1 year, 1 mil.

WHAT?

Was there nobody stronger. We paid him more than Biron got with the Rangers...


BRUTAL!

Was kind of hoping for Ellis, but as far as backups go, he will be serviceable. Cheap, too.

Biron signed for 2 years, Auld is 1 year. That is not brutal.

Leafs got Armstrong good move by them.

the Habs need to get 1 more big physical guy, Torres is still out there.

Woohoo No more goalie controversy next year!

Nitty just got 4 for 2. I wouldn't wanna pay that.

Well... I guess another hometown boy in Biron didn't want to play here...

Would have preferred Ellis, but probably to expensive. Means maybe more to come....

Auld???? You gotta be friggin kidding me Price BETTER be ready and up to the challenge this year!!

SK deal is even looking better now

It's funny, the team is almost forced to not sign local guys. Just to avoid the media garbage.

Ellis signed in Tampa Bay..

Ellis and Smith together again.



Not sure about the Habs signing of Auld. I would of liked a stronger back-up who I could rely on.

Appears that Habs didn't even have any interest in Biron after all. No offer at all Biron said.


I'm happy with Auld as a true #2. No more controversy around goalies.

In a way, it's probably better that the Habs did not sign Biron (or Lalime, Theodore, etc.) If Price has a bad game or two, heck even a bad period or two, then the francophone media will be calling for the backup ASAP. We, as Habs fans, have to be patient with Price, to let him rise up to this challenge.

Maybe having another Western-Canadian goalie will be a good thing for Price, as both a veteran mentor and a possible country music-lover to vie for control of the locker room stereo. :-)

I would have given the money to Ellis but I'm happy with Auld on this contract.

Ellis at 3 millions for 2 years

I do no give a *hi* about goalie contraversy i want WINS.

Auld is a goalie i always looked down to and say hey we have a chance to win tonight.
Now it's the other way.

Pittsburg just got way better today, they have the best catch out there with Paul Martin.
He will give them way more than Gonchar use to give them.

TSN leafs lovers crew are dripping on the floor with Colby Armstrong.
I give them one thing Versteeg + Armstrong in a line up is fresh air and hard work.

Sens are a bit better too.

Anyway still some good catches to be made there or the other eastern teams will catch up to
our 8th conference spot.

Who seriously expected Ellis to sign here?


He clearly wanted to be number 1


So why did PG get him for SK?

Because he didnt want to look as bad as BG when he traded Ribeiro for nothing

But apart from Ellis, all of these are players we knew we weren't going to get. I think it's one of Lombardi and Frolov for us.

Eklund says we'd dump Hammer in the minors for Volchenkov but what does he know?

Ellis said he was okay with being in a complimentary role and how does he have a better chance being #1 playing with Mike Smith than he would be with Carey Price? I'm not sure why we didn't match or (if we did match it then) outdo the offer he signed. Maybe we only wanted a back up on a one-year deal?

Because we have no cap space. Wow, we replaced Halak, who just helped provide us with a great spring, with Alex Auld.

We have the cap space to give that extra 500K.

well not signing ellis we save 500 000 and gets more in future considerations i would think??

Yeah, but why does it matter that we save 500K unless we still plan on making another move? I still think we're in the running for Frolov, Lombardi, Moore. Maybe Kariya if he's willing to play in a big hockey city.

because really we saved 1 mil over 2 years....and gets future considerations..price is the #1 guy so iam glad we saved that money...I aslo think we are going for Frolov..but i got this werid feeling that we offer a long term deal to Ilya Kovalchuk

But I don't see how we could afford Kovy.. we'd have to lose Hamrlik for nothing. I really feel like we're going to sign Frolov even though we'll have trouble fitting him under the cap. It's just a feeling I've had for the past week. I can sense his presence drawing nearer. lol

i thing we could do a deal like hossa's..for a cheap cap hit..maybe?? i think if we would of sign Frolov it be done by now?

