The Montreal Canadiens are off to a surprisingly hot start thanks to a series of impressive goaltending performances by Carey Price.
The 30-year-old has been solid so far, leading the Habs to a 5-1-2 record (he personally sits at 3-1-2) while rocking a respectable 2.48 GAA. With their 3-2 win over the Calgary Flames last night, Montreal moved into the Eastern Conference’s top spot and Price managed to make a bit of history in the process. With the win, he jumped into a tie for second most wins by a goaltender in Canadiens history with the legendary Patrick Roy at 289. The BC native is now only 25 wins away from joining Jaques Plante for the top spot.
When you look at some of the Hall of Fame goaltenders in Montreal’s history such as Roy, Ken Dryden and Jose Theodore, this certainly isn’t something to sneeze at, especially when you consider how much the league has changed and the relatively weak rosters Price has had to work with. Roy’s career, of course, stretched beyond Montreal, as he managed to pick up 262 more wins with the Colorado Avalanche and finish second all-time in wins with 551. Price’s 289 currently ranks him 39th but it’s reasonable to believe he can reach near Roy’s total if he can stay healthy.
In 2014, Price became the first goaltender since Theodore (2002) to win the Hart Trophy, and he could work his way into the discussion again if he can guide Montreal to the postseason.
(H/T NHL PR)
