In an interview with RDS this offseason, Canadiens goaltending coach Stephane Waite said the key for Price to bounce back was knowing the root of the problem and addressing it. He believes he and Price have solutions.
Price talked about parts of the solution at the fourth annual Day with Price camp put on by Eli Wilson Goaltending. Price spent the day working with 18 children.
"I was talking to Eli about this earlier too and I found I was getting too spread out, like getting your feet too far apart from each other," Price said. "You are pretty much committed to the shot essentially when you do that, so that's something we'll be continuing to work on, keeping more of a neutral position and that will allow me to move better in any situation."
Smooth movement has long been a staple in Price's standing as one of the NHL's best goalies. Getting too wide reduces the power that fuels those pushes for goalies, usually forcing them into more lateral sliding on the knees rather than approaching side-to-side plays on the skates.
A return to a more balanced foundation should help Price get back to his form from 2014-15, when he won the Vezina Trophy and the Hart Trophy with a 1.96 GAA and .933 save percentage.
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Price also knows he will need help from his teammates. The Canadiens were hurt by inconsistent play and injuries last season, especially to defenseman Shea Weber, who is expected to be out until mid-December after having knee surgery June 19. Montreal gave up 258 goals last season, seventh most in the NHL.
Goaltending rarely exists in a vacuum; performance is often tied to environment and defensive structure. That helps explain why, when asked about the offseason moves the Canadiens made, Price first discussed the hiring of former NHL defenseman Luke Richardson as an assistant. Richardson was an assistant for the New York Islanders last season.
"It felt almost like we were trying to overcorrect for things," Price said, stopping to make it clear he included himself in that statement. "You start to try too hard and do things you shouldn't because you feel like you are helping, but at the end of the day you are hurting yourself. Sometimes less is more."
For a goaltender who felt he was committing early to reads and shots last season by getting lower and wider in his stance sooner than he'd ideally like, it's a dangerous combination when the structure in front of him disappears.
"It's all intertwined," said Price, who turned 31 on Aug. 16 and begins an eight-year contract this season. "That's something we'll have to work on at camp and just be like, 'This is the rule, there is no gray area, this is how we are going to do it.' We have some new coaching staff this year, and a new defensive coach in Luke Richardson, so we'll have to sit down at the start of training camp and iron out what we want to do."
For Price, the changes aren't extreme. Can a little stance adjustment, among other things, make a big difference?
"It could be," he said, smiling. "We'll see."
