Both have played well considering the circumstances but neither will provide 10+ years of being a Top 10 goalie like Askarov has the potential to.
It’s not necessarily a massive need, but adding an elite goalie prospect just makes things far better for the Habs moving forward. Imagine giving 22 year old Price this young defence, Suzuki, Cole, Slaf, Demidov. We’d have gone on several long playoff runs.
It depends on what you think on Askarov's potential actually be a top-10 goalie for 10+ years.
Top goalie prospects become top goalies less frequently than top skater prospects become top skaters. And lesser goalie prospects become top goalies more frequently than top skater prospects become top skaters.
For every Vasilevsky, Price, MAF and Oettinger, there's a Pickard, Bernier, Lehtonen, DiPietro, Leclaire, Montoya, Campbell, Samsonov and Knight. Askarov is a great prospect, but he's not without flaws. And even with the demands, the cost is likely to be significant. Not even considering that Nashville may not even want a goalie going back the other way with Saros and Wedgewood, meaning Montreal could also have to move Montembault or Primeau in a position of weakness to get Askarov to report.
I'm always in favour of gambling on upside, but I'm not sure how Montreal could make this work while making the best offer.
And 10+ years is a really long time in the NHL. More people than not would argue Price wasn't a top 10 goalie for 10+ years. That longevity in goal is incredibly rare in goal, even among top goalies.