MONTREAL – When the Montreal Canadiens call, you better answer.
Those were Mike Condon’s words—but also his actions. When the organization reached out and asked if he’d like to attend development camp, the former Canadiens netminder turned mental performance consultant graciously accepted.
Condon, whose time in Montreal was short but memorable, appeared in 55 games for the Canadiens during the 2015-16 season. Following his playing career, he returned to school and earned a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology/Sport Psychology from Boston University.
Today, he runs his own business, Condon Performance Consulting, where he provides evidence-based mental performance coaching, drawing on both his education and his experience as a professional hockey player to help athletes build emotional resilience and navigate pressure.
The Canadiens content team caught up with the 36-year-old during the 2026 Canadiens Development Camp, where he reflected on his time in Montreal and discussed his new life beyond hockey.
Please note some questions and answers have been modified for clarity and conciseness.
You’re back in Montreal right now. What’s it like being back in the city, back in the rink where it all started for you in the NHL?
It’s been 10 years, almost to the day, since I was here. I was really looking forward to it. I love the drive up from Boston. I’m not sure if many people know that drive, but it’s calm and beautiful, and I had a lot of memories on that drive. It was great to come back, see everyone, and be in this complex again. I’ve spent a lot of nights at the hotel, so everywhere in this rink and in this city, there are memories and nostalgia. It’s kind of cool to get—not closure—but just to revisit those things at an older age, reflect on the journey, and think about what an honor it was to be a part of this organization.
When you think of the Canadiens logo, what do you think of?
I think of honor. I think of opportunity. Part of my mind goes to designing goalie pads again or designing a mask. But being a Boston kid, I think it’s pretty cool to have such an affiliation with this team and this logo. I think the word is gratitude. I have a lot of gratitude. Montreal is the only team that gave me a chance at the start of my career, and when I had the opportunity to come back, I couldn’t have been more excited.
Can you tell us why you’re here at development camp and how it came about?
I’ve stayed in contact with Marco Marciano and Vincent Riendeau over the years. They were so kind to me, and they were the ones who developed me when I was in the American league in Hamilton. Over the years, we’ve just been having conversations about psychology, about goalies, and they’re just great people. So, when Marco got promoted this year, we had some talks about maybe coming in to speak with the younger guys and share my experience and my journey. So when I got that call—and when the Montreal Canadiens call you, you better answer—I was more than excited to come up here.
Can you explain some of your background in mental health and performance?
My background in psychology and mental performance was really forced upon me. You need to invest in that when you’re playing. I did a lot of trial and error when I played, and as I sit here, I can reflect and think about it now and realize I didn’t need to suffer that much. In my experience, I saw not only myself, but a lot of other athletes, suffering. It was kind of a call to go back to school and get my master’s degree in counseling psychology. That taught me how to be a therapist, how to communicate with people, and also what theory says about how humans perform at their best. So I took what I know from my experience playing the game and referenced it with what the book says, so to speak. I feel very confident in my ability to, at the very least, provide shelter and a safe space for people to vent their feelings and emotions, while also offering some tangible things they can do to make their experience a little bit easier.
The conversation around mental health has evolved a lot since you entered the NHL. How is today’s environment different from when you played?
When we were playing, it was available to us, but I think there was still some stigma around opening up versus conforming to what hockey players were supposed to be: tough, no excuses, selfless. All those things hockey players are taught at a young age, and they’re great skills to have. However, there is a benefit and a drawback to each quality that we have. So when speaking about that, it’s just a matter of asking: How does that skill help you, and maybe how does it detract from your experience? I think just having those conversations is important, and today it’s a much more popular field. I feel like more people are taking advantage of it and investing in it before they encounter something. It’s preventative. I would recommend talking before you experience something because, in this game, there’s adversity every year, and there’s also adversity every game. We all know it’s coming. What are you doing to put some structure in place so that when it does happen, you have a plan? As opposed to sitting there and, like I did a lot, just knowing that something may or may not be right and trying to gut through it, suffer through it. That’s something you can do, but it’s not an efficient pathway.
