Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price (31) stops a shot against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first period of an NHL game in Pittsburgh Tuesday, March 26, 2013.Gene J. Puskar/The Associated Press
Montreal goaltender Carey Price has been placed on the Canadiens' injured reserve retroactive to Feb. 26.
Price originally suffered a lower-body injury at the Sochi Olympics, where he had a 24-save shutout in Team Canada's 3-0 gold-medal victory over Sweden.
After returning from Sochi, the 26-year-old tried to practise with his Montreal teammates on Feb. 26, but left the ice after moving laterally to make a save during a power-play drill.
Prior to the Olympic break Price won three straight starts for the Canadiens and is 26-17-5 with a 2.33 goals-against average and .923 save percentage in 48 games this season.
A spokesman for the Canadiens told The Canadian Press that the move does not reflect a change in the status of Price's injury, which is still day to day. The move was made to free up a roster spot.
Price can be returned to Montreal's roster as early as Tuesday and he could play against the Ducks in Anaheim on Wednesday if he's ready to return.
Peter Budaj has handled the responsibilities in net for Montreal with Price's absence, with Dustin Tokarski backing up.