Canadiens Primeau Is Fighting For a Job

During this training camp, Montreal Canadiens goaltender Cayden Primeau's goal is to dislodge an incumbent or audition for another team.

The Montreal Canadiens training camp began with four goaltenders signed to a National Hockey League (NHL) contract. Last season’s duo of Sam Montembeault and Jake Allen were joined by Cayden Primeau and Casey DeSmith. 

Primeau is entering his first season that requires waivers if he doesn’t make the NHL club, while DeSmith was acquired as part of the three-team trade in the summer with the San Jose Sharks and Pittsburgh Penguins.

This week, general manager Kent Hughes concluded a deal with the Vancouver Canucks to trade DeSmith in return for forward Tanner Pearson and a third round draft pick in 2025.

That move dropped the number to three goalies. There’s always the option that the Canadiens keep three goalies on their roster but trios usually don’t work for a long time. At least one goalie ends up not being happy with the number of starts or practice time. And with surplus skaters, it's an unlikely scenario.

Primeau is in this camp as the underdog to earn a spot in Montreal as Allen and Montembeault are ahead of him on the team’s depth chart.

The 24-year old wants to make management’s decision difficult. “Going into camp, I want to play in the National Hockey League, I want to play against the best all the time, and that’s my mindset going into it.”

The Canadiens' seventh round pick in 2017 has not made the most of his opportunities in the NHL. In 21 career NHL appearances, he has 3-12-2 record, 4.11 goals against average and .871 save percentage.

Ever the positive spirit, Allen offered encouraging comments for his young teammate. "I really like Cayden," said Allen. "I’ve really gotten along with him super well since I’ve been part of this organization. He’s got all the talent and tools in the world. I wish I had a lot of his tools."

Allen's observations then turned to the 24-year-old's performances of the past and those in the future. “Patience is key. The past is the past. Once you get your chance, you really got to hone in and make the most of that chance because you never know when those chances are going to come around again."

Primeau focused on developing his strength over the summer and is happy with the progress he’s made in that aspect. By his own admission, he was not pleased with his performance during Saturday’s scrimmage giving up four goals. According to him, it was his only bad day since returning to Montreal prior to the start of camp.

With the uncertainty about his future, it’s an important camp for the Michigan native as he’s not only auditioning for a role with the Canadiens, he’s also trying to get the attention of another NHL team. Primeau’s goal is to play in the NHL full time this season and he hopes that another organization takes a chance on him if he’s placed on waivers.

Despite his inconsistency at the NHL level since the start of his career, the Northeastern University alumni feels that he has lots to bring to the league. “I’m a calm goalie. I try to make the team feed off of that. When your goalie is up and down and not even keel, the guys can feed off that vibe and then your team is out of whack. I’m just trying to be that level base back there for the guys.”