Canada’s best shot at Cup rests with Canadiens

TORONTO— With individual accolades all around him at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas, Carey Price’s mind was still on the Stanley Cup that had eluded him and his teammates.

“I’d trade all four of these in for that one,” the star Montreal Canadiens goaltender said. “We have a lot of very good parts in Montreal and a very good hockey team. We’re gaining experience and I’m very, very happy and very excited about our future.”

Price is the biggest reason to be excited about the Canadiens’ present and future. The reigning Hart and Vezina Trophy-winner is only one player, but his presence makes Montreal the most likely team to end Canada’s Cup drought that currently sits at 21 seasons.

Oddsmakers give eight NHL teams better odds than the Habs (18-1), but they have the most realistic shot of any Canadian-based team. The Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets are 28-1, the Edmonton Oilers 33-1, Ottawa Senators 40-1, Vancouver Canucks 66-1 and Toronto Maple Leafs 100-1, according to the online sportsbook Bodog.ca.

If the Habs are going to lift the Cup for the first time since 1993, they’ll need to do more to support a goaltender who is playing at the level of two-time Conn Smythe Trophywinner Patrick Roy. Price led the league with 44 wins, a 1.96 goalsagainst average and .933 save percentage, but skaters have to score more and be better, too.

Immediate Stanley Cup aspirations are hard to find elsewhere across Canada, though the Flames have real expectations on them this season. With the addition of defenceman Dougie Hamilton, the return of captain Mark Giordano and the maturation of Sean Monahan, Johnny Gaudreau and Sam Bennett, there’s reason to believe the Flames are a legitimate playoff contender.