Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price revealed he has received treatment for substance abuse.

The 34-year-old said he entered a residential facility last month after having reached "a very dark place" following years of "neglecting" his mental health.

Price had only just returned to the Canadiens following surgery on a knee injury during the off-season.

"Over the last few years I have let myself get to a very dark place and I didn't have the tools to cope with that struggle," he said via an Instagram post.

"Last month I made the decision to enter a residential treatment facility for substance use. Things had reached a point that I realized I needed to prioritize my health for both myself and for my family. Asking for help when you need it is what we encourage our kids to do, and it was what I needed to do.

"I am working through years of neglecting my own mental health which will take some time to repair; all I can do is take it day by day. With that comes some uncertainty with when I will return to play.

"I appreciate all of the overwhelming support and well wishes. I please ask that the media and our hockey community continue to respect our privacy at this time. Your support and respect of this so far has been a critical piece to my recovery."

Price, a seven-time NHL All-Star and Olympic gold medallist in 2014 with Canada, helped the Canadiens to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance in 28 years last season, where they lost 4-1 to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

He posted a .901 save percentage last season, a figure he improved to .924 during the Canadiens' playoff run.

Speaking on Monday, coach Dominique Ducharme said: "I haven't met him yet. I need to see him. I'll see him tomorrow.

"He wants to come back and play, but there's other things to manage. We talked about the injury that he was coming back from, getting back in shape, and playing shape too. There's many steps to be taken, but he wants to play. He wants to be part of our group. He wants to help out."

Artturi Lehkonen's overtime goal against the Vegas Golden Knights propelled the Montreal Canadiens to their first NHL Stanley Cup Final since 1993 on Thursday.

The Canadiens ended their 28-year wait, punching their ticket to the NHL's showpiece thanks to Lehkonen's goal less than two minutes into OT in Game 6 of the semi-final series.

Just like Tyler Toffoli against the Winnipeg Jets in overtime, Lehkonen scored 99 seconds into OT to oust the Golden Knights. According to Stats Perform, the Canadiens are the first team in NHL history to score two overtime goals at the exact same time in a single postseason.

Not much was expected of the Canadiens in the NHL playoffs, having entered the postseason with the worst record but Montreal have won 11 of 13 games since sensationally overturning a 3-1 deficit against rivals the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round.

The Canadiens – 24-time champions as they make their NHL-leading 35th Stanley Cup Final appearance – will face either defending champions the Tampa Bay Lightning or the New York Islanders.

"We wouldn't be here right now if we didn't believe," said Canadiens goalie Carey Price, who stopped 37 shots. "We've believed this whole time and obviously we're ecstatic and we have a lot of work left to do."

Lehkonen added: "Just trying to go high and hit the net. We're trying to keep it going one game at a time and not think things too much far ahead.

"I feel like we showed up today and it's a big win for us and we have four more to go."