Canadiens To Celebrate Centennial With Ceremony Honoring Past

By Tripp Mickle, Staff Writer, SportsBusiness Journal

The Canadiens will conclude their centennial celebration Friday night with a one-hour ceremony featuring 75-80 current and past players, Canadiens VP/Marketing & Sales Ray Lalonde said. The ceremony will bring to an end a celebration that's lasted more than a year and included everything from jersey retirement ceremonies to the release (Friday) of a feature-length movie. Lalonde said, "It's been a long process and some would say it's lasted too long but you're very seldom associated with something that reaches 100 years old. We're the first NHL team and therefore we wanted to make the most of the occasion." The Canadiens used the club's centennial year to become the league's top team in per caps in '08-09, posting per cap numbers that doubled many other NHL teams. The increases were driven by centennial products the club brought to market, including a DVD collection of memorable games, a special set of Upper Deck anniversary cards and throwback jerseys. Working with the NHL and Reebok, the franchise produced five jerseys worn during the team's history. Lalonde said, "I think the league would say they were happy financially with the results (of jersey sales at retail), but they were probably more happy with how it unfolded. It will probably be a model going forward for how teams and the league can work together." But Lalonde noted the celebration was not about revenue. He said, "We wanted to provide a long lasting legacy for the community so that for years to come they would know that the franchise celebrated its history with style."

100 YEARS YOUNG: Lalonde said the highlight of the celebration was the Canadian Mint's introduction of 10 million $1 coins recognizing the Canadiens' anniversary. Lalonde said, "There's never been a team in the world that's had its logo on a coin across the whole nation. To have your logo on a piece like that that's going to be circulating for years is just incredible." The club also will release a fictional, feature-length film Friday night across Canada. The two-hour motion picture, "Pour Toujours, Les Canadiens," weaves the history of the club together with the story of a family of Canadiens fans with a terminally ill son. A black-tie, centennial gala will be held Saturday night to raise money for charity.