| Authored by Nick Obergan - 17th June, 2010 - 8:47 pm
 The Montreal Canadiens shockingly traded their soon-to-be restricted free agent Jaroslav Halak to the St. Louis Blues for Lars Eller and Ian Schultz, two forward prospects.
It was widely believed that new Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier would have to trade one of his two young goalies, many expected ? including me ? that it would be Carey Price on the move. While Price always seemed to be the goalie of the future in Montreal, Halak firmly took hold of the #1 this season.
When Price broke in is as a rookie, he had Habs fans seeing visions of Patrick Roy and Ken Dryden, posting a 24-12-3 record with a 2.56 GAA and .920 save percentage, and getting them through to the second round of the playoffs.
However, he wasn't as steady last year, going 23-16-10, 2.83 and .905. That opened the door for Halak to receive playing time, but he didn't light the world on fire either with a 18-14-1 record and 2.86 GAA and .915 save percentage. This year, though, Halak clearly outplayed the struggling price. Halak went 26-13-5 with 2.40 and .924, while Price went 13-20-5 with 2.77 and .912.
Halak played all of the games down the stretch as Montreal limped into the playoffs as the eighth seed. But Halak found another level in the postseason and was the talk of the hockey world after he shut the door on Washington, winning the last three games after being down 3-1. In those three games he saved 131 of 134 en route to one of the biggest upsets in NHL history.
And though he was pulled in favor of Price on a couple of occasions, he always found his way back into the limelight, putting out the defending champion Penguins as an encore. At that point, with the eighth seeded Habs in the Conference Finals, it was almost assumed that Halak had earned the right to be the goaltender of the future in Montreal, and played himself into a hefty contract extension.
As the playoffs ended, much of the talk in Montreal was on the goaltending situation, with both Halak and Price being restricted free agents. Montreal was viewed as having two #1 goalies, neither of which would be happy with a #2 role or simply splitting time from this point forward. With Halak's breakout playoff performance. Price seemed to be the odd man out after Halak's heroics in the postseason and rumours swirled around multiple teams that may be interested in Price's services.
As the weeks rolled along, more and more teams appeared in the rumour mill for Price: Tampa Bay, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Florida to name a few that didn't have a young goaltender of the future at the time. It seemed inevitable.
St. Louis now has two weeks to ink Halak to a new deal, and he seemed excited about the new opportunity ahead. He told ESPN that he will "try to make the new organization proud" that they got him. If for some reason they fail to sign him and choose not to match an offer sheet (which seems preposterous after trading for him), the Blues will receive heavy draft pick compensation.
St. Louis will now cut ties with 34-year-old Chris Mason, an unrestricted free agent, and move forward with the 25-year-old Halak in a deal that can help them climb back into the top-8 in the Western Conference. It can only been seen as a positive first move for new GM Doug Armstrong.
Grade for St. Louis: A+
For Montreal and Gauthier, a decision had to be made between the two netminders. At 22-years-old, many around the league still believed that Price had a higher ceiling than Halak. Though he has struggled with the scrutiny he has received in Montreal, perhaps being shown such faith by the organization will ease Price's mind and help him to focus on improving and growing up from a maturity standpoint.
It wasn't just a talent choice, though, and according to Pierre LeBrun, this was also a money decision; Gauthier admitted on a conference call that the likely size of Halak's contract, versus that of Price, was a factor in the decision making process. While unfortunate that he would admit it, that is the reality in a salary cap world, especially when your team employs a number of high priced forwards (Cammalleri, Gionta, Gomez). It may also allow the Habs to resign their leading scorer Tomas Plekanec, who is an unrestricted free agent seeking big bucks.
Though he didn't say it, I am sure that Gauthier was aware he would likely receive a better return on Halak than Price at this point in time as well. Rumours had him feeling out potential trades involving Price and no one was biting. It is far too early to tell what impact the two prospects he got will have, but signs point to Lars Eller (21-years-old) making a push to join the roster as early as next season; Eller had 57 points in 70 games in the AHL last season, and 2 goals in 7 games with St. Louis. The former 13th overall pick is 6'0", a size that is scarce in Montreal these days.
Schultz is the younger brother of Washington Capitals' player Jeff Schultz. Ian, 20-years-old, spent the last three seasons in the WHL with the Calgary Hitmen, where he totalled 54 goals, 121 points and 405 penalty minutes in 195 games. The 6'2" former 3rd round pick will bring an added toughness up front that Montreal clearly lacks, but will likely spend a full season in the AHL before making the club (as they showed with their handling of P.K. Subban).
In reality, though, Montreal can't be given a full grade for this trade right now. They had to make a choice, but we won't be able to tell if they made the right one until a few seasons down the road. How will the prospects pan out? Will Halak go on to superstardom while Price falters, or vise versa? It will be an interesting story to follow for the next three seasons or so.
Grade for Montreal: Incomplete
Nick can be reached by email nickobergan@hotmail.com or on twitter @NickObergan |
