2023–24 Montreal Canadiens season

The 2023–24 Montreal Canadiens season was the franchise's 115th season since its establishment on December 4, 1909, and their 107th season (106th season of play) as member of the National Hockey League.
On April 4, 2024, the Canadiens were eliminated from playoff contention for a third consecutive year following a 7–4 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, marking the first such drought for the franchise since 1999–2001 and only the third span collectively in the team's history.
==Standings==
===Divisional standings===
===Conference standings===
==Schedule and results==
===Preseason===
2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)	2023 preseason game log: 3–3–0 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–0)
# 	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	OT 	Decision 	Attendance 	Record 	Recap
1 	September 25 	New Jersey 	4–2 	Montreal 	 	Dobes 	20,129 	0–1–0 	
2 	September 27 	Ottawa 	3–4 	Montreal 	 	Primeau 	20,225 	1–1–0 	
3 	September 29 	Toronto 	2–1 	Montreal 	 	Primeau 	20,571 	1–2–0 	
4 	September 30 	Toronto 	3–1 	Montreal 	 	Montembeault 	20,729 	1–3–0 	
5 	October 2 	Montreal 	5–4 	Toronto 	OT 	Allen 	18,631 	2–3–0 	
6 	October 7 	Montreal 	6–4 	Ottawa 	 	Montembeault 	17,601 	3–3–0 	
===Regular season===
The regular season schedule was released on June 27, 2023.
2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log 	2023–24 game log
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October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)	October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 1–0–2)
# 	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	OT 	Decision 	Attendance 	Record 	Pts 	Recap
1 	October 11 	Montreal 	5–6 	Toronto 	SO 	Allen 	18,948 	0–0–1 	1 	
2 	October 14 	Chicago 	2–3 	Montreal 	 	Montembeault 	21,105 	1–0–1 	3 	
3 	October 17 	Minnesota 	5–2 	Montreal 	 	Montembeault 	21,105 	1–1–1 	3 	
4 	October 21 	Washington 	2–3 	Montreal 	OT 	Allen 	21,105 	2–1–1 	5 	
5 	October 23 	Montreal 	3–1 	Buffalo 	 	Allen 	13,507 	3–1–1 	7 	
6 	October 24 	New Jersey 	5–2 	Montreal 	 	Primeau 	21,105 	3–2–1 	7 	
7 	October 26 	Columbus 	3–4 	Montreal 	OT 	Montembeault 	21,105 	4–2–1 	9 	
8 	October 28 	Winnipeg 	3–4 	Montreal 	SO 	Allen 	21,105 	5–2–1 	11 	
9 	October 30 	Montreal 	2–3 	Vegas 	SO 	Montembeault 	17,791 	5–2–2 	12 	
==Player statistics==
As of April 16, 2024
===Skaters===
Regular season
Player	 	 	 	 	 	
 	82	33	44	77	−14	36
 	82	28	37	65	−4 	16
 	82	11	51	62	−24	58
 	82	20	30	50	−19	55
‡ 	49	13	22	35	−10	10
 	55	15	19	34	−11	18
 	77	16	15	31	−24	74
 	82	7 	21	28	−1 	24
 	66	17	8 	25	+4 	34
 	60	6 	18	24	−1 	24
 	70	6 	16	22	−8 	56
 	78	9 	11	20	−18	74
 	56	3 	11	14	−5 	22
 	48	7 	6 	13	−3 	16
 	62	6 	7 	13	+11	42
 	54	5 	8 	13	−12	21
 	61	3 	9 	12	+4 	59
 	44	3 	7 	10	+6 	81
 	56	3 	7 	10	−3 	57
 	45	2 	8 	10	−2 	6
 	30	5 	4 	9 	−5 	4
 	23	4 	5 	9 	−2 	0
 	59	4 	4 	8 	+2 	12
‡ 	14	3 	1 	4 	0 	6
 	23	2 	1 	3 	+2 	4
 	2 	0 	2 	2 	–2 	0
 	2 	0 	2 	2 	+2 	0
 	7 	1 	0 	1 	−3 	0
 	1 	0 	0 	1 	+1 	0
 	3 	0 	0 	0 	+1 	0
 	4 	0 	0 	0 	+2 	0
† 	17	0 	0 	0 	−3 	2
===Goaltenders===
Regular season
Player	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	41	40	2428:16	16	15	9	127	3.14	1307	.903	0	0	2	0
 	23	21	1324:50	8 	9 	4	66 	2.99	731 	.910	2	0	2	2
‡ 	21	21	1216:20	6 	12	3	74 	3.65	686 	.892	0	0	1	2
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Canadiens. Stats reflect time with the Canadiens only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Canadiens only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.