Picking up Alex Auld for 1 year at 1 million was a great pick up. Alex is from alberta and Price is from BC so they should have something in common such as country music and lot's of Garth Brooks. Now that the boy became the man let's work on strengthening our defece around him. By the way I've been really impressed with the progress that Ryan O'Byrne has made.

Well, colour me pessimistic.

Yes, Auld and even Sanford are serviceable backups. But on what basis, exactly, are we to conclude that Carey Price - who I like, but who lost the starter's job last season and consistently played just well enough to lose - will suddenly step up and become a guy you can depend on to give you ace netminding for 60+ games? What magical transformation has occured since May that ensures he will be able to yield a winning record, when he has put up disastrous W-L totals since February 2009?

I had no problem in dealing Halak, because I assumed we were going to secure a serious #1A guy who would be able to step into the breach in the event that Price struggles again. The Kostitsyn deal suggsted as much. Now we lose Ellis because we refused to cough up an extra half-mil. Yes, the cap is tight. But goaltending is not the place to take colossal risks in order to save peanuts.

So now what? If Carey Price struggles early, the fans will absolutely rip him to shreds a la Patrice Brisebois - perhaps finally destroying him in this city. And if he struggles, all the Habs have to fall back on is Tweedledum and Tweedledee. Gauthier has decided to play Russian Roulette with the 2010-11 season, and possibly the longer-term future of the team is Price gets dismantled as a result of being inadequately protected.

We may come through OK. Price may take that jump. But in hockey terms this looks like an absolutely terrible, cross-your-fingers-and-pray decision to me.

Price played the bulk of his games in the early part of last season, when the team as a whole we all new to each other. If Price had the same goal support the habs gave in the second 1/2 this isn't an issue. I don't see this as a risk. Goaltending was not the issue with the team last year, everyone misses the forest for the trees. Goalscoring was the issue last year.

CC you talk like if Price was coming out of nowhere, like if he was... Halak. Price's career progression speaks by itself. He's a competitor, a winner. He has size, he has tremendous technical abilities. There are not many young goalies that were that good early on in their career. I saw comparison charts between Price and Luongo/Brodeur/Roy/etc first years, and Price isn't far behind, if not ahead of all of them in their progression. Alright Price didn't land the Conn Smythe in his first year, alright he had a rocky progression... but is it enough to give up on him? On what should we base our assessment?

It's easy to trash the guy from the outside, but we need to take in account the situation he has been put in. Sometimes when you get it easy, it turns against you. I really think that the lows that Price went through especially this year will only serve him for the better. Definitely the staff believe he has made that mental and attitude progression and what he gains in maturity will really push him a long way.

Plus we gotta take in consideration the confidence that is put in Price by management. We all know that Price has all the technical tools to be a star in the league. And we know that confidence is even more important. Price has it now more than ever. He is the clear #1 goalie for next year. The thing is, he already had the management full confidence since the draft. Maybe too much at times with Gainey. But last year Martin let him on the side to watch Halak's success and I believe that Price took notes.

Now confidence from management is good, but the player must make the commitment to produce at a high level physically and mentally. As fans looking from the outside, we don't have the choice but to trust the sound assessment of management. If we get on the back of Price we are not helping him. I for one trust in his abilities, acknowledge his mistakes and lack of judgment in his early years, but trust he's maturing and will take more and more the wheel of this team.

Gainey and Timmins focus have always been on drafting or trading for players with character. At one time we had like a dozens of national captains in the team. We all know what happened and that maybe too much captains is just cacophony. It was odd last year to suddenly have a captainless team. There has been a leadership approach shift inside the team, where each player must take responsibilities in his own hands.

And now, who remains from all the team trades, which players did the team drafted and invest in heavily and are the core of the franchise? Plekanec and Price. Those two are the cornerstones of this franchise. And you don't kick out your cornerstones when they have a bad year. You build them, you grow with them, you win with them and you die with them.

