1988–89 Montreal Canadiens season

The 1988–89 Montreal Canadiens season was the club's 80th season of play. The Canadiens finished first in the Adams Division, as well as the Prince of Wales Conference, with a 53–18–9 record for 115 points. The team finished second overall in the league behind the Calgary Flames, who had 117 points. Montreal defeated the Hartford Whalers, Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers in the playoffs before meeting the Flames in the Stanley Cup Finals. Calgary took the series 4–2, clinching the Cup in Game 6 on the Canadiens' vaunted home ice, the Montreal Forum. This marked the only time that a visiting team defeated them to win the Stanley Cup on Forum ice.

1988–89 Montreal Canadiens
Wales Conference champions
Adams Division champions
Division1st Adams
Conference1st Wales
1988–89 record53–18–9
Home record30–6–4
Road record23–12–5
Goals for315
Goals against218
Team information
General managerSerge Savard
CoachPat Burns
CaptainBob Gainey
Alternate captainsMats Naslund
Larry Robinson
ArenaMontreal Forum
Team leaders
GoalsMats Naslund (33)
AssistsChris Chelios (58)
PointsMats Naslund (84)
Penalty minutesShayne Corson (193)
Plus/minusGuy Carbonneau (+37)
WinsPatrick Roy (33)
Goals against averagePatrick Roy (2.47)

The Canadiens were coached by Pat Burns and captained by Bob Gainey.

Offseason

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Regular season

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For the third straight season, the Canadiens allowed the fewest goals in the NHL (218), were the least penalized team (326 short-handed situations) and allowed the fewest power-play goals (58).[1]

Final standings

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Adams Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Montreal Canadiens 80 53 18 9 315 218 115
Boston Bruins 80 37 29 14 289 256 88
Buffalo Sabres 80 38 35 7 291 299 83
Hartford Whalers 80 37 38 5 299 290 79
Quebec Nordiques 80 27 46 7 269 342 61

