Carey Price Carey Price ( born August 16 , 1987 ) is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . Price was the Canadiens ' first round selection ( fifth overall ) in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft . Price spent his major - junior career with the Tri - City Americans of the Western Hockey League ( WHL ) . Playing career . Before Price was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens , he established himself as a top prospect playing with the Tri - City Americans beginning in 2002 – 03 . Price was particularly strong during his draft year in 2004 – 05 , posting 8 - shutout s , a 2 . 34 goals against average ( GAA ) and a . 920 save percentage . In his last year in the WHL , he was awarded the Del Wilson Trophy as the WHL goaltender of the year and was named to the WHL FirstAll - Star Team . He was also named CHL Goaltender of the Year . Upon completing his award - winning season in the WHL , Price immediately began his professional career with the Hamilton Bulldogs of the American Hockey League ( AHL ) , having signed with the Canadiens in 2007 to a three - year entry - level contract . He joined the Bulldogs for the last three games of the regular season and the 2007 Calder Cup Playoffs , recording his first professional game and win on April 13 , 2007 against the Grand Rapids Griffins . He was named the first star of the game upon stopping 27 of 28 shots . Price went on to lead the Bulldogs to a 15 – 6 playoff record and the 2007 Calder Cup championship , posting an impressive 2 . 06 GAA and . 936 save percentage . In his first game of the Calder Cup finals , he stopped all 46 shots to post a shutout . He subsequently won the Jack A . Butterfield Trophy as the Calder Cup playoffs MVP , making him the youngest player ever to receive the award . He is the only goaltender in hockey history to be named CHL Goaltender of the Year , World Junior Championship ' s tournament MVP and win the Jack A . Butterfield Trophy all in the same year . He is also the only goaltender in hockey history to win the Jack A . Butterfield Trophy the same year as playing junior . On October 1 , 2007 , Price was named to the Montreal Canadiens roster for the start of the 2007 – 08 season . He made his highly anticipated Canadiens debut on October 10 , 2007 , against the Pittsburgh Penguins and recorded 26 saves in a 3 – 2 win . After the first month of the season , he was awarded the Canadiens ' Molson Cup for October , given to the player with the most first - star selections . Although re - assigned to the Hamilton Bulldogs midway through the season in January , he was called back up shortly over a month later . With the trading of starting goaltender Cristobal Huet to the Washington Capitals before the trading ddline , Price assumed the starting role for the Canadiens . He was subsequently named the NHL Rookie of the Month for March and the NHL First Star of the Week ( ending April 6 , 2008 ) as the Canadiens finished first overall in the Eastern Conference and earned their first division title since 1991 – 92 . Price completed the regular season leading all rookie goaltenders in wins ( 24 ) , save percentage ( . 920 ) , and shutouts ( 3 ) . Entering the playoffs against the Boston Bruins , Price recorded a 1 – 0 win on April 15 , 2008 , becoming the first Canadiens rookie to post a playoff shutout since Patrick Roy in 1986 . He would go on to record another shutout in game seven to eliminate Boston . Montreal lost in the second round to the Philadelphia Flyers with Price losing 3 of the last 4 games . After a strong start to the 2008 – 09 season , in which he earned a second Molson Cup in November , Price injured his ankle on December 30 , 2008 . Forced out of action for nearly a month , during which he was voted in as a starting goalie for the 2009 NHL All - Star Game in Montreal ( along with teammates Alexei Kovalev , Andrei Markov and Mike Komisarek ) he made his return to action on January 20 , 2009 after backup Jaroslav Halák was pulled in a 4 – 2 loss to the Atlanta Thrashers . Going into the 2009 playoffs as the eighth and final seed , the Canadiens played the Boston Bruins in the opening round for the second consecutive season . They were swept in four games , with the Bruins scoring at least 4 times in each game . In the final game at the Bell Centre in Montreal , Price surrendered four goals in two periods . After stopping a weak dump - in , the crowd cheered sarcastically and Price responded by putting his arms up in the air , similar to Patrick Roy ' s gesture on December 2 , 1995 , in a game after which Roy requested a trade from the Canadiens . Price struggled throughout the 2009 - 10 season , winning only 13 games and losing the starting job to Halák as the Canadiens entered the playoffs as the eighth and final seed . Although the Canadiens made a surprise run to the Eastern Conference final , upsetting both the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins along the way , Price appeared in only 4 games , losing 1 and getting no decision in each of the others , only coming off the bench when the game was out of hand . The highlight of the season for Price was stopping 37 of 38 shots in a 5 - 1 win over the Boston Bruins in the Canadiens 100 year anniversary game on December 4 , 2009 , and the low point was surrendering 4 goals in his only start of the playoffs . In the summer of 2010 , both Price and Halák became restricted free agent s and a goaltending debate emerged in Montreal over who would remain with the team , playoff - hero Halák , or the younger Price . After weeks of media speculation the Canadiens chose Price , trading Halák to the St . Louis Blues and re - signing Price to a two year , $ 5 . 5 million contract . The 2010 - 2011 NHL Pre - Season was a tough start for Price . However during the 2010 - 11 NHL Season , Price played in 72 games recording new career highs including 38 wins , 8 shutouts , a 2 . 35 goals against average , and a . 923 save percentage . This play from Price allowed the Montreal Canadiens to enter the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs . This strong play continued for Price in the playoffs posting a . 935 save percentage , however it was not enough to lead the Canadiens to victory as they fell in 7 games in the first round to the Boston Bruins . International play . Price made his international debut for Canada at the 2005 IIHF World U18 Championships in the Czech Republic . He appeared in four games , earning a silver medal as Team Canada was defeated by the United States 5 – 1 in the gold medal game . Two years later , in his final year of major junior , Price was named to Team Canada for the 2007 World Junior Championships in Sweden . He led Team Canada to a third consecutive gold medal and was named Tournament MVP and Top Goaltender after going 6 - 0 with 2 shutouts , a 1 . 14 GAA and . 961 save percentage . He was also named to the Tournament All - Star Team along with teammates Jonathan Toews and Kris Letang . Personal . Price was raised in Anahim Lake , British Columbia with sister Kayla by parents Jerry and Lynda Price . His father , Jerry Price , was also a goaltender ; he was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the eighth round , 126th overall in the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft . Although he never played in the NHL , he did play four seasons of pro hockey in various leagues and is currently the goaltending coach of the Tri - City Americans . His mother , Lynda , is the former chief of the Ulkatcho First Nation . Phoenix Coyotes ' captain Shane Doan and Keaton Ellerby of the Florida Panthers are second cousins of Price . Price was named as an honorary co - chair at the 2010 National Aboriginal Hockey Championships that were held in Ottawa , Ontario in May 2010 . Rumors of Price being a Christian are floating around because of the cross on the back of his helmet . The rumors have not yet been confirmed . Career statistics . Regular season . Bolded numbers indicate league leader .