BROSSARD, Que. — It will be Cayden Primeau’s 15th appearance this season when the Canadiens take on the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Bell Centre on Tuesday, but it’ll be his first as the official backup goaltender of the team.
It’s a moment the 24-year-old has been waiting patiently for, one he wants to use as a first step onto the platform that could eventually vault him into the starter’s role, and he willed it into existence by taking ownership of his own development.
Primeau could have sulked over the circumstances he faced this season, with the Canadiens carrying three goaltenders from the beginning of training camp up until they were less than 30 minutes away from the NHL trade deadline, but he never did that. He could have allowed frustration to derail his progress, as days and weeks piled up between his starts while two more established goaltenders in Jake Allen and Samuel Montembeault rotated through Montreal’s crease, but he just put his head down and went to work.
From the outside looking in, many thought the situation would be — and was — detrimental to his development.
But Primeau never felt that way.
“No, I don’t agree (having three goaltenders was bad for me),” he said after the Canadiens practised on Monday. “Sat down at the beginning of the year when we had the three goalies and I wanted to make sure I got the most out of it because we didn’t know how long we’d have three goalies. Quite frankly, I thought we’d have them all year, so I wanted to make sure I got the most out of this year. And I think we’ve done that.
“Being able to work with (Canadiens goaltending coach) Eric (Raymond) has been huge. Just being around this environment, too. Haven’t been in the net for the whole practice as much as I would’ve liked, but just being able to get shots from these guys, just being able to work on the timing and patience, and any time I could be around these guys was huge. So I don’t think it was negative in any way.”
Primeau turning it into a positive allowed the Canadiens to feel comfortable enough to trade Allen to the New Jersey Devils and give him this opportunity.
His performance has been steady, despite how sporadically he’s been used, and he feels it’ll only be solidified through the increased workload he’ll now receive in practice and the more regular rhythm he’ll benefit from in a traditional two-goaltender setup.
“He’s taken a jump,” said Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis about Primeau.
The goaltender took a running start to that jump with his work both on and off the ice, which started well before this season.
It started with Primeau having to clear many hurdles after playing two sensational seasons at Northeastern University and signing his first professional contract at age 20.
The biggest one was placed in his path when he was called up to a beleaguered, injury-plagued Canadiens team he was in no position to save during the 2021-22 season, and it took him time to get over it.
It took months just to put that time — where he went 1-7 with an .868 save percentage and 4.62 goals-against average — in proper perspective, which is something he was unable to do in the moment.
“I think the competitor in me kind of put it all on myself,” he said. “That’s where things went south.”
It’s where confidence began to flounder and personal statistics began to plummet, leaving Primeau forced to work on himself in a way he’d never considered before.
“I wasn’t myself, I wasn’t comfortable, I wasn’t confident,” he said. “But I’ve been working with a mental coach for over a year now and he’s really helped.”
That was reflected in Primeau’s play with the Laval Rocket last season (.909 save percentage, 3.04 GAA), and it’s been obvious in how he’s turned what could have been a setback for his development into forward momentum this season.
Primeau is happy he didn’t hesitate when the opportunity to work with a mental coach came about.
“I think, especially as a goalie, it’s all mental,” he said. “I had always known that, but definitely going through that year, it kind of became even more true, so I realized the importance of having a mental coach.”
It’s only been reinforced over the past number of months since this season began.
“It’s so much more than this, but to simplify it, it’s just working on confidence and different ways of how to create my own confidence whether things are or aren’t going my way,” said Primeau. “Just falling back on foundations…
“The other thing is perspective has been changed, and that’s probably even bigger than the confidence part. Changing perspective on certain things is crucial.”
The maturity to have the right perspective on the situation Primeau faced this season is, in St. Louis’s view, a rare quality for a player his age.
“I think the generation today, the young guys, they want everything, and they want it now,” the coach said. “That’s just the generation. And they usually want things with bare minimum (effort), and it’s a challenge. He’s had a lot of practice time, but he’s also had to earn some of his starts with the three-goalie rotation. I think he’s handled it really well…
“Everything starts with the player. We can try to help him as much as we can, but it starts with the player and Primes has done his part for sure.”
If he hadn’t, there wouldn’t be much reason to think Primeau could take advantage of the opportunity he now has in front of him.
But Primeau has shown a dedication that should serve him well, and he feels he’s on the right path to not only succeed but also stand up to any future adversity.
“I’m just mentally stronger, confidence-wise and comfort,” he said.
It’s led to technical improvements in his game.
“I’ve been trying to work on having patience and really trusting my reads,” Primeau said. “I think that’s my biggest asset is being able to read the play, and I’ve been able to fully step into that this year with confidence. And I feel stronger, so I’m able to be in better position and don’t feel like I’m chasing the play. I’m on top of it and in front of it, so when I do that, I’m able to read the play.”
Tuesday presents another opportunity to do that in a game, only this time from a different chair.
Primeau aims to take advantage of it, and make the best of every other appearance he makes from here to the end of the season.
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