MONTREAL — Goaltender Cayden Primeau spoke with reporters via Zoom on Thursday afternoon.
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Primeau just signed a three-year, one-way contract with the Canadiens through the 2024-25 season.
Here are some highlights from his press conference:
Primeau on the significance of the one-way aspect of the deal:
Going into it, I initially was hoping for a two-year contract, and with a three-year contract, it’s exciting and it shows the commitment on both sides. I’m lucky for the opportunity. To have that belief and that support from management behind you is huge.
Primeau on envisioning himself as the top netminder with Montreal down the road:
I think that’s any kid’s goal growing up. They want to be the number one at the highest level. The goal has always stayed the same for me. I want to play at the highest level, I want to be the guy at the highest level, and so I’m just going to take it day by day. It’s exciting to be able to have three years to try to do that.
Video: Cayden Primeau on his new contract
Primeau on key lessons he has learned in the pros:
At every level, there’s an adjustment phase. The AHL was no different. It took some time to get used to, but I’ve done pretty well adjusting and acclimating to the pace of the next level. I’m confident that I can do that in the NHL. I have performed well, it’s just sometimes I’ve been a little inconsistent. The biggest thing is just trying to be consistent moving forward.
Primeau on his game plan going into the season:
The game plan is just to build off of the momentum that I had at the end of last season. The AHL playoffs were a lot of fun. I believe I was playing my best hockey. I’ll just try to keep the ball rolling and just take it day by day.
Primeau on his mindset heading into training camp:
I’m just going into it with an open mind. I have to perform and I have a job to do. At the same time, I put some standards in place in the past that haven’t really worked out to my benefit, so what I’m really trying to do is just go back to the basics, just take it day by day, and just make sure that I keep rolling on the momentum from the playoffs and try to just give it my best. That’s my main focus going into this camp.
Primeau on overcoming his struggles in the NHL to be consistent for the Rockets in the postseason:
It wasn’t an easy fix. The biggest thing that I was struggling with was confidence. It wasn’t an overnight switch. It was something that was progressive and gradual towards the end of the season going into the playoffs. The goalie position is mainly mental, so really working on that was important.
Primeau on his main objective training-wise over the summer:
I think the biggest thing that I was hoping to work on was strength. I felt like I did that. I’m feeling really good right now, so I’m really excited to get into camp.
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