St. Louis Blues goaltender Jake Allen exited Saturday night's preseason finale against the Chicago Blackhawks after the first period. Allen had been slated to play the entirety of the Blues' final two preseason games.
Defenseman Carl Gunnarsson appeared to land on Allen's left leg late in the first period, and the netminder was tended to by trainer Ray Barile. Allen stayed in the game for the rest of the period, then returned to the ice with the rest of the team as the second period was about to get underway, only to skate off and head back to the locker room.
Allen was replaced by backup Carter Hutton, an offseason free agent acquisition, who stopped 11 of 12 shots over the game's final 40 minutes.
According to the Blues' Twitter account, coach Ken Hitchcock said he did not yet have enough information on Allen's status to provide an update after the game:
Hitchcock said he doesn't have an update on Jake Allen. He said he'd give an update after he learns more. #stlblues
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) October 9, 2016
Allen spent 17 games on injured reserve last season while dealing with a knee injury. He played in 47 games during the 2015-16 campaign, posting a 26-15-3 record with a 2.35 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage. He became the Blues' top goaltender this offseason after former platoon partner Brian Elliott was traded to the Calgary Flames in June.
The Blues kick off their regular season Wednesday against the Blackhawks in Chicago.