==Roster==
==Suspensions/fines==
Player 	Explanation 	Length 	Salary 	Date issued 	Ref
Brendan Gallagher	Illegal check to the head of Islanders defenceman Adam Pelech	5 games	$169,270.85	January 26, 2024	
Kaiden Guhle 	Slashing Flyers forward Travis Konecny 	1 game 	$4,496.53 	March 29, 2024 	
==Awards and honours==
===Awards===
 Regular season
Player 	Award 	Awarded 	Ref
 	NHL All-Star Game selection	January 4, 2024 	
Nick Suzuki	NHL Third Star of the Week 	February 12, 2024	
===Milestones===
 Regular Season
Player 	Milestone 	Reached 	Ref
Nick Suzuki 	300th career NHL game 	October 30, 2023 	
Jake Allen 	400th career NHL game 	November 2, 2023 	
Brendan Gallagher 	400th career NHL point 	November 2, 2023 	
Tanner Pearson 	600th career NHL game 	November 2, 2023 	
Jake Evans 	200th career NHL game 	November 11, 2023	
Johnathan Kovacevic	100th career NHL game 	November 22, 2023	
Sean Monahan 	700th career NHL game 	November 22, 2023	
Jayden Struble 	1st career NHL game 	November 22, 2023	
Cole Caufield 	100th career NHL point 	November 24, 2023	
Cayden Primeau 	1st career NHL assist1st career NHL point 	November 24, 2023	
Jayden Struble 	1st career NHL assist1st career NHL point 	November 24, 2023	
Brendan Gallagher 	700th career NHL game 	December 4, 2023 	
Jayden Struble 	1st career NHL goal 	December 9, 2023 	
Brendan Gallagher 	200th career NHL assist 	December 18, 2023	
Emil Heineman 	1st career NHL game 	December 21, 2023	
Sean Monahan 	500th career NHL point 	December 28, 2023	
Mike Matheson 	500th career NHL game 	December 30, 2023	
Mike Matheson 	200th career NHL point 	January 11, 2024 	
Jordan Harris 	100th career NHL game 	January 13, 2024 	
Joshua Roy 	1st career NHL game 	January 13, 2024 	
Joshua Roy 	1st career NHL goal1st career NHL point 	January 17, 2024 	
Joshua Roy 	1st career NHL assist 	January 20, 2024 	
Josh Anderson 	500th career NHL game 	January 23, 2024 	
Brandon Gignac 	1st career NHL goal1st career NHL point 	February 13, 2024	
Cayden Primeau 	1st career NHL shutout 	February 13, 2024	
Kaiden Guhle 	100th career NHL game 	February 29, 2024	
Jesse Ylonen 	100th career NHL game 	February 29, 2024	
Juraj Slafkovsky 	100th career NHL game 	March 2, 2024 	
Nick Suzuki 	100th career NHL goal 	March 5, 2024 	
Alex Newhook 	200th career NHL game 	March 19, 2024 	
Joel Armia 	500th career NHL game 	April 7, 2024 	
Cole Caufield 	200th career NHL game 	April 7, 2024 	
Juraj Slafkovsky 	1st career NHL hat-trick 	April 9, 2024 	
Lane Hutson 	1st career NHL game1st career NHL assist1st career NHL point	April 15, 2024 	
==Transactions==
The Canadiens have been involved in the following transactions during the 2023–24 season.
===Key===
 Contract is entry-level.
 
Contract initially takes effect in the 2024–25 season.
===Trades===
Date 	Details 	Details 	Ref
July 1, 2023 	To Washington CapitalsJoel Edmundson1 	To Montreal CanadiensMIN 3rd-round pick in 20247th-round pick in 2024 	
August 6, 2023 	To Pittsburgh Penguins Mike HoffmanRem Pitlick	To Montreal CanadiensJeff PetryCasey DeSmithNathan Legare2nd-round pick in 2025	
August 15, 2023 	To Detroit Red WingsJeff Petry 	To Montreal CanadiensGustav LindstromConditional 4th-round pick in 2025 	
September 13, 2023	To Ottawa SenatorsFuture considerations 	To Montreal CanadiensJakov Novak 	
September 19, 2023	To Vancouver CanucksCasey DeSmith 	To Montreal CanadiensTanner Pearson3rd-round pick in 2025 	
January 11, 2024 	To Buffalo SabresFuture considerations 	To Montreal CanadiensFilip Cederqvist 	
February 2, 2024 	To Winnipeg JetsSean Monahan 	To Montreal Canadiens1st-round pick in 2024Conditional 3rd-round pick in 2027 	
March 7, 2024 	To Anaheim DucksJan Mysak 	To Montreal CanadiensJacob Perreault 	
March 8, 2024 	To New Jersey DevilsJake Allen 	To Montreal CanadiensConditional 3rd-round pick in 2025 	
March 11, 2024 	To New Jersey DevilsNathan Legare 	To Montreal CanadiensArnaud Durandeau 	
====Notes====
# The Canadiens will retain 50% of Edmundson's remaining salary until the end of the current season.
# The Canadiens will retain 50% of Petry's yearly salary until the end of the 2024–25 season.
# Montreal will receive the later of Detroit or Boston's fourth-round pick in 2025.
#: Detroit previously acquired Boston's 2025 fourth-round pick as the result of a trade on March 2, 2023 that sent Tyler Bertuzzi to Boston in exchange for a conditional first-round pick in 2024 (top 10 protected) and this pick.
