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 They work out together in the offseason and for the last two summers
have even been roommates at a goalie camp in Wisconsin.
Allen, the goalie for the Blues and Bishop, the goalie for the Tampa
Bay Lightning, had to put that friendship on hold Tuesday night as
they opposed each other for the first time in their NHL careers.
It was Allen who earned the bragging rights, stopping all 26 shots
in a 2-0 victory over the Lightning.
"A shutout always makes it a little bit better, but we got the win
and I thought he played really well too," said Allen, who earned his
sixth career shutout. "It was a good battle by both teams. It was a
close game. We got some chances both ways but nothing major. Guys
played well."
Bishop only allowed one goal, by center Scott Gomez, 15:59 into the
first period. The other goal by the Blues' Troy Brouwer came in the
final minute into an empty net after Bishop had been pulled for an
extra attacker.
Bishop wasn't certain that Gomez's goal, which came on a deflection
of a shot from the point by defenseman Colton Parayko, should have
counted.
"It was one of those shots which was kind of rising, and going over
the net from my point of view," Bishop said. "I guess he tipped it
before it went over the crossbar. It was tough to review. My vantage
point was that it was going to hit me in the chest. It was a tough
break but you can't really do much about it."
The way Allen was playing, and the way the Lightning have been
struggling offensively, the one goal turned out to be the difference
in the game.
Tampa Bay was shut out for the second consecutive game, having lost
1-0 in overtime Saturday night in Chicago.
"We played against two good opponents," said center Tyler Johnson.
"You've got to try to create more opportunities. Tonight we hit a
couple of posts. You can't be too upset by that but you do have to
bear down a little bit.
"Allen is a good goalie. He's done well. He was really calm and
composed back there and he looked good."
While happy to play against Bishop, Allen really was just happy to
be playing, no matter who was in the other net. His last start came
a week ago, in Montreal, when the Blues were shut out.
"It was nice to get back in and the first game at home is always
fun," Allen said. "It was a tough test for us. We lost two in a row
I guess you could say, got one point in the other game, and we
needed to bounce back."
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Coach Ken Hitchcock was glad to see Allen play well.
"We didn't give them (the Lightning) many bang-bang chances,"
Hitchcock said. "We got the lead, and that was a big advantage for
us. Jake was good. It was good to see."
The loss also spoiled Bishop's trip back to his hometown, where he
has not won in three games since being traded by the Blues to Ottawa
in 2012.
Bishop was not surprised at how Allen played.
"He's a good friend and I'm sure I will hear it until the next game.
I've got to get the next one," Bishop said. "I would have liked to
seen him play a little worse tonight but he's worked hard and I
think he's going to be a great goalie. I'm glad to see him doing
well."
The Lightning have not won a game in St. Louis since Dec. 18, 2009.
NOTES: The injury-riddled Blues invited veteran free agent RW Martin
Havlat and RW Dainius Zubrus to professional tryouts. Both players
were with the New Jersey Devils last season. The team has 10 days to
make a decision about signing them to contracts. Two of the team's
top six forwards -- C Paul Stastny and LW Jaden Schwartz -- will be
out for at least five weeks because of injuries. ... Blues rookie LW
Robby Fabbri did return to the lineup Tuesday night after missing
six games because of a concussion. ... The Lightning were without C
Cedric Paquette because of an undisclosed injury and C Brian Boyle
missed his third consecutive game also because of an undisclosed
injury. ... The Blues' five-game homestand continues Thursday night
with a game against Anaheim. ... Tuesday night's game completed a
four-game trip for the Lightning, who play host to Colorado on
Thursday night.
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