2001–02 Montreal Canadiens season

The 2001–02 Montreal Canadiens season was the club's 93rd season. After missing the playoffs in the three preceding seasons, the Canadiens returned to the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Canadiens were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals by the Carolina Hurricanes by a series score of 4–2.

2001–02 Montreal Canadiens
Division4th Northeast
Conference8th Eastern
2001–02 record36-31-12-3
Goals for207
Goals against209
Team information
General managerAndre Savard
CoachMichel Therrien
CaptainSaku Koivu
Alternate captainsDoug Gilmour
Unknown
ArenaMolson Centre
Team leaders
GoalsYanic Perreault (27)
AssistsDoug Gilmour (31)
PointsYanic Perreault (56)
Penalty minutesGino Odjick (104)
Plus/minusKarl Dykhuis (+16)
WinsJose Theodore (30)
Goals against averageJose Theodore (2.11)

Regular season

The 93rd season for the Canadiens began with a shocking announcement that team captain Saku Koivu was suffering from intra-abdominal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a form of cancer. This condition kept him out of all but three games in the regular season. On October 5, to respond to Koivu's absence, General Manager Andre Savard signed veteran forward Doug Gilmour to address the absence. The team began the season hovering around the .500 mark, but a five-game winning streak to end November, highlighted by spectacular performances by goaltender Jose Theodore, allowed the Canadiens to climb into the playoff mix. Around this time, Savard added offensive power to the team by acquiring Donald Audette and Shaun Van Allen from the Dallas Stars in exchange for Martin Rucinsky and Benoit Brunet. Head Coach Michel Therrien and the Canadiens had a rough December, posting a record of 4–8–2–1 while the newly acquired Audette had his forearm tendons sliced by the skate of New York Rangers forward Radek Dvorak. His season was jeopardized. Despite the inconsistency of the team, Theodore was spectacular in net. In January, the Canadiens played more .500 hockey, which prompted Savard to make a change. He traded forward Brian Savage to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for Sergei Berezin. The regular season went on hold for two weeks while the 2002 Winter Olympics were taking place. When play resumed, Jose Theodore took matters into his own hands and carried the Habs into the playoffs, finishing the regular season with a record of 30–24–10, seven shutouts and a goals against average of 2.11. In the 80th game of the regular season, captain Saku Koivu returned from treatment and played his first game of the season against the Ottawa Senators. He played for the team for the rest of the season. The Canadiens made the playoffs with a record of 36–31–12–3 behind the play of eventual Hart Memorial Trophy winner Jose Thoedore.

The Canadiens finished the regular season having allowed the fewest power play goals, with just 38.[1]

Final standings

Northeast Division
No. CR GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
11Boston Bruins82432469236201101
24Toronto Maple Leafs824325104249207100
37Ottawa Senators8239279724320894
48Montreal Canadiens82363112320720987
510Buffalo Sabres82353511121320082

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern Conference[2]
R Div GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
1 Z- Boston BruinsNE82432469236201101
2 Y- Philadelphia FlyersAT82422710323419297
3 Y- Carolina HurricanesSE82352616521721791
4 X- Toronto Maple LeafsNE824325104249207100
5 X- New York IslandersAT8242288423922096
6 X- New Jersey DevilsAT8241289420518795
7 X- Ottawa SenatorsNE8239279724320894
8 X- Montreal CanadiensNE82363112320720987
8.5
9 Washington CapitalsSE82363311222824085
10 Buffalo SabresNE82353511121320082
11 New York RangersAT8236384422725880
12 Pittsburgh PenguinsAT8228418519824969
13 Tampa Bay LightningSE82274011417821969
14 Florida PanthersSE82224410618025060
15 Atlanta ThrashersSE82194711518728854

