As we near the date of the 2026 NHL draft, it’s hard not to think back on some of the most formidable picks made in the Montreal Canadiens’ history. 55 years ago, on June 10, 1971, the Habs made not one but two franchise-altering picks.
That year, fresh off another Stanley Cup conquest, the Canadiens had the first-overall pick thanks to an astute trade by Sam Pollock a year earlier. The GM had sent Ernie Hicke and Montreal’s 1970 first-round pick to the California Golden Seals in return for Francois Lacombe and the Golden Seals’ first-round pick at the 1971 draft. The California side had finished last overall with just 45 points in 78 games, giving Montreal the first overall pick just in time for one of the most promising prospects ever to be available to draft: Guy Lafleur.
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The Canadiens therefore picked Lafleur first overall, and he would go on to become one of the best players in history. To this day, he still holds the record for most points while wearing the Sainte-Flanelle, with 1246 points in 961 games, and the record for most points in a single season with the Habs, with 136 points. A real phenomenon that marked not only the Canadiens’ history, but also the NHL’s. Nowadays, you can sometimes hear people say that Ivan Demidov is the most talented player the Canadiens have had since Lafleur, but will he be able to catch him in the history books? It remains to be seen.
If that wasn’t a good enough pick up for the Canadiens, in the second round, they drafted Larry Robinson, who, like Lafleur, has marked the team’s history. Big Bird, as he was nicknamed, put up 883 points in 1202 games with the Tricolore and also holds the record for most points in a single season by a Canadiens’ defenseman with 85.
Of course, it looks like Lane Hutson may just break that record, since he reached 78 points in just his second season, but still, Robinson’s points total and the number of games he played with the Canadiens will be hard to catch. At the end of his eight-year contract, Hutson will have played 838 games with the Habs, unless he misses some games due to injury or is moved before then, which seems highly unlikely.
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The Canadiens’ odds of making a franchise-altering pick in the upcoming draft are slim, but you can never say never, after all, Hutson was a 62nd overall pick, and there can always be some hidden gems.
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