Rookie goalie Carey Price will start in goal for Montreal in Game 5. (Tom Mihalek/Associated Press)Guy Carbonneau is going back to Carey Price.
The Montreal Canadiens coach announced Friday that he will start Price in net for the Habs when they host the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal on Saturday (CBC, CBCSports.ca, 7 p.m. ET).
"He deserves a second shot,' Carbonneau said. "I think in the last few days he had time to calm down and refocus and get ready for another long stretch."
Price started the first three games of the series for Montreal, but Carbonneau replaced the rookie netminder with backup Jaroslav Halak for Game 4, which the Flyers won to take a commanding 3-1 series lead.
Price, 20, had a fantastic regular season and showed great poise between the pipes in the first round against the Boston Bruins — posting a pair of shutouts — but it's been a different story in the second round.
The rookie was pulled in favour of Halak after allowing three goals on 12 shots in Game 3, a 3-2 win for the Flyers.
Halak played well in Game 4 Wednesday, including making some big saves early in the contest, but he couldn't weather the storm forever, allowing Flyers forward R.J. Umberger to score a soft goal on the power play at 7:47 of the second with a wrist shot.
"You have to give him credit, he was good," Carbonneau said of Halak. "Obviously not good enough, but he is in a tough situation."
Price and the Canadiens face a dire situation, as Montreal must win Game 5 to stay alive and stave off elimination.
Price has experience in pressure situations, having won a world championship with the Canadian junior team and a Calder Cup with the Hamilton Bulldogs of the American Hockey League.
He also blanked the Bruins twice in the first round, including 5-0 in Game 7.
But he has played poorly in the conference semifinal, permitting 10 goals on 68 shots for a .853 save percentage in three starts compared to .920 in 41 games during the regular season.
