Miller Time
Registered User
- Sep 16, 2004
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- 15,710
The thing is, if Habs wanted Jake Allen (and obviously they did), do they really want to wait it out and risk missing out on him? Because I don't think the Blues are near desperation when it comes to the Pietrangelo contract. And by the time they do reach that point with AP, Allen may already be gone.
And yes, they can turn to a UFA to sign with them once free agency hits. And they can try convincing him by offering more games than a normal back-up goalie would get. But on the flip-side, you don't need to wait to go FA hunting. They acquired a guy who they know can shoulder those number of games they would try convincing a UFA with.
On the subject of frustration/disengagement, Jake Allen proved he is not that guy. He saw Binnington come in the picture and Allen came to terms on him being the back-up. So I think he has a good mindset coming into this.
- when you have the best, and highest paid, goalie in the leauge, I would question a GM who then was so enamored about a specific option for back-up that he had to get him at all cost. Poor roster assessment if that were the case.
- Allen, while a great asset to have as a #2, is not nearly that much better than a large amount of options that were/are available this offseason.
So again, i'm not questioning the quality of player Allen is as a back-up goalie... but, when it comes to the GM role, the job is not to be myopic in evaluating player acquisitions, it's the ability to see the hole landscape and make strong calculated decisions to move the roster towards contention. This move reeks of desperation even though the team we trade with was in a far more desperate place... Terrible timing to not get a great deal in the move.
I would agree that Allen has shown himself to be a great pro... so don't doubt he'll come in motivated and play the best he can. I was simply pointing out that if ones argument is predicated on assuming potential players the habs could have targeted would not be eager to play here, it's hard not to also consider that a risk factor for allen... unlike the previous years with binnington, Allen wasn't staring at 30-year old UFAgency... that's an added mental/emotional factor that could come into play (though not one i'm particularly concerned with, nor would have precluded making a move for him because of).
Bottom line for me is that we were pro-active at the wrong time for a need that, while there, is certainly on the lower end of priority needs... especially in light of the move being wholly predicated on outcomes next season (given Allen's 1- year contract)...
Much better likelihood of the habs/price, with strong moves to address the gaps at W and D, moving into contention, than in shoring up the back-up spot... was not the position to go hyper-aggressive on, shouldve either held out for a much better sweetner (here, take our super expensive back-up AND pay us a decent pick ???)