Carey Price: Take Your Time Coming Back

Carey Price and the Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are an undeniable mess of their own doing right now. There is so much blame to go around that it would take a week or more to explain. However, if one is Carey Price, when does he decide to return to the ice?

Montreal, their fans and management alike, hope it comes much sooner rather than later. The reality is this. Price should come back whenever he is 100% ready. The reasons for his absence are his and his alone. If the goaltender wants to open up about it. that is his choice. No one is owed or entitled to that, period!

The bad start has left a lot of sour tastes in our mouths. That pales in comparison to the mental and physical well-being of Price. Life is so much more important as we only come this way once. From talking to Carey Price several times, the understanding is this. We, as people, have so much more to learn when it comes to the lives of athletes in general.

When a team loses ten of their first 13 games, fingers point in every single direction. It is inevitable. That does not make it acceptable when some are aimed at Price. Whatever one wants to say about Price’s goaltending is one thing. It is another to see the off-ice mental aspect examined so obtrusively.

It is never easy to admit this. At some point, journalists, even myself, have to look in the mirror and answer the question how far is too far? While many respect that boundary, many others do not.

Carey Price, take all the time you need. This Montreal bubble is and always has been an intense one.

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What May Be Next for the Montreal Canadiens?

This almost should ask what “should” be next. Marc Bergevin and Dominique Ducharme still have not solved the puck-moving defenseman issue (PMD for short). It feels like the same repetitive problems keep resurfacing even when the solutions are within the organization.

Montreal has trouble scoring. Let’s send a scorer down to Laval in Cole Caufield. Naturally, he promptly starts scoring in the AHL. 26 goals in 13 games does not cut it. Yes, the -19 goal differential is horrendous but the offense is more of a concern. It was even last year, before that playoff run that painted rose-colored glasses into Montreal management’s visage.

The Montreal Canadiens need to ice their best players on special teams. Scorers need primary roles on the power play while more defensive players need to be on the penalty kill. That is common sense yet the opposite seems to be occurring.

Montreal has quite a bit of talent at the AHL level and on their farm. That is true. However, does one trust this management and coaching group at the NHL tier? Bergevin never did re-sign with Montreal despite the cajoling of Geoff Molson. Yet, Dominque Ducharme received a three-year deal. There are so many questions and few answers here.

Hopefully, something constructive gives and Montreal starts to win games again. They have dug themselves quite a hole that appears to be growing deeper.

If you are Carey Price, one player will not solve this, take your time. Take your time!

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