One Team We Really Hate: The Worst Habs of All Time

This list is the result of a quick staff poll. It's not exhaustive. We can't go over the entire historic roster, here.

Maurice Richard

Scored 50 in 50 during wartime years and thought he was special. Notable for a major milestone on the Montreal Riot timeline. Once upon a time, Maurice Richard decked a referee. As that's a big no-no, the league suspended him for the rest of the year. The game was in March, so that seems reasonable enough. At the next game, the fans started a riot inside the arena that spilled out into the streets. The end result? Detroit had home ice in the final and beat Montreal on it. Maurice Richard never won a scoring title. Dick Irvin was fired and soon after, died. Habs fans booed a Geoffrion for scoring too much. With great success like that, the moment is lionized in team lore and crybaby Montreal fans have been rioting ever since.

Alex Kovalev

Is a headhunting piece of shit. I'm no Darcy Tucker fan, but most players shouldn't have their head taken completely off. This also affects his teammates negatively as they tend to bear the brunt of the revenge of his antics. Also a bigtime diver. So much so that it came back to bite him in the ass in 2004, as Glen Murray took advantage of the odd-man-rush he got off of Kovalev's extra-curriculars. One time, a fan stole his stick and we all had a good laugh.

Mike Ribeiro

Where to begin? Ask Nick Boynton. Another diving, scoring, forward. Pulling whatever calls he could (and in some places, he could pull the heck out of them) and making a mockery of the NHL refs...not that they need the help. In all of the history of being a little shit, Mike Ribeiro had no career fights. Well, none until last year. Brad Marchand fixed all of that. Love Marchand. Hate Ribeiro.

Maxim Lapierre

Just another in a long line of annoying shitbags wearing the sideways toilet seat. In his time with Montreal, he made many "most-hated players in the NHL" or "dirtiest players in the league" lists. With Montreal, he was once suspended 4 games for boarding. He was raised a Habs fan, which is not his fault except that he reveled in it. The silver lining? Wiping that smug little smirk off his ugly-ass québécois face in the 2011 finals after numerous news stories about him bringing the spirit of Montreal with him.

Again, there are plenty of other hate-able players in Montreal's history, some of which Montreal should flat-out not be proud to have rooted for, but this was a staff poll and not an attempt to put together a comprehensive history. Convict Guy Lafleur is one, for example.