Canadiens Goalie Primeau Perfect Example Of Poor Development

Fans were treated to a rare sight as goaltender Cayden Primeau earned a win when the Montreal Canadiens beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3 in overtime on Wednesday.

It was just his third start of the month, and his first win since October 27, which paints a pretty clear picture as to the level of confidence instilled by the organization.

There’s no doubt that Primeau has struggled at times during his sporadic starts in the NHL, and at the end of the day, results are crucial in professional sports, regardless of the context.

But we’d be delving into intellectually dishonest if we simply labelled Primeau as a goaltender that stumbled during his development. More accurately, Primeau is a goaltender that did not reach his potential because the Montreal Canadiens failed to put in a situation that’s conducive to producing solid numbers.

Arrested Development

We can’t ignore the fact that Primeau is currently sporting an .846 save percentage, well below his career average of .887.

That being said, the 25-year-old has started 44 games in the NHL for the Montreal Canadiens, a very low number for someone who has played parts of six seasons with the team. That’s roughly seven starts per season, and we all know that very few of those starts featured any semblance of run support from the forwards. Believe or not, 19 of those were considered ‘quality starts’,  which means the goalie in question was above the average NHL save percentage.

Once we analyze his usage in the AHL, it becomes rather clear that things were muddied from the very-get go, and the issues went beyond the half-baked approach to developing him, which started when general manager Marc Bergevin was still at the helm of the team.

The Habs convinced Cayden Primeau to leave the NCAA early.

At the time, he was the youngest goaltender to ever sign an NHL contract out of the NCAA, a fairly obvious red flag, even more so in retrospect.

To make matters worse, according to Jim Madigan, who was the head coach of the Huskies at the time, the Canadiens lured Primeau from the NCAA with a promise to fast track him to the NHL to serve as Carey Price’s backup, a situation that never materialized.

It’s important to remember that Primeau was dominant in his first two seasons with Northeastern, and accumulated a laundry-list of accolades due to his excellent play.

But Madigan, who now serves as the University’s Athletic Director, easily prophesized the incoming issues, suggesting that no good would come from rushing the young goaltender. He thought keeping Primeau in the NCAA was the right choice, which would have obviously worked to his advantage, as he would keep his starter in place for an additional season or two.

However, Madigan’s concerns had very little to do with his team. He was worried Primeau would not have enough experience before jumping into professional hockey at such a young age.

Ask anyone in collegiate hockey circles about Madigan, and they’ll be quick to point out he’s the type of person who genuinely wants the best for his players, regardless of where they end up playing.

AHL Frustration

When Primeau arrived in the AHL, Laval was in the midst of one of the most confusing and ineffective approaches to developing goaltenders.

Not only did he join three other goalies (Michael McNiven, Charlie Lindgren, Keith Kinkaid), but he only played in 33 games. Remember, those aren’t starts, just games in which he featured. If he had stayed in the NCAA, there are very healthy odds he would have received more starts than what he saw in Laval, and it would have been a much healthier situation from a mental health aspect, as he wouldn’t have had to share his net with three other goalies.

Knowing how many starts you’ll get, as well as when you’ll get them, is key for any goaltender, let alone one that made his professional start a little earlier than he should have. It allows them to focus on the task at hand, which makes preparing for games a lot easier.

The following season once again featured a four-headed monster in the Rocket crease, with Lindgren, McNiven, Primeau, and Demchenko in the fray. Carey Price also started a game for Laval, but he wasn’t part of the endless roadblock in the crease, as it was a conditioning stint. Primeau ended up playing just 4 games in the NHL, as well as 14 games in the AHL. To be perfectly fair, the pandemic limited the ice time available to all players, not just Primeau, but once again, he would have been given more starts if he was still in the NCAA.

2021-22 was Primeau’s busiest year with the organization. He played 12 games in the NHL due to Price’s injury, and was used alongside five other goaltenders. He was also much more active in the AHL, where he was once again sharing netminding duties with three other players (McNiven, Kevin Poulin, Louis-Philip Guind0n). Primeau finished the year with 33 AHL games played, not including a very healthy run in the playoffs.

The good news is that Primeau only had to share the net with one goalie in 2022-23.

No, wait, I lied.

Shockingly, he was fighting for starts with, yup, you guessed it, three other goalies (Poulin, Philippe Desrosiers, Joe Vrbetic).

Seeing as waiver eligibility kicked in the following summer, that year was Primeau’s last appearance in the AHL. Fearing a waiver claim, the Habs kept him in the NHL in 2023-24, where he had to share starts with Samuel Montembeault and Jake Allen.

To drive the point home, we must recognize that 2024-25 is the first time since Primeau was drafted in which he’s not dealing with at least two other goalies in the mix, if not many more.

Primeau is likely to play a few more games this season, but judging by his current usage, which involves sitting on the bench for weeks at a time, it’s clear the team does not trust him, making his situation that much more difficult to navigate.

Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks

I don’t want to give the impression that Primeau shouldn’t accept any responsibility for his poor play in the NHL, but the fact remains that his development was the epitome of erratic, and though we can’t necessarily prove staying in the NCAA was the best call, it does seem that Madigan’s prediction has come true.

The damage has been done at this point, and giving him a chance to find a role with a new organization is probably the best way forward, but Primeau’s story is an important lesson as we start to discuss top prospect Jacob Fowler’s eventual ascension to the NHL.

There’s absolutely no rush in his case, with a third year in the NCAA starting to look like a smart approach. Yes, he’s been excellent this season, as evidenced by his .943 save percentage, but we also have ample evidence to suggest more experience is needed before he should make his professional hockey debut.

Great shootout save by #GoHabsGo prospect Jacob Fowler. pic.twitter.com/4ory2SXZ0Z

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) December 29, 2023

If Fowler does end up moving on from Boston College early, a clear and stable development plan that involves a lot of starts is the only strategy worth exploring.

Simply put, the opposite strategy to the one the Montreal Canadiens took with Primeau is in order.