Thursday, January 04, 2007

Jason Allison Playing the waiting Game

It seems like every time a forward in the NHL goes down with an injury, Jason Allison's name pops up as a possible replacement.
For the record, Allison would like to play again. But he's not about to jump at just any offer.
"If you look at my career, I've been a point-per-game player every year," said Allison, who had 17 goals and 60 points in 66 games with Toronto last season, in an interview with The Hockey News Thursday. "Some years I'm just under a point-per-game; other years I'm over. I know I probably won't get the money (now) that I think I deserve, but I've made a lot of money in my career and I'm not in a position where I have to jump at the first offer that comes my way."
Allison continues to work out wondering if that perfect situation will arise. In the meantime, he says family obligations will play a big part in whether or not he elects to continue his paying career. He has his children part-time.
Allison missed the 2004-05 season with a neck injury and, of course, the following year when the league shut down because of a labor dispute. He says he skated only a handful of times before joining the Leafs.

Never a quick player to begin with, Allison immediately got into the bad books of Leafs fans when he skated in very slowly during a shootout and failed to score. He found out quickly what other Leafs players knew before him - once the fans get a bone, they never let it go.
"Last year wasn't as much fun as it could have been," Allison acknowledges. "But I still think I bring other things than scoring to the table. I'll fight if I have to. I'm not just one of those guys trying to get his points."
Chances are, because he has not played this season, no team will take a chance on him. But it must be deliciously tempting for a team that needs additional scoring to know a player with the desire to play, and one who has 485 points in 552 career games, is out there waiting for the call.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I'm a big Allison fan, I never understood the leaf fans hate for this guy. He was slow, but still put up the points. Any team with a dead powerplay should consider signing this guy.

But I did hear on the radio not too long ago that he's got some demons in his life which have prevented him from playing as much as GM's haven't shown much interest in the former 100 point centre, whos still in his prime.