Reflecting On Gauthier's Big Offseason Decision

Reflecting On Gauthier's Big Offseason Decision

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About five months ago, someone high on anybody's list of people who should probably go to the mental hospital was Pierre Gauthier. It was all because of one trade. He traded away someone who looked like the second coming of Patrick Roy to the lowly Saint Louis Blues, even after he picked up the Montreal Canadiens by the collar and dragged them all the way to the conference finals, whether they liked it or not.

His name was Jaroslav Halak, and 2009-2010 was quite the year for him. After establishing himself as the number one goalie in Montreal, he boasted a save percentage of just over .920, had an impressively low GAA, and even had a few shutouts. His performance was the reason the Habs even made it to the playoffs. But wait, there's more. He stoned two of the league's most prolific scorers and had the best playoff performance in recent memory. By the time he tuckered out against Philadelphia, he had found himself in a Habs romance.

But it was short lived, because he was quickly sent down South. Since then, he has featured a save percentage around .915, a GAA of about 2.5, and 3 shutouts. That's pretty impressive, given that he plays behind a decisively weak team(sound familiar?). He was, however, at about a .925 before he and his team hit a cold streak, which they have since come out of.

It seems as though Pierre Gauthier made the wrong choice in choosing Carey Price.

Or did he? From the start of the season, Carey has made it obvious that his General Manager didn't make the wrong choice. He played impressively at the beginning of the season, but he was just getting warmed up. He has since broken away from the shadow of his former teammate.

After his latest hot streak, which is still going, he has a save percentage of around .930, and a GAA of around 2. He also has a league-leading 4 shutouts and 13 wins. Throw that into the Vezina conversation, which has also had Halak written all over it.

Indeed, Carey has captured the heart of a town that he lost a couple of years ago, and he seems to have it in a vice grip. He has been the core of this team and seems as though he intends to carry it to a 25th Stanley Cup.

But has he really been better than Jaro? I wouldn't lean either direction right now, especially since we are only 25% of the way through a long season. Carey, however, has had to stay in the pressure-cooker. So right now, the goalies are even. The trade also seems to be mutually beneficial in respect to D'Agostini, who has played well, and Eller, who may be on the verge of a breakout with his first goal as a Hab, playing less than optimal ice time for his skill level(cough, cough). So right now, all the Habs faithful can say to Gauthier is thank you. If not for making the right decision, making a decision that we probably couldn't.

That being said, I don't think that Halak will ever have quite an epic post-win celebration as Price's famed triple-low-five.

About the Author:
This article was written by Benjamin Twain. Check out CanadiensZone.com for all the latest Canadiens news updates, pregames, post games, trade rumors, lineup changes, player profiles, videos and much, much more.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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