With their first-round pick in the 2023 NHL draft decided, the Montreal Canadiens were all set to announce the selection — or so they thought.
When Canadiens goalie Carey Price stepped up to the podium to reveal the pick on Wednesday night, he froze and forgot the last name of David Reinbacher, whom the Canadiens planned to select with the fifth-overall pick in the first round.
“Bon suir!” he said. “The Canadiens de Montréal are proud to select David…” Price trailed off as he looked like a deer in headlights, awkwardly pausing and shooting a panicked glance behind him at Canadiens brass in hopes of a rescue.
Fortunately for Price, Montreal general manager Kent Hughes swooped in with the save.
“We planned it that way,” Hughes said, moving the microphone toward him. “David Reinbacher.”
Price, for his part, tweeted an apology to the newest member of the Canadiens, saying, “Boy that was embarrassing. Sorry David….. Reinbacher.”
Reinbacher, an 18-year-old Austrian defenseman NHL.com labeled the most NHL-ready player at his position, should be able to put Price’s mishap to bed with his play.
The 6-foot-2 defenseman had 22 points in 46 games in Switzerland’s National League, playing against older, more-experienced competition and setting the highest point total for an under-19-year-old in that league since Roman Josi.
The Canadiens landed the high pick in the draft following another disappointing season, in which they finished eighth in the Atlantic Division and earned 68 points on the season — just two years after a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2021.
Montreal id hoping Reinbacher will supplement a young core of forwards, including Nick Suzuki, who led the team in points with 66 last season.
Price, a Hart Trophy winner in 2015 when he appeared in 66 games and held a stout 1.96 goals against average, has not played since the 2021-22 season, when he was in net for just five games.
Price missed all of last season because he did not respond well to a knee surgery he underwent in the summer of 2021.
He also missed time during the 2020-2021 season when he entered the NHL’s player assistance program because of a battle with alcoholism.