Montreal Canadiens: Looking Back at the Greatest Defencemen #10

Patrice Brisebois is the first Montreal Canadiens defenceman on our list after playing 15 seasons with the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.

As one of the most storied franchises in sports, the Montreal Canadiens have seen their fair share of players come and go. The Habs have had some great blueliners over the last century, so let’s take a look at who are the 10 best defenders in team history.

We start our countdown of defencemen today with Patrice Brisebois, who is the 10th best defenceman in Canadiens history.

Brisebois was drafted by the Canadiens in the second round, 30th overall in the 1989 NHL Draft. At the time, he was coming off a season with the Laval Titan where he led all defencemen on the team in scoring with 65 points in 50 games. His last season in the QMJHL was capped off with an 88 point, 70 assist performance.

His last season in the QMJHL was capped off with an 88 point, 70 assist performance.

Brisebois played 154 career games for the Titan, and 197 career points, which is 12th best in team history.

He played one more season in junior with the Drumondville Voltigeurs, but also got his first taste of pro hockey, appearing in 10 games for the Canadiens during the 1990-91 season.

The 1992-93 season was his first full year in the NHL. Brisebois contributed with 31 points over 70 games. He made 20 appearances in the playoffs that year and helped the Canadiens to their 24th Stanley Cup.

After that, the Canadiens didn’t make it past the Conference Quarterfinal three out of the next four years, with the team missing the playoffs in a lockout-shortened 1994-95 season.

Brisebois spent the first 13 seasons of his career in Montreal. He was also the assistant captain of the 2002-03 Canadiens.

He left the team in 2005 to play for the Colorado Avalanche.

Here’s what Brisebois had to say to the Montreal Gazette about the move.

"“For sure, it was a big decision (to leave) and I’m fine with it, very comfortable with it. I think I made the right choice. It was a family decision”"

He spent the next two seasons with the Avs before returning to Montreal before the 2007-08 season.

His last NHL season came a year later. Brisebois finished the year with 18 points in 63 games for the Canadiens.

The defender finished his NHL career with 1009 games played and 420 points. He played 896 of those games with the Canadiens, which puts him 13th on the all-time list for games played with the organization.

Brisebois joined the Habs organization in 2012 as Director of Player Development, but left in 2014 citing family reasons as the cause of his departure.

But he will always be remembered for being a part of the last Canadiens team to bring a  Stanley Cup back to Montreal.

Next: Montreal Canadiens: Looking Back at the Greatest Forwards #9

What is your favourite memory of Brisebois? Were you a fan of him? Let us know your thoughts below!