The official Montreal Canadiens colors are red, blue and white. The primary color is red (#AF1E2D), paired with a deep blue (#192168) and white (#FFFFFF). These three run across the CH crest, the home and away sweaters, and every piece of merch the team sells. The current Adidas uniform has held steady since 2017.
The Color Codes (HEX, RGB, CMYK, Pantone)
Here’s the part you probably came for. Grab whichever format your project needs.
| Color | Swatch | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | #AF1E2D | 175, 30, 45 | 0, 85, 72, 35 | PMS 187 C | |
| Blue | #192168 | 25, 33, 104 | 100, 69, 0, 62 | PMS 2758 C | |
| White | #FFFFFF | 255, 255, 255 | 0, 0, 0, 0 | None (paper white) |
One honest note on the Pantone values. The red and blue PMS numbers show up consistently across color references, so those are safe. White has no assigned Pantone. It’s just the paper or the fabric showing through, so don’t go hunting for a code that isn’t there.
A Closer Look at Each Color
The Red
Red (#AF1E2D) is the anchor. It fills the home jersey, and it’s the color most people picture the second you say “Habs.” This isn’t a bright fire-engine red. It leans slightly dark, almost brick-adjacent under arena lighting, which is part of why it reads as classic instead of loud. The team’s whole relationship with the color red traces back to the early 1910s, when they moved away from that first blue sweater and settled on the tricolore identity.
The Blue
The blue (#192168) is deeper than most people expect. On screen it reads almost as a rich navy blue rather than a bright royal tone. You see it in the horizontal band that cuts across the chest of the red sweater, and in the outline that gives the H its shape inside the crest. Small footprint, big job. Take the blue out and the logo loses its structure completely.
The White
White does the quiet work. It’s the base of the road sweater, the trim on the stripes, and the fill that separates the C from the H so the whole mark doesn’t blur together. On the away jersey, a clean white becomes the dominant surface with red shoulders and blue accents riding on top. Without it the palette would feel heavy. It’s the breathing room.
Uniform Colors (Home, Away, Alternate)
Home: red sweater, blue chest band, white striping, blue pants with red and white side stripes. The look most fans think of as “the” Canadiens jersey.
Away: white sweater with red shoulders and red and blue striping. Funny enough, this white design was actually the primary home jersey for decades before the NHL flipped home and road colors in the mid-2000s.
Alternate: the team doesn’t run a permanent third jersey right now. Their most talked-about recent one-off was the powder blue Reverse Retro released for the 2020-21 season with Adidas.
History and Rebranding
The Canadiens were founded on December 4, 1909, by J. Ambrose O’Brien, which makes them the oldest continuously running pro hockey club anywhere and the only current NHL team that’s older than the league itself.
The colors didn’t land on day one. The 1909-10 sweater was blue with a plain white C. The next season went red with a green maple leaf and (this part always gets me) green pants. Before locking in the modern look around 1914, the team even wore a “barber pole” sweater with red, white and blue horizontal stripes.
The CH monogram you know today first appeared together in the 1917-18 season, when the club became Club de Hockey Canadien. The H stands for Hockey, not Habitants, despite what half of Montreal will swear to you. The crest kept getting refined and reached roughly its current form in the early 1950s.
As one of the Original Six, the Canadiens carry more visual history than almost any franchise in sport. Their red, white and blue also nods to French Canadian identity, which is why the home collar carries the French “LNH” shield instead of the English NHL one.
How to Use the Colors
For anything digital, work with the HEX and RGB values above. For print jobs, use the CMYK breakdown or match to the Pantone chips so the red doesn’t drift orange on you. That deep blue is the one to watch on cheap presses, since it can muddy fast.
Here’s a copy-ready block for your stylesheet:
“ :root { --canadiens-red: #AF1E2D; --canadiens-blue: #192168; --canadiens-white: #FFFFFF; } `
Quick tip from doing this a lot: pair the red with plenty of white space and use the blue sparingly as an accent or outline. Cram all three at equal weight and it starts to feel like a flag, not a brand. The team’s own layouts prove the point. Red carries the load, white gives it air, blue draws the lines.
Related Resources
Want the codes for the rest of the league? Start with the full NHL team color codes hub, which lists every club in one place.
If you’re deep into Original Six territory, it’s worth comparing the Habs against their oldest rivals. Check the Toronto Maple Leafs color breakdown, the Detroit Red Wings palette, the Chicago Blackhawks colors, and the New York Rangers color set. Four other legacy franchises, four very different takes on red, white and blue.
FAQ on The Montreal Canadiens Colors
What are the Montreal Canadiens colors?
The official Montreal Canadiens colors are red, blue and white. Red is the lead shade (#AF1E2D), backed by a deep blue and clean white. This bleu blanc rouge scheme fills the CH crest, the Habs sweater and all team merchandise.
What are the Montreal Canadiens color codes (HEX and RGB)?
The Canadiens hex codes are #AF1E2D for red and #192168 for blue, with #FFFFFF white. In RGB, red is (175, 30, 45), blue is (25, 33, 104), and white is (255, 255, 255). Use these for any digital work.
What is the Montreal Canadiens Pantone color?
The Canadiens Pantone codes are PMS 187 C for red and PMS 2758 C for blue. Reach for these on print jobs and merchandise so the shades stay consistent. White has no assigned Pantone value, since it’s just paper.
When did the Montreal Canadiens adopt their current colors?
The red, white and blue look settled in around 1914, after early experiments. The 1909-10 sweater was blue with a white C, and the second season went red with a green maple leaf. The current Adidas uniform dates to 2017.
What is the primary color of the Montreal Canadiens?
Red (#AF1E2D) is the primary color. It dominates the home jersey and is the shade most fans picture instantly. The CMYK build is (0, 85, 72, 35), and the matching Pantone is PMS 187 C for print use.
Why does the Canadiens blue look so dark?
The Habs blue (#192168) reads as a deep navy rather than a bright royal tone. It shows up in the horizontal chest band and the outline of the H inside the crest. On cheap presses it can muddy, so check proofs.
What do the Montreal Canadiens colors mean?
The Canadiens color scheme reflects French Canadian identity. Red signals passion, white stands for tradition, and blue points to loyalty. The tricolore palette also nods to Quebec pride, which is why the home collar carries the French LNH shield.
Are the Montreal Canadiens colors the same as the New York Rangers?
Both use red, white and blue, so people mix them up. The difference is the mix. The Rangers lean on royal blue as their base, while the Canadiens make red the dominant surface with blue used mostly for accents.
What are the Montreal Canadiens jersey colors?
The home Habs sweater is red with a blue chest band and white striping. The away jersey flips to white with red shoulders. Both carry the CH crest, and the palette has stayed red, blue and white for over a century.
What is the CMYK code for Montreal Canadiens red?
The Canadiens CMYK red is (0, 85, 72, 35). The blue is (100, 69, 0, 62), and white is (0, 0, 0, 0). These print values pair with hex #AF1E2D and #192168 for any cross-format design work.
Conclusion
The Montreal Canadiens colors come down to three: red (#AF1E2D), a deep blue (#192168) and white. Simple on paper, but loaded with a century of history.
Those official color codes hold across the CH crest, the home jersey and every scrap of Habs merchandise.
Keep the hex values for screen and the Pantone codes for print, and your bleu blanc rouge will match whatever you’re building. The Bell Centre faithful would expect nothing less.
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