Lafleur is the all-time leading scorer in Canadiens history, notching 1,246 points, made up of the club's second highest (behind Maurice "Rocket" Richard) all-time goals, with 518, and the most all-time assists, with 728, in his 14 years with Montreal. He led the NHL in points in 1976, 1977, and 1978. He tied for a Montreal club record with Steve Shutt for goals in a season with 60 in 1977–78 and holds the franchise record for points in a season with 136 in 1976–77. Lafleur became the first player in NHL history to score at least 50 goals and 100 points in six consecutive seasons, all as a Hab. Lafleur was also the fastest player (at the time) to reach 1,000 points, doing so in only 720 games. That record has since been broken by Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and three others.
He was a member of the Canadian team in the 1976 and 1981 Canada Cup tournaments, winning the Cup in 1976. He was the recipient of the Lou Marsh Trophy in 1977.
On February 16, 1985, Lafleur became the fifth player from the Montreal Canadiens to have his sweater number retired. Lafleur was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988 and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame in 1996. Along with Gordie Howe before him and Mario Lemieux after him, Lafleur is one of only three players to have returned to the NHL after being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
In April 2001, Lafleur sold most of his personal hockey memorabilia in a silent auction. 122 items were sold, including miniature replicas of NHL trophies, jerseys, pucks, sticks, and skates. Included in the sale were his 1977 Conn Smythe Trophy, 1977 Hart Trophy, the puck for his first goal, and four of his five Stanley Cup rings. The items' selling prices totalled approximately US$400,000, with Lafleur donating $20,000 to $25,000 to the Montreal Canadiens Foundation.
Besides the honours received during his playing career, in 1980 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada, and in 2005, he was made a Knight of the National Order of Quebec.
In 1979, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
The Guy Lafleur Award of Excellence was introduced in 1985.
In 1998, he was ranked number 11 on The Hockey News list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. In 2017, he was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players by the NHL as part of its centennial celebration.
The QMJHL retired Lafleur's number 4 league-wide at the start of the 2021–22 season.
Lafleur was named to the Order of Hockey in Canada in 2022. Quebec Autoroute 50, which passes through his hometown of Thurso, was renamed in his honor on May 4, 2023.
Awards