Sunday, May 3, 2009

May 4, 1969: Canadiens "Forgotten Dynasty" wins Cup Number 16


On May 4 1969, the Montreal Canadiens defeated the St. Louis Blues to sweep the Stanley Cup Finals in four games.

It was the 16th Stanley Cup in the franchise's history.

Having already set then league record for wins -46- and points -103- in the regular season, Montreal swept past the New York Rangers and took six games to get past the Boston Bruins and into the final.

It would be the second straight year that the Canadiens faced the Blues in the finals, having swept them in the previous season.

Montreal goaltender Rogie Vachon allowed just three goals in the four games, recording his first career playoff shutout in game three of the series.

Head coach Claude Ruel, who replaced the legendary Toe Blake, became the eleventh rookie coach to lead his team to victory.

Montreal defenseman Serge Savard won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP after racking up fourteen points in ten games.

Savard became the first blueliner to win the award since it's inception.

The victory was the Canadiens second consecutive Cup and fourth in five years for what is known by many as the "Forgotten Dynasty".

Fourteen Canadiens players took part in all four championships that closed out the sixties.

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