Hockey Hall of Famer
Montreal Canadiens Icon Carey Price Elected to Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2026
Key Points
In the 2021 playoffs, Price posted a 2.28 GAA and .924 save percentage across 22 games as Montreal reached the Stanley Cup Final, where they fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Across his playoff career, Price played 92 postseason games, compiling a .919 save percentage, 2.39 GAA and eight shutouts.
The 2014-15 season saw Price win the Hart Memorial Trophy (MVP) and the Vezina Trophy (top goaltender), along with the Ted Lindsay Award and co-winning the Jennings Trophy, after posting a 1.96 GAA, .933 save percentage and nine shutouts.
Price will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the Class of 2026, in the Players category, in his second year of eligibility, joining other inductees Patrice Bergeron, Pekka Rinne, Keith Tkachuk, Cindy Curley and Brian Burke.
Price is an Indigenous player from Ulkatcho First Nation, born in Anahim Lake, British Columbia; he was the No. 5 pick in the 2005 NHL draft and spent his entire NHL career with the Montreal Canadiens.
Carey Price is headed to the Hockey Hall of Fame. The longtime Montreal Canadiens goalie was elected to the Class of 2026, the HHOF announced on June 22, joining a class that includes Patrice Bergeron, Pekka Rinne, Keith Tkachuk, Cindy Curley and Brian Burke, according to TSN. The ceremony is set for November 9 in Toronto.
Price spent all 15 years of his NHL career with Montreal. He won 361 games — the most in Canadiens history — across 712 regular-season games. It is his second year of eligibility, Montreal CityNews reported.
A 2014-15 Season for the History Books
Price's case for immortality rests largely on one extraordinary season. In 2014-15, he posted a 1.96 goals-against average (GAA) and a .933 save percentage. He also recorded nine shutouts. Those numbers led the league and earned him the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP and the Vezina Trophy as top goaltender, according to CBS Sports.
He also won the Ted Lindsay Award that year, which is voted on by players, and co-won the Jennings Trophy. No goalie had swept those honors in the modern era. Sportsnaut noted that Price was also named Canada's Top Male Athlete that season. Many analysts call it the greatest single-season performance by a goaltender in NHL history.
How Price Carried Montreal to the 2021 Cup Final
Price never won a Stanley Cup, but his 2021 playoff run came close. He led a Montreal team that many considered a heavy underdog all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. Across 22 playoff games, he posted a 2.28 GAA and a .924 save percentage. Montreal fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the final, according to Heavy.
It was the most wins by a Canadiens goalie in a single postseason since 1993 — the last time Montreal won the Cup. Over his full playoff career, Price appeared in 92 games and posted a .919 save percentage, a 2.39 GAA and eight shutouts. That save percentage ranks among the top five all-time for goalies with at least 90 playoff games played.
Price's Indigenous Roots Make This Induction Historic
Price is a member of the Ulkatcho First Nation. He was born in Anahim Lake, British Columbia — a remote community where his father, Jerry, famously flew him to hockey practices by plane. The Montreal Canadiens called him the heart of the franchise for fifteen years. Owner Geoff Molson said Price "was the Montreal Canadiens" during his time there.
His induction is seen as a milestone for Indigenous athletes. Organizations focused on Indigenous youth sports have already pointed to a "Price Effect" in hockey registration numbers across Northern Canada, according to TSN. Price was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2005 NHL Draft. He is the first Canadiens goalie inducted into the Hall since Patrick Roy in 2006.
Class of 2026 Rounds Out with Bergeron, Rinne and Burke
Price headlines a deep class. Patrice Bergeron won six Selke Trophies and a Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins. He is widely regarded as the best defensive forward of his generation. Pekka Rinne was the face of the Nashville Predators for over a decade and won the Vezina Trophy in 2018, according to Montreal CityNews.
Keith Tkachuk is one of just two American-born players to score 500 goals and 1,000 points. Cindy Curley is a pioneer of the U.S. Women's National Team who held the record for most points in a single World Championship for decades. Brian Burke, inducted as a builder, was the GM of the 2007 Stanley Cup-winning Anaheim Ducks and is well known for his advocacy for LGBTQ+ inclusion in hockey through the "You Can Play" project.
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