Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens ( Les " Canadiens de Montréal " ) are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal , Quebec , Canada . They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . The club is officially known as " " . French nicknames for the team include " Les Canadiens " ( or " Le Canadien " ) , " Le Bleu - Blanc - et - Rouge " , " La Sainte - Flanelle " , " Le Tricolore " , " Les Glorieux " ( or " Nos Glorieux " ) , " Les Habitants " , " Le CH " and " Le Grand Club " . In English , the team ' s main nickname is the " Habs " , an abbreviation of " Les Habitants " . ( Note : Even in English , the French spelling , " Canadiens " , is always used . ) Founded in 1909 , the Canadiens are the longest continuously operating professional ice hockey team and the only existing NHL club to predate the founding of the NHL , as well as one of the oldest North American sports franchises . The franchise is one of the " Original Six " teams , a description used for teams that were part of the NHL from 1942 until the 1967 expansion . With the departure of the Quebec Nordiques in 1995 , the Canadiens are the sole NHL team in Quebec . The team ' s championship season in 1992 – 93 marks the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup . The Canadiens have won 24 Stanley Cup s ( including their first in 1916 , before the NHL existed ) , more than any other team . On a percentage basis , as of 2010 , the franchise has won 25 % of all Stanley Cup championships contested after the Challenge Cup era , making it one of the most successful professional sports teams of the traditional four major sports of Canada and the United States . Since 1996 , the Canadiens have played their home games at the Bell Centre , which was named the Molson Centre until 2003 . Former homes of the team include Jubilee Rink , Montreal Westmount Arena , Mount Royal Arena and the Montreal Forum . The Forum was considered a veritable shrine to hockey fans everywhere , and housed the team for seven decades and all but their first two Stanley Cup championships . They are known for their bitter rivalries against both the Boston Bruins and the Toronto Maple Leafs . History . 1909 - 2009 The Canadiens were founded by J . Ambrose O ' Brien on December 4 , 1909 , as a charter member of the National Hockey Association , the forerunner to the National Hockey League . It was to be the team of the francophone community in Montreal , composed of francophone players , and under francophone ownership as soon as possible . The team ' s first season was not a success , placing last . After the first year , ownership was transferred to George Kennedy of Montreal and the team ' s fortunes improved over the next seasons . The team won its first Stanley Cup championship in the 1915 – 16 season . In 1917 , with four other NHA teams , the Canadiens formed the NHL , and they won their first NHL Stanley Cup during the 1923 – 24 season , led by Howie Morenz . The team moved to the Montreal Forum for the 1926 – 27 season . In the 1930s , the club started the decade with success with Stanley Cups in 1930 and 1931 . However , the club and its then Montreal rival , the Montreal Maroons declined both on the ice and economically during the Depression . Losses grew to the point where the team owners considering selling the team to Cleveland , Ohio interests . However , local investors were found and instead it was the Maroons that suspended operations , and several of the Maroons players moved to the Canadiens . Led by the " Punch Line " of Maurice " Rocket " Richard , Toe Blake and Elmer Lach in the 1940s , the Canadiens enjoyed success again atop the NHL . From 1952 to 1960 , the franchise won six Stanley Cups , including a record five straight from 1956 to 1960 , with a new set of stars coming to prominence : Jean Beliveau , Dickie Moore , Doug Harvey , Bernie " Boom Boom " Geoffrion , Jacques Plante , and Richard ' s younger brother , Henri . The Canadiens added ten more championships in fifteen seasons from 1965 to 1979 , with another dynastic run of four straight Cups from 1976 to 1979 . In the 1976 – 77 season , the Canadiens set a modern - day record for fewest losses by only losing eight games in an 80 - game season . The next generation of stars included Guy Lafleur , Yvan Cournoyer , Ken Dryden , Pete Mahovlich , Steve Shutt , Bob Gainey , Serge Savard , Guy Lapointe and Larry Robinson . Scotty Bowman , who would later set a record for most NHL victories by a coach , was the team ' s head coach for its last five Stanley Cup victories in the 70s . The Canadiens won Stanley Cups in 1986 , led by rookie star goaltender Patrick Roy , and in 1993 , continuing their streak of winning at least one championship in every decade from the 1910s to the 1990s . In 1996 , the Habs moved from the Montreal Forum , their home during 71 seasons and 22 Stanley Cups , to the Molson Centre ( now the Bell Centre ) . On December 29 , 2008 the Canadiens won 5 - 2 over the Florida Panthers to become the first team in NHL history to reach 3 , 000 victories . Centennial celebrations . The Montreal Canadiens retired various uniform numbers as part of its leadup to its celebrations during the 2008 – 09 and 2009 – 10 seasons . As part of the scheduled