Was Carey Price a good pick?

[DudeWhereIsMakar]

But if he fell in Chicago's lap... oh... those would've been some of the worst cap troubles known to man.

 

[Mr Positive]

But if he fell in Chicago's lap... oh... those would've been some of the worst cap troubles known to man.

The Hawks have lots of cap space now so I think it would have worked out great for them. Probably another cup or two.

 

[NoName]

Yes. Look what he did for the Habs earlier in his career; Those teams he dragged on those deep playoff runs frankly had no business being there, Price just shut opposing teams down.

 

[JeffreyLFC]

Yes it was a good pick but the best possible pick would have been Anze Kopitar.

 

[Jtown]

So alot of people are of the mindset that you don't use a high pick on a goalie(is the goalie bust rate really even higher than other positions?) A Popular theory now is taking at least one goalie per draft outside the first round and playing the numbers game

Price had some MVP level years and not so great years, 2005 was an ok draft. Tuuka Rask was taken 16 picks later.

If a goalie of his caliber came along now where would he go?

Price has had 1 mvp level year. The year he won the Hart.

 

[BBB24]

Yes. Look what he did for the Habs earlier in his career; Those teams he dragged on those deep playoff runs frankly had no business being there, Price just shut opposing teams down.

What did he do, he never took his team to the conference final. That’s impressive to you, worth the $ he is now getting paid, ok then.

 

[Hunter368]

Yes he was. It's not his fault the Habs front office is incompetant.

This is the correct answer. Habs have a bad history of drafting, developing players and trades over recent history.

 

[SomeDude]

You can’t predict future injuries, also not Price’s fault the Habs haven’t built a better teams in front of him.

Kind of like the Pens taking MAF 1st overall in 2003. Is he the best player out of that draft? No, but he was the right pick for them.

 

[Riddum]

Price has a garbage team in front of him. When he had a ok team in front of him, his numbers were through the roof

 

[TMLeafer]

"They have so many other needs!"

 

[Leafs87]

Kopitar wasn't even a top 10 pick in that draft, he fell to 11. Which makes the Crosby and Price picks even more impressive compared to the rest of the top 10.

Yeah the Crosby one took a real genius.

Kopitar in hindsight is who I would of taken at the MTL pick but in a redraft he’d be gone at that spot. I doubt any habs fans can complain about that pick

 

[Cleatus]

Price covered up a lot of the Habs issues for many years and made them look a lot better than they actually were. I don't think Kopitar would've had the same type of impact, probably would've been traded by now for scraps.

Price's current contract looks kinda scary going forward, but Montreal had no other option. He was a great pick at 5, it's just too bad coaching and management repeatedly failed him.

 

[Habsfunk]

Of course it was. Imagine I said you had one of two choices with the pick:
1. A goalie who was guaranteed to become one of the best in the league and would win the MVP one year.
2. A choice between one of six skaters, only one of who was guaranteed to be a star. It was up to you to figure out which one.
You would go with the sure bet any day. The only way this is not a great pick is if Kopitar was for sure the other player being considered.

 

[Number 57]

Price was an absolute homerun by Gainey and perhaps one of the best top-5 picks of all time. He wasn't supposed to go that high by the Montreal scouts saw past all the rankings and grabbed him. They were right. Other top-5 picks are obvious but Price was a gutsy move and it paid off. It's as if someone had taken Kopitar 2nd overall or 3rd overall, it would have been a legendary pick now.

If I remember correctly Wheeler was also a huge reach, unfortunately he did not sign with the Coyotes but after all they were right to pick him this high. A very, very good pick. Kotkaniemi and Hayton could be in the same conversation from 2018 if they turn out to be quality 1st liners.

 

[General Disarray]

Where was he projected to go? Who else would have taken him? If he was projected at #15-20 then maybe it's best to pick Kopitar and trade someone else and get #15 so you have both.

Still it was great pick that paid off. Unfortunately management failed.

 

[Koivu11]

Where was he projected to go? Who else would have taken him? If he was projected at #15-20 then maybe it's best to pick Kopitar and trade someone else and get #15 so you have both.

Still it was great pick that paid off. Unfortunately management failed.

He was ranked as a mid first rounder if I remember correctly.

 

[eviohh26]

Price gets way too much hate here.

 

[NoName]

What did he do, he never took his team to the conference final. That’s impressive to you, worth the $ he is now getting paid, ok then.

Yes he did, in 2014.

And who said anything about his current contract, this thread is about whether he was justified as a first round pick, which I continue to maintain he absolutely was.

 

[Hynh]

Price has had some good years but still not a smart pick given the shady history the Western Hockey League has producing goalies. The choice looks even worse when you consider Price's recent injury woes and immovable contract.

Modern WHL goalies > Modern QMJHL goalies. Holtby, Price, Dubnyk, Jones, Reimer vs Fleury, Crawford, Allen and ?

 

[Filthy Dangles]

Really? Of course it was...

JQuick might argue that point.

No way. Prices 2015 Hart season was simply insane and better than anythinng any active goalie in the league has done.

 

[GodEmperor]

Yes, Price although an up and down goalie has shown that he is easily a top 10 goalie that can play like the best in the league when given the chance.

You could literally take him over the next 4 guys and be far better off for it.

Inb4 off the board picks that weren't really all that feasible.

 

[McGarnagle]

I just remember thinking it was fishy that the Habs wound up with the 5th pick in that lottery anyway, they'd been in the playoffs two of the previous 3 years, advancing to the 2nd round both times, but somehow all the oddly defined conditions for the 2005 lottery let them get top 10 odds?

 

[The Pale King]

When you have 13 years of hindsight and there's ONE guy taken in his neighborhood who/is better, then you know it was an excellent pick. And Kopitar was a risky pick, at least from an establishment standpoint, even though now it looks insane that he fell to 11.

Montreal, and every team really, are going to have some draft pick regrets, but taking the future Vezina and Hart winning goaltender Carey Price at five is not one of them.

As someone mentioned up-thread, I doubt Pittsburgh regrets drafting Fleury at No. 1. That would be a more interesting question though.

 

[Pens x]

I don’t think the Pens regret drafting Fleury #1.

It only took him 13 years to become a respectable goalie.

 

[JianYang]

So alot of people are of the mindset that you don't use a high pick on a goalie(is the goalie bust rate really even higher than other positions?) A Popular theory now is taking at least one goalie per draft outside the first round and playing the numbers game

Price had some MVP level years and not so great years, 2005 was an ok draft. Tuuka Rask was taken 16 picks later.

If a goalie of his caliber came along now where would he go?

Actually, price was considered a ballsy pick at #5. Conventional wisdom had Gilbert brule going #5, but I'm not sure the Habs really had him high on their list. If they didn't draft price, I think they may have drafted Marc staal instead based on what I heard.

It was a different time. Goalies were valued more highly at the draft back then, and this actually turned out to be a very good pick.

Where would he go today? That's a good question. He wasn't really considered a #5 back then, so I highly doubt he would be a #5 if he was just starting his career today.