Quotes of the day: Waite

MONTREAL - It's too early to tell which offseason addition will have the biggest impact for the Canadiens next season, but goaltending coach Stéphane Waite made a case for it coming from between the pipes.
Here's what he had to say via Zoom conference call on Tuesday.

Earlier this fall, Marc Bergevin revealed that acquiring a backup goaltender was priority for him. Waite explained why he hoped it would be Allen:
"We rank [goaltenders] as category A, B, or C, and it takes at least a B to be a backup. Jake is in that category; after all, he has nearly 300 starts in the NHL. He could be a starter in plenty of NHL markets. We paid the price, but it's worth it. I'm extremely pleased to have Jake - he was high on our offseason shopping list."

"I know him pretty well. I got to see him play a lot with the Chicago Wolves when I was with the Blackhawks. I've always liked him. He's a good size - 6-foot-2 - that's the NHL average right now for a goalie. He's got a pretty good technique, he's sound, he's calm in the net, and he lets the play come to him. When we signed him, I got a couple of texts from St. Louis saying he's a great teammate, and that he works very hard every single day, which is very important for a backup. Marc [Bergevin] hit a home run in getting him."
According to Waite, Allen will likewise be a positive influence on Carey Price:
"With close to 300 NHL games under his belt, Jake isn't a rookie. He brings a lot of knowledge with him, including about players in the Western Conference who he's faced more often than Carey. Carey loves chatting with and learning from his backup, especially when it's a veteran who shares a deep knowledge of the League. I know Carey is excited about Jake's arrival."

Waite also described how he foresees the division of labor between the pipes next season:
"The scenario for the moment is an 82-game season. And Jake... in an ideal world - because things are never ideal, and surprises always come up; whether it's injuries, or the timing of the schedule, or a losing streak, or our position in the standings... But in an ideal world, I'd like Jake to play around 30 games."
Allen's arrival also influences the goaltending situation in Laval, as well as the development of Cayden Primeau:
"We've got [Michael] McNiven, Charlie [Lindgren], [Cayden] Primeau and [Vasili] Demchenko - but for sure we're going to keep just two goalies. We need the two goalies that are there to play. And with Primeau especially, we want him to play a minimum of about 40 games. So, it's going to be interesting. It's going to be a battle, and we don't know what's going to happen with waivers and all of that stuff."

"The plan for Cayden is that I want him to play around 150 games in the AHL. It's a standard for many good starting goaltenders who go on to become starters in the NHL, playing around 150 games. I had Corey Crawford in Chicago, who played 250 games in the AHL. So, a goaltender does not waste his time by playing a lot in the AHL."