Cayden Primeau could feel the nerves building as he walked out of the tunnel inside Scotiabank Arena for his first start with the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Nashville Predators.
After being claimed off waivers by Toronto eight days ago, the 26-year-old wondered when he'd get a start in a game wearing the blue and white. Although it was never stated, Tuesday always felt like the right opportunity to give Primeau his Maple Leafs debut.
And it was special for a multitude of reasons.
His father, Keith (a former NHLer himself), grew up in Whitby, Ontario, and cheered for the Maple Leafs as a child. Primeau also has plenty of family still in the Greater Toronto Area. So when he skated onto the ice, Primeau wasn't just battling the nerves of his Maple Leafs debut. He wanted to give his family and friends a good showing.
"I was nervous," Primeau said. "Not being able to play a preseason game and not being able to play a game with the group, so a little bit nervous trying to figure out how things were going to go."
It was a strong start for Primeau. He made eight shots in the first period, not allowing a goal until the three-minute mark of the second period. Primeau allowed another goal in the frame, and two more in the third period, but Toronto filled Nashville's net with seven goals, helping get the netminder his first win with the Maple Leafs.
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He stopped 26 of 30 shots in the game, securing the win not only for his Maple Leafs teammates but also his father.
"Yeah, it meant a lot. He grew up in Toronto," Primeau said. "I'm excited to call him right after."
Given that most of Keith's family resides in or around the Toronto area, how many were at the game on Tuesday night?
"Not as many as I thought, it was my sister's birthday," he smiled. "Yeah, she takes precedent."
There was a lot to like about Primeau's game. There were also a few goals he'd like to have back. It's not the easiest thing to come into a new team and then start with the club several days later, but for the most part, Primeau did what he had to do.
"Got his first win here, congrats to him," Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said post-game. "He did what he had to do to get the job done."
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As Easton Cowan <a href="https://x.com/nickbarden/status/1977789417462083825">skated onto the ice ahead of his NHL debut</a>, the crowd started cheering. Within all the noise, a song blared inside Scotiabank Arena: "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)".
Despite allowing four goals in the final two periods, Toronto shouldn't shy away from giving him the net again. As mentioned, it's a difficult task to come into game action when you've only had a couple of practices with the team in front of you.
The positive from Primeau, aside from the win, is that he understands more work needs to be done.
"I don't look at results. It feels good to get the win, but it wasn't pretty at times. So, a lot of good things that I did, but a lot of things I can work on."
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