Montreal Canadiens in Columbus tickets

The Montreal Canadiens are the oldest continuously operating professional ice hockey team in the world. Founded on December 4, 1909, as a charter member of the National Hockey Association, the Canadiens are the only existing NHL club that predates the league itself. One of the Original Six franchises that defined the NHL from 1942 through the 1967 expansion, the Canadiens have called the Bell Centre home since 1996. Before that, the team spent seven decades at the Montreal Forum, where they built a legacy unmatched in professional hockey.

With 24 Stanley Cup championships, the Canadiens hold the all-time record for any NHL franchise. The team captured its first Cup in 1916 and went on to produce two of the most dominant stretches in hockey history: five consecutive titles from 1956 to 1960 and four straight from 1976 to 1979. The Canadiens won at least one championship in every decade from the 1910s through the 1990s, a streak no other team has matched. Their 1976-77 squad set records that still stand for fewest losses in an 80-game season (8), longest home unbeaten streak (34 games), and best goal differential (+216). The franchise also became the first team in NHL history to reach 3,000 victories, hitting that milestone in December 2008.

Colloquially known as "the Habs," the Canadiens carry a cultural weight that extends well beyond the rink. The team was originally founded to represent Montreal's francophone community, and that identity remains embedded in everything from the bilingual game-day experience to the iconic red, white, and blue sweater, affectionately called "La Sainte-Flanelle" (the holy flannel). The "CH" crest, first introduced in its recognizable form during the 1917-18 season, is one of the oldest and most iconic logos in professional sports. The Canadiens' biggest rivalries are with fellow Original Six clubs the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins. The Toronto rivalry, fueled by the English-French cultural divide between Canada's two largest cities, dates back to 1917 and has produced 16 playoff meetings including five Stanley Cup Finals. The Boston rivalry runs even deeper in volume, with 34 playoff series between the two clubs, seven of which went to the Final.