# 2001–02 Montreal Canadiens season

The 2001–02 Montreal Canadiens season was the club's 93rd season. After missing the postseason in the three preceding seasons, the Canadiens returned to the Stanley Cup playoffs. They were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals by the Carolina Hurricanes by a series score of 4–2.

## Regular season

The Canadiens season began with a shocking announcement that team captain Saku Koivu was diagnosed with Burkitt's lymphoma, a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. This condition kept him out of all but three games in the regular season. On October 5, to respond to Koivu's absence, General Manager Andre Savard signed veteran forward Doug Gilmour to address the absence. The team began the season hovering around the .500 mark, but a five-game winning streak to end November, highlighted by spectacular performances by goaltender Jose Theodore, allowed the Canadiens to climb into the playoff mix. Around this time, Savard added offensive power to the team by acquiring Donald Audette and Shaun Van Allen from the Dallas Stars in exchange for Martin Rucinsky and Benoît Brunet. Head coach Michel Therrien and the Canadiens had a rough December, posting a record of 4–8–2–1 while the newly acquired Audette had his forearm tendons sliced by the skate of New York Rangers forward Radek Dvorak. His season was jeopardized. Despite the inconsistency of the team, Theodore was spectacular in net. In January, the Canadiens played more .500 hockey, which prompted Savard to make a change. He traded forward Brian Savage to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for Sergei Berezin. The regular season went on hold for two weeks while the 2002 Winter Olympics were taking place. When play resumed, Jose Theodore took matters into his own hands and carried the Habs into the playoffs, finishing the regular season with a record of 30–24–10, seven shutouts and a goals against average of 2.11. In the 80th game of the regular season, captain Saku Koivu returned from treatment and played his first game of the season against the Ottawa Senators. He played for the team for the rest of the season. The Canadiens made the playoffs with a record of 36–31–12–3 behind the play of eventual Hart Memorial Trophy winner Jose Thoedore.
The Canadiens finished the regular season having allowed the fewest power play goals, with just 38.

