Caught in a three-man rotation last season with the Canadiens that was doomed to failure, goaltender Jake Allen finally will get his opportunity to shine with the New Jersey Devils.
Allen has become the Devils’ first-string goaltender by default — at least for the next several weeks — after Jacob Markstrom suffered a medial collateral sprain last Wednesday against Boston. It’s a potentially huge blow for New Jersey. In December alone, Markstrom went 8-1-1 with a 1.30 average and .937 save percentage, not to mention consecutive shutouts.
Markstrom, who had started six consecutive games, left early in the second period against the Bruins, but Allen held the fort, stopping all 16 shots in New Jersey’s 5-1 victory, which ended a four-game losing skid.
Allen, traded to the Devils last March for a conditional 2025 third-round draft choice, returned to Montreal for the first time Saturday night and backstopped the visitors to a 4-3 overtime victory. And considering Allen had started only twice in the previous 24 days, his work was to be commended.
We believe the Devils will be in good hands with the 34-year-old veteran. He won a Stanley Cup with St. Louis and has appeared in 445 games, winning 202, along with 26 shutouts — two alone this season.
News you need (Part I): Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis and his Devils’ counterpart, Sheldon Keefe, were teammates with Tampa Bay for parts of three seasons, from 2000-03. We wonder if Keefe, the former coach at Toronto, misses all the huge Maple Leafs’ egos with which he had to deal? Guessing not.
News you need (Part II): The Devils have now won nine consecutive games — including two this season — against Montreal. New Jersey hasn’t lost to the Canadiens since Dec. 14, 2017, and that was in overtime. Its last regulation defeat against Montreal occurred on Dec. 8, 2016.
Best behind-the-back pass of the night: Juraj Slafkovsky to Alexandre Carrier, early in the game.
How did he miss: In the sixth minute, noted scorer Patrik Laine had a point-blank opportunity, only to fire directly into Allen’s chest.
Tit-for-tat: About a minute later, Michael Pezzetta hit defenceman Dougie Hamilton. Seconds later, Hamilton returned the favour, slightly rocking the Montreal forward.
Dumb penalty: Brenden Dillon, in the first period, for goaltender interference on Jakub Dobes.
Taking one for the team: With the Canadiens on the power play in the opening period, defenceman Brett Pesce took a Laine blast off his ankle. Somehow, Pesce remained on the ice.
Pass of the night: Jesper Bratt to captain Nico Hischier on the game’s opening goal.
Not a good start: The Canadiens generated only three shots through the opening 17 minutes.
One he’d like back: Dobes was beaten between the legs by Bratt late in the first period, giving the Devils a 2-0 lead.
Game of inches: In the third minute of the second period, Bratt hit the post. A 3-0 lead at that point might have buried the Canadiens.
He wasn’t going to miss twice: Seconds after Nick Suzuki failed to convert a pass from Cole Caufield, missing a glorious scoring opportunity, he beat Allen from the slot at 3:50 of the period for Montreal’s opening goal.
Giveaway: Rookie defenceman Lane Hutson was fortunate he didn’t pay the price for his turnover to Dawson Mercer in the second period. Mercer’s wrist shot was saved by Dobes.
Cheap call: We’re not sure that was a legitimate trip by Mike Matheson on Curtis Lazar in the period’s ninth minute.
Slow learners: With 6:26 remaining in the period, New Jersey enjoyed a 13-4 shots advantage.
Dobes … again: Late in the period, with the visitors leading 3-1, the rookie netminder stopped Timo Meier’s breakaway backhand. Not long after that, Caufield scored, reducing the deficit to one goal.
Faceoff of the night: Suzuki beat Ondrej Palat early in the third period, eventually leading to Carrier’s game-tying goal, his first as a Canadien.
Stuck at 99: The next Montreal victory will be the 100th in St. Louis’s coaching career.
News you need (Part III): For a second consecutive game, and fourth time this season, the Canadiens allowed more than 40 shots.
Turnover of the night: Matheson on the overtime winner, scored by Jack Hughes.
Quick stats: Caufield, Suzuki and Slafkovsky were all plus-3. Jake Evans was minus-3. The Canadiens blocked 32 shots — six each by Hutson and Carrier. While Dobes lost for the first time in his NHL career, his save percentage was .909.
They said it: “I’m not very happy with my first period,” Dobes said. “I wish I was better in the first period. I need to play a full 60. The second goal was a bad goal at a bad time. After the first period, I figured I’ve got to get going. I battled and gave the team a chance to win.”
“They have good players. They have good skaters,” Slafkovsky said of the Devils. “It was a decent game; not our best. But at least we battled and got back. That’s what’s good to know about us.”
“Everyone’s in the same boat. You just have to find ways to win,” Suzuki said. “I thought we had enough late to win that game, but it didn’t go our way.”