Montreal Canadiens rule Carey Price out for season with MCL sprain

Carey Price’s comeback attempt for this season has officially ended with the Canadiens shutting him down for the rest of the season.

The Montreal Canadiens have had a rough season. It has been arguably the worst one that the Canadiens have ever had when one considers their lofty expectations fueled by a hot start. A huge reason for their rough season has been the health of 2015 Vezina Trophy and Hart Trophy winner Carey Price who suffered an injury back in October.

He tried to return from the injury in November, but suffered a setback and further delayed his potential return to the lineup. Despite the injury and the Canadiens struggles, they kept a Price return wide open for the end of the season. The team has finally announced the inevitable: Carey Price’s season is over.

“Carey sustained a medial collateral ligament injury (MCL sprain) to his right knee on November 25th, 2015 in a game against the NY Rangers,” Canadiens head physician Dr. Vincent Lacroix stated, via NHL.com. “The MCL provides support to the inside of the knee and is essential for stability and knee function. Although Carey has made excellent progress and is very close to being able to return to competition, he has not presently been cleared to do so. He is expected to make a full recovery over the off-season.”

This is the right move at this point. Montreal has no reason to rush Carey Price back if he’s not 100 percent healthy. Considering how integral the MCL is to the knee, letting Price play without a fully healthy MCL could cause even more damage to it and possibly keep him out through next season.

Price has confirmed that he won’t be playing at the World Championships because he will be spending time with his new daughter and wife. He is expected to be healthy in time for the World Cup in December. Price was named to the team despite his health concerns.

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