Montreal Canadiens: Latest Waiver Claim Makes You Wonder Why Habs Can't Move Goaltender

The Montreal Canadiens entered this season with three goaltenders on their roster. No one expected them to keep them all season long but we have whizzed past the midway mark of the season and the three goalie tandem is still standing.

We have reached the point where Sam Montembeault (recent 8-goal appearance notwithstanding) is in the future plans and Cayden Primeau has done enough to deserve a longer look as well.

That leaves veteran Jake Allen as the odd man out, though he is very much still in. The reason is, the Canadiens simply can not find a trade partner. Or, they at least can't find a team willing to pay the price they want for Allen.

As a reliable veteran netminder, and a fantastic teammate, it seems odd the Canadiens are having such a hard time moving Allen. This is especially true considering so many good teams are having trouble in goal this season.

The Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs and Colorado Avalanche all fancy themselves as Stanley Cup contenders, but also all have questions in goal. Allen would be an upgrade on what each of those teams has in their crease this season, at the very least as a trusted backup option.

Yet, no trade has come to fruition. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes have turned to the waiver wire looking for an upgrade in between the pipes. They recently claimed Spencer Martin off waivers from the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Martin played 13 games so far this season has a 3.65 GAA with a .887 save percentage. This is after he had a 3.99 GAA and a .871 SV% in 29 games for the Vancouver Canucks last season. Somehow, a Stanley Cup contender thought this would help them in goal, but they haven't struck a deal for Allen?

Clearly the Canadiens are asking a bit much for Allen, whose numbers are not the greatest either. Allen's 3.49 GAA and .901 SV% would surely improve with a better team in front of him, but they also mean the Canadiens can't expect to get a second round pick for him.

It is time to admit Allen's value is not high and just end the three goalie experiment by trading him for the best return possible right now.

Otherwise, the team risks heading into next season with three goaltenders still on their roster as Allen's trade value is not likely to increase greatly in the next few weeks with his cap hit of $3.85 million through next season.