Cayden Primeau
Cayden Primeau has finally taken over as the team's backup goaltender. It was a long and winding road for him to get here, but there is no question he is the number two option on the team right now.
He was drafted way back in 2017 and was a 7th round pick then so not a lot was expected. Then he had two exceptional seasons at Northeastern and was suddenly on the radar as a potential starter of the future. He had to bide his time with the Laval Rocket where he played parts of four seasons and was solid each year.
This season, for the first five months at least. Primeau was playing third string behind Sam Montembeault and Jake Allen. Finally, on trade deadline day, Allen was traded to the New Jersey Devils and the crease logjam was cleared up. This still leaves Montembeault as the presumptive starter, but Primeau is now the backup.
There is not a lot of time left, but Primeau can not afford to drop the ball on this opportunity. Chances are that Montembeault and Primeau will be the tandem next season, but with the Canadiens looking to be better, if Primeau falters down the stretch, they could look to add a veteran backup like Martin Jones which would put Primeau right back into the same position he was to begin this season.
He does not want to be in that position ever again, so he really has something to prove down the stretch to give the organization confidence he can play 35 or so games next season.