WPG@MTL: Allen starts, Anderson still out

BROSSARD - Goaltender Jake Allen is getting another crack at the Jets.

Interim head coach Dominique Ducharme confirmed the news following Thursday's morning skate at the Bell Sports Complex, explaining that Allen was scheduled to start one of the two contests on tap versus Winnipeg and "we decided to go with him tonight."
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The 30-year-old Fredericton, NB native was between the pipes last weekend when the Canadiens were edged 2-1 in overtime in the Manitoba capital, turning aside 19 of 21 shots along the way.
While Allen is winless in his last three outings, his 4-2-2 record, 2.12 goals-against average and .929 save percentage clearly shows that he has performed well behind Carey Price.

With the recent dismissal of Stéphane Waite, Price, Allen and Charlie Lindgren are now training with Laval Rocket goaltending coach Marco Marciano until newly appointed director of goaltending Sean Burke's mandatory 14-day quarantine is over.
Nevertheless, Burke is already providing valuable input from afar.
"Marco and Burkie are working together. They're talking all the time. Everything that Marco does on the ice with our goalies, they talked about it and they prepared drills together. Until Sean comes, that's the way they're going to be working," explained Ducharme, who previously coached alongside Marciano in the QMJHL ranks with the Montreal Juniors. "When you work with someone like Marco, and now to see him being here today, it's always nice to see people going from one step to the other and making it to this level."

According to Ducharme, all matters related to Burke's transition are running smoothly.
"Marco worked with Carey a few years ago, so they'd already been on the ice together. We had a conference call with myself, Sean, the goaltenders and Marco, and we all got on the same page," added the Habs' bench boss. "Marco is relaying Sean's plan to the goaltenders and working with them. Carey is very open. He wants to perform his best."
Still no Anderson
It was back on February 25 that right-winger Josh Anderson was forced to leave the game in Winnipeg with a lower-body injury.
Despite participating in the morning skate, Anderson will miss his third straight tilt tonight.

Ducharme isn't ruling out a return this weekend, however, but nothing is set in stone at this point.
"Josh has made good progress. He won't play tonight, though. We'll see about Saturday. Ideally, we want to ensure that he's 100 percent before he plays again," mentioned Ducharme. "We don't want him to come back when there's still a risk of injury. We're taking that into consideration in his case."
Anderson still sits second on the roster with nine goals in 19 games.
Hungry to deliver
There's no denying that Tomas Tatar, Phillip Danault and Brendan Gallagher want to step up again in Anderson's absence.
Danault, in particular, is still seeking his first goal of the season.
"We're generating a lot of scoring chances every game. It's just a question of capitalizing on them. If we look at last season, we created just about the same number of chances, but the difference was that we capitalized," stressed Danault, who has eight assists in 21 games. "The confidence is there. The results will come. We're working the right way, whether it's during games or practices. We'll end up getting the results we want."

Ducharme certainly believes in the trio's capabilities, which is why he reunited them immediately after taking the helm.
"Their line creates a lot of offense and turnovers by killing plays. We saw some good sequences over the last two games. Puck support is very important for them. They have to be really active together. They have to create turnovers and counter-attack fast. That's when they have success," said Ducharme. "We're working on that aspect of the game with them."
Keep it rolling
The Canadiens' power play came alive in their most recent outing against Ottawa, scoring twice when the Senators got into penalty trouble in the second period.
It was just the third time this season that the man advantage produced a multi-goal effort.
Forward Nick Suzuki credits new assistant coach Alex Burrows with providing a serious boost in that department.
"He's brought a lot of new energy, a new kind of philosophy and plays that he's worked with in Laval," shared Suzuki. "We've seen a couple of clips of some successful power plays from down there, and I think he's been doing a great job with us so far."

The Canadiens rank 17th in the League while up a man, operating at a 21 percent clip.
Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET. You can watch the game on TSN2, TSN3 and RDS, and listen to all the action on TSN Radio 690 and 98,5 fm.