No one knows whether or not Carey Price will get the start in goal for the Montreal Canadiens in Game 4 of their first-round series with the Washington Capitals, except for head coach Jacques Martin.
And he's not talking, as usual.
But considering Jaroslav Halak has allowed eight goals on the last 30 shots he's faced, it would be a pretty stunning development to see him announced as the Canadiens starter Wednesday morning.
And if indeed Price gets the call, it will give many members of the Capitals - most notably head coach Bruce Boudreau - an opportunity for some sweet revenge.
See, the legend of Price as the Canadiens' saviour in goal is largely built on the back of his heroic performance in the 2007 Calder Cup playoffs with the Hamilton Bulldogs.
For those who don't know of this tale, Price was brought in to play for the Bulldogs with just a handful of games remaining in the 2006-07 AHL regular season.
Having completed his junior career with the Tri-City Americans after Canada to the world junior championship earlier that year, Price arrived in Hamilton and led the Bulldogs on an improbable run to the Calder Cup championship.
The opposing team in that final series was the defending champion Hershey Bears, coached by Boudreau and featuring current Capitals Mike Green, Tomas Fleischmann, Quintin Laing, David Steckel, Jeff Schultz and Tyler Sloan.
The mere mention of that series on Tuesday, three years later, still made Boudreau wince.
"We played five games and we averaged over 42 shots a game against him, and they won it in five [games]," Boudreau said. "So he was quite a difference-maker. At that point we knew he was a good goalie, and if he's playing tomorrow we know he's a great goalie that can steal games for you."
Actually, the Bears averaged just over 37 shots per game in that series, but scored only 1.8 goals per contest. Price's save percentage in those five games was an astronomical .952.
"He did a great job of controlling rebounds and making sure there weren't any second opportunities," said Capitals winger Eric Fehr, who was also on that Hershey team but was injured for the whole playoff run. "He definitely stole the series for them. He didn't let in any easy goals. He was by far their best player."
Green still vividly remembers Price's cool demeanour despite the fact he was just a 19-year-old right out of junior hockey. But he doesn't necessarily feel that's the case any more.
"He was a confident goalie that was very relaxed and almost casual," Green said. "He was always in the right spot. He never really made a big save, he was just always in the right spot to make the save.
"He looks a little off these days, but it is what it is."
Canadiens defenceman Ryan O'Byrne also remembers that side of Price, before all the hype and hoopla over his arrival in Montreal appeared to change his personality, both on the ice and off.
"He was just so young, he came in and just played the game," O'Byrne said. "To tell you the truth, he was a little overweight. He'd just finished the [junior] season, and he came in there and just played hockey. He really had no worries in the world."
That won't be the case if Price is the one chosen by Martin to start tomorrow, because the hopes of an entire city of hockey fans will essentially rest on his shoulders. That's a pretty big worry.
But if he's in there, Green would love to get a shot at revenge over that lost championship.
"Absolutely," he said.
Goalie debate swirls, but not in Habs' room
As soon as the doors opened to the Canadiens locker room Tuesday, the media immediately swarmed to Price's locker.
A bemused Brian Gionta and Michael Cammalleri watched as nearly every reporter walked right past them on their way to talk to the Canadiens goaltender, who may or may not play in Game 4 on Wednesday night.
This is not an unusual phenomenon in Montreal, but in the playoffs it gets a little heightened.
So, is it the same in the Canadiens dressing room? Is everyone gossiping about which goalie will leave the ice first at the morning skate tomorrow?
"You guys ask us these questions, and they literally haven't even been brought up," Cammalleri said. "I got here three hours ago and I've probably had 40 conversations with players on this team in those three hours, and I haven't had one conversation bring that up. Yet there's this debate. It's very much a non-issue with us. We like both of them."
Boudreau launches Spygate at practice
The league-leading Capitals power play is 0-for-14 in the series, which led Boudreau to hold a little tutorial at practice Tuesday morning.
But he stopped when someone pointed out to him that Martin was watching his team skate.
"There were other people watching and I don't want them to see what we were working on," Boudreau said.
When asked who, he replied, "I saw one of their head coaches on the other side. I don't know if he was watching, but you want to do that when you're amongst your own guys."
There is only one Montreal head coach, and that's Martin.
Martin admitted after Canadiens practice later in the afternoon that he had indeed stepped out of his office to see if the Capitals were on the ice, and claims that he left immediately.
"If I wanted to watch the practice incognito, it would be easy to do it in our building," Martin said. "Coaches in the playoffs will often use different schemes to deflect attention away from the game."
