The Montreal Canadiens will look to Carey Price Saturday night to reverse their fortunes agains the Flyers. Montreal trails Philadelphia three games to one in their best of seven series.
"He deserves a second shot," Canadiens coach Guy Carbonneau told the Canadian Press. "I think in the last few days he had time to calm down and refocus and get ready for another long stretch."
After the thrilling overtime win in Game 1, the Canadiens have dropped three straight to the Flyers. Price struggled mightily in Games 2 and 3, giving up seven goals combined.
Carbonneau went with backup Jaroslav Halak in Game 4, but Montreal still lost 4-2.
"It was a tough time, you always want to play, but you have to respect the coaches' decision," Price said about missing Game 4. "I'm just looking forward to getting back in there.
"Hopefully, we can pull off a winning streak."
Price believes that the break could be a good thing for him - an opportunity to recharge his batteries.
"I feel a lot better," Price said Friday. "Having a couple of good days of practice really makes a big difference.
"I worked hard and it did a lot of good. I was just getting worn out a little. I played a lot of games in a row (13). It was good to be able to get a mental break. It was a pause more than a setback. Every once in a while you need a break and the last game was a good time."
There were rumours that Price might have hurt his glove hand, but Carbonneau rejected that outright.
"Carey Price is not hurt," Carbonneau said flatly on Thursday. "His finger, his hand, his shoulder, his knee - he has no injuries."
Price's postseason struggles have been well documented of late, as the 20-year-old rookie is 5-5 with a 2.55 goals-against average and .909 save percentage.