Carey Price was asked after Wednesday night's 5-3 win over the New York Islanders what it was like to win a game where he gave up three goals.

He looked perplexed for a brief moment, and then answered.

Why that moment to think about it? Perhaps because he's so unfamiliar with the feeling, one he experienced only four times all of last season yet has already happened twice this year.

He was then asked, by me, what it was like to face fewer than 30 shots for a sixth straight game, and whether he thinks that has happened six times in his whole career to date (I like to exaggerate at times).

Again, a very brief pause - probably because that only happened 13 times all of last season - and then an answer vaunting his team's splendid defensive play of late.

"Our guys are playing well collectively as a group, and when we do that, the numbers don't lie. We're successful," Price said. "So we have to keep doing that, and we have to stay committed to it because that's the only way we're going to stay successful this year."

That is true, and if someone looked at the game sheet from this game they would probably think the Canadiens won in spite of Price. And they would be dead wrong.

Price set the tone early

Fewer than two minutes into the game John Tavares was in tight on a 2-on-1 and was stopped twice by Price, the second save more impressive than the first.

If that goal goes in - and frankly, Tavares has been putting them in pretty regularly of late – this game has a completely different complexion.

Instead, the Canadiens went on the power play right after that and had a great one, with P.K. Subban hitting a post and being robbed on a glove save by Dwayne Roloson while Brian Gionta shot just high on a 2-on-1 of his own.

The momentum from that power play carried over to the rest of the period and, ultimately, the game.

And none of it would have been possible if Price gives up that goal right off the bat.

"He made some unbelievable saves early in the game to keep us in it," Subban said.

Habs giving up very little on defence 

But how about that team defence which has only allowed 21.8 shots per game over the last six? How many of you remember that ridiculous theory going around last year that the Canadiens didn't want to play in front of Price, that they gave a little extra effort in front of Jaroslav Halak even though Halak saw just as much rubber as Price?

Well, you'll like this answer from Subban, then.

"You can't expect Carey to stand on his head every single time," Subban said. "You want to play hard for him, you want to block shots for him because he works so hard for us."

Price's numbers this season are not spectacular. His .913 save percentage leaves him out of the top-20, and his 2.32 goals against average out of the top-10.

But to all those who pointed simply to his 13-20-5 won-loss record last year, his six wins on the year has him in a tie for first in the NHL.

And that is a welcome change.