In 2018-19, Price was able to return to the 60-start, 30-win club for the fourth time in his career. As soon as it looked like Price’s career was on the downswing, he finished t-11th in SV% (.918). He will make his first start of 2019-20 vs. the Hurricanes, who he was 1-1-1 with a 2.67 GAA and .914 SV% against last season.
Laine is coming off of a forgettable season but gets a two-year bridge deal close to $7.0M AAV. Laine’s SH% unsurprisingly fell off of a cliff last year after shooting 18 percent in his first two seasons. Even in a “down year,” Laine still scored 30 goals, which showcases how good he is. Look for his SH% to bounce-back a little bit, making Laine a 40-goal threat again in year-4.
Montembeault was forced into NHL action last year, going 4-3-2 wth a 3.04 GAA and .894 SV% in 11 games. Montembeault currently projects to serve as Sergei Bobrovsky’s backup following Roebrto Luongo’s retirement and the James Reimer trade but things could change before the start of the 2020 campaign.
Sund, 23, was an undrafted free agent defenseman from Finland, who had eight goals and 27 assists (35 points) in 60 games with Sport Vaasa of the Finnish Liiga. "Tony is a big, smooth-skating defenseman who uses a strong stick to take away passing lanes and to close plays quickly,” Sharks GM Doug Wilson said. “He has tremendous vision that made him one of the top passers and playmakers from the back-end we saw this season.”
Leskinen, 22, is a Finnish defenseman who has spent the last three years with KalPa Kuopio (Finnish Liiga). Leskinen was tied for second on the team in assists (23) and fourth in points (31) in 57 games this season.
Price allowed two goals on 24 shots in the Canadiens win over the Lightning on Tuesday. Price has won three of his last four starts while allowing 11 goals on 113 shots (.902 SV%). The Canadiens will obviously stick with Price down the stretch as they try to leap-frog the Penguins, Hurricanes or Blue Jackets for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Price allowed two goals on 24 shots in the Canadiens win over the Lightning on Tuesday. Price has won three of his last four starts while allowing 11 goals on 113 shots (.902 SV%). The Canadiens will obviously stick with Price down the stretch as they try to leap-frog the Penguins, Hurricanes or Blue Jackets for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Montembeault allowed three goals on 18 shots after replacing Roberto Luongo in the Panthers 6-1 loss in Montreal on March 26th. Montembeault has gone 0-3-0 with a 4.52 GAA and .856 SV% in his last five appearances (four starts). The 22-year-old is 2-1-1 with a 3.26 AA and .883 SV% in four starts on home-ice this season.
Price allowed one goal on 24 shots in the Canadiens win in Winnipeg on Saturday. Price has gone 5-1-1 with a 2.00 GAA, .935 SV% and one shutout in his last seven starts and will need to stay red-hot to keep the Canadiens in the playoff hunt this week. Price has gone 0-2-0 with a 3.50 GAA and .904 SV% in two games vs. the Lightning this season.
Byron was involved in a scary situation in which he had to be helped off of the ice after a fight with MacKenzie Weegar on March 26th. Byron will draw back into the lineup on the Canadiens fourth line with Nate Thompson and Jesperi Kotkaniemi.