We have all seen movies about success stories. There are MANY backdrops, mistakes, u-turns in one's progression. The most important thing is not giving up, get back on his feet and pushing forward. And if remember, above all Price's tremendous skill of skating from post to post, his positional techniques and all, the most important factor that made the Habs draft him at a jaw-dropping shocking 5th overall -even with the great center we have been long waiting for available at that rank-, that factor was Price tremendous character qualities, his calmness and poise, his winner attitude, his moral/family support. As identified by Gainey and co., those are the key to success.

I would turn back the question: Why suddenly would Price not be that guy? What magical transformation occurred where Price lost all his character attributes and technical abilities? What is the reward of turning our back on an athlete after a disastrous performance? This is not the way to raise a champion. I'm glad the staff have not giving up on Price.

Martin had lots of experience with Luongo. He knows what it takes to be a champion at your position. He made a point, after being hired as head coach, to fly to visit Carey and tell him he was committed to making him a champion. Now that doesn't mean Price was to get the net in all games last season. It was more the opposite as Martin benched Price in favour of more committed goalie Halak.

Now if you remember, Martin has been saying all along that he wanted personal commitment from the players. We all saw what happened with Sergei, even if the guy has tremendous hockey qualities. We don't have the choice but to acknowledge the exceptional coaching of Martin last year. He was able to raise the performance of his players and make them believe to a commitment to team approach. In his FIRST year as head coach, Habs played 3 playoffs rounds! Now that musk speak volume about the value of such an approach.

And when that same man tells his GM he believe that the kid is ready -for the first time in his career- for a full time, prime time action, we cannot but be excited about next year and the next chapter in this athlete progression.

It is a risk and I would have signed Ellis instead at that price but I don't think it's a Russian Roulette type gamble.

It comes down to whether you have confidence in Price and our organization has never wavered in that regard.

Auld will be a serviceable backup, but what happens if Price gets injured? Not overwhelmingly pleased with this acquisition. Not when there were many better options out there.

Sakiq, thanks for your thoughtful post. I actually agree with most of your argument; the thing is, I wasn't arguing that we should give up on Price, which is the proposition that you eloquently refute. What I'm saying is that Price was clearly not The Man last season, and therefore it is a dramatic leap of faith to assume that he will suddenly become The Man this season. Yes, I am reasonably sure that Price will eventually become a terrific NHL starter, but I just don't see any special ground for thinking that it *must* be next year. And if it turns out NOT to be next year, then not only is the season down the toilet (barring a miracle from Auld/Desjardins) but Price's entire future in Montreal could be in serious jeopardy. Part of what's driving my concern here is precisely that I want Price to develop and remain long-term. Potentially throwing him to the wolves is not the way to do that.

Price has given no sign that he is ready to fly without the safety net of a #1A guy behind him. That's why the Auld signing is, as I said before, like bunjee jumping on a shoelace.

In BTH's terms, I have faith in Price's future. His present is a dodgier proposition.

If the management didn't have confidence in Price being the clear #1 guy next season, they would have told Ellis he would have a chance to play lots of game and they would have paid 500k more to upgrade from Auld to Ellis.

The thing is, if Price is the goalie and cornerstone of your franchise, it is an INSULT and a TRAVESTY to keep Halak or bring an Ellis-1B type of goalie! You don't put your franchise player on the bench! You give him the net, you give him confidence in his own abilities, you surround him with capable dmen and a good system, and you move forward!

Jacques Martin clearly saw that Price didn't have the right attitude last year and that his mental progression was off-track with poor judgment, poor mentorship, lack of commitment. He didn't hesitate to put him on the bench and I truly believe Martin handled him very well. If at the beginning of the season the team didn't have confidence in Price, if Price wasn't committing fully to the team's success, well, at season end every player were acknowledging Price's stellar team player attitude, his commitment during training sessions and on-ice practice.

We don't see what is going on inside the locker room. But the little hints we get speak volume: to be able to be the one shaking up a teammate (S.K.) about lack of commitment and lack of intensity during practice, you must either be a team leader or an hypocritical loser. But considering the endorsement Price had from his teammates and from management at the end of the season, we must believe the former, that Price had gained leadership and reputation in the dressing room, and, if the player didn't have trust in him at the start of the season and didn't like his cocky attitude, the team is now ready to turn the page and go to war along their cherished and attitude-improved goalie.