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

Schedule and results

Regular season results
No. R Date Score Opponent Record Points
1WOctober 4, 20016–4@ Ottawa Senators (2001–02)1–0–0–02
2TOctober 6, 20012–2 OTToronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)1–0–1–03
3WOctober 9, 20013–1Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2001–02)2–0–1–05
4WOctober 12, 20013–1@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2001–02)3–0–1–07
5WOctober 13, 20013–1New Jersey Devils (2001–02)4–0–1–09
6LOctober 15, 20011-2New York Rangers (2001-02)4-1-1-09
7LOctober 19, 20011–4@ Washington Capitals (2001–02)4–2–1–09
8LOctober 20, 20011–3Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)4–3–1–09
9WOctober 26, 20015–2@ Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)5–3–1–011
10LOctober 27, 20011–5Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)5–4–1–011
11LOctober 30, 20011–3@ Edmonton Oilers (2001–02)5–5–1–011
12LNovember 1, 20010–4@ Vancouver Canucks (2001–02)5–6–1–011
13LNovember 3, 20012–6@ Calgary Flames (2001–02)5–7–1–011
14TNovember 6, 20011–1 OTColorado Avalanche (2001–02)5–7–2–012
15WNovember 8, 20013–1Nashville Predators (2001–02)6–7–2–014
16WNovember 10, 20013–2New York Islanders (2001–02)7–7–2–016
17OTLNovember 11, 20012–3 OT@ New York Rangers (2001–02)7–7–2–117
18LNovember 13, 20013–5@ Boston Bruins (2001–02)7–8–2–117
19WNovember 17, 20011–0 OTFlorida Panthers (2001–02)8–8–2–119
20WNovember 20, 20013–2Boston Bruins (2001–02)9–8–2–121
21WNovember 22, 20015–2@ Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)10–8–2–123
22WNovember 24, 20015–3Washington Capitals (2001–02)11–8–2–125
23WNovember 27, 20015–1Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)12–8–2–127
24TNovember 29, 20011–1 OT@ New York Islanders (2001–02)12–8–3–128
25LDecember 1, 20011–3New York Rangers (2001–02)12–9–3–128
26LDecember 3, 20012–3Chicago Blackhawks (2001–02)12–10–3–128
27LDecember 5, 20011–2New Jersey Devils (2001–02)12–11–3–128
28TDecember 8, 20013–3 OTPhoenix Coyotes (2001–02)12–11–4–129
29WDecember 10, 20014–0Minnesota Wild (2001–02)13–11–4–131
30TDecember 12, 20013–3 OT@ Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)13–11–5–132
31WDecember 13, 20013–2@ Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)14–11–5–134
32LDecember 15, 20014–6@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)14–12–5–134
33LDecember 17, 20013–4Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)14–13–5–134
34WDecember 19, 20013–1@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)15–13–5–136
35LDecember 20, 20010–5@ Boston Bruins (2001–02)15–14–5–136
36WDecember 22, 20012–1Los Angeles Kings (2001–02)16–14–5–138
37LDecember 26, 20011–3@ Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)16–15–5–138
38LDecember 28, 20010–3@ St. Louis Blues (2001–02)16–16–5–138
39OTLDecember 29, 20015–6 OT@ New York Islanders (2001–02)16–16–5–239
40LJanuary 3, 20022–5@ Vancouver Canucks (2001–02)16–17–5–239
