Montreal Canadiens Shouldn’t Seek Revenge For Carey Price Hit Last Season

By Lissa Albert @LissaRantSports on October 24, 2014

In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the New York Rangers, forward Chris Kreider crashed the net of Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price. Price looked shaken, but continued to play through two periods. He was replaced in net by backup goalie Peter Budaj in the third, but the damage was done and the Habs lost that game.

They lost more than the game; they lost their star goalie. Price was injured and unable to play for the series. He was replaced with Dustin Tokarski, a player from the Hamilton Bulldogs. While Tokarski was a controversial choice, he was able to defend effectively, giving the Habs a real chance in that round. It wasn’t enough, though, and the Rangers won. Would they have won with Price in nets? That question can never be answered.

Price has fully recovered. He is more than fully recovered, actually, as he is better than ever. And tomorrow night, both teams will face each other for the first time since playoffs.

The chatter had begun some time ago, and it grows louder: Will the Canadiens seek to avenge Price’s injury? And should they?

There was a lot of differing opinion on whether Kreider crashed the net on purpose. The case for this theory consists of his two previous incidents last season, both of which put goalies out of commission, both of which were almost carbon-copy form to the hit on Price.

The case against was that there might have been a Canadiens player who pushed Kreider.

As we all know, this kind of debate never gets resolved, and no definitive answer is ever possible.

So it brings me to the game against the Rangers, a long-awaited meeting. Previous to the playoffs, there was no rivalry. It instantly developed after Game 1 and was inflamed in Game 3 when Habs forward Brandon Prust and Derek Stepan of the Rangers clashed (Stepan sustained a broken jaw). In yet another game, Habs forward Dale Weise was concussed and blindsided by John Moore. It seemed these two teams were forever locked in a newly formed rivalry.

I believe, however, that teams form rivalries anytime playoff eliminations are involved; coming so close to the Stanley Cup and being deprived of that dream has to affect the way teams see the victors.

If rivalries were acted upon every time teams met, we would be seeing more retaliations than games. There are famous rivalries between players, but more often than not, those burn off. Sure, commentary always revolves around it — even three years later, there is still commentary whenever Max Pacioretty and Boston Bruins‘ Zdeno Chara are on the ice together. But the actual actions of players don’t drag on.

This is different. This is the first meeting since the team’s star goalie was sidelined. This is personal, for fans at least. I’m pretty sure it’s personal for players. Whether or not the Habs would have gone onto the Stanley Cup Final had Price not been injured is a piece for another time. Today, all talk of retaliation against Kreider is what dominates Habs nation.

These distractions merely break the rhythm of a game and take players off course. That doesn’t mean they don’t happen or that they’re not warranted.

I don’t believe it should happen. My personal views on fighting in the NHL will be written in these pages at some point in the not-too-distant future. But in this case, I think both teams should face this game as the first meeting in a new season. Both teams are doing well. The Rangers will probably be more focused on breaking Montreal’s win streak and the Habs should be more focused on extending it.

Whether or not I believe it should happen, I do think there will be some symbolic show of force. Perhaps it will be against Kreider, or perhaps it comes against Moore for the Weise hit. It’s highly probable fans and commentators in New York are urging Stepan to take on Brandon Prust.

But in this case, I don’t believe there should be retaliation for that hit. After all, both teams did meet for five subsequent games, there were injuries on both sides, and that chapter of the 2013-14 season is over.

Or is it?

We’ll see on Saturday night.

Lissa Albert is a Montreal Canadiens writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter @LissaRantSports. “Like” her on Facebook and/or add her to your network on Google.