Carey Price delivers rough pummeling to Kyle Palmieri (Video)
By Sammi Silber
There were plenty of takeaways from the Montreal Canadiens’ 2-5 win over New Jersey on Thursday. One of the biggest, however, was that no one should mess with Carey Price.
Carey Price grew outraged after a speeding Palmieri crashed into the crease. The Devils forward made no attempt to stop, and from there, Price took matters into his own hands.
As soon as he recovered, he bounced back up on his feet with a head full of steam. It wasn’t long before the 29-year-old goalie made Palmieri pay.
Price landed three punches before the officials and the Devils rushed to Palmieri’s aid. To add insult to injury, Jeff Petry appeared to drag Palmieri with him and helped Price in his attempt at revenge.
Palmieri was sent to the penalty box for goaltender interference. However, Montreal would go shorthanded, because Price received a four-minute roughing penalty.
Seeing this behavior from Price is far from surprising. The Canadian-born netminder has a history of letting his short temper get the best of him.
About five years ago, a hot-headed Price slashed Nazem Kadri in the back of the head after he crashed the crease. He also fought Tim Thomas, and in the 2010 Stanley Cup series with Washington, he fired a puck at Jeff Schultz and also harassed the team from the bench.
There is debate as to whether or not his reaction was appropriate. He was showing character and his passion for the game, but he has a knack for immaturity and unsportsmanlike conduct.
Sure, hockey’s a physical sport, and he’s telling the other team to stay out of his way. That’s a good move for intimidation and could make him more of a force to be reckoned with. Plus, he had to stand up for himself, because no one else did.
However, at times, Price creates chaos for the sake of chaos, and that doesn’t help his team or anyone involved. Montreal killed off the penalty, and Nathan Beaulieu spoke of Price’s actions follwoing the win.
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“He’s a passionate guy,” Beaulieu said. “For him to take it upon himself is special. It shows how much character and how much he wants to win.”