Top 5: Ranking The Best Canadiens Captains Of All Time
Seasons With Canadiens: 15 (1941-42 to 1955-56)
Seasons As Captain: 8 (1948-49 to 1955-56)
Inducted in Hockey Hall Of Fame: 1966
The famed father of former Montreal Canadiens Pierre Bouchard was the glue that kept the Canadiens together during the rough years of the NHL in the 1940’s and early 50’s.
Despite being coached by the legendary Dick Irvin and surrounded by future Hall of Famers such as Maurice Richard, Doug Harvey and Elmer Lach, Bouchard was the undisputed leader of the team and also paved the way for future leaders such as Bernard Geoffrion, Dickie Moore and Jean Beliveau.
He was the man to talk to when things got tough. He gave you a reality check right in your face when you needed a wake up call and was one of Maurice Richard’s biggest inspirations to challenge the NHL in recognizing the French language and French Canadiens in general, in a time where the NHL was extremely political and severely criticized for its use of “phantom points” in order to bolster the stats of certain players.
Bouchard would win a Stanley Cup in 1943-44 and 1945-46, while being captain of two Stanley Cup winning teams in 1952-52 and 1955-56.
Hector “Toe” Blake
Seasons With Canadiens: 13 (1935-36 to 1947-48)
Seasons As Captain: 8 (1940-41 to 1947-48)
Inducted in Hockey Hall Of Fame: 1966
Toe Blake was such a legendary coach that people often forget that he’s a Hall of Fame player and one of the best captains in Canadiens’ history.
Blake was a five time All-Star, a Hart Trophy winner (1938-39) and won the Lady Byng in 1945-46. He won three Stanley Cups as a player before winning eight more as a coach.
After playing 8 games with the Montreal Maroons during the 1934-35 season, Blake jumped shipped to the Canadiens the following season and has called the Montreal Forum home for the rest of his life.
Nicknamed “The Old Lamplighter” for his scoring consistency, Blake would lead the famed “Punch Line” with Elmer Lach and Maurice Richard to legendary status. He would play the game with a great mixture of grit and skill making him one of the most feared forwards of his generation.
Blake’s success as a coach is due to his years as captain, being a great communicator to his teammates, coaches and to fans as well. He was an inspiring figure all around.
Yvan Cournoyer
Seasons With Canadiens: 16 (1963-64 to 1978-79)
Seasons As Captain: 4 (1975-76 to 1978-79)
Inducted in Hockey Hall Of Fame: 1982
“The Roadrunner”, Yvan Cournoyer was one of the fastest skaters of all time.
With his blazing speed he’d swiftly leave his opponents in the dust and was a corner stone of the Canadiens’ dominance of the 1970’s. The 5’7″ forward would often create highlight reel moments, skating from one end of the ice to the other to score one of his career 428 goals.
Once criticized for his poor defensive play, Cournoyer took the criticism to heart and elevated his game to a point where he scored more goals and played better in his zone all at once.
Teammates adored the jolly personality of Cournoyer and when he was named captain in 1975, Cournoyer vowed to make the best of the time he had left in the NHL and pushed his teammates to the maximum. The result was 4 Stanley Cups in the 4 years he was captain, including the fabled 1975-76 season where the Canadiens went 60-8-12 in the season.
The Cournoyer-led Canadiens obliterated their opponents with 127,132,129 and 115 point seasons, the core of their 8 consecutive seasons with at least 100 points.
Bob Gainey
Seasons With Canadiens: 16 (1973-74 to 1988-89)
Seasons As Captain: 8 (1981-82 to 1988-89)
Inducted in Hockey Hall Of Fame: 1992
The inaugural winner of the Selke trophy that he won four times, Bob Gainey is widely considered as one of the best defensive forwards in the history of the game.
Gainey had all the tools to be a successful player in the NHL. Legendary Soviet coach Anatoli Tarasov once said of Gainey as being “technically the best player in the world.” He would quietly work his craft in almost constant perfect shifts and drew the respect of teammates and opponents alike.
He would be named captain in 1981, an honor whiched moved the very stoic man, as he would now be the leader of the only team he played for. Gainey would never take a day off and was legendary for playing with serious injuries, yet still be able to perform at the top of his game.
In a decade where contracts were starting to fatten and younger players fantasized of being sports celebrities, Bob Gainey inspired many with his old school approach to life and led a bunch of ragtag and misfit youngsters with an attitude such as Patrick Roy, Claude Lemieux, Shayne Corson, Stephane Richer and Chris Chelios to a Stanley Cup victory in 1986 and would again reach the finals in 1989.
Seasons With Canadiens: 20 (1950-51, 1952-53 to 1970-71)
Seasons As Captain: 10 (1961-62 to 1970-71)
Inducted in Hockey Hall Of Fame: 1972
The most famed and most tenured captain in the history of the Montreal Canadiens and one of the greatest captains in NHL history. Jean Beliveau was destined for greatness since day one.
The Canadiens wanted Beliveau badly. The Canadiens had their eyes on Beliveau since his junior days playing for the Quebec Citadelles. Lore has it the Canadiens tried to sign Beliveau multiple times but the Trois-Rivieres native wasn’t fond of the idea of leaving the city he now called home.
In an absolute coup that would never happen today, after seeing Beliveau sign with the Quebec Aces, the Canadiens bought the entire Quebec Senior League in order to obtain the rights to Beliveau. The youngster finally obliged and finally began his 20 year playing career with the bleu-blanc-rouge.
“Le Gros Bill” was the epidome of being a gentleman and a good person. He would would welcome rookies, give sound advice to veterans and with only a few words would break the cold streak of any player. Off the ice, he was adored by fans in which he always gave the time of day. He would participate in numerous charity events and signed countless autographs to anyone who would ask.
Jean Beliveau personified what it was to be a captain. An absolute menace on the ice who played with unparalled passion and a beyond friendly personality off the ice that would elevate his status to legend.
For ten years Beliveau captained the Montreal Canadiens in what he described as “the greatest honor he ever received”, the longest tenured captain in team history. Even after his retirement in 1971 until his death in 2014, Beliveau represented the Canadiens and the game of hockey in the same manner when he was a player.
A true gentleman and one of the greatest of all time.
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