For the record, there was no sighting of Boudreau at the Canadiens skate.
And he's not talking, as usual.
But considering Jaroslav Halak has allowed eight goals on the last 30 shots he's faced, it would be a pretty stunning development to see him announced as the Canadiens starter Wednesday morning.
And if indeed Price gets the call, it will give many members of the Capitals - most notably head coach Bruce Boudreau - an opportunity for some sweet revenge.
See, the legend of Price as the Canadiens' saviour in goal is largely built on the back of his heroic performance in the 2007 Calder Cup playoffs with the Hamilton Bulldogs.
For those who don't know of this tale, Price was brought in to play for the Bulldogs with just a handful of games remaining in the 2006-07 AHL regular season.
Having completed his junior career with the Tri-City Americans after Canada to the world junior championship earlier that year, Price arrived in Hamilton and led the Bulldogs on an improbable run to the Calder Cup championship.
The opposing team in that final series was the defending champion Hershey Bears, coached by Boudreau and featuring current Capitals Mike Green, Tomas Fleischmann, Quintin Laing, David Steckel, Jeff Schultz and Tyler Sloan.
The mere mention of that series on Tuesday, three years later, still made Boudreau wince.
"We played five games and we averaged over 42 shots a game against him, and they won it in five [games]," Boudreau said. "So he was quite a difference-maker. At that point we knew he was a good goalie, and if he's playing tomorrow we know he's a great goalie that can steal games for you."
Actually, the Bears averaged just over 37 shots per game in that series, but scored only 1.8 goals per contest. Price's save percentage in those five games was an astronomical .952.
"He did a great job of controlling rebounds and making sure there weren't any second opportunities," said Capitals winger Eric Fehr, who was also on that Hershey team but was injured for the whole playoff run. "He definitely stole the series for them. He didn't let in any easy goals. He was by far their best player."
Green still vividly remembers Price's cool demeanour despite the fact he was just a 19-year-old right out of junior hockey. But he doesn't necessarily feel that's the case any more.
"He was a confident goalie that was very relaxed and almost casual," Green said. "He was always in the right spot. He never really made a big save, he was just always in the right spot to make the save.
"He looks a little off these days, but it is what it is."
Canadiens defenceman Ryan O'Byrne also remembers that side of Price, before all the hype and hoopla over his arrival in Montreal appeared to change his personality, both on the ice and off.
"He was just so young, he came in and just played the game," O'Byrne said. "To tell you the truth, he was a little overweight. He'd just finished the [junior] season, and he came in there and just played hockey. He really had no worries in the world."
That won't be the case if Price is the one chosen by Martin to start tomorrow, because the hopes of an entire city of hockey fans will essentially rest on his shoulders. That's a pretty big worry.
But if he's in there, Green would love to get a shot at revenge over that lost championship.
"Absolutely," he said.
Goalie debate swirls, but not in Habs' room
As soon as the doors opened to the Canadiens locker room Tuesday, the media immediately swarmed to Price's locker.
A bemused Brian Gionta and Michael Cammalleri watched as nearly every reporter walked right past them on their way to talk to the Canadiens goaltender, who may or may not play in Game 4 on Wednesday night.
This is not an unusual phenomenon in Montreal, but in the playoffs it gets a little heightened.
So, is it the same in the Canadiens dressing room? Is everyone gossiping about which goalie will leave the ice first at the morning skate tomorrow?
"You guys ask us these questions, and they literally haven't even been brought up," Cammalleri said. "I got here three hours ago and I've probably had 40 conversations with players on this team in those three hours, and I haven't had one conversation bring that up. Yet there's this debate. It's very much a non-issue with us. We like both of them."
Boudreau launches Spygate at practice
The league-leading Capitals power play is 0-for-14 in the series, which led Boudreau to hold a little tutorial at practice Tuesday morning.
But he stopped when someone pointed out to him that Martin was watching his team skate.
"There were other people watching and I don't want them to see what we were working on," Boudreau said.
When asked who, he replied, "I saw one of their head coaches on the other side. I don't know if he was watching, but you want to do that when you're amongst your own guys."
There is only one Montreal head coach, and that's Martin.
Martin admitted after Canadiens practice later in the afternoon that he had indeed stepped out of his office to see if the Capitals were on the ice, and claims that he left immediately.
"If I wanted to watch the practice incognito, it would be easy to do it in our building," Martin said. "Coaches in the playoffs will often use different schemes to deflect attention away from the game."
For the record, there was no sighting of Boudreau at the Canadiens skate.
