The puck drops for real this Thursday, Oct. 4, at the Enterprise Center when the Blues face off against the Winnipeg Jets in their season opener. Much is expected of this team considering their haul of acquisitions via free agent signings or trade. The Blues have been tabbed as one of the Western Conference top contenders to vie for the Stanley Cup with a bevy of newcomers, veterans and rookies taking the ice wearing the familiar note on the jersey.
But, if this collection of pucksters is to venture into unfamiliar territory, they're going to need a yeoman's effort from their goaltender. The Blues' success in the National Hockey League's 2018-19 season rests on the glove, goalie stick, pads and most importantly, mindset of their netminder.
To borrow a phrase from Eminem's Slim Shady, will the real Jake Allen please stand up, please stand up, please stand up ... because when Allen stands on his head, he's very, very good. He doesn't play like he did in 2017-18 when he was 27-25 with a 2.75 goals against average (GAA).
The latter stat wasn't shabby but Allen's play between the pipes was very streaky. He had a tendency to let in more soft goals than he did difficult ones. If his mind is right, good and focused, he plays like the Jake Allen whose career record is 117-71 with a 2.47 GAA and 16 shutouts.
I'd certainly be good with his doubling his 2014-15 stats when he was 22-7 with a 2.28 GAA and 4 shutouts. A performance like that would produce a 44-14 record, a similar GAA or somewhat lower preferably to go with 8 shutouts. Now that's the Jake Allen that would take St. Louis from pretender to serious contender, the Jake Allen who was signed to a long-term deal and paid to be an impenetrable last line of defense.
The pressure to play well is not on the power play unit, penalty kill, forwards, centers or defensemen. The pressure to play out of one's gourd is solely on Allen and what's between his ears. He's got all the skills in the world to be any NHL team's No. 1 goaltender but he also comes equipped with enough potential lapses in concentration that he'll give the owner, front office, teammates, broadcast crews and fans the Blues. The team can afford to get off to a relatively slow start while the coaching staff figures out line combinations and defensive pairings but Allen can't. And, should the Blues make the playoffs as expected, he can't have a postseason meltdown reminiscent of the one versus Minnesota in 2015.
Highly touted prospect Ville Husso is an insurance policy waiting in the wings should Allen have a recurrence of the muscle spasms that sidelined him early on in training camp or not stand up and play outstanding to deliver the sport's ultimate prize. Slim Shady's got nothing on Allen if he does. Will the real Jake Allen please stand up, please stand up, please stand up. We're all counting on him to.
