Stu Cowan: Canadiens’ Jake Allen makes the best of a lost season

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Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the media covering the Canadiens have not been allowed into the locker room.

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That’s understandable, but it’s also made it nearly impossible for those of us who cover the team on a daily basis to get to know the new players on a more personal level, to find out who they are and what they’re like, aside from being hockey players, while chatting informally after the game. practice or a morning skate.

But even in the limited amount of media availability we’ve had with Jake Allen since he joined the Canadiens before the start of last season, mostly on video conferences, it’s become obvious that he’s a really good guy. He is intelligent and his responses to questions are always thoughtful and informative.

There is also no doubt that the 31-year-old has become a respected leader in the team.

“Just the way he works and the way he shows up every day, competing and working hard and working on his game,” head coach Dominique Ducharme said when asked about Allen’s leadership. “Every time he was at the net, fighting there, giving us opportunities to score points or win games. Always doing everything you need to be ready. Without saying a word, many of our players can look up to Jake and see a true professional and a guy who competes every day.”

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Allen was one of 24 Canadians on the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol list when the team shut down all activities for a week following a 5-2 loss to the Panthers on New Year’s Day in Florida. The Canadiens returned to action Wednesday night in Boston, with Allen making his first start in goal since Dec. 14.

Allen went 5-15-2 in the game, along with a 3.10 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage. He hasn’t gotten much help from his teammates, facing 30-plus shots in 11 of those games, including four games in which he faced 40-plus shots.

“I think Jake Allen has played a lot of good hockey for us,” defenseman Chris Wideman said. “I think some of the results we’ve had don’t really reflect how well he’s played.”

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Last season, the Canadiens wouldn’t have made the playoffs, let alone advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, without Allen. He was forced to play in 29 of the Canadiens’ 56 regular-season games due to injuries to Carey Price, posting an 11-12-5 record with a 2.68 GAA and a .907 save percentage, again without lots of help from his teammates

Price has yet to play this season following off-season knee surgery and 30 days in the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program due to substance use issues. The Canadiens aren’t going to make the playoffs this year, but you can’t blame Allen for that.

Every time Allen has spoken to the media since joining the Canadiens it’s been a breath of fresh air, especially this season when there haven’t been many positive developments.

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Monday was another example of that when Allen was asked about setting goals for the rest of this season.

“Obviously we all know where we are in the standings right now,” he said. “We have to look at it from a realistic point of view. What are we trying to do here? We need to instill some habits in our game. We have to take the right step forward. I think that’s going to be the biggest key for me in the second half, trying to preach that. We have to try to build something here with some of these young guys that we have, so that later in the season, when we play these good teams and move on to next year, we’re building something.

“We need to take things out of this season that are going to be positive, that are going to help this team and the organization next year, and I think that’s going to be the biggest mantra in the second half,” he added. “That’s what I want to bring in, whether it’s Suzy (Nick Suzuki) or Cole (Caufield) or Sam (Montembeault) or Cayden (Primeau), guys that you want to see excel, and I want to see them thrive in the right place. road. Not just one game in and one game out. I want us all to play well constantly. Win or lose, it doesn’t matter at this point. It’s really about building something here that we can take positively at the end of the season, look back and then build next year.”

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The Canadiens hired Chantal Machabée last week as their new vice president of communications after she spent 32 years as a broadcast journalist with RDS. Machabée said he wants the Canadiens to stop treating the media like enemies, giving players better access so fans can get to know them better.

It would certainly be nice to get to know Allen better, but what we’ve seen so far on and off the ice has been very impressive.

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