Welcome to LWOS Hockey’s summer series, Call to the Hall, where we take a look at the next great player from each NHL franchise to get called to the Hockey Hall of Fame. There are a few caveats, the player must be active, and must have played 300 games (or 150 for goaltenders) with the franchise.
Check out the previous Call to the Hall articles HERE.
Call to the Hall: Montreal Canadiens
For the Montreal Canadiens, there are a couple worthy candidates that could be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Tomas Plekanec, P.K. Subban, and Andrei Markov come to mind but there is one guy playing for the Habs right now who will most definitely be a first ballot selection when he retires. He may not have a Stanley Cup to his name yet but Price still has many years to capture one with the Habs.
Just watching him make jaw dropping save after save, whipping his glove out to catch a puck faster than most goalies today while sitting down, flexing his body to positions even yoga masters couldn’t handle, seeing how calm he is out on the ice and how he carries himself, it shows just how strong he is and shows true character. His actions on and off the ice have a major part in why the Canadiens have been enjoying plenty of regular season success. This is why he deserves a Call to the Hall.
CAREY PRICE
Price was drafted fifth overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Canadiens. He had a successful year with the Tri-City Americans in the 2006-07 season, going 30-13 with a GAA of 2.45 and a SV% of .917. After getting eliminated by the Seattle Thunderbirds in six games, Price was called up to the Hamilton Bulldogs, where he would be given a chance to shine and show that Bob Gainey made the right choice in selecting him. The Bulldogs, armed with a hot Corey Locke, balanced scoring, and a young stud in net, stormed their way to the Calder Cup Finals and defeated the Hershey Bears in five games.
He would go on to graduate from the minors into the NHL but not without challenges. His rookie season with the Habs was an excellent one, though he had to battle Cristobal Huet for crease time. Huet was eventually traded to the Washington Capitals and the city of Montreal gave a sigh of relief, knowing their young Patrick Roy-like goalie would have total control in net. But they didn’t predict Jaroslav Halak coming out of nowhere to give Price a run for his money.
The battle of Price versus Halak lasted two seasons, including an inspiring playoff run made by Halak. 2008-09 was the first year of the battle and it went relatively well. Both Price and Halak put up winning records, 23-16 and 18-14 respectively. The playoffs came and went miserably, ending in a humiliating sweep versus the Boston Bruins. In 2009-10, it was Halak’s year, putting up a then career high 26-13 with a GAA of 2.40 and SV% of .924. Price, however, was struggling and many thought he would be shipped out in favour of Halak. When the playoffs began, Coach Jacques Martin went with Halak for the majority of the playoffs, using Price sparingly and only adding fuel to the fire that he would be traded. They eventually fell to the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference Finals in five games.
Many thought after the playoffs ended that Price would be the goalie to be shipped out but on June 17th, Halak was traded to the St Louis Blues for Lars Eller and Ian Schultz. The deal has worked out extremely well for the Habs. It’s been five years since that deal and Price has come a long way. He has posted only one losing record, 26-28 in 2011-12. Many pundits who claimed the Habs made a mistake by trading Halak have quieted down but you can still hear the odd whisper when Price lets in a goal. Typical.
The 2014-15 season was a record breaking year for Price and the Habs, setting new records in the franchise. He went 44-16 with a stingy 1.96 GAA and a unreal SV% of .933 in 66 games. Unfortunately, the team in front of Price just ran out of gas in the playoffs and there was barely any offense. The Habs made it to the second round against the Tampa Bay Lightning but they just couldn’t contain the young speedy team, getting defeated in six games. But Price’s efforts did not go unnoticed.
At the NHL Awards in Las Vegas, he took home the Vezina Trophy (Best goalie in the regular season), the Hart Memorial Trophy (Most valuable player), the William M. Jennings Trophy (Having the least amount of goals scored upon), and the Ted Lindsay Trophy (Most outstanding player in the league). It was the first time a goalie took home these four awards simultaneously.
Now Price may not have a Stanley Cup (yet), but he’s still just 27 and entering his prime. The Habs are in a solid position right now to make a serious push for the Cup. But even if Price does not win the Holy Grail, his numbers and technique alone warrant him a spot in the HHOF. He has a career line of 435 GP- 223 W- 153 L-50 OT-34 SO-.919 SV%-2.44 GAA with many years left to play. If he finishes out his career in Montreal as expected and keeps up this level of play or a notch below, most of the Habs internal goalie records will be his, such as wins (314), games played (556), minutes played (33,226), heck even the shutout record of 75, held by legendary Georges Hainsworth is within reach if he gets 6 shutouts a year for the next seven seasons. Tall order but this is one goalie who I believe can make good on it.
Call me cliché but the Price is definitely right.
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