[2]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Record vs. opponents

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Vs. Wales Conference

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Vs. Campbell Conference

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Schedule and results

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# R Date Score Opponent Record
1 L Oct 6, 1988 2–3 @ Buffalo Sabres 0–1–0
2 W Oct 8, 1988 4–3 Minnesota North Stars 1–1–0
3 L Oct 12, 1988 5–6 Quebec Nordiques 1–2–0
4 W Oct 14, 1988 7–3 @ New Jersey Devils 2–2–0
5 L Oct 15, 1988 1–2 @ New York Islanders 2–3–0
6 L Oct 17, 1988 2–6 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–4–0
7 W Oct 19, 1988 5–4 Hartford Whalers 3–4–0
8 L Oct 21, 1988 3–5 @ Buffalo Sabres 3–5–0
9 W Oct 22, 1988 4–3 Buffalo Sabres 4–5–0
10 T Oct 25, 1988 1–1 OT @ Boston Bruins 4–5–1
11 L Oct 26, 1988 2–4 @ Detroit Red Wings 4–6–1
12 L Oct 29, 1988 4–5 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–7–1
13 W Nov 1, 1988 5–3 @ Hartford Whalers 5–7–1
14 W Nov 2, 1988 5–3 Los Angeles Kings 6–7–1
15 W Nov 5, 1988 7–2 Winnipeg Jets 7–7–1
16 T Nov 7, 1988 3–3 OT St. Louis Blues 7–7–2
17 T Nov 9, 1988 6–6 OT @ Chicago Blackhawks 7–7–3
18 W Nov 11, 1988 3–1 @ Vancouver Canucks 8–7–3
19 L Nov 13, 1988 3–7 @ Winnipeg Jets 8–8–3
20 W Nov 16, 1988 5–4 OT New York Islanders 9–8–3
21 W Nov 17, 1988 5–2 @ Boston Bruins 10–8–3
22 W Nov 19, 1988 5–3 Chicago Blackhawks 11–8–3
23 W Nov 21, 1988 4–2 @ New York Rangers 12–8–3
24 W Nov 23, 1988 2–0 Boston Bruins 13–8–3
25 L Nov 24, 1988 3–5 @ Quebec Nordiques 13–9–3
26 W Nov 26, 1988 7–5 Edmonton Oilers 14–9–3
27 W Nov 30, 1988 6–3 @ Hartford Whalers 15–9–3
28 T Dec 1, 1988 2–2 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers 15–9–4
29 W Dec 3, 1988 3–2 OT Buffalo Sabres 16–9–4
30 W Dec 5, 1988 7–2 Detroit Red Wings 17–9–4
31 T Dec 7, 1988 2–2 OT @ Minnesota North Stars 17–9–5
32 W Dec 8, 1988 5–1 @ St. Louis Blues 18–9–5
33 T Dec 10, 1988 0–0 OT Washington Capitals 18–9–6
34 W Dec 12, 1988 3–1 Boston Bruins 19–9–6
35 L Dec 15, 1988 4–6 @ Quebec Nordiques 19–10–6
36 W Dec 17, 1988 6–3 New York Rangers 20–10–6
37 W Dec 19, 1988 2–1 Hartford Whalers 21–10–6
38 W Dec 21, 1988 6–4 Quebec Nordiques 22–10–6
39 W Dec 22, 1988 4–2 @ Boston Bruins 23–10–6
40 W Dec 27, 1988 3–2 @ Los Angeles Kings 24–10–6
41 W Dec 29, 1988 4–3 @ Calgary Flames 25–10–6
42 W Dec 31, 1988 4–2 @ Edmonton Oilers 26–10–6
43 W Jan 1, 1989 4–0 @ Vancouver Canucks 27–10–6
44 W Jan 7, 1989 3–1 Boston Bruins 28–10–6
45 L Jan 9, 1989 2–3 @ Detroit Red Wings 28–11–6
46 W Jan 11, 1989 1–0 New Jersey Devils 29–11–6
47 W Jan 12, 1989 5–3 @ Boston Bruins 30–11–6
48 W Jan 14, 1989 5–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs 31–11–6
49 W Jan 18, 1989 3–1 Hartford Whalers 32–11–6
50 L Jan 19, 1989 4–6 @ Hartford Whalers 32–12–6
51 W Jan 21, 1989 4–3 Toronto Maple Leafs 33–12–6
52 L Jan 23, 1989 1–3 Calgary Flames 33–13–6
53 L Jan 27, 1989 2–4 @ Buffalo Sabres 33–14–6
54 W Jan 28, 1989 2–1 Buffalo Sabres 34–14–6
55 W Jan 31, 1989 5–1 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 35–14–6
56 W Feb 2, 1989 6–1 @ Quebec Nordiques 36–14–6
57 W Feb 4, 1989 7–5 New York Rangers 37–14–6
58 W Feb 11, 1989 5–4 New Jersey Devils 38–14–6
59 L Feb 13, 1989 2–3 Quebec Nordiques 38–15–6
60 W Feb 16, 1989 7–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers 39–15–6
61 W Feb 18, 1989 4–2 @ St. Louis Blues 40–15–6
62 T Feb 19, 1989 4–4 OT @ Chicago Blackhawks 40–15–7
63 W Feb 22, 1989 6–3 Winnipeg Jets 41–15–7
64 W Feb 25, 1989 6–1 Buffalo Sabres 42–15–7
65 W Feb 26, 1989 5–2 Vancouver Canucks 43–15–7
66 L Mar 1, 1989 0–3 @ Edmonton Oilers 43–16–7
67 W Mar 2, 1989 3–2 @ Calgary Flames 44–16–7
68 W Mar 4, 1989 6–1 @ Hartford Whalers 45–16–7
69 W Mar 8, 1989 3–2 Washington Capitals 46–16–7
70 W Mar 9, 1989 5–2 @ Quebec Nordiques 47–16–7
71 W Mar 11, 1989 5–3 Hartford Whalers 48–16–7
72 L Mar 13, 1989 3–5 New York Islanders 48–17–7
73 W Mar 15, 1989 5–2 Los Angeles Kings 49–17–7
74 L Mar 17, 1989 1–4 @ Washington Capitals 49–18–7
75 W Mar 18, 1989 7–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 50–18–7
76 W Mar 22, 1989 8–0 Quebec Nordiques 51–18–7
77 T Mar 25, 1989 1–1 OT Minnesota North Stars 51–18–8
78 W Mar 27, 1989 5–2 Boston Bruins 52–18–8
79 W Mar 30, 1989 4–2 @ Buffalo Sabres 53–18–8
80 T Apr 1, 1989 2–2 OT Philadelphia Flyers 53–18–9

Player statistics

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Forwards

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Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes

Player GP G A Pts PIM
Mats Naslund 77 33 51 84 14
Bobby Smith 80 32 51 83 69
Stephane Richer 68 25 35 60 61
Guy Carbonneau 79 26 30 56 44
Claude Lemieux 69 29 22 51 136
Shayne Corson 80 26 24 50 193
Brian Skrudland 71 12 29 41 84
Mike McPhee 73 19 22 41 74
Russ Courtnall 64 22 17 39 15
Mike Keane 69 16 19 35 69
Ryan Walter 78 14 17 31 48
Brent Gilchrist 49 8 16 24 16
Bob Gainey 49 10 7 17 34
Gilles Thibaudeau 32 6 6 12 6
Jose Charbonneau 9 1 3 4 6
Benoit Brunet 2 0 1 1 0
Stephan Lebeau 1 0 1 1 2
Jocelyn Lemieux 1 0 1 1 0
Steve Martinson 25 1 0 1 87
John Kordic 6 0 0 0 13

