We're a few months from the answer, but the question around Montreal seems fair to ask:

Are we looking at yet another rookie goaltender set to make a legendary playoff run for the Canadiens?

Canadiens' goalie Carey Price makes one of 38 stops Tuesday night, this one against Zach Parise, as Montreal won 4-0.
(Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press)

In a town that has seen Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy come in as relatively untested rookies who once led their clubs to the Stanley Cup, Carey Price is turning heads.

On Tuesday night, the 20-year-old beat Martin Brodeur and the New Jersey Devils for the second time in just over a week, winning this one 4-0 at the Bell Centre.

The win moved Montreal back into first overall in the Eastern Conference at 39-23-9, a point ahead of the Devils who fall to 40-24-6 although New Jersey has a game in hand.

The scoreboard favoured the Habs but the shots on goal went to the visitors 38-33.

And that's where Price came in, playing with poise and showing general manager Bob Gainey may have known what he was doing when he traded former No. 1 Cristobal Huet to Washington at the deadline.

Since then the rookie, who spent some time in the American Hockey League earlier this year, has gone 5-2-0.

Brian Smolinski, Saku Koivu, Maxim Lapierre and Michael Ryder scored for the Canadiens, who had a 3-0 lead into the third period.

Quick opener

Montreal opened the scoring on a smart play by winger Tom Kostopoulos, who came over the blue line on the right side, made a deft back pass for a trailing Smolinski and then continued on.

As Kostopoulos bumped into the defenceman, he created a perfect screen that the trailer who took advantage by firing one by Brodeur.

It was Smolinski's sixth of the year, coming at 4:51.

The Habs killed off a double-minor in the middle of the opening frame but for a long stretch, the Devils dominated offensively, firing 20 shots at Price.

That kind of goaltending is often rewarded with scores at the other end, as was the case on this night.

Before the opening period ended, Montreal's Koivu and Sergei Kostitsyn combined to show how pretty this game can be sometimes.

The Habs' captain came over the Jersey line on a rush and passed to Kostitsyn on the right side.

With just a moment's hesitation, the Russian forward put one back across to Koivu who had headed for the goal and the perfect feed was converted into an open net as Brodeur tried to hustle back.

Kostitsyn's pass had gone right by two Devils' defenders who were backing up and couldn't stop the puck.

Second period more of the same

New Jersey came out strong in the middle frame and kept firing at Price. But it was a strange goal at the other end put the Devils out of this one for good.

With a player from each team tangled up in the crease behind Price, the Devils got confused, first believing the play was about to be called dead and then dumping the puck into the Habs' end so they could get a change.

But Montreal changed much more quickly and wound up with a three-on-one break that finished when Segei Kostitsyn found Maxim Lapierre at the lip of the crease. A nice backhand made it 3-0 at 14:20.