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Montreal Canadiens: Three Times The Habs Failed To Capitalize On Carey Price’s Greatness

By Ken MacMillan

Oct 15, 2015; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 15, 2015; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 20, 2011; Calgary, AB, Canada; Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 20, 2011; Calgary, AB, Canada; Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports /

2010-11 Season

The Canadiens made a run to the Eastern Conference Final in 2010, and then traded Halak who carried them there. This put the hopes of the franchise squarely on Carey Price’s shoulders, and he looked every bit up to the task in 2010-11.

Still just 23 years old, Price took on a huge workload by playing 72 games and he posted a 2.35 GAA and a .923 SV%. He finished 5th in Vezina Trophy voting, helped the Habs finish as the 6th seed in the east despite significant injuries and gave them a fighting chance in their first round against the stacked Boston Bruins.

The Canadiens mangement team, led at that time by general manager Pierre Gauthier, didn’t really go all out at the trade deadline. When Andrei Markov was injured early in the season, they acquired James Wisniewski and later picked up Brent Sopel for defensive depth.

However, Max Pacioretty was having a fine breakout season and was firmly in the team’s top six when he was injured by a jarring check from Zdeno Chara. Pacioretty had 14 goals and 24 points in 37 games at the time of his injury but the Habs chose not to acquire anyone to add to their top six forward group.

When Pacioretty was healthy early in that season, he joined Mike Cammalleri, Brian Gionta, Andrei Kostitsyn, Tomas Plekanec and Scott Gomez in a decent, yet unspectacular top six. Without Pacioretty, the team was forced to try and have Benoit Pouliot, Mathieu Darche or Travis Moen play top six minutes every night.

The Canadiens would lose in overtime in Game 7 in the first round to the Bruins that year, before the Bruins embarked on a Stanley Cup championship run. There is no telling how much farther they could have gone with an added top six piece, but with Price putting up a 2.11 GAA and a .934 SV% against the powerhouse Bruins, that year’s Habs would have been a tough out for anyone.

But, they very well could have knocked off their eldest rival in that first round had they gone out and acquired someone like Dustin Penner, Brad Boyes or even an aging Cory Stillman or Alex Kovalev on the cheap at that year’s trade deadline.

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