Defencemen

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Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes

Player GP G A Pts PIM
Chris Chelios 80 15 58 73 185
Petr Svoboda 71 8 37 45 147
Larry Robinson 74 4 26 30 22
Craig Ludwig 74 3 13 16 73
Rick Green 72 1 14 15 25
Eric Desjardins 36 2 12 14 26
Mike Lalor 12 1 4 5 15
Jyrki Lumme 21 1 3 4 10
Donald Dufresne 13 0 1 1 43

Goaltending

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Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average

Player GP W L T SO GAA
Patrick Roy 48 33 5 6 4 2.47
Brian Hayward 36 20 13 3 1 2.90
Randy Exelby 1 0 0 0 0 0.00

Playoffs

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Adams Division semi-finals

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Hartford Whalers vs. Montreal Canadiens

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Date Away Score Home Score Notes
April 5 Hartford Whalers 2 Montreal Canadiens 6
April 6 Hartford Whalers 2 Montreal Canadiens 3
April 8 Montreal Canadiens 5 Hartford Whalers 4 (OT)
April 9 Montreal Canadiens 4 Hartford Whalers 3

Montreal wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 0.

Adams Division finals

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Boston Bruins vs. Montreal Canadiens

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Date Away Score Home Score Notes
April 17 Boston Bruins 2 Montreal Canadiens 3
April 19 Boston Bruins 2 Montreal Canadiens 3 (OT)
April 21 Montreal Canadiens 5 Boston Bruins 4
April 23 Montreal Canadiens 2 Boston Bruins 3
April 25 Boston Bruins 2 Montreal Canadiens 3

Montreal wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 1.

Conference finals

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Philadelphia Flyers vs. Montreal Canadiens

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Date Away Score Home Score Notes
May 1 Philadelphia Flyers 3 Montreal Canadiens 1
May 3 Philadelphia Flyers 0 Montreal Canadiens 3
May 5 Montreal Canadiens 5 Philadelphia Flyers 1
May 7 Montreal Canadiens 3 Philadelphia Flyers 0
May 9 Philadelphia Flyers 2 Montreal Canadiens 1 (OT)
May 11 Montreal Canadiens 4 Philadelphia Flyers 2

Montreal wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 2.

Stanley Cup finals

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Montreal Canadiens vs. Calgary Flames

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The Stanley Cup Finals was decided between the top two teams during the 1988–89 NHL regular season. Co-captain Lanny McDonald scored the second Flames goal in Game 6. This turned out to be the last goal in his Hockey Hall of Fame career because he retired during the following off-season. Doug Gilmour scored two goals in the third period, including the eventual game and Cup winner to cement the victory for the Flames.

Date Away Score Home Score Notes
May 14 Montreal 2 Calgary 3
May 17 Montreal 4 Calgary 2
May 19 Calgary 3 Montreal 4 (2nd OT)
May 21 Calgary 4 Montreal 2
May 23 Montreal 2 Calgary 3
May 25 Calgary 4 Montreal 2

Calgary wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 2.

Awards and records

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Transactions

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Draft picks

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Round Pick Player Nationality College/junior/club team
1 20 Eric Charron (D)   Canada Trois-Rivières Draveurs (QMJHL)
2 34 Martin St. Amour (LW)   Canada Verdun Junior Canadiens (QMJHL)
3 46 Neil Carnes (C)   Canada Verdun Junior Canadiens (QMJHL)
4 83 Patric Kjellberg (LW)   Sweden Falu IF (Sweden)
5 93 Peter Popovic (D)   Sweden Västerås HK (Sweden)
5 104 Jean-Claude Bergeron (G)   Canada Verdun Junior Canadiens (QMJHL)
6 125 Patrik Carnback (RW)   Sweden Västra Frölunda HC (Sweden)
7 146 Tim Chase (D)   United States Tabor Academy (USHS-MA)
8 167 Sean Hill (D)   United States East High School (USHS-MN)
9 188 Harijs Vitolinsh (C)   Soviet Union Dinamo Riga (USSR)
10 209 Yuri Krivokhizha (D)   Soviet Union Dinamo Minsk (USSR)
11 230 Kevin Dahl (D)   Canada Bowling Green State University (CCHA)
12 251 Dave Kunda (D)   Canada University of Guelph (CIAU)
S 25 Peter Fish (G)   United States Boston University (Hockey East)

Farm teams

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "1988-89 NHL Summary".
  2. ^ Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
  3. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.