With Sam Montembeault being recently signed to a three-year contract extension, all eyes have been on Jake Allen. The 33-year-old is standing out as the prime trade candidate out of the Montreal Canadiens‘ three goaltenders, and there has been interest. It is understandable, as the Fredericton native is a quality 1B goaltender and would provide teams needing help in the net with more stability. With that, he has been consistent throughout his 11-year career, so he has value.
Now, there’s a new development on the Allen front, as the Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch reported that Allen has two new potential suitors (from INSIDER TRADING: GM Brad Treliving never rests in search to help the Leafs’ defensive core, Ottawa Sun, 12/5/2023). Let’s discuss each of these teams now and why they could use him.
Buffalo Sabres
Garrrioch reported that the Buffalo Sabres “have been looking to add a goalie” and “may have sniffed around Allen.” It makes sense when looking at the Sabres’ current situation between the pipes.
Entering the season, the expectation was that Devon Levi would run away as the Sabres’ starter. After finishing a dominant collegiate career at Northeastern University, the 21-year-old immediately joined Buffalo for the end of their 2022-23 season and looked excellent. However, he has struggled this campaign, posting a 3-4-1 record, a .876 save percentage (SV%), and a 3.73 goals-against average (GAA) before being sent down to the American Hockey League (AHL). He was recently called back up, however.
Related: Canadiens’ Jake Allen Named Good Potential Trade Fit for 2 Teams
Eric Comrie has been worse for the Sabres, as he has a 1-5-0 record, a 4.01 GAA, and a .861 SV%. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has been their lone bright spot in goal, but given how their other goalies are doing, bringing in a veteran like Allen for support has the potential to be a good idea.
The Sabres have been dropping in the standings rapidly, losing seven out of their last 10 games. As a result, it makes sense that they are searching for another goalie. On paper, Allen looks like he could be a good fit, but they are not the only team being viewed as a possible suitor.
Seattle Kraken
After an excellent second season in the NHL, the Seattle Kraken entered this season expecting to be contenders in the Western Conference. Unfortunately for them, they have been far from that, as they sport an 8-12-6 record and have won just three out of their last 10 games. It has been a truly disappointing campaign for them, and their goaltending is a big reason for their struggles. Thus, it is not surprising to hear from Garrioch that the Kraken have reached out to the Canadiens about their goaltending situation. With Montembeault extended, Allen would be their best option.
The Kraken’s goaltending has been quite poor this season. Philipp Grubauer has a 5-8-1 record, a .883 SV%, and a 3.35 GAA in 15 games. Joey Daccord has been a bit better but still not outstanding, posting a 2.92 GAA and a .898 SV% in a career-high 13 games thus far. The Chris Driedger signing has also not worked out, as he is in the AHL and has not played in the NHL since 2021-22. Thus, the Kraken should be browsing the goalie trade market heavily, and it makes sense that Allen is on their radar.
The Kraken need to act quickly if they hope to turn their season around, and improving their goaltending will help their chances of succeeding with that. Allen would give them a bit more stability, and he is under contract until the end of next season, so he makes sense as a potential target.
These are just two of the latest teams to be connected to Allen, and it will not be surprising if more teams keep an eye on him. We will now need to wait and see if Allen ends up joining the Sabres or Kraken before the deadline passes from here.