Sportsnet’s Eric Engels has reported that the Colorado Avalanche have requested they wear the Quebec Nordiques jersey against the Montreal Canadiens on Jan 29, and that request has been accepted. With the Nordiques jerseys on, the Canadiens will wear their red jerseys in the matchup.

Sounds like the NHL might permit the Avs to wear the blue Quebec Nordiques jersey Jan 29 vs. Canadiens red. Geoff Molson said he hasn’t been asked yet by the NHL, but that he’d happily approve if they asked.

— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) December 9, 2025

For the franchise's 30th anniversary, the Avalanche have returned to the organization's roots and are wearing the Quebec Nordiques jerseys in seven games this season. However, they can now include one more game this season against their “rival,” the Montreal Canadiens. They still face the Toronto Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Vancouver Canucks, and Vegas Golden Knights in their retro jerseys.

Colorado Avalanche Officially Unveil 30th-Anniversary Quebec Nordiques JerseysThe Colorado Avalanche on X have officially announced/revealed that they will be honoring the Quebec Nordiques this season with a special third jersey for their 30th Anniversary.

So far this season, the Avalanche, or the Nordiques in this case, are 1-1 while wearing the jerseys. They lost their debut in the jerseys, 5-4 in a shootout against the Carolina Hurricanes, but bounced back with a 7-2 win against the Canadiens.

Engels also reported that the Canadiens' CEO, Geoff Molson, responded to the initial report that the Avalanche wanted to make this matchup happen, saying he would happily approve.

One of the biggest moments these two teams faced off was dubbed the “Good Friday Massacre,” in which, on Good Friday, April 20, in the second round of the 1984 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Quebec Nordiques lost game three to the Montreal Canadiens 5-3 and the series. Most notably, the game ended with an all-out brawl, one of, if not the biggest, fights in NHL/AHA history. 

There were multiple fights during the game, but the biggest moment took place at the end of the second period, including another one before the third period started. By the end of everything, there was a total of 11 ejections and 252 penalty minutes handed out.

While I doubt we'll see this happen again, it's encouraging to see the NHL approve the Avalanche’s request to wear the retro jerseys again, and I hope they continue to accommodate similar requests if other teams bring back their own retro jerseys.

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