Canadiens tab G Price to start Saturday

May 3, 2008 - 12:28 AM MONTREAL (Ticker) -- Guy Carbonneau is back at it again.With his team trailing its Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Philadelphia Flyers three games to one, the Montreal Canadiens coach named rookie goaltender Carey Price to start Game Five on Saturday.

"He deserves a second shot," Carbonneau said on Friday. "I think in the last few days, he had time to cool down and refocus and get ready for another long stretch."

Carbonneau elected to switch goaltenders prior to Game Four, replacing Price with fellow rookie Jaroslav Halak. The move did not pay off as the 22-year-old Slovakian allowed three goals on 25 shots in a 4-2 setback.

For his part, Price admitted he did not like his view from the bench but vowed he'll be ready for Saturday's contest.

"It was a tough time. You always want to play, but you have to respect the coaches' decision," said Price, who is 5-5 with a 2.55 goals-against average and .909 save percentage this postseason. "I'm just looking forward to getting back in there. Hopefully, we can pull off a winning streak."

The 20-year-old Price, who was handed Montreal's starting goaltending job when Cristobal Huet was traded to Washington on February 26, helped the Canadiens top the Boston Bruins in the conference quarterfinals, posting his second shutout of the series in Game Seven.

However, Price struggled against Philadelphia, allowing several soft goals. The fifth overall pick in the 2005 draft, he was pulled from Monday's 3-2 loss in Game Three after yielding three tallies on just 12 shots over two periods.

Halak relieved Price in that contest and faced just two shots in the third period, stopping both.