The Vancouver Sun
November 20, 2002
By Elliott Pap

If there was a human equivalent to the yo-yo, Vancouver Canucks defenceman Bryan Allen would be the leading man.

The Canucks blueliner has twice been down to the farm in Manitoba and then back up again this season and there is every likelihood he'll be making another down-up trip this weekend.

Allen is Vancouver's seventh defenceman on a team that plays only six. Barring an injury tonight to one of the six, Allen could be dispatched to the Moose for American League games Friday and Saturday and then rejoin the Canucks in Minnesota Sunday.

"The plan? I'm not really sure," Allen said Tuesday after practising with the Canucks at GM Place. "They haven't said anything about it yet but they usually don't until right before I go. We'll see what happens against Chicago, I guess."

Allen, the Canucks' first pick in the 1998 entry draft, has been unable to crack the lineup on a regular basis and the recent trade for lanky left-side defenceman Marek Malik has pushed the 22-year-old Allen another notch down the depth chart.

Malik has not really distinguished himself since arriving Nov. 1 from Carolina but the team is 6-1-0 with him and head coach Marc Crawford isn't about to blow up a winning formula.

So Allen practises here, he watches his mates play and then he flies to Manitoba for game action.

"It is a little weird, practising here and playing there," he admitted. "But it's probably better than going to the minors permanently. Obviously my goal is to play here and the trade [for Malik] makes it harder for me to get into the lineup. But ever since he's come, the team has played well."

This wasn't the way Allen envisioned his season unfolding. With the departure of both Scott Lachance (signed in Columbus) and Jason Strudwick (at GM Place tonight with the Blackhawks), Allen felt the door was at least ajar.

But a pre-season trade for Sami Salo, followed by the Malik deal, have limited his chances. In addition, Vancouver has not lost a man-game on its blueline to injury or illness.

"No injuries is good news for the team but I guess bad news for guys waiting for an opportunity," Allen said. "It is testing my patience as time goes on but I think that's part of the learning process. You have to learn to be patient and you have to earn whatever you get.

"I think the team is showing some confidence in me because they could just say 'he's not going to play so let's send him down,' "Allen continued. "They've tried to tell me and prove to me it's going to be a work in progress."

Crawford said he was concerned that Allen and fellow healthy scratches Jarkko Ruutu and Mats Lindgren weren't getting into games but that he wasn't prepared to tinker. "I've talked to all three of them about the fact right now we're playing extremely well and there is no reason for us to change the lineup," Crawford remarked.



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