### Final standings

Northeast Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | Boston Bruins | 82 | 43 | 24 | 6 | 9 | 236 | 201 | 101 |
| 2 | 4 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 43 | 25 | 10 | 4 | 249 | 207 | 100 |
| 3 | 7 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 39 | 27 | 9 | 7 | 243 | 208 | 94 |
| 4 | 8 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 36 | 31 | 12 | 3 | 207 | 209 | 87 |
| 5 | 10 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 35 | 35 | 11 | 1 | 213 | 200 | 82 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | Z- Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 43 | 24 | 6 | 9 | 236 | 201 | 101 |
| 2 | Y- Philadelphia Flyers | AT | 82 | 42 | 27 | 10 | 3 | 234 | 192 | 97 |
| 3 | Y- Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 35 | 26 | 16 | 5 | 217 | 217 | 91 |
| 4 | X- Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 43 | 25 | 10 | 4 | 249 | 207 | 100 |
| 5 | X- New York Islanders | AT | 82 | 42 | 28 | 8 | 4 | 239 | 220 | 96 |
| 6 | X- New Jersey Devils | AT | 82 | 41 | 28 | 9 | 4 | 205 | 187 | 95 |
| 7 | X- Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 39 | 27 | 9 | 7 | 243 | 208 | 94 |
| 8 | X- Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 36 | 31 | 12 | 3 | 207 | 209 | 87 |
| 8.5 |||||||||||
| 9 | Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 36 | 33 | 11 | 2 | 228 | 240 | 85 |
| 10 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 35 | 35 | 11 | 1 | 213 | 200 | 82 |
| 11 | New York Rangers | AT | 82 | 36 | 38 | 4 | 4 | 227 | 258 | 80 |
| 12 | Pittsburgh Penguins | AT | 82 | 28 | 41 | 8 | 5 | 198 | 249 | 69 |
| 13 | Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 27 | 40 | 11 | 4 | 178 | 219 | 69 |
| 14 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 22 | 44 | 10 | 6 | 180 | 250 | 60 |
| 15 | Atlanta Thrashers | SE | 82 | 19 | 47 | 11 | 5 | 187 | 288 | 54 |
Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast
Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2001–02 regular season :
October: 5–5–1–0 (home: 2–3–1–0; road: 3–2–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordPointsRecap
1WOctober 4, 20016–4@ Ottawa Senators (2001–02)1–0–0–02Recap
2TOctober 6, 20012–2 OTToronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)1–0–1–03Recap
3WOctober 9, 20013–1Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2001–02)2–0–1–05Recap
4WOctober 12, 20013–1@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2001–02)3–0–1–07Recap
5WOctober 13, 20013–1New Jersey Devils (2001–02)4–0–1–09Recap
6LOctober 15, 20011-2New York Rangers (2001-02)4-1-1-09Recap
7LOctober 19, 20011–4@ Washington Capitals (2001–02)4–2–1–09Recap
8LOctober 20, 20011–3Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)4–3–1–09Recap
9WOctober 26, 20015–2@ Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)5–3–1–011Recap
10LOctober 27, 20011–5Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)5–4–1–011Recap
11LOctober 30, 20011–3@ Edmonton Oilers (2001–02)5–5–1–011Recap :
November: 7–3–2–1 (home: 6–0–1–0; road: 1–3–1–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordPointsRecap
12LNovember 1, 20010–4@ Vancouver Canucks (2001–02)5–6–1–011Recap
13LNovember 3, 20012–6@ Calgary Flames (2001–02)5–7–1–011Recap
14TNovember 6, 20011–1 OTColorado Avalanche (2001–02)5–7–2–012Recap
15WNovember 8, 20013–1Nashville Predators (2001–02)6–7–2–014Recap
16WNovember 10, 20013–2New York Islanders (2001–02)7–7–2–016Recap
17OTLNovember 11, 20012–3 OT@ New York Rangers (2001–02)7–7–2–117Recap
18LNovember 13, 20013–5@ Boston Bruins (2001–02)7–8–2–117Recap
19WNovember 17, 20011–0 OTFlorida Panthers (2001–02)8–8–2–119Recap
20WNovember 20, 20013–2Boston Bruins (2001–02)9–8–2–121Recap
21WNovember 22, 20015–2@ Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)10–8–2–123Recap
22WNovember 24, 20015–3Washington Capitals (2001–02)11–8–2–125Recap
23WNovember 27, 20015–1Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)12–8–2–127Recap
24TNovember 29, 20011–1 OT@ New York Islanders (2001–02)12–8–3–128Recap :
December: 4–8–2–1 (home: 2–4–1–0; road: 2–4–1–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordPointsRecap
25LDecember 1, 20011–3New York Rangers (2001–02)12–9–3–128Recap
26LDecember 3, 20012–3Chicago Blackhawks (2001–02)12–10–3–128Recap
27LDecember 5, 20011–2New Jersey Devils (2001–02)12–11–3–128Recap
28TDecember 8, 20013–3 OTPhoenix Coyotes (2001–02)12–11–4–129Recap
29WDecember 10, 20014–0Minnesota Wild (2001–02)13–11–4–131Recap
30TDecember 12, 20013–3 OT@ Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)13–11–5–132Recap
