Here’s an excerpt from the Times & Transcript article by Neil Hodge:
Carey Price is expected to be Montreal’s starting goaltender next season. Look for Denis and Jaroslav Halak to battle for the backup job.
“I know where I belong and that’s what really matters to me,” said Denis when asked if he has something to prove to the Canadiens. “You’re always trying to prove somebody right or somebody wrong so that won’t be any different. It’s not going to be my first pro camp either so it’s not like I don’t know what to expect.
“I know they have two great goalies in Carey Price and Jaroslav Halak. I’m not taking anything for granted. I just want to go to camp in great shape and try to make an impact.”
Montreal goaltending coach Rollie Melanson, a Shediac native, is among the instructors at the goaltending camp in Moncton.
“I want to see a battle between all those guys,” he said in reference to Price, Halak and Denis. “Come into camp and fight for your ice. When you get into scrimmages compete hard and get the coaches attention. Competition is great for development
Habster:
To be realistic, Marc Denis was signed by Bob Gainey as an insurance plan if Halak or Price are injured or badly slumping during the season. He also provides the Hamilton Bulldogs with strong goaltending along with Cedric Desjardins.
There is an outside chance (though very slim) that Marc Denis wins the Habs backup job if he has a tremendous training camp and Jaraslav Halak fall on his face which is highly improbable.
Halak is the better technical goaltender who is very good at handling the puck as well. Unless Canadiens goaltending guru Rollie Melanson can rejuvenate and help Denis improve the technical part of his game, Halak will win this battle rather easily.
The other determining factor is Halak recently signed a one way contract worth $775,000 per season which isn’t a huge number but still a situation to consider for Gainey if everything is even at training camp. Marc Denis has a two way contract which will pay him substantially less than Halak’s salary if he is sent to Hamilton.
Regardless of the outcome, the Canadiens are solidly set in the goaltending department for the upcoming season and for years to come.
I don’t think there are any guarantees as to who will start, and who will back up in Montreal this upcoming season. Price will get every chance obviously, and the odds are that he will make the most of his opportunity. But he unravelled a couple of times last season, including at a critical juncture in the playoffs. Gainey seemed to be shooting for optimum performance by the team this season, rather than last. It almost seems that he deliberately handicapped the team in the playoffs last year by dealing away Huet, in order to give Price the exposure to be better this year.
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