Montreal Canadiens Five Best Free Agent Signings In Habs History

Brian Gionta

Another part of the Canadiens free agent spending spree in 2009 was Brian Gionta. He signed a five year contract with a cap hit of $5 million and though he wasn’t quite as productive as Cammalleri at times, Gionta played the whole five years and gave the Canadiens everything he had.

He stepped into an almost impossible role, taking over a leadership role on a team that had just let Saku Koivu walk after being captain for a decade. However, Gionta proved to be up to the task, playing a gritty, hard working and skilled role for five years in Montreal.

He scored 28 goals in 61 games in his first season with the Habs, and had nine goals and 15 points in 19 playoff games on that magical postseason run to the Eastern Conference Final. Sure, Jaromir Halak was the hero, but the Canadiens don’t go that far without Gionta’s offence.

He had 29 goals in his second season with the Canadiens but had injuries derail his next two years. He played just 31 games in 2011-12 and the team struggled without him. He played the whole 2013 shortened season but injured his biceps again in the postseason after just two games, and again the team struggled without him.

He played his fifth and final season with the Habs, after being questioned all offseason about whether he could bounce back after having season ending surgery each of the past two seasons. He played 81 of 82 games that season, scoring 18 goals and 40 points before playing all 17 playoff games and helping the team reach the Eastern Conference Final again with seven points.