By: Ryan Dadoun

Well that didn't take long, did it? Carey Price picked up where he left off last season, with a 3.36 GAA and .886 save percentage in six games. As a result, Jaroslav Halak is expected to start in his third straight game tonight. Halak has always had the potential to be a starting goaltender, but it's clear that Price is the horse that Montreal wants to back. Although it looked like Halak had stolen the starter job from Price last season, the Canadiens eventually decided to give Price another shot at the number one job, much to Halak's dismay.

Maybe this season will be different under coach Jacques Martin, but the fact that Price is the Canadiens' desired goaltender of the future hasn't changed. If Halak outplays Price, he should be able to continue to steal playing time from him, but Price's potential alone will keep tempting the Canadiens to give him another shot. If Price gets hot and never looks back, he could still start in 60+ games this season. I don't think the reverse is true for Halak.

It's also worth noting that Halak and Price are both scheduled to be restricted free agents at the end of the season. Price could hinder his future with the Canadiens if he doesn't perform this season and then demands too much in the summer. By the same token, if Price turns things around this season, and Halak demands too much, the Canadiens could look into trading Halak to save themselves some critical cap space. One way or another, this could be the last season Montreal has the luxury of a Price-Halak goaltending tandem.