Carey Price not planning to retire but 'unable to train at a professional level'

Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price, who was placed on the long-term injured reserve list in early September, says he doesn't have a retirement plan "at this moment" and isn't keen on having another knee surgery.

The 35-year-old played five games near the end of last year's NHL regular season but told reporters on Monday at the team's practice facility in Brossard, Que., his rehab "hasn't been successful"  and another knee procedure has a success rate of about 50 per cent.

Price first had surgery during the off-season in 2021 after Montreal's run to the Stanley Cup final and subsequent loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"My goal is to be pain-free," the 16-year NHL veteran said. "Right now, I can't train at a professional level. It's been an emotional roller-coaster."

A self-proclaimed optimist, Price noted he's waiting for an "outside miracle" that would allow him to return to play at some point.

"[Retirement] is something you digest but I don't think I have fully done it," he said. "I'm not giving up. And I'm not giving up [on] winning a Stanley Cup in some [capacity]. I'm trying to focus on all the positives of life."

WATCH | Price gets standing ovation before Canadiens' season opener:

The native of Anahim Lake, B.C., has played 712 NHL regular-season games and 92 in the post-season, amassing a 2.51 goals-against average and .917 save percentage.

At the end of the 2014-15 season, he won the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goalie and Hart Trophy as its most valuable player.

Price, whom the Canadiens drafted fifth overall in 2005, also won a 2014 gold medal with the Canadian Olympic team in Sochi, Russia.