The
1969–70 Montreal Canadiens season was the club's
61st season of play. The defending Stanley Cup champions finished sixteen games above .500, but it was not enough to return to the playoffs in the powerful East Division. Montreal finished fifth after losing tiebreaker to the
New York Rangers on
goal differential, and missed the playoffs for the first time since the
1947–48 season, ending their 21-season playoff streak.
This team was the only Canadiens team between the
1948–49 season and the
1993–94 season that missed the playoffs, a span of 46 years. Montreal would go on to win another Cup the following season, becoming the first (and, as of , only) team to win the Stanley Cup, miss the playoffs and win the Cup again in successive campaigns.
Regular season
April 5, 1970 – The Montreal Canadiens were in a desperate race to qualify for the NHL playoffs. The Canadiens visit the
Chicago Black Hawks
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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. With 9:30 left in regulation time, Montreal was down by a score of 5–2. Montreal's only hope of qualifying for the playoffs was to score three more goals. Canadiens coach Claude Ruel removed his goalie,
Rogatien Vachon
Rogatien Rosaire "Rogie" Vachon (born September 8, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League.
Montrea ...
from the net. Vachon would return to the net only for faceoffs. Unfortunately, luck ran out as Chicago scored five empty net goals and win the game by a score of 10–2 combined with the Rangers 9–5 win over Detroit. Montreal missed the playoffs for the first time in 22 years.
Final standings
Record vs. opponents
Schedule and results
Player statistics
Regular season
Scoring
Goaltending
Awards and records
*
Jacques Laperriere
Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...
, Defence, NHL Second Team All-Star
Transactions
Draft picks
See also
*
1969–70 NHL season
The 1969–70 NHL season was the 53rd season of the National Hockey League. For the third straight season, the St. Louis Blues reached the Stanley Cup finals, and for the third straight year, the winners of the expansion West Division were swept ...
References
External links
Canadiens on Hockey Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:1969-70 Montreal Canadiens season
Montreal Canadiens seasons
Mon
Mon, MON or Mon. may refer to:
Places
* Mon State, a subdivision of Myanmar
* Mon, India, a town in Nagaland
* Mon district, Nagaland
* Mon, Raebareli, a village in Uttar Pradesh, India
* Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Canton of Grisons
* An ...
Mon
Mon, MON or Mon. may refer to:
Places
* Mon State, a subdivision of Myanmar
* Mon, India, a town in Nagaland
* Mon district, Nagaland
* Mon, Raebareli, a village in Uttar Pradesh, India
* Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Canton of Grisons
* An ...
1969 in Montreal
1970s in Montreal