Hurricanes acquire Cayden Primeau’s negotiating rights from Canadiens

Primeau is set to become a restricted free agent on July 1st after the conclusion of his three-year contract with an $890,000 cap hit. He’s currently projected to get a one-year, $1.068 million contract according to AFP Analytics.

At this point in time, there is no word on Primeau signing a contract with the Hurricanes.

The 25-year-old does have arbitration rights, so the Canadiens were likely looking to get some kind of asset in return for not having to worry about that, especially when their goaltending pipeline appears set with Sam Montembeault and Jakub Dobes.

Meanwhile, the Hurricanes get a little bit more depth in between the pipes beyond Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov, and one with a bit more future upside than re-signing Spencer Martin while also still having some NHL experience.

For the 2025-26 season, offer sheets under $1,544,424 require no compensation from the signing team, with the next tier above being a third-round pick. While the Hurricanes likely won’t sign Primeau for more than that, it is interesting to see them make this move when they possibly could have offer sheeted him for no compensation.

After six NHL seasons, Primeau continues to struggle to establish himself as a full-time NHLer, splitting time between the NHL and the AHL in 2024-25. With the Canadiens, Primeau played 11 games with a 2-3-1 record, an .836 save percentage, -10.53 5v5 goals saved above expected. Not only was his performance a step down from his previous season, it also saw him play 12 fewer games at the NHL.

In the AHL, Primeau played much better, with a 21-2-2 record, a .927 SV%, and two shutouts in 26 games with the Canadiens’ minor league affiliate, the Laval Rocket. He also had a 3-4-0 record, an .878 SV% and one shutout in eight playoff games.