It's done; Jake Allen has been traded, and there's no turning back, but it was a close call. The goalie could have stayed in Montreal, and if that had happened, his future would have been very different.
Indeed, with names like Jakob Markstrom and Linus Ullmark expected to be available in the market this summer, Allen wouldn't have been a priority for other teams.
Add to that the dozen or so goalies who will be available, and it would have been difficult to trade Allen during the offseason. Allain Roy, the goalie's agent, was willing to comment on the situation.
Reading between the lines, Allen wouldn't have played much, if at all, until the end of the season if he had stayed in Montreal. Then he probably wouldn't have changed addresses this summer. It would have been catastrophic for the rest of his career.