# 1974–75 Montreal Canadiens season

The 1974–75 Montreal Canadiens season was the 66th season in team history. The Montreal Canadiens were eliminated in the semi-finals against the Buffalo Sabres four games to two. Henri Richard would play his final season with the club.

## Offseason

Frank Mahovlich left the Canadiens, signing with the Toronto Toros of the World Hockey Association (WHA). Jacques Laperriere retired, he and Scotty Bowman unable to get along. Ken Dryden returned to the club after his law articling.

## Regular season

Henri Richard entered his 20th season with the Canadiens, but his health was failing. He played 16 games before fracturing his left ankle on November 13, 1974, in a game against Buffalo and did not play again until the spring.
Guy Lafleur had a break-out season, breaking the Canadiens' goal-scoring record of 50 goals held by Maurice Richard and Bernie Geoffrion. Lafleur finished with 53 goals and 119 points. Lafleur finally realized his potential despite a slow start to the season and missing 10 games in mid-season with an injury.

### Final standings

Norris Division vte :
| | | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | DIFF | Pts |
| 1 | Montreal Canadiens | 80 | 47 | 14 | 19 | 374 | 225 | +149 | 113 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Kings | 80 | 42 | 17 | 21 | 269 | 185 | +84 | 105 |
| 3 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 37 | 28 | 15 | 326 | 289 | +37 | 89 |
| 4 | Detroit Red Wings | 80 | 23 | 45 | 12 | 259 | 335 | −76 | 58 |
| 5 | Washington Capitals | 80 | 8 | 67 | 5 | 181 | 446 | −265 | 21 |

### Record vs. opponents

Norris Division record vs. opponents :
Vs. Wales Conference
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Norris Division
1974–75 NHL records
Team
DET
LAK
MTL
PIT
WSH
Total
Detroit
—0–5–10–4–22–45–17–14–3
Los Angeles
5–0–1—1–2–33–1–25–0–114–3–7
Montreal
4–0–22–1–3—4–1–16–016–2–6
Pittsburgh
4–21–3–21–4–1—5–111–10–3
Washington
1–50–5–10–61–5—2–21–1
Vs. Adams Division
1974–75 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
CAL
TOR
Total
Detroit
1–41–3–12–2–11–3–15–12–3
Los Angeles
3–23–1–12–1–24–0–112–4–4
Montreal
3–0–20–4–15–01–2–29–6–5
Pittsburgh
1–2–20–3–24–0–14–19–6–5
Washington
0–4–10–52–31–43–16–1
Vs. Patrick Division
1974–75 NHL records
Team
ATL
NYI
NYR
PHI
Total
Detroit
2–22–21–2–11–2–16–8–2
Los Angeles
1–2–10–1–31–1–21–2–13–6–7
Montreal
3–0–10–2–22–0–21–2–16–4–6
Pittsburgh
1–1–22–22–21–36–8–2
Washington
0–3–10–41–2–10–41–13–2
Vs. Smythe Division
1974–75 NHL records
Team
CHI
KCS
MIN
STL
VAN
Total
Detroit
1–2–13–10–2–20–3–11–35–11–4
Los Angeles
2–23–14–03–0–11–1–213–4–3
Montreal
3–0–14–04–01–2–14–016–2–2
Pittsburgh
2–1–12–0–23–11–1–23–111–4–5
Washington
1–31–30–3–10–40–42–17–1 :

