The Montreal Canadiens are fortunate to be having a lot of things going right this season. One thing that isn’t is the scoring from Brendan Gallagher. Coming off a lengthy scoring slump, he is due for a hot streak around the corner.
The Montreal Canadiens are on top of the National Hockey League standings. They have received some pleasant surprises this season, but also have a few struggling players who are usually reliable. One of those players is Brendan Gallagher, and he is due to break out in a big way.
Gallagher has changed his reputation from plucky pest to top six point producer in a short time. When he entered the league in 2013, not much was expected from the undersized winger, but he is a big part of the Canadiens team now and will be for a long time.
However, though he has become a core member of the team’s forward group, Gallagher has struggled to score this season. In 22 games, he now has five goals and seven assists for 12 points. The Edmonton, Alberta native just snapped a month long goalless drought with a tip-in goal against the Detroit Red Wings.
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Now averaging just over half of a point per game, Gallagher is producing at a far lower rate than his trajectory would have projected. In 2013-14, Gallagher scored at a .506 points-per game clip. The following year he improved to .573 and last season set a career high at .755 PPG.
At 24 years of age, you would expect Gallagher’s offensive production to continue increasing each year. This year, he has dipped to .545. Not even that bad, but he set the bar so high last season, 12 points in 22 games seems like a bad year.
Gallagher started well, and has shown signs of offence during slump
He started the year with five goals and nine points in his first ten games. Since then, the right winger has just three points in 12 games. A lengthy slump for sure, but there are many encouraging signs coming from Gallagher during this skid.
First of all, he hasn’t changed the way he plays at all. Gallagher is about as in your face as it gets. He is constantly getting to the opponent’s net, smirking away at them as they try to entice him into penalties and battling like a giant in front of the net like he is a foot taller than his 5’9″ frame.
That hasn’t changed. Gallagher is still working in front of the net on the power play, winning battles for pucks in the crease and generally being a pain in the behind for opposing goalies. His goal against Detroit was vintage “Gally” as he tipped in a puck from about six feet in front of Wings goaltender Petr Mrazek.
Gallagher is also still getting his chances to score. He is tied with Max Pacioretty for the team lead in shots on goal with 59. Gallagher’s 8.5 shooting percentage is almost two percent lower than his career average. You don’t expect a 24 year old to regress offensively, so we can expect his pucks to start going in with greater frequency.
Possession and being paired with Pacioretty will lead to goals
Gallagher is also continuing to dominate the possession game. His 53.0% Corsi-For percentage is the second best among Habs forwards. The only player ahead of him on the team is Max Pacioretty who was recently placed on a line with Gallagher.
Pacioretty and Gallagher are excellent at creating scoring chances, and not too shabby at converting on them either. Expect them to continue creating, but expect them to start putting a few pucks into the net as well.
He also remains the net front presence on what is an impressive first unit of the Canadiens power play. Shea Weber is launching bombs from the point and either Jeff Petry of Andrei Markov is setting him up. Alex Galchenyuk and Alex Radulov are weaving their magic up front and Gallagher is the man providing screens, tips and banging at rebounds.
With all this talent around him, you would expect quite a few points on the man advantage. Gallagher currently has just one point on the power play, and isn’t likely to be kept off the scoreboard much longer while up a man.
What all the numbers point to is Gallagher should be scoring more points than he has this season. Things are certain to start bouncing his way soon, and a tough 12 game stretch will soon be in the rearview mirror.
Next: Habs Have To Prove They Are Road Warriors
With the Canadiens starting their trip through California, tonight would be an ideal time for Gallagher to burst out of his scoring slump.