From Nick Tylwalk,
Your Guide to Sports Cards.
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Once upon a time, the Montreal Canadiens turned over the starting goaltender job to a rookie halfway through the season, and all that guy did was backstop the team to six Stanley Cups and make the Hockey Hall of Fame. No one is calling Carey Price the second coming of Ken Dryden just yet, but when he took over in net during the 2007-08 season, Montreal fans couldn't help but dream of greatness.

Despite his youth, Price, the fifth overall pick in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, was something of a proven commodity when the trade of Cristobal Huet made him the starter. As a teenager, he led the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs to the Calder Cup, capturing playoff MVP honors along the way.

Price had good numbers in his 41 games in the Montreal net during his rookie season, winning 24 games with a .920 save percentage. More importantly, he was good enough to help the Canadiens lock down the top seed in the 2008 playoffs, ensuring them of home ice advantage in every series.

Whether Price is able to lead Montreal to any championships remains to be seen, but it's a safe bet that collectors in a city whose goaltending legacy includes Dryden and Patrick Roy will be grabbing his cards whenever possible. Chicago Blackhawks forwards Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews have paced the early interest in the rookie class of 2007-08, though Price could easily leap ahead of them with any kind of playoff success.

Some of Price's most anticipated rookie cards won't be released until the spring or summer of 2008, but a couple of early ones to watch are his SPx # 233 autographed jersey card and his SP Game Used # 194, which is limited to just 99 copies.

Carey Price 2007-08 Rookie Cards

• Black Diamond # 194
• O-Pee-Chee # 560
• SP Game Used # 194 - #'d to 99
• SPx # 233 - autographed jersey card
• Upper Deck # 227
• Upper Deck Trilogy # 154 - #'d to 999