Keeping Price in nets last season wouldn't have made him any good. He had corners of his game to shape, but most importantly his attitude. It was definitely an humbling experience. The great thing when you go through hardship and life learning sessions, is to have the support of your peers and management. Carey is lucky to be so well surrounded in this regard.

However, I'm not saying management is without fault in his handling of Price and their others bluechips prospects. They made terrible mistakes along the way and contributed to the slow progress of many of them. Definitely the pressure of "winning now" in Montréal is huge, but hopefully management can also learn from this. I believe they could have better tutored many of their prospects, and we shouldn't have lost Komi and Higgins.

Price is a story of destiny and reality. We all think to know what he is destined to. Price must believe himself that he will win many Stanley Cups. But before getting there, there is reality, and commitment and sacrifice and perseverance and dedication. And this is not his story alone.

Either Carey has the tools or he hasn't. When should they give him the net? I understand CC and others who are not sure what Carey will do next season.

But here is why I am optimistic: we all know he has all the tools. What is lacking then? NHL Experience? NHL wins? Maturity? At what point do you give the #1 job to your franchise goalie? It will be his 4th year. He already has 2 winning seasons and a 60W-48L-18OTL record with a great .912SPCT.

Experience in different situation: he gained tremendous experience last year, and saw Halak's work ethic, dedication to the team and the way he gained the trust of his teammates. It must be the first time in his career that Price went through that kind of harship. It will not be the only time in his career probably, but he must learn how to deal with those circumstances.

If the guy is your franchise goalie and it's his 4th year in the league, it's about time you tell him: this is your net, this is your time. Destiny is now, it's yours to make it.

Enough fooling around. This is the time.

If this is indeed Price's year, then he will win the #1 job straight out regardless of who his backup is. Therefore, there would have been nothing wrong with hiring Ellis; if Price dominates, you can always move Ellis. If Price falters, you've got a bona-fide #1A guy to go to.

The argument that 'management thinks Price is ready' would cut more mustard with me if management had not been repeatedly wrong about that before. The same is true of the 'destiny' argument: heard it all before, and absolutely SQUAT has come out of it. True, we're not privy to inside information. What we ARE privy to is the fact that Price has been a yo-yo in his young career so far, played himself out of the #1 goalie role last season, and did not particularly impress in his playoff starts either. I see no rational grounds for optimism here, just blind faith in the wisdom of a management team that has mismanaged Price from the start and continuing mystical belief in the supposed inevitability of Carey Price's greatness.

Again: I am emphatically NOT trying to slag Price. I just don't see any ground for arbitrarily yanking his (and by extension, the franchise's) safety net at this stage in his development.

A note I just thought of now, Martin's had Auld as a goalie before back in Florida so there's some familiarity right off the bat. Wonder if he went to Gauthier to vouch for him...

So supposedly Ellis said on TSN that one reason why he prefered TB over MTL is that he would have a better chance to fight for the #1 job in Tampa. Judging by his comments and those of Auld, Gauthier made it perfectly clear that they were going to give Price every chance to succeed and that the new goalie's role would be to help Price. Doesn't sound like Ellis would have signed with us even if we matched the contract (maybe we did).

No need for you CC to back up what you're saying by adding you're not "slagging". You've been consistant and neutral on the goalie situation. I completely agree though, it's a little scary. In the past, if we were facing Alex Auld, I would automatically consider it a win. He scares nobody.

although, Leighton scared nobody only a few months ago ...

Auld is serviceable. i don't believe a Championship team will devote precious cap money to TWO #1 caliber goalies. pick your horse and ride it. Price is the horse. add to that, we have a good defensive system now - likely Auld could shine for a month or two, just as Leighton did. (i REALLY think the Flyers will regret rewarding Leighton after 1 good playoff run)

Auld is no better than Sanford. I'd have Sanford make the team instead, it'd save us $1m compared to what Ellis got in Tampa.