## Schedule and results

Regular season schedule :
| No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Record |
| 1 | T | October 9, 1974 | 5–5 | New York Islanders (1974–75) | 0–0–1 |
| 2 | T | October 12, 1974 | 4–4 | Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) | 0–0–2 |
| 3 | L | October 15, 1974 | 3–6 | @ New York Islanders (1974–75) | 0–1–2 |
| 4 | L | October 17, 1974 | 2–3 | @ St. Louis Blues (1974–75) | 0–2–2 |
| 5 | W | October 19, 1974 | 5–1 | California Golden Seals (1974–75) | 1–2–2 |
| 6 | T | October 20, 1974 | 2–2 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) | 1–2–3 |
| 7 | W | October 23, 1974 | 3–2 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) | 2–2–3 |
| 8 | W | October 26, 1974 | 4–2 | Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) | 3–2–3 |
| 9 | L | October 27, 1974 | 2–3 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) | 3–3–3 |
| 10 | T | October 30, 1974 | 4–4 | Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) | 3–3–4 |
| 11 | W | October 31, 1974 | 3–0 | @ Washington Capitals (1974–75) | 4–3–4 |
| 12 | L | November 2, 1974 | 0–3 | Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) | 4–4–4 |
| 13 | W | November 4, 1974 | 6–1 | Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) | 5–4–4 |
| 14 | T | November 6, 1974 | 4–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) | 5–4–5 |
| 15 | W | November 9, 1974 | 4–3 | Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) | 6–4–5 |
| 16 | W | November 10, 1974 | 11–1 | @ Washington Capitals (1974–75) | 7–4–5 |
| 17 | L | November 13, 1974 | 6–8 | Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) | 7–5–5 |
| 18 | W | November 14, 1974 | 4–1 | @ Boston Bruins (1974–75) | 8–5–5 |
| 19 | T | November 16, 1974 | 4–4 | New York Rangers (1974–75) | 8–5–6 |
| 20 | W | November 18, 1974 | 9–4 | Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) | 9–5–6 |
| 21 | T | November 20, 1974 | 3–3 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) | 9–5–7 |
| 22 | W | November 22, 1974 | 7–6 | @ Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) | 10–5–7 |
| 23 | L | November 24, 1974 | 4–6 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) | 10–6–7 |
| 24 | W | November 27, 1974 | 3–2 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) | 11–6–7 |
| 25 | W | November 30, 1974 | 7–1 | St. Louis Blues (1974–75) | 12–6–7 |
| 26 | W | December 2, 1974 | 2–0 | Atlanta Flames (1974–75) | 13–6–7 |
| 27 | T | December 4, 1974 | 4–4 | Boston Bruins (1974–75) | 13–6–8 |
| 28 | W | December 7, 1974 | 5–2 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) | 14–6–8 |
| 29 | T | December 8, 1974 | 3–3 | @ New York Rangers (1974–75) | 14–6–9 |
| 30 | W | December 10, 1974 | 5–3 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) | 15–6–9 |
| 31 | T | December 12, 1974 | 3–3 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) | 15–6–10 |
| 32 | W | December 14, 1974 | 5–3 | California Golden Seals (1974–75) | 16–6–10 |
| 33 | W | December 18, 1974 | 4–3 | @ California Golden Seals (1974–75) | 17–6–10 |
| 34 | W | December 20, 1974 | 6–1 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) | 18–6–10 |
| 35 | T | December 21, 1974 | 2–2 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) | 18–6–11 |
| 36 | W | December 27, 1974 | 7–1 | Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) | 19–6–11 |
| 37 | W | December 28, 1974 | 7–2 | Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) | 20–6–11 |
| 38 | T | January 2, 1975 | 1–1 | @ Atlanta Flames (1974–75) | 20–6–12 |
| 39 | W | January 4, 1975 | 10–0 | Washington Capitals (1974–75) | 21–6–12 |
| 40 | W | January 5, 1975 | 6–4 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) | 22–6–12 |
| 41 | T | January 8, 1975 | 4–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) | 22–6–13 |
| 42 | W | January 11, 1975 | 6–0 | Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) | 23–6–13 |
| 43 | W | January 12, 1975 | 7–2 | @ Washington Capitals (1974–75) | 24–6–13 |
| 44 | W | January 15, 1975 | 5–3 | Boston Bruins (1974–75) | 25–6–13 |
| 45 | L | January 18, 1975 | 3–5 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) | 25–7–13 |
| 46 | L | January 19, 1975 | 3–6 | Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) | 25–8–13 |
| 47 | W | January 23, 1975 | 7–0 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) | 26–8–13 |
| 48 | L | January 25, 1975 | 6–7 | Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) | 26–9–13 |
| 49 | W | January 26, 1975 | 7–2 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) | 27–9–13 |
| 50 | W | January 28, 1975 | 3–1 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) | 28–9–13 |
| 51 | W | February 1, 1975 | 5–3 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) | 29–9–13 |
| 52 | W | February 2, 1975 | 5–1 | @ California Golden Seals (1974–75) | 30–9–13 |
| 53 | W | February 5, 1975 | 8–5 | Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) | 31–9–13 |
| 54 | W | February 8, 1975 | 7–1 | New York Rangers (1974–75) | 32–9–13 |
| 55 | T | February 9, 1975 | 4–4 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) | 32–9–14 |
| 56 | T | February 12, 1975 | 2–2 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) | 32–9–15 |
| 57 | W | February 15, 1975 | 12–3 | Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) | 33–9–15 |
| 58 | W | February 16, 1975 | 6–3 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) | 34–9–15 |
| 59 | T | February 18, 1975 | 4–4 | @ St. Louis Blues (1974–75) | 34–9–16 |
| 60 | W | February 20, 1975 | 6–3 | @ Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) | 35–9–16 |
| 61 | L | February 22, 1975 | 6–7 | New York Islanders (1974–75) | 35–10–16 |
| 62 | W | February 26, 1975 | 4–3 | Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) | 36–10–16 |
| 63 | L | March 1, 1975 | 3–4 | St. Louis Blues (1974–75) | 36–11–16 |
| 64 | W | March 3, 1975 | 4–2 | California Golden Seals (1974–75) | 37–11–16 |
| 65 | W | March 5, 1975 | 4–3 | @ Atlanta Flames (1974–75) | 38–11–16 |
| 66 | W | March 7, 1975 | 8–4 | Washington Capitals (1974–75) | 39–11–16 |
| 67 | W | March 9, 1975 | 5–3 | @ New York Rangers (1974–75) | 40–11–16 |
| 68 | T | March 12, 1975 | 3–3 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) | 40–11–17 |
| 69 | W | March 15, 1975 | 3–0 | Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) | 41–11–17 |
| 70 | W | March 17, 1975 | 5–1 | Atlanta Flames (1974–75) | 42–11–17 |
| 71 | W | March 19, 1975 | 2–1 | Boston Bruins (1974–75) | 43–11–17 |
| 72 | L | March 22, 1975 | 4–6 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) | 43–12–17 |
| 73 | L | March 23, 1975 | 1–2 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) | 43–13–17 |
| 74 | T | March 25, 1975 | 3–3 | @ New York Islanders (1974–75) | 43–13–18 |
| 75 | L | March 26, 1975 | 4–6 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) | 43–14–18 |
| 76 | W | March 29, 1975 | 4–1 | Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) | 44–14–18 |
| 77 | T | March 30, 1975 | 2–2 | @ Boston Bruins (1974–75) | 44–14–19 |
| 78 | W | April 2, 1975 | 6–0 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) | 45–14–19 |
| 79 | W | April 5, 1975 | 10–2 | Washington Capitals (1974–75) | 46–14–19 |
| 80 | W | April 6, 1975 | 4–2 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) | 47–14–19 |

