Carey Price is off to a better start this season than his last
Carey Price is off to another otherworldly start to his season with the Montreal Canadiens.
Price is the NHL leader in save percentage among goalies with at least four games played and the leader in goals against average with at least four games played. He and his Habs are powering through the start of the NHL season with a 9-0-0 record.
But Price, the reigning Vezina, Hart, Ted Lindsay and William M. Jennings Trophy winner, is off to an even better start to his season.
Take a look at this chart. According to War On Ice, Price is statistically better in virtually every major goaltending category through seven games this year in comparison to his first seven games last year. Data is for all game situations.
Price Through Seven Games in 2014-15 Compared to 2015-16
| Category | 2014-15 | 2015-16 |
| Save Percentage | .914 | .961 |
| Adjusted Save Percentage | .915 | .959 |
| High-Danger Save Percentage | .754 | .941 |
| Medium-Danger Save Percentage | .966 | .956 |
| Low-Danger Save Percentage | .989 | .973 |
| Shots Faced Per Game | 30.85 | 32.63 |
So, despite facing two more shots per game this season, Price has a better save percentage and adjusted save percentage (adjusted save percentage takes into account where the shots are coming from on the ice). Price is also stopping a greater percent of the high-danger shots he faces (a chart of where exactly high and medium danger shots come from is available here at the bottom of the page).
Can Price keep this up for an entire season? It's not entirely likely, simply because the NHL has never seen this kind of goaltending before in the history of the league. But, if he does, he's going to clean sweep the NHL awards once again for the 2015-16 season. And, considering he is getting more goal support (the Canadiens have 35 goals in nine games this season, compared to 25 in the first nine last season), the Montreal Canadiens could be a very, very lethal team.
Statistics provided by War On Ice