31WDecember 13, 20013–2@ Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)14–11–5–134Recap
32LDecember 15, 20014–6@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)14–12–5–134Recap
33LDecember 17, 20013–4Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)14–13–5–134Recap
34WDecember 19, 20013–1@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)15–13–5–136Recap
35LDecember 20, 20010–5@ Boston Bruins (2001–02)15–14–5–136Recap
36WDecember 22, 20012–1Los Angeles Kings (2001–02)16–14–5–138Recap
37LDecember 26, 20011–3@ Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)16–15–5–138Recap
38LDecember 28, 20010–3@ St. Louis Blues (2001–02)16–16–5–138Recap
39OTLDecember 29, 20015–6 OT@ New York Islanders (2001–02)16–16–5–239Recap :
January: 6–5–3–1 (home: 3–1–1–1; road: 3–4–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordPointsRecap
40LJanuary 3, 20022–5@ Vancouver Canucks (2001–02)16–17–5–239Recap
41WJanuary 5, 20024–2@ Calgary Flames (2001–02)17–17–5–241Recap
42LJanuary 6, 20026–7@ Edmonton Oilers (2001–02)17–18–5–241Recap
43LJanuary 8, 20022–4@ Minnesota Wild (2001–02)17–19–5–241Recap
44WJanuary 10, 20024–0New York Islanders (2001–02)18–19–5–243Recap
45TJanuary 12, 20021–1 OT@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)18–19–6–244Recap
46LJanuary 14, 20023–5Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)18–20–6–244Recap
47WJanuary 16, 20022–0Washington Capitals (2001–02)19–20–6–246Recap
48TJanuary 17, 20021–1 OT@ Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)19–20–7–247Recap
49WJanuary 19, 20025–1@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)20–20–7–249Recap
50LJanuary 21, 20025–7@ Florida Panthers (2001–02)20–21–7–249Recap
51WJanuary 23, 20025–3@ Washington Capitals (2001–02)21–21–7–251Recap
52TJanuary 26, 20021–1 OTOttawa Senators (2001–02)21–21–8–252Recap
53WJanuary 27, 20023–1San Jose Sharks (2001–02)22–21–8–254Recap
54OTLJanuary 30, 20023–4 OTBoston Bruins (2001–02)22–21–8–355Recap :
February: 3–3–0–0 (home: 1–2–0–0; road: 2–1–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordPointsRecap
55WFebruary 5, 20021–0@ New Jersey Devils (2001–02)23–21–8–357Recap
56WFebruary 7, 20021–0Pittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)24–21–8–359Recap
57LFebruary 9, 20021–4@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)24–22–8–359Recap
58LFebruary 11, 20022–3Detroit Red Wings (2001–02)24–23–8–359Recap
59LFebruary 26, 20022–5Ottawa Senators (2001–02)24–24–8–359Recap
60WFebruary 27, 20023–2@ Chicago Blackhawks (2001–02)25–24–8–361Recap :
March: 6–5–4–0 (home: 5–2–2–0; road: 1–3–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordPointsRecap
61LMarch 2, 20023–4Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)25–25–8–361Recap
62WMarch 4, 20025–3Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)26–25–8–363Recap
63WMarch 6, 20025–3Boston Bruins (2001–02)27–25–8–365Recap
64LMarch 8, 20020–3@ Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)27–26–8–365Recap
65TMarch 9, 20021–1 OTToronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)27–26–9–366Recap
66LMarch 11, 20021–2@ New York Rangers (2001–02)27–27–9–366Recap
67TMarch 14, 20023–3 OTDallas Stars (2001–02)27–27–10–367Recap
68WMarch 16, 20023–2Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)28–27–10–369Recap
69TMarch 18, 20021–1 OT@ Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)28–27–11–370Recap
70WMarch 20, 20024–1@ Florida Panthers (2001–02)29–27–11–372Recap
71TMarch 22, 20023–3 OT@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)29–27–12–373Recap
72LMarch 23, 20021–5@ Nashville Predators (2001–02)29–28–12–373Recap
73LMarch 26, 20021–2Florida Panthers (2001–02)29–29–12–373Recap
74WMarch 28, 20022–1Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)30–29–12–375Recap
75WMarch 30, 20022–1 OTPittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)31–29–12–377Recap :
April: 5–2–0–0 (home: 2–1–0–0; road: 3–1–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordPointsRecap
76WApril 1, 20023–0@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)32–29–12–379Recap
77WApril 4, 20023–1@ Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)33–29–12–381Recap
78WApril 6, 20024–1Columbus Blue Jackets (2001–02)34–29–12–383Recap
79WApril 7, 20023–1@ Ottawa Senators (2001–02)35–29–12–385Recap
80WApril 9, 20024–3Ottawa Senators (2001–02)36–29–12–387Recap
81LApril 12, 20022–5@ New Jersey Devils (2001–02)36–30–12–387Recap
82LApril 13, 20020–3Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)36–31–12–387Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point)
  Overtime loss (1 point) :