I'd have signed Yann Danis over Alex Auld. Auld has flamed out of every market he's been in.

Auld NHL Totals:
GP - 207
W - 83
L - 82
T - 2
SO - 6
GA - 537
SA - 5600
SV% - .904
GAA - 2.78


Highs and lows?
LOW - with Panthers in 2006-2007 playing 27 games with 3.34 GAA
& 9 games with Coyotes in 2007-2008 with 3.54 GAA

High - 2005-2006 played 67 games for Canucks with 2.94 GAA
& 2007-2008 with Bruins with 2.32 GAA in 23 games
& 2008-2009 with Sens playing 43 games with 2.47 GAA

He just doesn't seem that bad to me. I'm happy with Auld as our backup.

http://www.coppernblue.com/2009/7/28/96583...nce-the-lockout

If the average even strength SV% is .919% in the NHL, than Alex Auld has had two above average years and three below average years (.902 ESSV% last year), and is below league average in general. Curtis Sanford can probably accomplish the same for $450k cheaper.

quote from the article you linked

"Alex Auld probably deserves to be a bit higher here; one bad season has torpedoed his average and he's been very decent in the other three years. I've always liked the guy, and Dallas did an ice job to get him without giving up much (6th round pick) and provide Marty Turco with some insurance and maybe even a little competition for the starting job. Tobias Stephen simply wasn't enough of an option last year."

Has anybody heard a reasoning for not signing Biron? He signed with the Rangers for cheaper than we got Auld. I would consider Biron the better goalie and the obvious french-Canadian connection is there as well.

There you go. I don't want any Rejean Tremblay scream for Biron after preseason loss by Price...

Then he proceeded to have his 2nd worst year post-lockout after the article is done: in short, he made an assumption, and then was proven wrong by the results this past year.

Like I sad: 3 years of below average goaltending out of 5, and he's simply getting older.

Whatever. $1m isn't disasterous, it's just that I think we can get the same quality of goaltending out of Sanford for less. And that we'd have gotten much better at $1.5m out of Biron or Ellis. Whatever. Not my money.

This seems like a really shrewd move to me after thinking about it for a couple of days.

Price is now without a safety net and so is the media. There is nobody challenging him and nobody to rescue him when he struggles. Price will need to work through the tough times on ice and not on the bench. As much as anything I see this as a move to re-evaluate Price's ability to do the job - Think "all in" in poker terms. Auld is only one year and Price's performance will determine what PG does in future drafts/FA. Is Price a bust or savior? I think that PG is looking to answer this question.

Right. And risking both Price's future and the success of the Habs' entire season in the process.

It's akin to ditching Markov and replacing him with Niinimaa because you want to find out whether Subban can be a legitimate #1 defenceman in the NHL. 'All in,' yes. Smart? No.

I don't buy your analogy, you're comparing Halak to Markov. Halak had a decent what 2/3 of a season and he's now of Markovs quality? Over rating the talent a bit much there.

Price had one bad season, when the team around him barely knew each others names, he played against the better opponents and received one less goal support than Halak. I don't see where you get off seeing this as a huge risk? We'll see if Price can pad his stats against the weaker teams like Halak did, we'll see what Prices' stats is with a team who actually plays like a team.

Cam Ward has had a terrible season, but all people (see: experts) are doing are projecting him to challenge Luongo for the #1 spot on the 2014 Olympic team. You know the difference between Ward and Price? The fans in Carolina not calling for Wards head after every goal.

Price more than anything has been praised for his mental aspect, and I respect that PG and the rest of his crew understand it. You think they'd stubbornly not pick up say Ellis if they believed Price was going to bust? Also, a bust at 23? I think most habs fans will not be happy TIL Price does bust, so they can sit in their armchairs and crow about how they were right. Most habs fans prefer to be right over the team winning.

no - no it isn't .

that analogy isn't even close.