Montreal Canadiens: Five Best American Players To Suit Up For Habs
1. Chris Chelios
Chris Chelios of Chicago, Illinois was selected by the Montreal Canadiens with the 40th overall selection in the second round of the 1981 NHL Draft. With the benefit of hindsight, you could make the argument that Chelios should have been drafted first overall that year instead of Dale Hawerchuk.
Chelios went to the University of Wisconsin after being drafted (yes, that is where Cole Caufield is right now). He played two years there and was exceptional immediately. He scored 49 points in 43 games as a freshman and followed that with 48 points in 46 games the next year.
Chelios made his NHL debut late in the 1983-84 season, scoring two points in 12 games for the Habs but he did have ten points in 15 playoff games that spring. His rookie season of 1984-85 was fantastic as he scored 64 points in 74 games and played a tough and rugged style that was required of NHL defenders at that time. He was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team but would help the team reach loftier goals the following year.
Though it was just his second NHL campaign. Chelios played like a veteran, scoring 34 points in 41 regular season games and taking on a huge role on the team. He chipped in 11 points in 20 playoff games as the Canadiens won the Stanley Cup.
His best season with the Habs came in 1988-98. The American defender scored 73 points in 80 games and was named the Norris Trophy winner. He was also fifth on the balloting for the Hart Trophy as league MVP. His 19 points in 21 playoff games helped the Habs reach the Stanley Cup Final, but they were defeated by the Calgary Flames.
Chelios played just one more year with the Canadiens after that, before being traded to his hometown Blackhawks for Denis Savard. It was, quite possibly the worst trade in Habs history as Chelios remained a Norris caliber Defenceman for another decade.
In six full seasons with the Habs and a small part of a seventh, Chelios scored 309 points in 402 games, won a Norris Trophy and became one of the most difficult defencemen in the league for the opposition to deal with.
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He was, without a doubt, the best American the Canadiens every had. It’s too bad they traded him for a local player who was past his prime.