2006–07 Montreal Canadiens season
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The Montreal Canadiens 2006-07 Season saw the team working to build on a 2005-06 season in which it took the eventual Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes to six games in the first round of the playoffs. Behind the leadership of goaltender Christobal Huet and captain Saku Koivu, the Canadiens poised themselves to join the elite of the Eastern Conference.
The Canadiens were only minimally active in offseason transactions, with forwards Sergei Samsonov and Mike Johnson and defenseman Janne Niinimaa representing the only additions. Forwards Jan Bulis, Richard Zednik and Mike Ribeiro moved to other teams: Bulis via free agency to Vancouver, Zednik via a trade to Washington, and Ribeiro via a trade to Dallas (for Niinimaa).
Regular season
Season standings
| Northeast Division | GP | W | L | OTL | PTS | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Sabres | 40 | 29 | 8 | 3 | 61 | 158 | 115 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 40 | 23 | 12 | 5 | 51 | 124 | 111 |
| Ottawa Senators | 42 | 22 | 18 | 2 | 46 | 135 | 121 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 42 | 19 | 17 | 6 | 44 | 141 | 140 |
| Boston Bruins | 38 | 19 | 15 | 3 | 41 | 114 | 139 |
As of January 4, 2007. For current standings, see 2006-07 NHL season
Game log
October
Record for month 6-2-3 (Home 3-1-2 Away 3-1-1)
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 1 | October 6 | Montreal | 4 - 5 | Buffalo | SO | Huet | 18,690 | 0-0-1 | 1 |
| 2 | October 7 | Montreal | 3 - 2 | Toronto | SO | Aebischer | 19,353 | 1-0-1 | 3 |
| 3 | October 11 | Montreal | 3 - 1 | Philadelphia | Aebischer | 19,256 | 2-0-1 | 5 | |
| 4 | October 14 | Ottawa | 3 - 2 | Montreal | SO | Huet | 21,273 | 2-0-2 | 6 |
| 5 | October 17 | Calgary | 4 - 5 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 3-0-2 | 8 | |
| 6 | October 18 | Montreal | 1 - 2 | Chicago | Aebischer | 11,095 | 3-1-2 | 8 | |
| 7 | October 21 | Colorado | 5 - 8 | Montreal | Aebischer | 21,273 | 4-1-2 | 10 | |
| 8 | October 23 | Buffalo | 4 - 1 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 4-2-2 | 10 | |
| 9 | October 26 | Montreal | 3 - 2 | Boston | Huet | 13,920 | 5-2-2 | 12 | |
| 10 | October 28 | Toronto | 5 - 4 | Montreal | SO | Aebischer | 21,273 | 5-2-3 | 13 |
| 11 | October 31 | Ottawa | 2 - 4 | Montreal | Aebischer | 21,273 | 6-2-3 | 15 |
November
Record for Month 8-5-0 (Home 4-2-0 Away 4-3-0)
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 12 | November 2 | Montreal | 4 - 0 | Carolina | Huet | 16,486 | 7-2-3 | 17 | |
| 13 | November 4 | New Jersey | 2 - 1 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 7-3-3 | 17 | |
| 14 | November 7 | Edmonton | 2 - 3 | Montreal | SO | Aebischer | 21,273 | 8-3-3 | 19 |
| 15 | November 11 | Montreal | 1 - 5 | Toronto | Aebischer | 19,501 | 8-4-3 | 19 | |
| 16 | November 13 | Montreal | 6 - 3 | Ottawa | Huet | 20,051 | 9-4-3 | 21 | |
| 17 | November 15 | Montreal | 3 - 1 | Tampa Bay | Huet | 19,920 | 10-4-3 | 23 | |
| 18 | November 16 | Montreal | 4 - 2 | Florida | Aebischer | 13,506 | 10-5-3 | 23 | |
| 19 | November 18 | Atlanta | 1 - 3 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 11-5-3 | 25 | |
| 20 | November 22 | Minnesota | 2 - 4 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 12-5-3 | 27 | |
| 21 | November 24 | Montreal | 2 - 1 | Buffalo | OT | Huet | 18,690 | 13-5-3 | 29 |
| 22 | November 25 | Philadelphia | 4 - 2 | Montreal | Aebischer | 21,273 | 13-6-3 | 29 | |
| 23 | November 28 | Florida | 0 - 1 | Montreal | SO | Huet | 21,273 | 14-6-3 | 31 |
| 24 | November 30 | Montreal | 2 - 4 | Carolina | Huet | 13,103 | 14-7-3 | 31 |
December
Record for Month 8-4-2 (Home 5-1-1 Away 3-3-1)
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 25 | December 2 | Toronto | 3 - 4 | Montreal | SO | Huet | 21,273 | 15-7-3 | 33 |
| 26 | December 2 | Boston | 6 - 5 | Montreal | Aebischer | 21,273 | 15-8-3 | 33 | |