## Player statistics
### Regular season
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Guy Lafleur | RW | 70 | 53 | 66 | 119 | 37 | 52 | 15 | 2 | 11 |
| Pete Mahovlich | C | 80 | 35 | 82 | 117 | 64 | 41 | 13 | 1 | 3 |
| Jacques Lemaire | C | 80 | 36 | 56 | 92 | 20 | 25 | 12 | 0 | 8 |
| Guy Lapointe | D | 80 | 28 | 47 | 75 | 88 | 46 | 11 | 1 | 0 |
| Yvan Cournoyer | RW | 76 | 29 | 45 | 74 | 32 | 15 | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| Yvon Lambert | LW | 80 | 32 | 35 | 67 | 74 | 26 | 10 | 0 | 3 |
| Steve Shutt | LW | 77 | 30 | 35 | 65 | 40 | 40 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| Larry Robinson | D | 80 | 14 | 47 | 61 | 76 | 61 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Serge Savard | D | 80 | 20 | 40 | 60 | 64 | 71 | 7 | 1 | 2 |
| Doug Risebrough | C | 64 | 15 | 32 | 47 | 198 | 27 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Murray Wilson | LW | 73 | 24 | 18 | 42 | 44 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 6 |
| Mario Tremblay | RW | 63 | 21 | 18 | 39 | 108 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Bob Gainey | LW | 80 | 17 | 20 | 37 | 49 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Jim Roberts | D/RW | 79 | 5 | 13 | 18 | 52 | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Glen Sather | LW | 63 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 44 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Henri Richard | C | 16 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pierre Bouchard | D | 79 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 65 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Don Awrey | D | 56 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 58 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Claude Larose | RW | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chuck Lefley | LW | 18 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Dryden | G | 56 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Van Boxmeer | D | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | −1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Glenn Goldup | RW | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michel Larocque | G | 25 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ron Andruff | C | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | −1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rick Chartraw | D/RW | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | −4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO |
| Ken Dryden | 3320 | 56 | 30 | 9 | 16 | 149 | 2.69 | 4 |
| Michel Larocque | 1480 | 25 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 74 | 3.00 | 3 |
| Team: | 4800 | 80 | 47 | 14 | 19 | 223 | 2.79 | 7 |

### Playoffs
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Guy Lafleur | RW | 11 | 12 | 7 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Pete Mahovlich | C | 11 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Jacques Lemaire | C | 11 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Yvan Cournoyer | RW | 11 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Guy Lapointe | D | 11 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Doug Risebrough | C | 11 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Serge Savard | D | 11 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steve Shutt | LW | 9 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yvon Lambert | LW | 11 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Gainey | LW | 11 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Don Awrey | D | 11 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim Roberts | D/RW | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Larry Robinson | D | 11 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Henri Richard | C | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Murray Wilson | LW | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Glen Sather | LW | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pierre Bouchard | D | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mario Tremblay | RW | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Dryden | G | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | SO |
| Ken Dryden | 688 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 29 | 2.53 | 2 |
| Team: | 688 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 29 | 2.53 | 2 |
    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 goals
    Min, 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;

## Playoffs

The Canadiens' first round opponent was the Vancouver Canucks and the Canadiens won the series in five games to advance to the semi-finals against the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres defeated the Canadiens in six games to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. The Sabres' checkers were able to shut down the Canadiens' top scorers, while the Canadiens' checkers were not able to contain the Sabres' French Connection line.

## Transactions

Following the 1975 playoffs, Henri Richard retired after 20 NHL seasons. Having been the Canadiens captain since 1971, he was succeeded in that post by Yvan Cournoyer.

## Draft picks
### NHL Draft

| = NHL All-Star | = Hall of Famer |
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | College/junior/club team |
| 1 | 5 | Cam Connor | Canada | Flin Flon Bombers (WCHL) |
| 1 | 7 | Doug Risebrough | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OMJHL) |
| 1 | 10 | Rick Chartraw | United States | Kitchener Rangers (OMJHL) |
| 1 | 12 | Mario Tremblay | Canada | Montreal Bleu Blanc Rouge (OMJHL) |
| 1 | 15 | Gord McTavish | Canada | Sudbury Wolves (OMJHL) |
| 2 | 30 | Gary MacGregor | Canada | Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) |
| 2 | 33 | Gilles Lupien | Canada | Montreal Bleu Blanc Rouge (QMJHL) |
| 3 | 51 | Marty Howe | United States | Houston Aeros (WHA) |
| 4 | 61 | Barry Legge | Canada | Winnipeg Clubs (WCHL) |
| 4 | 69 | Mike McKegney | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OMJHL) |
| 6 | 105 | John Stewart | Canada | Bowling Green University (CCHA) |
| 7 | 123 | Joe Micheletti | United States | University of Minnesota (WCHA) |
| 8 | 140 | Jamie Hislop | Canada | University of New Hampshire (ECAC) |
| 9 | 157 | Gordon Stewart | Canada | Kamloops Chiefs (WCHL) |
| 10 | 172 | Chuck Luksa | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OMJHL) |
| 11 | 187 | Cliff Cox | Canada | University of New Hampshire (ECAC) |
| 12 | 199 | Dave Lumley | Canada | University of New Hampshire (ECAC) |
| 13 | 209 | Mike Hobin | Canada | Hamilton Fincups (OMJHL) |

## Citations

* 1 2 Jenish(2008), p. 220.
* 1 2 3 Jenish(2008), p. 221.
* ↑ "1974-1975 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
* ↑ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
* ↑ "1974–75 Montreal Canadiens Games". Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved July 14, 2009.
* ↑ "1974-75 Montreal Canadiens Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved May 28, 2009.