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Flyers’ Carter Hart ready to face his childhood idol

The young Flyers' goalie recently ran into Carey Price, his Montreal counterpart, off the ice. He described the encounter as "pretty cool."

Carter Hart stopped 23 of 24 shots against Tampa Bay on Saturday, including this attempt by Alex Killorn. Up next for the Flyers and their young goalie is a date with the Canadiens.
Carter Hart stopped 23 of 24 shots against Tampa Bay on Saturday, including this attempt by Alex Killorn. Up next for the Flyers and their young goalie is a date with the Canadiens.Read moreFrank Gunn / AP

Montreal’s Carey Price was Carter Hart’s favorite goalie when Hart was just a wee snowflake growing up in the Edmonton suburbs. Every time Price brought glory to the Great North, from winning international tournaments as a teenager to climbing the Olympic mountaintop in 2014, another poster went up on bedroom walls all across the land.

The first time Hart played against Price was forgettable. Last season, rookie year, gave up three goals in 10 minutes and was pulled. A walk of shame back to the Wells Fargo Center bench.

The next time he faced his hero, Hart was excellent in a loss. The third time they met, Hart finally beat Price.

There is a lot of optimism when it comes to Carter Hart. The kid seems as unflappable between his ears as he is between the pipes. He turns 22 on Thursday, but don’t bother getting him an electric razor. It looks like it’d take him six months to grow a playoff beard.

» READ MORE: Bernie Parent ‘is amazed’ by Carter Hart

The three biggest stunners of the first week of play were Montreal and Chicago pulling upsets in qualifying series and the Flyers rolling through the East round-robin. Hart, though, had his own surprise when he bumped into Price. They’ve played against one another, but never really chatted.

“Just had the chance to meet him the other week and talk with him for the first time,” Hart said. “That was something pretty cool.”