41WJanuary 5, 20024–2@ Calgary Flames (2001–02)17–17–5–241
42LJanuary 6, 20026–7@ Edmonton Oilers (2001–02)17–18–5–241
43LJanuary 8, 20022–4@ Minnesota Wild (2001–02)17–19–5–241
44WJanuary 10, 20024–0New York Islanders (2001–02)18–19–5–243
45TJanuary 12, 20021–1 OT@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)18–19–6–244
46LJanuary 14, 20023–5Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)18–20–6–244
47WJanuary 16, 20022–0Washington Capitals (2001–02)19–20–6–246
48TJanuary 17, 20021–1 OT@ Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)19–20–7–247
49WJanuary 19, 20025–1@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)20–20–7–249
50LJanuary 21, 20025–7@ Florida Panthers (2001–02)20–21–7–249
51WJanuary 23, 20025–3@ Washington Capitals (2001–02)21–21–7–251
52TJanuary 26, 20021–1 OTOttawa Senators (2001–02)21–21–8–252
53WJanuary 27, 20023–1San Jose Sharks (2001–02)22–21–8–254
54OTLJanuary 30, 20023–4 OTBoston Bruins (2001–02)22–21–8–355
55WFebruary 5, 20021–0@ New Jersey Devils (2001–02)23–21–8–357
56WFebruary 7, 20021–0Pittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)24–21–8–359
57LFebruary 9, 20021–4@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)24–22–8–359
58LFebruary 11, 20022–3Detroit Red Wings (2001–02)24–23–8–359
59LFebruary 26, 20022–5Ottawa Senators (2001–02)24–24–8–359
60WFebruary 27, 20023–2@ Chicago Blackhawks (2001–02)25–24–8–361
61LMarch 2, 20023–4Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)25–25–8–361
62WMarch 4, 20025–3Atlanta Thrashers (2001–02)26–25–8–363
63WMarch 6, 20025–3Boston Bruins (2001–02)27–25–8–365
64LMarch 8, 20020–3@ Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)27–26–8–365
65TMarch 9, 20021–1 OTToronto Maple Leafs (2001–02)27–26–9–366
66LMarch 11, 20021–2@ New York Rangers (2001–02)27–27–9–366
67TMarch 14, 20023–3 OTDallas Stars (2001–02)27–27–10–367
68WMarch 16, 20023–2Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)28–27–10–369
69TMarch 18, 20021–1 OT@ Carolina Hurricanes (2001–02)28–27–11–370
70WMarch 20, 20024–1@ Florida Panthers (2001–02)29–27–11–372
71TMarch 22, 20023–3 OT@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)29–27–12–373
72LMarch 23, 20021–5@ Nashville Predators (2001–02)29–28–12–373
73LMarch 26, 20021–2Florida Panthers (2001–02)29–29–12–373
74WMarch 28, 20022–1Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–02)30–29–12–375
75WMarch 30, 20022–1 OTPittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)31–29–12–377
76WApril 1, 20023–0@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2001–02)32–29–12–379
77WApril 4, 20023–1@ Philadelphia Flyers (2001–02)33–29–12–381
78WApril 6, 20024–1Columbus Blue Jackets (2001–02)34–29–12–383
79WApril 7, 20023–1@ Ottawa Senators (2001–02)35–29–12–385
80WApril 9, 20024–3Ottawa Senators (2001–02)36–29–12–387
81LApril 12, 20022–5@ New Jersey Devils (2001–02)36–30–12–387
82LApril 13, 20020–3Buffalo Sabres (2001–02)36–31–12–387