## Playoffs

In the first round of the playoffs, the Canadiens were matched against the Boston Bruins, who finished first overall in the Eastern Conference. Donald Audette lead the way with three goals and Saku Koivu had a goal and an assist to win game one 5–2 for Montreal. Game 2 would prove to be a back-and-forth affair, as both teams traded momentum. Boston won the game by a score of 6–4 despite a four-point performance from the Canadien Richard Zednik. The series shifted to Montreal, and the Canadiens won Game 3 5–3 through by a four-point performance by Koivu. This gave Montreal a 2–1 series lead. The Bruins responded in Game 4 as they won easily, 5–2. Theodore rose to the occasion in Game 5, stopping 43 of 44 shots for a 2–1 win to give the Canadiens a 3–2 series lead going back to the Molson Centre. Theodore was spectacular again in Game 6, and Yanic Perreault scored the game-winning goal to give the Canadiens a 2–1 victory. The Canadiens won the series in six games, upsetting the Conference's top seed.
The Canadiens faced the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of the playoffs. The Hurricanes won Game 1 2–0 as Hurricanes goaltender Kevin Weekes was awarded the shutout. The Carolina Hurricanes dominated the Canadiens outshooting them 46 to 16, but Theodore only yielded one goal and Koivu had a goal and an assist and the Canadiens won Game 2 4–1 to tie the series. Game 3 went to overtime and due to the heroics of Theodore, he kept his team in the game. The Habs would win Game 3 just over two minutes into overtime on a goal by Donald Audette, giving the Canadiens the series lead. The Habs had momentum in Game 4, establishing a 3–0 lead early in the third period of Game 4. The Hurricanes, however, would score three-straight goals to send the game to overtime, where 'Canes defenceman Niclas Wallin ended the game in overtime to tie the series at 2–2. With newly gained series momentum, the Hurricanes would win the next two games to win take the series at 4–2, outscoring Montreal 13–3 in the process.
2002 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (1) Boston Bruins – Canadiens win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1WApril 18, 20025–2@ Boston BruinsCanadiens lead 1–0Recap
2LApril 21, 20024–6@ Boston BruinsSeries tied 1–1Recap
3WApril 23, 20025–3Boston BruinsCanadiens lead 2–1Recap
4LApril 25, 20022–5Boston BruinsSeries tied 2–2Recap
5WApril 27, 20022–1@ Boston BruinsCanadiens lead 3–2Recap
6WApril 29, 20022–1Boston BruinsCanadiens win 4–2Recap :
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (3) Carolina Hurricanes – Hurricanes win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1LMay 3, 20020–2@ Carolina HurricanesHurricanes lead 1–0Recap
2WMay 5, 20024–1@ Carolina HurricanesSeries tied 1–1Recap
3WMay 7, 20022–1 OTCarolina HurricanesCanadiens lead 2–1Recap
4LMay 9, 20023–4 OTCarolina HurricanesSeries tied 2–2Recap
5LMay 12, 20021–5@ Carolina HurricanesHurricanes lead 3–2Recap
6LMay 13, 20022–8Carolina HurricanesHurricanes win 4–2Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Centre; D = Defence; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Canadiens only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Canadiens only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 94 | Yanic Perreault | C | 82 | 27 | 29 | 56 | −3 | 40 | 11 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Richard Zednik | RW | 82 | 22 | 22 | 44 | −3 | 59 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 3 | 6 |
| 14 | Oleg Petrov | RW | 75 | 24 | 17 | 41 | −4 | 12 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 2 |
| 93 | Doug Gilmour† | C | 70 | 10 | 31 | 41 | −7 | 48 | 12 | 4 | 6 | 10 | −2 | 16 |
| 90 | Joe Juneau | C | 70 | 8 | 28 | 36 | −3 | 10 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 5 | −6 | 6 |
| 24 | Andreas Dackell | RW | 79 | 15 | 18 | 33 | −3 | 24 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −4 | 6 |
| 43 | Patrice Brisebois | D | 71 | 4 | 29 | 33 | 9 | 25 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −4 | 2 |
| 49 | Brian Savage‡ | LW | 47 | 14 | 15 | 29 | −14 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 52 | Craig Rivet | D | 82 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 1 | 76 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| 79 | Andrei Markov | D | 56 | 5 | 19 | 24 | −1 | 24 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −2 | 8 |
| 25 | Chad Kilger | LW | 75 | 8 | 15 | 23 | −7 | 27 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| 38 | Jan Bulis | C | 53 | 9 | 10 | 19 | −2 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −6 | 6 |
| 71 | Mike Ribeiro | C | 43 | 8 | 10 | 18 | −11 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5 | Stephane Quintal | D | 75 | 6 | 10 | 16 | −7 | 87 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −2 | 12 |
| 27 | Shaun Van Allen† | C | 54 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 5 | 20 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −3 | 2 |
| 28 | Karl Dykhuis | D | 80 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 16 | 32 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| 56 | Stephane Robidas | D | 56 | 1 | 10 | 11 | −25 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 4 |
| 95 | Sergei Berezin† | LW | 29 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 45 | Arron Asham | RW | 35 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 7 | 55 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 29 | Gino Odjick | RW | 36 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 3 | 104 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −5 | 47 |
| 44 | Sheldon Souray | D | 34 | 3 | 5 | 8 | −5 | 62 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −4 | 16 |
| 26 | Martin Rucinsky‡ | LW | 18 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −1 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 82 | Donald Audette† | RW | 13 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 10 | −2 | 10 |
| 54 | Patrick Traverse | D | 25 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −7 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 51 | Francis Bouillon | D | 28 | 0 | 5 | 5 | −5 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 37 | Patrick Poulin | C | 28 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 36 | Marcel Hossa | LW | 10 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 22 | Bill Lindsay† | RW | 13 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 23 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| 39 | Reid Simpson‡ | LW | 25 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 63 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 17 | Benoit Brunet‡ | LW | 16 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −4 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 11 | Saku Koivu | C | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 4 |
| 60 | Jose Theodore | G | 67 | 0 | 2 | 2 | | 2 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 46 | Benoit Gratton | C | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 78 | Eric Landry | C | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 63 | Craig Darby | C | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Stephane Fiset† | G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 30 | Mathieu Garon | G | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 31 | Jeff Hackett | G | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 59 | Martti Jarventie | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 95 | Olivier Michaud | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |

### Goaltending

* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Canadiens only.
| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 60 | Jose Theodore | 67 | 30 | 24 | 10 | 1972 | 136 | 2.11 | .931 | 7 | 3864 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 413 | 35 | 3.06 | .915 | 0 | 686 |
| 31 | Jeff Hackett | 15 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 395 | 38 | 3.18 | .904 | 0 | 717 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Mathieu Garon | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 147 | 19 | 4.37 | .871 | 0 | 261 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Stephane Fiset† | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60 | 7 | 3.85 | .883 | 0 | 109 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 3 | 4.74 | .842 | 0 | 38 |
| 95 | Olivier Michaud | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | 0 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honour | Recipient |
| League (annual) | Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy | Saku Koivu |
| League (annual) | Hart Memorial Trophy | Jose Theodore |
| League (annual) | NHL Second All-Star Team | Jose Theodore (Goaltender) |
| League (annual) | Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award | Jose Theodore |
| League (annual) | Vezina Trophy | Jose Theodore |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Jose Theodore |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Jose Theodore (April 8) |
| League (in-season) | NHL YoungStars Game selection | Mike Ribeiro |
| Team | Jacques Beauchamp Molson Trophy | Joe Juneau |
| Team | Molson Cup | Jose Theodore |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Martti Jarventie | October 9, 2001 |
| First game | Olivier Michaud | October 30, 2001 |
| First game | Marcel Hossa | January 10, 2002 |

