Can The Montreal Canadiens Win The Stanley Cup This Season?

It has been a very long wait for Montreal Canadiens fans, 26 years, since the last Stanley Cup. Could the wait be over with a championship in sight for 2019-’20? Or will Marc Bergevin be satisfied with his team just making the playoffs next season?

The 2018-’19 season ended in disappointment when the Habs missed out on the playoffs for the third time in the past four years. However, they recorded the most points by a team who missed the playoffs in an NHL season. Their 96 points matched the record set by the Boston Bruins in 2014-15 and the Florida Panthers in 2017-18.

The past two seasons have been disappointing for Habs fans. The fans demand more from their team, but it looks increasingly unlikely that the 2019-’20 campaign will result in a 25th Cup for the franchise. The Canadiens did, however, improve on their points tally last season as they scored 25-points more than the previous season. Is it a sign that things are going in the right direction?

If the Habs were to miss out on the playoffs this season, it would mark a piece of unwanted history as it would only be the third time that the franchise has missed out on the playoffs in three straight years. The last time this happened was between 1998 and 2001. That particular season marked the end for coach Alain Andre Savard and GM Rejean Houle after an early season record of 5-13-2.

The only other occasion when the Habs have failed to make the playoffs three times in a row came between 1919 and 1922. The NHL was only five-years-old at that time and only consisted of four teams, and only the top two progressed to the latter stages to contest the O’Brien Cup, since the Stanley Cup wasn’t introduced until 1926.

If you like to make a wager on the Habs for the coming season, they are listed at 33/1 odds with Novibet to win the Stanley Cup. The current favourites are the Tampa Bay Lightning at 7/1, but as the NHL proved last season, anything is possible. The St. Louis Blues were ranked as massive outsiders last season before going onto beat the Boston Bruins, while the Washington Capitals also won the 2018 final against the Vegas Golden Knights.

If the two previous seasons have shown anything, the Habs have a chance to contend as long as they make the playoffs this season. The 2019-20 season could finally spell the end of the drought in delivering a record-extending 25th Stanley Cup to Montreal.