events for 2009 , Montreal hosted the 2009 NHL All - Star Game , and the 2009 NHL Entry Draft . " Pour toujours , les Canadiens ! " is a 2009 Quebec feature film about the centennial celebrations , written by Jacques Savoie and directed by Sylvain Archambault . The film debuted in theatres on December 4 , 2009 , the Canadiens ' centennial . . Le Canadien in the playoffs against Ottawa Senators . They lose 1st match at the Bell Centre 2 - 4 . Canadien had finished 2nd in the East Conference , les Senateurs 7th . Team colours and mascot . The current team colours are red , blue and white . These colours have been used in combination since 1914 . The Canadiens ' colours are an important part of French Canadian culture . In the short story " The Hockey Sweater " , Roch Carrier described the influence of the Canadiens and their jersey within rural Quebec communities during the 1940s . The story was later made into an animated short , " The Sweater " , narrated by Carrier . A passage from the short appears on the 2002 issue of the Canadian five dollar bill . Logo . One of sport ' s oldest and most recognizable logos , the classic ' C ' and ' H ' of the Montreal Canadiens was first used together in the 1917 – 18 season , when the club changed its name to Club de hockey Canadien from Club athlétique Canadien , before evolving to its current form in 1952 – 53 . The ' H ' does not stand for ' Habs ' or Habitants ; this is a misconception . It actually stands for ' Hockey ' , as in ' Club de hockey Canadien ' , the official name of the team . According to NHL . com , the first man to refer to the team as " the Habs " was American Tex Rickard , owner of the Madison Square Garden , in 1924 . Rickard apparently told a reporter that the " H " on the Canadiens ' sweaters was for " Habitants . " Uniforms . The home Hockey jersey is predominantly red in colour . There are four blue and white stripes , one across each arm , one across the chest and the other across the waist . The main road sweater is mainly white with a red and blue stripe across the waist , red at the end of both arm sleeves and the shoulders are also draped with red . The basic design has been in use since 1914 , with the current version dating from 1952 . Because of the team ' s lengthy history and significance in Quebec , the sweater has been referred to as ' La Sainte - Flanelle ' ( the holy flannel sweater ) . Motto . " Nos bras meurtris vous tendent le flambeau , à vous toujours de le porter bien haut . " " To you from failing hands we throw the torch . Be yours to hold it high . " The motto is from the poem " In Flanders Fields " by John McCrae which was written in 1915 , the year before the Canadiens won their first Stanley Cup championship . Mascot . Beginning in the 2004 – 05 NHL season , the Canadiens adopted Youppi as their official mascot , the first costumed mascot in their long history . Youppi was the longtime mascot for the Montreal Expos baseball team , but was dropped from the franchise when they moved to Washington , D . C . in 2004 and became the Washington Nationals . With the switch , Youppi became the first mascot in professional sports to switch leagues . The terms of the deal was reportedly in the six figures . The team has previously had children as mascots who would skate with the team during warm - ups and during intermissions . One notable child mascot was the son of player Howie Morenz , Howie Morenz Jr . Other mascots were typically the children of players or Canadiens management . Table key . < noinclude > NHA ( 1910 – 1917 ) . From 1909 – 10 until 1916 – 17 the Canadiens played 8 seasons in the National Hockey Association ( NHA ) . They qualified for the postseason three times and won two NHA championships as well as their first Stanley Cup title . Franchise individual records . Franchise scoring leaders . These are the top - ten point - scorers in franchise history . Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season . " Note : Pos = Position ; GP = Games Played ; G = Goals ; A = Assists ; Pts = Points ; P / G = Points per game " Updated at completion of 2007 – 2008 season " Records - skaters . < nowiki > * < / nowiki > Indicates a league record . Records - goaltenders . < nowiki > * < / nowiki > Indicates a league record . Leaders . Team captains . < br clear = " all " > Head coaches . < br clear = " all " > Honoured members . Hockey Hall of Famers . In the Hockey Hall of Fame , the Canadiens boast the second - most enshrined Hall - of - Famers with forty - two . All of their inductees are from Canada ( defenceman Joe Hall was born in England but raised in Manitoba ) . Thirty - six of these players are from three separate notable dynasties : 12 from 1955 – 1960 , 11 from 1964 – 1969 and 13 from 1975 - 1979 . Howie Morenz and Georges Vezina were the first Canadiens given the honour in 1945 , while Patrick Roy and Dick Duff were the most recently inducted , in 2006 . Retired numbers . The Canadiens have retired fifteen numbers in honour of seventeen players , the most of any team in the National Hockey League , and the third highest total of any of the four major professional sports leagues of the United States and Canada . All of the honourees were born in Canada . Howie Morenz was the first honouree on November 2 , 1937 .