Antti Niemi is one of several goaltenders Carey Price has had as his backup, and while some have had better numbers than him, none of the former backups were as respected by Carey Price on a personal level. During the Montreal Canadiens exit interviews, Price stated just as much citing Niemi’s attitude in the room and his past championship as the reason why.
Make no mistake, Antti Niemi was more than exceptional when came in during the tumultuous 2018-19 season and was one of the bright spots among the very few that year.