Playoffs

In the first round of the playoffs, the Canadiens were matched against the Boston Bruins, who finished first overall in the Eastern Conference. Donald Audette lead the way with three goals and Saku Koivu had a goal and an assist to win game one 5–2 for Montreal. Game 2 would prove to be a back-and-forth affair, as both teams traded momentum. Boston won the game by a score of 6–4 despite a four-point performance from the Canadien Richard Zednik. The series shifted to Montreal, and the Canadiens won Game 3 5–3 through by a four-point performance by Koivu. This gave Montreal a 2–1 series lead. The Bruins responded in Game 4 as they won easily, 5–2. Theodore rose to the occasion in Game 5, stopping 43 of 44 shots for a 2–1 win to give the Canadiens a 3–2 series lead going back to the Molson Centre. Theodore was spectacular again in Game 6, and Yanic Perreault scored the game-winning goal to give the Canadiens a 2–1 victory. The Canadiens won the series in six games, upsetting the Conference's top seed.

The Canadiens faced the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of the playoffs. The Hurricanes won Game 1 2–0 as Hurricanes goaltender Kevin Weekes was awarded the shutout. The Carolina Hurricanes dominated the Canadiens outshooting them 46 to 16, but Theodore only yielded one goal and Koivu had a goal and an assist and the Canadiens won Game 2 4–1 to tie the series. Game 3 went to overtime and due to the heroics of Theodore, he kept his team in the game. The Habs would win Game 3 just over two minutes into overtime on a goal by Donald Audette, giving the Canadiens the series lead. The Habs had momentum in Game 4, establishing a 3–0 lead early in the third period of Game 4. The Hurricanes, however, would score three-straight goals to send the game to overtime, where 'Canes defenceman Niclas Wallin ended the game in overtime to tie the series at 2–2. With newly gained series momentum, the Hurricanes would win the next two games to win take the series at 4–2, outscoring Montreal 13–3 in the process.

Player statistics

Regular season

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Yanic PerreaultC8227295640-3607
Richard ZednikRW8222224459-3403
Oleg PetrovRW7524174112-4316
Doug GilmourC7010314148-7502
Joe JuneauC708283610-3101
Andreas DackellRW7915183324-3232
Patrice BriseboisD7142933259211
Brian SavageLW4714152930-14702
Craig RivetD8281725761000
Andrei MarkovD565192424-1201
Chad KilgerLW758152327-7012
Jan BulisC53910198-2103
Mike RibeiroC438101812-11300
Stephane QuintalD756101687-7101
Shaun Van AllenC546915205011
Karl DykhuisD8057123216001
Stephane RobidasD561101114-25100
Sergei BerezinLW29461043301
Arron AshamRW35549557000
Gino OdjickRW364481043000
Sheldon SourayD3435862-5100
Martin RucinskyLW1826812-1100
Donald AudetteRW1315681001
Patrick TraverseD2523514-7200
Francis BouillonD2805533-5000
Patrick PoulinC2805566000
Marcel HossaLW1031422000
Bill LindsayRW13134230000
Reid SimpsonLW25112630001
Benoit BrunetLW160224-4000
Saku KoivuC302200000
Jose TheodoreG6702220000
Benoit GrattonC81018-1000
Eric LandryC201102000
Craig DarbyC200000000
Stephane FisetG200000000
Mathieu GaronG500000000
Jeff HackettG1500020000
Martti JarventieD100002000
Olivier MichaudG100000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T/OT GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Jose Theodore3864673024101362.11719721836.931
Jeff Hackett71715552383.180395357.904
Mathieu Garon2615140194.370147128.871
Stephane Fiset109201073.8506053.883
Olivier Michaud18100000.00014141.000
Team:4969823634122002.41725882388.923

Playoffs

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG
Donald AudetteRW12641010202
Doug GilmourC12461016100
Saku KoivuC1246104101
Richard ZednikRW44486200
Yanic PerreaultC113580201
Oleg PetrovRW121562001
Joe JuneauC121456000
Bill LindsayRW112242000
Andrei MarkovD121348001
Stephane QuintalD1213412000
Andreas DackellRW121236000
Craig RivetD120334000
Sergei BerezinLW61120100
Patrice BriseboisD101122000
Karl DykhuisD121128000
Gino OdjickRW1210147000
Arron AshamRW30110000
Chad KilgerLW120119000
Sheldon SourayD1201116000
Shaun Van AllenC70112000
Jan BulisC60006000
Stephane FisetG10000000
Stephane RobidasD20004000
Jose TheodoreG120000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Jose Theodore6861266353.060413378.915
Stephane Fiset3810034.7401916.842
Team:7241266383.150432394.912

[3]

Note:
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;

Awards and records

Draft picks

Montreal's draft picks at the 2001 NHL Entry Draft held at the National Car Rental Center in Sunrise, Florida.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
17Mike Komisarek United StatesUniversity of Michigan (CCHA)
125Alexander Perezhogin RussiaAvangard Omsk (Russia)
237Duncan Milroy CanadaSwift Current Broncos (WHL)
371Tomas Plekanec Czech RepublicRabat Kladno (Czech Republic)
4109Martti Jarventie FinlandTPS (Finland)
6171Eric Himelfarb CanadaSarnia Sting (OHL)
7203Andrew Archer CanadaGuelph Storm (OHL)
9266Viktor Ujcik Czech RepublicSlavia Prague (Czech Republic)

See also

References

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