Goaltender Cayden Primeau may have needed just 13 saves to earn his first career NHL shutout, but he still used a rare home game to make amends with the Bell Center on Tuesday night.
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The Anaheim Ducks' poor offensive performance helped him remedy the situation. Primeau had allowed 5 goals on 29 shots at home against the Florida Panthers on November 30th and had not been seen on the ice in Montreal since.
“I tried to approach this game like any other at the start of this season. I felt good even though I wasn't tested much,” commented Primeau, who couldn't believe the atmosphere at the Bell Center on a Tuesday evening. “It’s obviously a good feeling to get this first shutout.”
“It wasn’t just about me, the boys played so well that I wanted to get them a shutout,” the goalkeeper indicated after the 5-0 win against the Ducks.
Improved statistics
The 24-year-old goalkeeper was the centerpiece of a menage a trois with Samuel Montembeault and Jake Allen and was playing just his fourth game at the Bell Center this season. Although the sample size is small, heading into Tuesday's game he had an 0-3 record, a terrible 5.09 GAA and a save percentage of .856.
At the end of the evening, he improved that statistic by adding a win, increasing his home average to 3.81 and increasing his percentage to .872 despite the few shots received.
“It wasn't a particularly stressful evening for him, but it's good for his self-confidence,” admitted head coach Martin St-Louis, speaking particularly on behalf of the entire club. We were in action on both sides of the ice.”
Weeks without playing
Primeau's confidence could only benefit from this. In his last appearance in front of the Canadiens' net, on January 20 in Boston, Primeau replaced Montembeault in the crushing 9-4 loss to the Bruins. He then blocked five of the six pucks aimed at him. His last start had come two days earlier in Ottawa after being thwarted five times by the Senators in a 5-2 loss.
For the season, Primeau now has a record of 5-5-1, a 3.07 average, a .903 efficiency rate and… one shutout.