Carey Price Addresses What His Addiction Was - The Cause and More

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Jacob LP
October 26, 2022 (0:51)

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As we all know, Montreal's star Carey Price decided to join the NHL's assistance program last fall. Many rumors circulated about the motivations behind his decision, but nothing had been revealed until this morning. In an interview with The Athletic's Arpon Basu, the goalie revealed that he struggled with alcohol addiction after the 2021 Finals loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"I think after we lost in the [2021] Finals and coming close to a goal and having surgery, and knowing I'm right on the 18th hole [of my career] here, I was not a happy person, I wasn't being a good father. I was drinking a lot, I just got to a point where I was like, 'I'm not even having fun doing this.' Like, 'what am I doing?' I felt like I was getting to a point in my life where I had to decide," Price said.

On October 3, the Canadian player made his decision.

"It would have been October 3rd and waking up, I was in a pretty bad place, and I was just like, you know what? This isn't working for me; it's not working for my family," Price said when he decided to enter the NHL's assistance program last fall.

Substance abuse was nothing new for Carey Price. As he mentions in the interview, it's a common problem in First Nations communities. For Price, it was essential to tell the world what he struggled with last year. He hopes it can help others who struggle with this type of problem

"Substance abuse has been a very big issue in First Nations communities. I've had friends and family that have passed away from it," he said. "So, I could have done this privately. Nobody ever would have known about it. But at the end of the day, I wanted to be able to show it's OK to ask for help."

For now, Carey Price is not ready to retire. His only goal is to become pain-free as soon as possible. Even if surgery is possible to repair his knee, it would be perilous for his future. He believes a miracle must happen for him to play again, but he still has hope.

"Right now, my goal is just to be pain-free from day to day. I'm still having some issues getting up and down stairs and carrying my kids up and down stairs is difficult. So my first priority is just to get my body pain-free in just day-to-day living. There's that outside hope of a miracle happening, that maybe I could come back out and play at some point."