MONTREAL—Montreal Canadiens fans already concerned over Carey Price’s poor performance in the opening round of the NHL Playoffs will find little comfort from a glimpse into the goaltender’s state of mind, which sounds rather solitaire.
The Ottawa Senators beat the Canadiens in five games when, aside from a solid performance in a Game 2 victory, Price was resoundingly outplayed by counterpart Craig Anderson.
Price hasn’t won a playoff series since his rookie season and the weight of expectations that comes with a career in Montreal may feel a little heavy on Price’s mind.
"When you're winning here there's no better place to play. But when you're not playing well here it's definitely tough,” the 25-year-old Price said. "That's one thing I miss, just being anonymous (...) It's impossible.
"I don't even go to the grocery store anymore. I hardly do anything anymore. I'm like a hobbit in a hole. I just don't do anything anymore."
Price began the season strongly before losing six of his last eight games to go into the playoffs on a tailspin that seemed to affect his confidence. Price posted a .894 save percentage to Anderson’s .950 in the series before going out of Game 4 with a left knee sprain. He finished the playoffs with a 3.26 goals against average.
“It's easy to let your pride swing, it's easy to think you're terrible and it's easy to think you're great here. It's just something you have to manage mentally,” Price said. "I talked to previous goalies, I talked with Patrick (Roy) and Ken Dryden. But I was just so awestruck that I didn't really think about what I wanted to ask them. I was too nervous. But they all know what it's like to go through this and they're very supportive.”
But an inability to provide convincing play in the clutch has left some questioning his ability to lead the Habs to a first Stanley Cup since 1993.
"We haven't won, and I honestly believe I can win a Stanley Cup," said Price, who earns $6.5 million per season. "I think I have the ability and the mentality to do that. In order to do that I need to reach another level. I'm going to need to figure out what I need to do to get to that level."