| 27 | December 6 | Montreal | 1 - 2 | New Jersey | OT | Aebischer | 10,986 | 15-8-4 | 34 |
| 28 | December 7 | Montreal | 4 - 2 | NY Islanders | Huet | 9,551 | 16-8-4 | 36 | |
| 29 | December 9 | Buffalo | 3 - 2 | Montreal | SO | Huet | 21,273 | 16-8-5 | 37 |
| 30 | December 12 | Boston | 4 - 3 | Montreal | Aebischer | 21,273 | 17-8-5 | 39 | |
| 31 | December 14 | Tampa Bay | 2 - 4 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 18-8-5 | 41 | |
| 32 | December 16 | Pittsburgh | 3 - 6 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 19-8-5 | 43 | |
| 33 | December 19 | Montreal | 5 - 2 | Buffalo | Huet | 18,690 | 20-8-5 | 45 | |
| 34 | December 21 | Philadelphia | 2 - 4 | Montreal | Aebischer | 21,273 | 21-8-5 | 47 | |
| 35 | December 23 | Montreal | 2 - 4 | Boston | Huet | 17,565 | 21-9-5 | 47 | |
| 36 | December 27 | Montreal | 4 - 1 | Washington | Huet | 15,609 | 22-9-5 | 49 | |
| 37 | December 29 | Montreal | 1 - 3 | Florida | Huet | 19,772 | 22-10-5 | 49 | |
| 38 | December 30 | Montreal | 1 - 3 | Tampa Bay | Huet | 21,120 | 22-11-5 | 49 |
January
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 39 | January 2 | Tampa Bay | 2 - 5 | Montreal | Huet | 21,273 | 23-11-5 | 51 | |
| 40 | January 4 | Montreal | 1 - 5 | Washington | Huet | 11,287 | 23-12-5 | 51 |
- Green background indicates win.
- Red background indicates regulation loss.
- White background indicates overtime/shootout loss.
Season Stats
Scoring Leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| Saku Koivu | 39 | 15 | 24 | 39 | -3 | 32 |
| Sheldon Souray | 38 | 13 | 21 | 34 | +1 | 56 |
| Alexei Kovalev | 39 | 10 | 19 | 29 | -4 | 56 |
| Michael Ryder | 39 | 11 | 16 | 27 | -8 | 28 |
| Andrei Markov | 37 | 3 | 22 | 25 | +4 | 26 |
Goaltending
Note: GP = Games Played; TOI = Time On Ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OTL = Overtime Losses; GA = Goals Against; SO = Shutouts; Sv% = Save Percentage; GAA = Goals Against Average
| Player | GP | TOI | W | L | OTL | GA | SO | Sv% | GAA |
| Cristobal Huet | 28 | 1586 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 62 | 2 | .930 | 2.35 |
| David Aebischer | 14 | 791 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 39 | 0 | .908 | 2.96 |
Transactions
Trades
| July 12, 2006 | To Washington Capitals Richard Zednik |
To Montreal Canadiens 3rd round pick in 2007 |
| July 12, 2006 | To Phoenix Coyotes 4th round pick in 2007 |
To Montreal Canadiens Mike Johnson |
| September 30, 2006 | To Dallas Stars Mike Ribeiro 6th round pick in 2008 |
To Montreal Canadiens Janne Niinimaa 5th round pick in 2007 |
| December 15, 2006 | To San Jose Sharks Patrick Traverse |
To Montreal Canadiens Mathieu Biron |
Free Agents Acquired
| Player | Former Team |
| F Sergei Samsonov | Edmonton Oilers |
Free Agents Lost
| Player | Current Team |
| F Jan Bulis | Vancouver Canucks |
Draft Picks
Montreal's picks at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft in Vancouver, British Columbia.[1] The Canadiens had the 16th overall draft pick, which they traded to the San Jose Sharks for the 20th and 53rd overall picks.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | NHL Team | College/Junior/Club Team (League) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | David Fischer (D) |  United States
|
Montreal Canadiens (from San Jose) | Apple Valley High School (MSHSL) |
| 2 | 49 | Ben Maxwell (C) |  Canada
|
Montreal Canadiens | Kootenay (WHL) |
| 2 | 53 | Mathieu Carle (D) | Canada
|
Montreal Canadiens (from San Jose) | Acadie-Bathurst (QMJHL) |
| 3 | 66 | Ryan White (C) | Canada
|
Montreal Canadiens (from Chicago) | Calgary Hitmen (WHL) |
| 5 | 139 | Pavel Valentenko (D) |  Russia
|
Montreal Canadiens | Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk (Russian Superleague) |
| 7 | 199 | Cameron Cepek (D) | United States
|
Montreal Canadiens | Portland Winter Hawks (WHL) |
External Links
See also
References
- Team standings: NHL standings on espn.com
- Game log: Montreal Canadiens game log on espn.com
- Season Stats: [2] on espn.com