For many, the Canadian is a religion, a historic organization, the most successful in ice hockey. Beyond the 24 Stanley Cups, the Habs are a reflection of Quebec society, the book says The CH and its people.

• Also read: “I don’t understand why Nick Suzuki, the captain, didn’t learn French”

Author Brendan Kelly was aware that there were numerous books about CH and, as a former arts and entertainment journalist, wanted to bring a different perspective. At first he wondered about the reasons for the decline of the Canadian, who sees the CH as a “cultural entity trying to retain its supporters”.

The Montrealer quickly noticed that the parallels between the club’s history and that of Quebec were numerous and significant.

“The Maurice Richard rebellion in 1955 is the perfect example,” says Kelly, recalling that the club was founded in 1909 for French Canadians. The Canadian’s story completely changed society. It was one of the catalysts for the Quiet Revolution. People were angry because Maurice had been suspended from the Anglophone-run league even though he was the French-Canadian hero.”

Effervescence and referendums

In the 1970s, the 62-year-old began following the Canadian’s activities with Guy Lafleur, Serge Savard, Yvan Cournoyer, Yvon Lambert and Jacques Lemaire.

“Everything was fine. With the rise of nationalism and the Parti Québécois, there was excitement in society, in the arts and in politics. We had the Olympics. At the same time, we had perhaps the best teams in the history of ice hockey. The Flying French [les «francophones volants»] were the leaders. But there were also English-speaking stars like Bob Gainey, Larry Robinson and Ken Dryden,” he mentions.

The first referendum took place in 1980. While the Yes camp suffered defeat, it was the beginning of the Canadian’s descent into hell after winning the Stanley Cup five times in the last decade. It was also in 1980 when the CH chose Doug Wickenheiser over Denis Savard in first place in the draft. The first in a long line of bad decisions.

“Despite surprising championships in 1986 and 1993, it is a more difficult decade for the CH and also for Quebec,” analyzes Kelly.

Patrick Roy during his last game with the Canadian on December 2, 1995 against the Detroit Red Wings. – Archive photo LE JOURNAL DE MONTRÉAL

Departures of Savard, Demers and Roy

The year 1995 was all the more impressive, said the journalist and columnist. After the Nordiques’ departure in May, general manager Serge Savard and head coach Jacques Demers were fired in October.

“Savard is the last GM to win, but also the last one to have the priority of having the most Quebec players. He rightly thought that if you take local players, they will give more because they grew up with Bleu-Blanc-Rouge. In 1993, there were 14 Quebec players who helped CH win. We couldn’t have that today, but it’s not normal that we had a game without French speakers in 2021,” emphasizes Kelly.

At the end of October 1995 there was a second referendum defeat, which was heartbreaking for the sovereigntists. There were many mourners in the province of La Belle.

“Quebec nationalism was at its lowest, as was nationalism within the CH organization,” notes Kelly.

Finally, Patrick Roy was traded a few weeks later, marking “the beginning of a dark period.”

“We’re just starting to get out of this, 30 years later!”

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