Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jake Allen will be out for eight weeks with a lower-body injury.
Allen has already missed four games after departing early in a loss to the Boston Bruins on Jan. 12. The 31-year-old left the Canadiens' road trip for further evaluation. Montreal head coach Dominique Ducharme initially said the netminder would need at least one week to recover.
The struggling Canadiens have leaned on Allen without Carey Price so far this season. The former St. Louis Blues puck-stopper is 5-16-2 with a .901 save percentage while playing 24 of Montreal's 39 contests in his second campaign with the club.
Sam Montembeault has gone 1-0-2 with a .926 save percentage in Allen's absence. Montembeault excelled while being bombarded in the last two contests, stopping 97 of the 104 shots he faced.
The Canadiens acquired Allen from the Blues for a pair of seventh-round picks in September 2020.
