A Winning Habit
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Montreal Canadiens: Are Price’s Trophies Irrelevant?

By Lissa Albert

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Jun 24, 2015; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Carey Price talks to media after winning four awards during the 2015 NHL Awards at MGM Grand. Including the Ted Lindsay Award (foreground). Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

When introduced as a finalist for the Hart Trophy, it was analyst (and former player) Nick Kypreos whose words resonated. To begin the segment, he wanted to draw attention to “the artistry of Carey Price.”

Those words were so incredibly true; Price’s saves, night after night, were pure artistry on ice. It’s one of the reasons we all loved to watch him in nets; his extension, lateral movements, acrobatic feats.

Add to that his astonishing calm demeanor, how nothing rattles him, he controls the pace of the game as much as the skaters do, and it makes Carey Price an artist in nets.

These trophies were all about tribute, recognition, and honoring players. We all enjoy being appreciated, and the NHL Awards give the winners of each trophy that extra “hey, thanks, we think you rose to the top this season and we want to honor you for that.”

While Carey Price acknowledged the team that supported him, in his speeches, he knew it was for his individual efforts that he was honored. Being the picture of humility that he is, he did thank his teammates, every speech.

One tweet that I saw used the word “earned” instead of “won”:

And that brings it to the level of the NHL Awards and their meaning. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that Price would win the Vezina. Even competing coaches said he was the only person for the trophy.

He didn’t get it for being a nice guy. He got it for his prowess between the pipes.

But his peers lifted him above all other players (700+ active players) and voted him “Outstanding”.

And the hockey writers saw him as the MVP above 2 fellow nominees, both skaters, one of whom scored 53 goals this season, almost unheard of these days in the NHL.

One segment during the show had bystanders offering their opinions on the Hart Trophy. The host joked, “the goalie doesn’t do anything, he just bats at the pucks, he doesn’t have to skate down the ice and shoot or stop pucks.”

But for the first time since Jose Theodore, in 2002, a goalie received the Hart Trophy. Because that goalie was Carey Price, and the hockey writers believed him to be the most valuable player in the league.

How can that be meaningless?

His post-awards conference revealed more. While he continued to pay tribute to the season, and his teammates, here are some quotes:

When asked about the honors of receiving the votes:

"I’m very humbled by that – especially the players. I compete against these guys. We go to war out there and for them to vote for me is really special. It’s been an amazing season – there’s still one more thing that I want to get, though. It’s my ultimate goal. I’d trade all 4 of these in for that one."

Of course he would trade the trophies for the Stanley Cup. However, it doesn’t mean he is not grateful, or thrilled by the trophies he won.

See, that’s the thing people should understand. While the Cup and the NHL Awards are earned in different arenas, each is special in its own way.

Not winning the Cup does not diminish the experience of winning an NHL Award. Or two. Or four.

It doesn’t have to be one or the other. The reality is that the Habs did not win the Cup this year.

The reality is that Carey Price’s historic season was profoundly recognized by those people whose life’s work it is to be immersed, in one way or another, in the game of hockey.

How can anyone say the trophies are meaningless unless a Stanley Cup is won? Taken on their own merit, the Awards given in the NHL are a spectacular honor to every winner.

Let’s take things as they are, not as we wish they were or how they might have been.

I stand by my conviction that Price’s excitement and gratitude are sincere, and that in lieu of the Cup, he is very pleased to have swept the Awards the way he did.

What are your thoughts?

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