FEATURE STORY : JAKE ALLEN
GOBI DESERT
Jake Allen :
“ The Risk Manager ”
Sitting in a Tim Horton ’ s on the exhibition grounds , Murray Allen looks like most other men his age in the coffee shop . He ’ s eighty-three now , retired from a thirty-five-year career as an insurance adjuster . A paper cup of coffee sits between his hands on the table , and he turns it idly from time to time . He ’ s wearing a St . Louis Blues hat , bright blue against the brown winter coats in the shop . Allen , who goes by “ Murph ,” is quick to take a jab at the stereotypical scene .
“ We have a group that comes here every morning , and [ we ] call it the Tim Horton Old Farts ,” said Allen , a wry smile creeping across his face . “ We talk hockey and talk about Jake , but not long . Then we solve all the problems [ of ] the world after that .”
Jake is Murph ’ s grandson and he is the reason for the St . Louis Blues hat . Drafted in the second round ( 34th overall ) in the 2008 NHL draft , Jake Allen first broke into the NHL for a fifteen-game stint in the 2012-2013 season before being promoted to the team ’ s roster full time in the 2014-2015 season .
Murph remembers taking his first “ real ” job working for Trans Canada Airlines slinging luggage . Eight years in , he decided to move on .
“ I found that there was no future . I got a chance to go work with a firm on a part-time basis , and then it turned into full time ,” said Murph . “ I didn ’ t have any qualms about leaving .”
Allen constantly frames his decisions this way , as calculated risks , not gambles . In less regulated times , he is quick to point out , getting into the insurance business was relatively easy .
“ You had to take courses , and you had to write an exam to get your license . It ’ s a little more difficult today . I worked for eleven years for a firm called Allen , Bennett and Dunphy , no relation .”
After a decade spent working for someone else , the elder Allen looked around once again and realized that he wasn ’ t where he wanted to be . He determined to change that so he started
Capital Adjustment . And his calculating mind was there again , adding up the risk .
“ I was probably better acquainted with the insurance agents than my two bosses were . I knew that I would get the business from them . And outside firms , when they wanted something done [ at Allen , Bennett and Dunphy ], I knew I would get some of that ,” said Murph . “ I don ’ t think I was too nervous . Young enough to be stupid .”
Jake ’ s life mapped itself out differently than his grandfather ’ s as he followed his athletic talent into a career . Some genetic gift seems to be present , although to hear Murph tell it , that ’ s been building over the last couple of generations .
“ I was mostly a single [ s ] or doubles hitter ,” said Murph , who played baseball for the Marysville Royals and Blacks Harbour Brunswicks , in addition to playing hockey and golf ( a sport he introduced Jake to ). “ One night I hit one real good to right field . [ The umpire ] hollered ‘ One plank fair !’ A number of years later when I was watching my son play , he hit two home runs . Somebody from my era was sitting with me and he said ‘ Boy , Murph , just like the old man , huh ?’ and I said , ‘ Look , he just had one more home run tonight than I had my whole career !’”
We like to imagine embarking on a career in sports as a dramatic moment , all clenched teeth and determination with a stirring soundtrack . But the way young athletes move through the ranks is more subtle than that . For Jake , leaving home at seventeen to play junior hockey was a way to continue doing what he loved .
“ When you leave at that young an age , I don ’ t think you ’ re thinking too far ahead . You ’ re just enjoying the game so much that it ’ s the next step . I didn ’ t know it was going to take me to the NHL ,” said the younger Allen .
After playing junior hockey in Newfoundland , Jake was selected to play in the World Under-18 Tournament in 2008 , winning gold with Team Canada and taking the tournament MVP and >
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