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Montreal Canadiens Need To Find A Reliable Backup Goaltender

By Ken MacMillan

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - MAY 16: Curtis McElhinney #35 of the Carolina Hurricanes tends goal against the Boston Bruins during the third period in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at PNC Arena on May 16, 2019 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - MAY 16: Curtis McElhinney #35 of the Carolina Hurricanes tends goal against the Boston Bruins during the third period in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at PNC Arena on May 16, 2019 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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The Montreal Canadiens have the highest paid and arguably best goaltender on the planet in Carey Price. He was forced to play far too much late last season, and the Habs need to find a suitable backup.

Carey Price returned to form last season for the Montreal Canadiens. After posting the worst numbers of his career in 2017-18, Price came a lot closer to his lofty expectations in 2018-19. The only problem was, the 31-year-old nearly set a career high for games played as well.

HIs 35-24-6 record was extremely close to leading the Canadiens to an unexpected playoff berth. He put up a 2.49 goals against average, and a .918 save percentage to go with his four shutouts. He did this while suiting up in 66 games, second only to Minnesota Wild netminder Devan Dubnyk.

It was not the plan to have Price play so many games. Ideally, he would have played between 57 and 62 games, while a capable backup would fill in for 20-25 starts. Finnish veteran Antti Niemi was tasked with this job at the start of the season.

Niemi was a surprise sensation after being claimed on waivers by the Canadiens during the 2017-18 season. He posted a 2.46 GAA and a sparkling .929 SV% in 19 appearances. He was brought back for this season on a one year contract.

Montreal Canadiens
PHILADELPHIA, PA – MARCH 19: Montreal Canadiens  (Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Things did not go nearly as well for Niemi this season. Between December 31st and January 15th, Niemi played three excellent games. Outside of that two-week stretch, he allowed at least three goals in every single appearance. Niemi had a 4.26 GAA and .862 SV% if you don’t include his miraculous 15 days in January.

That is simply not good enough and is the reason he is heading back to Finland to play hockey next season. His inability to stop pucks forced Price to play in every game but two after January 19th. This included three sets of back to back games where Price started both contests.

With Niemi’s tenure with the team done, the Montreal Canadiens will need to find a more reliable number two behind their star starter.

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They will likely have to look outside their organization to fill the role. Charlie Lindgren heads into next season with a contract with the Canadiens. However, his numbers with the AHL’s Laval Rocket over the past two seasons make it doubtful he’s ready to be a full-time NHL backup.

The best option to fill in would be Curtis McElhinney. The 36-year-old has made a name for himself over the past decade as a reliable backup who can step in when the starter needs a break. He has posted solid numbers, especially in the last three seasons, split between the Columbus Blue Jackets, Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes.

With Toronto in 2016-17, McElhinney was the clear second option behind starter Frederik Andersen. He mostly stepped in on back to back games and held up the fort while the skaters were battling through their second game in roughly 24 hours. In 18 games he posted a 2.14 GAA and a .934 SV%.

With Carolina this season, McElhinney was counted on more often. He ended the season with 33 games played, a 2.58 GAA and a .912 SV%. His numbers over the past few years have been vastly superior to what Montreal could count on from its backups.

McElhinney hits the open market as an unrestricted free agent on July 1st. He will likely have several suitors, but having just turned 36, he’s likely getting a one year contract. The Canadiens have tons of cap space for next season so they can afford to win a bit of a bidding war. An offer of about $2 million on a one year contract would more than double McElhinney’s current salary.

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Sure, the Montreal Canadiens are already spending $10.5 million on goaltending heading into next season. However, if you have the highest paid goaltender in hockey, you want to get the most out of him. They could do that by getting him a reliable backup, so he no longer has to play games on back to back nights. The perfect man for the job is Curtis McElhinney.

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