Fan questions NHL insider about star goalie’s rumoured depression…

This sounds like something that should remain private, no?

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 5 years ago
Fan questions NHL insider about star goalie’s rumoured depression…
Twitter

Many goalies across the National Hockey League have struggled early in the season: Calgary Flames’ Mike Smith, Boston Bruins’ Tuukka Rask, Pittsburgh Penguins’ Matt Murray and Montreal Canadiens’ Carey Price come to mind. The latter sure has a lot of fans talking in Montreal, especially seeing that he is getting paid a lot of money to sit on the bench and watch his backup do the work…

On Tuesday night, Habs head coach Claude Julien chose to start backup netminder Antti Niemi once again over Price as the Canadiens faced the Edmonton Oilers in the first game of the Western Canadian road trip.  The coach however mentioned Price would see some action during the trip. 

“I’d just say it’s a decision … you know, it’s simple as that. There’s no hidden agenda. We made a decision. What we know is that with these three games out West you’re going to see both goaltenders. So tonight it’s Niemi and we’ll work on the next game,” explained Julien before the game. 

Niemi managed to pull off some impressive saves, especially against Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, however, the Habs were still defeated 6-2 by the Oilers. 


The conversation that Habs insider Francois Gagnon from RDS had online while talking about Price and his latest woes got one fan asking if it were possible that Price suffers from depression. 


Last night marked the sixth time in 18 games this season that Price didn’t play. The 31-year-old has said his problems are mental, not physical, which has to be a concern to the Canadiens, who have him signed through the 2025-26 season. 

The goalie is also coming off the worst season of his career, when he posted a 16-26-7 record with a 3.11 goals-against average and a .900 save percentage, in a season where he admitted struggling with injuries and rest. 

The fan might have been right to ask. Gagnon’s answer was that he does not know Price personally but revealed that he finds it disturbing that a slump and lack of self-confidence in Price could lead fans to believe he suffers from depression. 

While the matter should remain private if Price wishes it to remain so, we believe it was a fair question. People should be more open about depression and get the help needed if that is what is required. 

Let’s hope Price’ confidence returns and that the star goalie can show people that he deserves his lucrative contract.

Source: Twitter