The 2007–08 Montreal Canadiens season was the Canadiens' 99th season of play and 91st in the National Hockey League. The Canadiens defeated the Boston Bruins by four games to three in the Eastern Conference Quarter-final before being eliminated four games to one by the Philadelphia Flyers in the Conference Semi-final.
Offseason events
Key dates prior to the start of the season: The 2007 NHL Entry Draft took place in Columbus, Ohio, on June 22–23. The free agency period began on July 1.
Regular season
Although some media picked the Canadiens to not make the playoffs, the team surprised the league with a large improvement in its play. The club won the Northeast Division title and placed first in the Eastern Conference. It was the team's first divisional title since the 1991–92 season. The team had not placed first in the Conference since the 1988–89 season.
The Canadiens retired two jersey numbers during the season with pre-game ceremonies at the Bell Centre. On November 19, 2007, the number 19 of defenceman Larry Robinson, a former member of the Big Three, was retired. On February 23, 2008, the number 23 of forward Bob Gainey was retired.
The Canadiens finished the regular season leading the NHL in power-play goals scored (90) and power-play percentage (24.06%). They also tied the Florida Panthers for the fewest shorthanded goals allowed, with three.
Highlights
On October 10, 2007, goaltender Carey Price made his NHL debut, leading the Canadiens to a 3–2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. On January 11, 2008, defenceman Andrei Markov was named to the All-Star Game starting roster. On February 19, 2008, the Montreal Canadiens came back from a 0–5 deficit against the New York Rangers to win the game in a shootout 6–5. This marks the first time in the franchise's 99-year history that they have ever come back to win a game after going down 0–5. This game was compared to some of the greatest games in team history. On March 1, 2008, the Montreal Canadiens took first place in the Eastern Conference for the first time since 1993 with a 2–1 win over the New Jersey Devils. On March 22, 2008, the Montreal Canadiens won their 11th consecutive game against the Boston Bruins dating back to March 2007, besting their previous win streak over the Bruins of 10–0 from the 1956–57 NHL season.
Final standings
Northeast Division
Eastern Conference
Game log
Green background indicates win (2 points). White background indicates overtime/shootout loss (1 point). Red background indicates regulation loss (0 point).
October
Record: 6–2–3; Home: 2–1–2; Road: 4–1–1.
November
Monthly record: 7–7–0; Home: 3–3–0; Road: 4–4–0. Season record: 13–9–3; Home: 5–4–2; Road: 8–5–1.
* Unsuccessful penalty shot for Roman Hamrlik vs Philadelphia Flyers on November 1, 2007.
December
Monthly record: 6–4–4; Home: 1–3–2; Road: 5–1–2. Season record: 19–13–7; Home: 6–7–4; Road: 13–6–3.
January
Monthly record: 8–2–2; Home: 4–1–1; Road: 4–1–1. Season record: 27–15–9; Home: 10–8–5; Road: 17–7–4.
February
Monthly record: 8–6–0; Home: 5–4–0; Road: 3–2–0. Season record: 35–21–9; Home: 15–12–5; Road: 20–9–4.
March
Monthly record: 9–4–1; Home: 5–1–1; Road: 4–3–0. Season record: 44–25–10; Home: 20–13–6; Road: 24–12–4.
* Unsuccessful penalty shot for Chris Higgins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs on March 29, 2008.
April
Monthly record: 3–0–0; Home: 2–0–0; Road: 1–0–0. Season record: 47–25–10; Home: 22–13–6; Road: 25–12–4.
Playoffs
The Montreal Canadiens clinched a playoff spot following a 7–5 victory against the Ottawa Senators on March 24, 2008, their 77th game of the season. They were the first team in the East to clinch a spot in the playoffs, won the Northeast Division and finished first in the Eastern Conference with 104 points, their highest total since the 1988–89 season.
Eastern Conference Quarter-finals: vs. (8) Boston Bruins
The Montreal Canadiens earned the top seed in the Eastern Conference by virtue of finishing with the highest point total in the conference. Some rioting occurred in downtown Montreal after the Canadiens defeated the Boston Bruins in the seventh game of the quarter-finals and advanced to play in the semi-finals.
Eastern Conference Semi-finals: vs. (6) Philadelphia Flyers
* Player scoring winning goal is shown in italics.