WINNIPEG — Leave it to the kid from Florida to steal the show in Winnipeg.

That’s what Jacob Fowler did Sunday at Princess Auto Stadium, earning the Montreal Canadiens a 2-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets in the Heritage Classic, and showing just how prepared he is to step up under the spotlight.

This was the 21-year-old’s biggest game of the 23 he’s played in this league to date. The native of Melbourne, Fla. came into it as the youngest goaltender to ever start an NHL outdoor game, though you’d never know it watching him thwart all but one Jets chance in a 33-save performance.

Fowler looked like a seasoned veteran all the way through. He looked cool and composed, like he always does; like a kid just yucking it up with his buddies on a backyard rink rather than one playing under the nation’s watch — in the centre of a massive field surrounded by 32,343 fans in one of hockey’s most unique atmospheres.

When you think about what that means about Fowler, you know it bodes extremely well for both him and the Canadiens.

They’re a team rising towards perennial contention, and he’s a star in the making at the most important position.

And yet, Fowler seems so grounded.

“It’s a ton of pressure being a starting goalie, and it’s a ton of pressure being the starting goalie on the Canadiens,” said Jake Evans. “I think he kind of just pushes that aside and believes in himself and he doesn’t really worry about all the outside noise.”

And that noise has only gotten louder since they did with the 69th pick that year.

He followed up excellent pre-draft seasons in the USHL with two dominant seasons at Boston College. He then graduated to the AHL and won 21 of his first 30 games there. And he didn’t allow a pre-season demotion, following last year’s impressive NHL experience, to stop him from leaping into the starter’s role in Montreal.

The hype around Fowler has been consistent all the way through, but none of it has apparently gotten to his head.

Neither has the moment, as evidenced by his performance in this big-stage game on this cold Winnipeg night.

“It was just so much fun to be out there,” Fowler said. “I think our whole team has been thinking about this game for a long time, and when I first got sent to Laval, I was pretty disappointed just thinking about how I wasn’t going to get a chance to play in this game…”

After winning four of his first five games since being recalled to Montreal due to an injury to Samuel Montembeault, there was no way Fowler would be sitting this one out.

Not with a .910 save percentage and 1.96 goals-against average, and not with Jakub Dobes struggling to rekindle the magic that vaulted him into the starter’s role last winter.

“He’s just really good,” said Cole Caufield, affirming what we saw from Fowler against the Jets all night.

It started with great first-period saves on Kyle Connor, Cole Perfetti and Mark Scheifele. It ended with even better ones in the third, when the Jets were pressing for two goals long after Kaiden Guhle joined Lane Hutson as one of two defencemen to score for the Canadiens.

Isak Rosen finally shelved Winnipeg’s 32nd shot of the night, but Fowler was otherwise unbeatable.

“He just looks so calm and confident in there,” said Noah Dobson, who assisted on Hutson’s game-opening goal to notch his fourth assist in an outdoor game and become the most productive defenceman in NHL outdoor game history.

“He’s been playing great all year, but it’s even more impressive in this environment,” Dobson continued. “It’s not easy to track pucks. I know when I played in my first one the goalies were complaining it’s hard to see, but he made it look pretty easy tonight. Obviously was a big part of our win, our best player, so it’s great to see. He’s a great kid. He has fun, he stays loose, and he makes the saves when he needs to.”

Fowler makes the saves. Period.

“He’s done it at every level,” noted Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis, echoing those famous comments from Ryan that have only been affirmed.

Back then — and even one month ago — Fowler was seen as the Canadiens’ goaltender of the future.

But what the Florida native did in Winnipeg on Sunday was provide more evidence his time is now.

The win brought Fowler to 5-1-0, with a .924 save percentage and 1.79 goals-against average. It vaulted him to fourth in the NHL in goals saved above expected. And it helped him confirm he’s a big-game player.