Montreal Canadiens: Who Should Be The Next Captain?

Brendan Gallagher

Brendan Gallagher is less likely to be dealt any time soon. Even if the Canadiens wanted to move on from him, his $6.5 million cap hit for the next five seasons would make that quite difficult to pull off.

Not that the team would be interested in trading him anyway. Gallagher is just 5’8″ tall with the right shoes on, but he plays every shift like he is the biggest player on the ice. He never backs down from a battle in the corner or the front of the net, blocks shots, hits and goes to the front of the net like he’s built like Milan Lucic.

He is the exact example you want young players to learn from. The Canadiens are going to be introducing a first overall pick into the NHL next season and they should want that player to emulate Gallagher’s game. If not his exact game, at least his willingness to bring 100% effort to the ice on every shift no matter the score or the team’s chances of making the postseason.

The only reason to not give the C to Gallagher would be the fear his game continues to decline. Though his hear of a lion demeanour is admirable, it has worn down his body over the years and he recently admitted it affected his game last season.

If that continues to be a problem, the Canadiens could end up with another captain on long term injured reserve for a season before having to deal with the captaincy once again.