The Montreal Canadiens are a professional North American ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL). The team plays in the Atlantic division of the NHL’s Eastern Conference. The Canadiens were founded in 1909 and are the oldest franchise in the NHL. They are one of the NHL’s Original Six franchises that include the Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, and Boston Bruins. The Canadiens have been the most successful franchise in NHL history with 24 Stanley Cup championships and 24 division titles. Their most recent Stanley Cup championship came in 1992-1993 while their most recent division title happened in 2016-2017. Their 24 Stanley Cup championships makes them the second most successful franchise in any of the four major North American sports behind only the New York Yankees and their 27 World Series titles.

The Canadiens play their home games at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. The team has yet to win a Stanley Cup championship since moving to the Bell Centre in 1996. The Canadiens have a storied history as a franchise and have had 65 NHL Hall of Famers play for their team. Notably, 36 of these players played during their three major dynasties in which they won consecutive Stanley Cup championships. They had 12 Hall of Famers between 1955 and 1960, 11 between 1964 and 1969, and 13 between 1975 and 1979. The team has also had a large number of coaches and front office staff inducted into the Hall of Fame. They have been one of the most influential franchises in NHL history.