Canadiens Fans Welcome Back Carey Price At Bell Centre

As expected, the Bell Centre went absolutely bonkers the second Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price stepped on the ice for warmups and only got louder as he returned for the National Anthems and his first start in 282 days and Game 5 of the 2021 Stanley Cup Final against the New York Islanders.

Canadiens fans, as they always are, were ready to show their appreciation for hockey and the backbone of their team who went through so much to get to this point.

Carey Price is back and leads the Canadiens out for warmup 👀👏pic.twitter.com/3N3BZWULFc

— Hockey Night in Canada (@hockeynight) April 15, 2022

From the customary Montreal Canadiens intro to Coldplay’s ‘Fix You’ until deep into the first period, the soldout Bell Centre didn’t stop cheering and chanting ‘Carey! Carey!’ and clearly provided this embattled 2021-22 Canadiens squad with an emotional boost they haven’t felt all season long. Here’s the intro from MHN Habs beat reporter Marco D’Amico:

Welcome back, Carey Price pic.twitter.com/pcrdxJ7lcH

— Montreal Hockey Now (@MTLhockeynow) April 15, 2022

Carey Price’s first save of the season for the Montreal Canadiens brought an equally loud reaction from the Bell Centre faithful.

Crowd erupts for Carey Price's first official save. pic.twitter.com/cZX64laFTk

— Montreal Hockey Now (@MTLhockeynow) April 15, 2022

When the Montreal Canadiens placed Jonathan Drouin on Long-Term Injury Reserve on Tuesday night, it cleared enough Cap space for the Montreal Canadiens to activate Carey Price. It was a tell-tale sign that the Canadiens’ franchise player was close to his triumphant return, after weeks of rehabbing and travelling around with the team.

Price hasn’t played all season due to many setbacks in his rehab training and a covid-19 lockdown, but he was primed and motivated to make a return before the end of the season. Price underwent knee surgery back on July 23 to repair a torn meniscus after having played through the injury during the Canadiens’ improbable 2021 playoff run to the Stanley Cup Finals. Price was on his way to rehabbing his knee and coming back to form in September but bravely checked himself into the NHL Player Assistance Program on October 7. Since leaving the program and rejoining the team on Nov. 9, it had been a series of starts and stops for Price in his rehab and attempt to come back and play for the Montreal Canadiens this season.

Following the game-day skate Friday, Montreal canadiens interim head coach Martin St. Louis couldn’t contain his excitement for Price’s return and knew the Canadiens fans would make him fully understand just how much Carey Price means to the city of Montreal and all Canadiens fans.

“I think I have a good idea (of Price’s status in Montreal), but I might really feel that tonight,” Martin St. Louis said when asked if he understood the love for Price. “I understand, when I played, what he meant for the franchise. Did I really understand what he meant for the fans? I don’t know—I didn’t really live here, I didn’t really experience that. You could see it some games playing against him maybe, but… I just wasn’t around. But I think if I’m not sure, it’ll probably get reinforced tonight.”