BOSTON -- The honors roll on for Northeastern men's hockey goaltender
Cayden Primeau, as he has been selected to the U.S. Men's National Team, which will compete at the 2019 IIHF Men's World Championship.
The competition will take place May 10-26 in Kosice and Bratislava, Slovakia. Primeau is one of 17 members that have been announced so far, with up to eight more skaters set to join the team in the coming weeks. The roster contains 11 first-round NHL Draft picks, including current stars Patrick Kane, Ryan Suter, and Jack Eichel, and has combined to play 5,999 NHL games over 95 seasons. All United States games during the World Championships will air on NHL Network.
Primeau is no stranger to the national stage, as he missed three games for the Huskies earlier this season to compete with the United States National Junior Team at the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship, where the team earned the silver medal after falling to Finland 3-2 in the gold medal game. Primeau turned heads on the national stage and emerged as the team's leading goaltender during the tournament, posting a 4-0-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record with a 1.61 GAA and .937 save percentage.
Primeau is coming off one of the greatest seasons in Northeastern history, as he posted a .933 save percentage that ranks fifth in the nation and a 2.09 goals against average. His save percentage is the best single-season mark in Northeastern history, and his GAA ranks second behind only his 1.92 average from last season. He posted a 25-10-1 record, the third most wins in the NCAA and tied for the most in a season in program history.
The Montreal Canadiens prospect stepped up when it mattered most throughout the season, putting on MVP displays as the Huskies won both the Beanpot and Hockey East Championships. Primeau saved 59 of 62 shots in the Beanpot, earning the Eberly Award in addition to his Tournament MVP accolade. The sophomore pushed aside another 38 shots in the Hockey East Championship game after making 29 saves in the semifinal, earning a place on the All-Tournament team as well as the William Flynn Award for MVP of the tournament. When No. 1 Massachusetts came to Matthews, Primeau made a career-high 45 saves as the Huskies upset the Minutemen 2-1 in overtime.
The team MVP was recently awarded the Mike Richter Award as the best goaltender in college hockey and was named a First Team All-American. He has also been recognized with two HEA Defensive Player of the Weeks, Two HEA Player of the Weeks, a HEA Goaltender of the Month, the Hockey East Three Stars Award, the Stop it Goaltending Goaltender of the Year, and a Hockey East First Team All-Star selection, in addition to being nominated for the Hobey Baker Award.
After the conclusion of the Huskies' season Primeau signed an entry level contract with the Montreal Canadiens, and will report to the club's AHL affiliate in Laval. He was drafted in the seventh round (199th overall) by Montreal in the 2017 NHL Draft.