## Transactions

The Canadiens were involved in the following transactions from June 10, 2001, the day after the deciding game of the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 13, 2002, the day of the deciding game of the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 15, 2001 (2001-06-15) | To Montreal Canadiens Joe Juneau | To Phoenix Coyotes Future considerations |
| June 23, 2001 (2001-06-23) | To Montreal Canadiens Stephane Quintal | To Chicago Blackhawks 4th-round pick in 2001 |
| June 24, 2001 (2001-06-24) | To Montreal Canadiens Andreas Dackell | To Ottawa Senators 8th-round pick in 2001 |
| November 21, 2001 (2001-11-21) | To Montreal Canadiens Donald AudetteShaun Van Allen | To Dallas Stars Benoit BrunetMartin Rucinsky |
| January 25, 2002 (2002-01-25) | To Montreal Canadiens Sergei Berezin | To Phoenix Coyotes Brian Savage3rd-round pick in 2002 or 2003 |
| March 19, 2002 (2002-03-19) | To Montreal Canadiens Stephane Fiset | To Los Angeles Kings Future considerations |
| May 24, 2002 (2002-05-24) | To Montreal Canadiens 5th-round pick in 2002 | To Minnesota Wild Rights to Chris Dyment |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Term | Via |
| July 4, 2001 (2001-07-04) | Yanic Perreault | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3-year | Free agency |
| September 10, 2001 (2001-09-10) | Reid Simpson | St. Louis Blues | 1-year | Free agency |
| September 18, 2001 (2001-09-18) | Olivier Michaud | Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL) | 3-year | Free agency |
| October 6, 2001 (2001-10-06) | Doug Gilmour | Buffalo Sabres | 1-year | Free agency |
| March 19, 2002 (2002-03-19) | Bill Lindsay | Florida Panthers | | Waivers |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Via |
| N/A | Miloslav Guren | HC Ocelari Trinec (ELH) | Free agency (II) |
| June 20, 2001 (2001-06-20) | Barry Richter | Linkoping HC (SHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| August 7, 2001 (2001-08-07) | Andrei Bashkirov | Lausanne HC (NLA) | Free agency (VI) |
| September 1, 2001 (2001-09-01) | Josh DeWolf | Detroit Red Wings | Free agency (UFA) |
| September 7, 2001 (2001-09-07) | Mike McBain | Bracknell Bees (BISL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| October 2, 2001 (2001-10-02) | Eric Fichaud | Manitoba Moose (AHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| November 9, 2001 (2001-11-09) | Eric Bertrand | Bracknell Bees (BISL) | Free agency (VI) |
| November 19, 2001 (2001-11-19) | Jim Campbell | Chicago Blackhawks | Free agency (UFA) |
| December 26, 2001 (2001-12-26) | Matt Higgins | Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| January 30, 2002 (2002-01-30) | Reid Simpson | Nashville Predators | Waivers |
| May 6, 2002 (2002-05-06) | Xavier Delisle | Augsburger Panther (DEL) | Free agency |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term | Contract type |
| June 15, 2001 (2001-06-15) | Joe Juneau | 3-year | Re-signing |
| July 4, 2001 (2001-07-04) | Stephane Robidas | 2-year | Re-signing |
| July 9, 2001 (2001-07-09) | Craig Darby | 2-year | Re-signing |
| July 13, 2001 (2001-07-13) | Martti Jarventie | 2-year | Entry-level |
| July 13, 2001 (2001-07-13) | Vadim Tarasov | 1-year | Entry-level |
| July 13, 2001 (2001-07-13) | Timo Vertala | 2-year | Entry-level |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Arron Asham | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Francis Bouillon | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Xavier Delisle | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Mathieu Garon | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Chad Kilger | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Saku Koivu | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Gennady Razin | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2001 (2001-08-01) | Brian Savage | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 14, 2001 (2001-08-14) | Marcel Hossa | 3-year | Entry-level |
| December 1, 2001 (2001-12-01) | Karl Dykhuis | 3-year | Extension |
| December 18, 2001 (2001-12-18) | Patrice Brisebois | 3-year | Extension |
| April 22, 2002 (2002-04-22) | Jozef Balej | 3-year | Entry-level |
| April 22, 2002 (2002-04-22) | Tomas Plekanec | 3-year | Entry-level |
| June 3, 2002 (2002-06-03) | Christian Larrivee | 3-year | Entry-level |

## Draft picks

Montreal's draft picks at the 2001 NHL entry draft held at the National Car Rental Center in Sunrise, Florida.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 7 | Mike Komisarek | United States | University of Michigan (CCHA) |
| 1 | 25 | Alexander Perezhogin | Russia | Avangard Omsk (Russia) |
| 2 | 37 | Duncan Milroy | Canada | Swift Current Broncos (WHL) |
| 3 | 71 | Tomas Plekanec | Czech Republic | Rabat Kladno (Czech Republic) |
| 4 | 109 | Martti Jarventie | Finland | TPS (Finland) |
| 6 | 171 | Eric Himelfarb | Canada | Sarnia Sting (OHL) |
| 7 | 203 | Andrew Archer | Canada | Guelph Storm (OHL) |
| 9 | 266 | Viktor Ujcik | Czech Republic | Slavia Prague (Czech Republic) |