Canadiens Commit to Allen, Rebuild with Two-Year Extension

Montreal Canadiens goalie Jake Allen’s new two-year extension is more of an exclamation point on the team’s rebuild, when just a period would have been sufficient. It’s more brute force than pinpoint precision, but it will do.

Starting next season once the extension comes into effect, Allen’s cap hit is increasing to $3.85 million (from $2.875 million), which is fine. The problem is he hasn’t really done much to warrant a raise. Complete with a modified no-trade clause (NTC), the extension is far from perfect as a result.

To Trade or to Trade Allen

Thankfully, Allen’s NTC is fairly limited in the second season of his deal. Per CapFriendly, Allen’s entitled to a three-team no-trade list, which is manageable for a player the Canadiens would presumably like to trade eventually. After all, interest in Allen was reportedly high around the league this summer, heading into the last season of his current two-year extension.