# Montreal will receive the Jets' third-round pick in 2027 should Winnipeg win the Stanley Cup this season.
# The Canadiens will retain 50% of Allen's yearly salary until the end of the 2024–25 season.
# Montreal will receive the Devils' second-round pick in 2025 should Allen play in 40 or more games during the 2024–25 season and if Allen's club at that time (New Jersey or otherwise) qualifies for the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs.
===Players acquired===
Date	Player 	Former team (League) 	Term 	Via 	Ref
 	Brady Keeper 	Vancouver Canucks 	1-year	Free agency	
 	Philippe Maillet	Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL)	1-year	Free agency	
 	Lias Andersson 	Los Angeles Kings 	1-year	Free agency	
 	Brandon Gignac 	Laval Rocket (AHL) 	2-year	Free agency	
 	Colin White 	Pittsburgh Penguins 	 	Waivers 	
===Players lost===
Date	Player 	New team (League) 	Term 	Via 	Ref
 	Alex Belzile 	New York Rangers 	2-year	Free agency 	
 	Jonathan Drouin 	Colorado Avalanche 	1-year	Free agency 	
 	Anthony Richard 	Boston Bruins 	1-year	Free agency 	
 	Corey Schueneman	Colorado Avalanche 	1-year	Free agency 	
 	Denis Gurianov 	Nashville Predators	1-year	Free agency 	
 	Chris Tierney 	New Jersey Devils 	1-year	Free agency 	
 	Joel Teasdale 	Iowa Wild (AHL) 	1-year	Free agency 	
 	Madison Bowey 	Dinamo Minsk (KHL) 	1-year	Free agency 	
 	Paul Byron 	 	 	Retirement 	
 	Gustav Lindstrom	Anaheim Ducks 	 	Waivers 	
 	Nicolas Beaudin 	 	 	Mutual termination	
===Signings===
Date	Player 	Term 	Ref
 	Rafael Harvey-Pinard	2-year 	
 	David Reinbacher 	3-year† 	
 	Mitchell Stephens 	1-year 	
 	Alex Newhook 	4-year 	
 	Nicolas Beaudin 	1-year 	
 	Lucas Condotta 	2-year 	
 	Jesse Ylonen 	1-year 	
 	Sam Montembeault 	3-year‡ 	
 	Florian Xhekaj 	3-year†‡	
 	Lane Hutson 	3-year† 	
 	Luke Tuch 	2-year†‡	
==Draft picks==
Below are the Montreal Canadiens' selections at the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on June 28–29, 2023, at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.
Round	# 	Player 	Pos.	Nationality	Team (League)
1 	5 	David Reinbacher 	D 	 	EHC Kloten (NL)
3 	69 	Jacob Fowler 	G 	 	Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
4 	101 	Florian Xhekaj 	LW 	 	Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL)
4 	1101	Bogdan Konyushkov	D 	 	Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod (KHL)
4 	1282	Quentin Miller 	G 	 	Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
5 	133 	Sam Harris 	LW 	 	Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL)
5 	1443	Yevgeni Volokhin 	G 	 	Mamonty Yugry (MHL)
6 	165 	Filip Eriksson 	C 	 	Växjö Lakers (J20 Nationell)
7 	197 	Luke Mittelstadt 	D 	 	University of Minnesota (B1G)
===Notes===
# The Pittsburgh Penguins' fourth-round pick went to the Montreal Canadiens as the result of a trade on July 16, 2022, that sent Jeff Petry and Ryan Poehling to Pittsburgh in exchange for Mike Matheson and this pick.
# The Vegas Golden Knights' fourth-round pick went to the Montreal Canadiens as the result of a trade on July 8, 2022, that sent Tampa Bay's fourth-round pick in 2022 to Vegas in exchange for this pick.
# The Calgary Flames' fifth-round pick went to the Montreal Canadiens as the result of a trade on February 14, 2022, that sent Tyler Toffoli to Calgary in exchange for Tyler Pitlick, Emil Heineman, a conditional first-round pick in 2022, and this pick.
==References==
Category:Montreal Canadiens seasons
Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens