to be moved. Muller was the second captain to be traded in eight months.
Eight months after the Muller deal, Keane was brought to tears when he was part of the Patrick Roy trade to the Colorado Avalanche following the future Hall of Fame goalie’s famous feud with coach Mario Tremblay. Keane felt much better after the Avalanche went on to win the Stanley Cup that season. Turgeon was dealt to the Blues 10 months after Keane was traded, requesting a move after being relegated to the third line. Damphousse then spent three seasons as captain before being dealt to the San Jose Sharks in the middle of a team flight on trade-deadline day.
Koivu spent nine seasons as captain before signing as a free agent with the Anaheim Ducks. The Canadiens went one year without a captain before Gionta took over, spending four seasons with the ‘C’ before signing as a free agent with the Buffalo Sabres.
The Canadiens went another year without a captain before Pacioretty took over for three seasons. His stint ended at the odd hour of 1:05 a.m. Monday with the announcement he was dealt to the Vegas Golden Knights after Pacioretty said he didn’t ask to be traded and Canadiens owner Geoff Molson and GM Marc Bergevin insisted he did request a trade.
There’s a chance the Canadiens might decide to go another year without a captain now, with the two leading candidates being Brendan Gallagher and Shea Weber.