Today In Habs History: February 20th

Back on February 20th, 1971, it was a night that saw a massive milestone reached by a Hall of Fame forward and two other players who had big nights. The Habs won their game 7-1 against the Blackhawks that night, where they were led by forward Phil Roberto’s first and only hat trick as a member of the Canadiens. Roberto would go on to score a hat trick in 1975 as a member of the Detroit Red Wings, but he never accomplished that feat again with the Canadiens.

During his short time as a Montreal Canadien, Roberto was mainly a depth piece that would produce on occasion, but nothing came close to that of his night on February 20th, 1971. The Habs forward surely shocked many with that performance, as he never played much more than a 3rd or 4th line role during his 74 games played with the Canadiens over parts of 3 seasons. Even after he was traded from the Canadiens to the St. Louis Blues on December 13th, 1971, he wasn’t much more than a checking forward. In those 74 games with the Habs, Roberto scored just 17 goals and 26 points. However, like many depth players have in the past, he got to play like a star for one night.

Along with Roberto’s hat trick, longtime Canadiens forward Peter Mahovlich, known more as a playmaker, scored two goals in a matter of just 5 seconds, which is the fastest time between 2 goals by a single Habs player in team history. Mahovlich’s 2 goals in 5 seconds make Alexandre Carrier’s 2 goals in 20 seconds from earlier this season seem like not such a special accomplishment for the Habs defenseman. Nonetheless, both are extremely impressive, but Mahovlich’s just seems unreal. It is actually the 3rd fastest in league history.

The final thing that occurred during the 7-1 Canadiens victory is possibly the best of them all because it shows how great of a player Jean Beliveau was during his career. During the game, Beliveau picked up 3 assists, which includes his 1200th career point. Today there have been many players in the league that have hit that milestone, but at the time, Beliveau became just the 2nd player in NHL history to hit that milestone, behind only Gordie Howe. Le Gros Bill, as he was nicknamed during his career, would finish his NHL career with 1219 points in 1125 regular season games, all with the Habs. He would also add another 176 points in 162 games in the postseason, which is the most in Habs history.

February 20th as a whole may not have many memories to talk about in Habs history, but it’s clear that day in 1971 brought a lot to talk about, thankfully.