Division 6th Northeast 1994–95 record 18–23–7 Road record 3–18–3 | Conference 11th Eastern Home record 15–5–4 Goals for 125 | |
The 1994–95 Montreal Canadiens season was the club's 86th season of play. This was the first season since 1969–70 that the Canadiens failed to qualify for the playoffs.
Contents
Offseason
In the entry draft, the Canadiens selected Brad Brown a defenceman with their first-round pick, eighteenth over-all. The Canadiens were more fortunate with their second-round pick, selecting Jose Theodore forty-fourth over-all.
Captain Guy Carbonneau is traded to the St. Louis Blues in August 1994. Kirk Muller is named captain.
Regular season
The season started later and was abbreviated by a lockout of the players by the NHL owners. The Canadiens played only 48 games. It was a forgettable season for the Canadiens and their fans, as the team missed the playoffs for the first time in 25 years. The Canadiens only won 3 of 24 games on the road. Already gone at the season's debut were members of the formidable 1992-93 Stanley-Cup champion team, including Guy Carbonneau, Kevin Haller, Stephan Lebeau and Denis Savard. On February 9, more players from the 1992-93 team departed, as Eric Desjardins, Gilbert Dionne and John LeClair were traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Mark Recchi. Another major trade nearly two months later on April 5 would send Craig Darby, Mathieu Schneider and fan favorite Kirk Muller to the New York Islanders in exchange for Vladimir Malakhov and Pierre Turgeon. After a 7-5-4 start, Montreal won only 11 of its final 32 games, going 11-18-3. It was the first season of Patrick Roy's career in which he lost more games than he won.
The Canadiens tied the Florida Panthers and the Ottawa Senators for the fewest shorthanded goals scored during the regular season (1).
Playoffs
The Canadiens did not qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the 1969-70 season, ending a 25 year playoff streak.
Regular season
Note:
Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goalsMin, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;