Montreal Canadiens: This Date in Habs History: Canadiens Embarrass Red Wings
Montreal Canadiens dominated the Detroit Red Wings this day in 1985.
The Montreal Canadiens had many great nights over the years at the Montreal Forum. They won 22 Stanley Cups when they called The Forum home, they won close to 1500 games in that arena and scored nearly 10,000 goals inside those hallowed walls.
Not many times did they dominate an opponent as thoroughly as they dismantled the Detroit Red Wings on this day in 1985.
The 1985-86 season started out okay for the Canadiens and turned out fantastic as they won their 23rd and second to last Stanley Cup. That season started out poorly for the Detroit Red Wings and they finished, by far, as the worst team in the NHL standings with just 40 points in 80 games.
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Knowing the Canadiens would end the season as Stanley Cup champions and the Red Wings would end the season with the rights to the first overall pick should give a pretty big hint as to how an early season game would go between the two teams. There was a strong possibility the Habs would win the game, but no one could have guesses they would destroy the Red Wings as bad as they did.
By the end of the night, pretty much everything happened that you would guess happened in an NHL game in the middle of the 1980’s in Montreal. Patrick Roy allowed only one goal and won. A defence featuring Larry Robinson and Chris Chelios allowed less than 20 shots on goal. Chris Nolan made three trips to the penalty box. Bob Gainey scored shorthanded. Mats Naslund scored a goal. Joey Kocur fought twice in the same period. Guy Carbonneau scored shorthanded. Eddie Mio allowed five goals. The Canadiens won. The Red Wings did not win.
By then end of the night, the team not-so-affectionately known as the “Dead Things” would allow ten goals and lose 10-1. They actually scored early and were winning 1-0 before allowing ten unanswered goals by the Canadiens in front of 18,200 fans in the Montreal Forum.
Carbonneau led the way offensively with two goals and two assists. Chelios added three helpers. Robinson had a goal and two assists. Gainey, Naslund, Mike McPhee, Mario Tremblay and Sergio Momesso all had two points. Roy stopped 16 of the 17 shots he faced after allowing a goal by John Ogrodnick three minutes into the game and the Habs won an absolute laugher.
It wasn’t the most goals the Habs ever scored in a game. Just over 100 years ago they scored 16 in a single game which is still an NHL record to this day.
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It also wasn’t the last laugh in the Canadiens – Red Wings rivalry. Detroit would get their revenge a decade later when they scored nine on Patrick Roy and finally chased him from the Forum crease – and he never returned.