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Carey Price, one of the most celebrated goaltenders in NHL history, headlined the 2026 Hockey Hall of Fame induction class on Monday in downtown Toronto. The former Montreal Canadiens netminder joined Patrice Bergeron, Pekka Rinne, Keith Tkachuk and Cindy Curley in the player category. Brian Burke also received the honour as a builder.
Price Reflects on a Career-Defining Journey
Price, 39, spent all 15 of his NHL seasons with Montreal. He finished his career with a 361-261-79 record, a .917 save percentage, a 2.51 goals-against average and 49 shutouts across 712 regular-season games. A knee injury ultimately cut his playing days short after the 2021-22 season.
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During his speech, an emotional Price recalled a childhood dream that shaped his entire career. “I was walking down a red carpet, just like in the Bell Centre,” he said. “I approached a mountain of a figure. It was Patrick Roy — the very image of what I wanted to be.”
Selected fifth overall at the 2005 draft, Price won both the Hart Trophy and the Vezina Trophy in 2015. The NHLPA also voted him the Ted Lindsay Award that same year. His playoff record was even stronger, with a .919 save percentage and a 2.39 goals-against average in 92 postseason games. His finest hour came in 2021, when he guided an underdog Canadiens team to the Stanley Cup Final.
Growing up in Anahim Lake, B.C., Price acknowledged the sacrifices behind his success. “There was a very slim chance of this happening without a relentless desire and an opportunity,” he said. “That opportunity was provided with sacrifice.”
Bergeron and Rinne Also Celebrated
Patrice Bergeron, 41, spent all 19 of his NHL seasons with the Boston Bruins. The former centre from L’Ancienne-Lorette, Que., accumulated 1,040 points in 1,294 regular-season games. He also won a record six Selke Trophies as the league’s top defensive forward and helped Boston claim the Stanley Cup in 2011 before retiring in 2023.
Both Price and Bergeron represented Canada together on the international stage. The pair won gold at the 2014 Olympics and the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. Bergeron also claimed gold at the 2010 Olympics, the 2004 men’s world championship and the 2005 world junior championship.
Finnish goaltender Pekka Rinne, 43, played 15 seasons with the Nashville Predators. He finished with a 369-213-75 record, a .917 save percentage and 60 shutouts. The 2018 Vezina Trophy winner was selected 258th overall in 2004. “You don’t have to be the most highly touted prospect,” Rinne said. “Your path doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s.”
Tkachuk, Curley and Burke Complete the Class
Keith Tkachuk registered 1,065 points, including 538 goals, across 1,201 games in 18 NHL seasons. Cindy Curley captained the United States women’s team to three silver medals at the world championships during the 1990s. Meanwhile, Brian Burke, 71, built a management career spanning the Hartford Whalers, Vancouver Canucks, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames and Pittsburgh Penguins. He won the Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007.
“Nobody starts playing hockey at 13 years old in Minnesota and says, ‘Someday I’m going to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame,'” Burke said with characteristic humour. “Unless you’re an idiot.”
