3 Brendan Gallagher moments Canadiens fans will never forget

The Montreal Canadiens players had their end-of-season interviews today, but for some, it may be the last time we see them at the Bell Centre. Long-time Canadien and fan favourite Brendan Gallagher confirmed that he likely will be moving on next season after 14 years with the organization. While the news was shocking, it was not totally unexpected. Gallagher’s role on the team took a hit this season, playing the majority of the time on the team’s fourth line before losing his place in the lineup entirely. Regardless of how Gallagher’s time in Montreal ended, he still gave 14 years of blood, sweat, and tears to the organization, leaving the fans with many wonderful memories.

Gallagher proving the doubters wrong

Gallagher was not a blue-chip prospect by any means. The 5’9” winger had a mountain to climb to get to the NHL. After a season with the Vancouver Giants in the WHL, where he recorded 41 goals and 81 points in 72 games, while adding another 11 goals in 16 playoff games, the Canadiens took Gallagher with their fifth-round pick, 147th overall. Looking solely at his production, getting someone who can produce at that level in the fifth round was an absolute steal, but many analysts did not believe that his style of play, likely due to his height, would translate to success in the NHL. One thing that most scouts must have missed was Gallagher’s intangibles, which greatly outweighed his physical limitations. He has always played with a chip on his shoulder and was not going to let something that was completely out of his control stop him from realizing his dreams.

In the 2012-13 season, Gallagher’s dreams became a reality. After four seasons with the Giants, setting franchise records in goals and points, it was finally time for him to make the jump to the NHL. Gallagher made his NHL debut on January 22nd, 2013, and picked up an assist in his very first game. He had to wait until his third game to score his first career goal against the New Jersey Devils, against arguably the greatest goalie of all time, Martin Brodeur. Gallagher proved as a rookie that his size is not a factor. He finished the year with the second-most goals by a rookie with 15 and fourth in points with 28. His outstanding season led to him getting 54 first-place votes for the Calder Memorial Trophy, but he fell just short of winning the trophy, finishing second to Jonathan Huberdeau.

Gallagher’s first career hat-trick

In Gallagher’s 14 years with the Canadiens, he has recorded 246 goals. He is a two-time 30-goal scorer and has hit the 20-goal plateau five times in his career. He has been one of the Canadiens' most consistent players since he first put on the bleu, blanc, et rouge sweater in January of 2013. The 2018-19 season was arguably Gallagher’s best of his career, and his best game as a member of the Canadiens could be what he did on February 21, 2019, against the Philadelphia Flyers at home at the Bell Centre.

Gallagher opened the scoring for the Canadiens less than a minute into the game, his 24th of the season. He picked up his second of the game just nine minutes later. After picking up a rebound near the corner boards, Gallagher fires a shot that squeezes by then Flyers’ goalie, Carter Hart. Up to this point, Gallagher had never recorded a hat-trick in the NHL, but that all changed three minutes into the second period. Gallagher picks up the puck in the neutral zone before passing it to Andrew Shaw. Shaw returns the favour and passes the puck back to Gallagher, who was streaking towards the net. Gallagher receives the puck in his skates, kicks it to his stick and fires a backhand shot past the goalie for his first and only career hat-trick as a member of the Canadiens.

Game 7 vs. the Toronto Maple Leafs

After making the playoffs in the 2019-20 season, only because of the expanded playoff format due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Canadiens were going into the next season with the potential buzz of a rebuild on the horizon. The 2020-21 NHL season was a little different because of travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The NHL was forced to create new divisions, leading to all the Canadian teams being grouped together. The North Division, as it was called, played games against one another, with each team facing the others either nine or ten times. The Canadiens finished fourth in the division, setting up a first-round matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Canadiens struck first, winning Game 1 away, thanks to a Paul Byron shorthanded goal late in the third period. The Maple Leafs took over the next three games, outscoring the Canadiens 11-2, and took a commanding 3-1 series lead. The Canadiens were not ready just yet to have their season ended by the Maple Leafs. The Canadiens went on to win the next two games in overtime, setting up a Game 7. Gallagher, who was held off the score sheet up to that point, opened the scoring for the Canadiens just three minutes into the game. Gallagher picked up the loose puck in the neutral zone, skated into the offensive zone and fired a wrist shot that fooled then Maple Leafs’ goalie Jack Campbell five-hole. You could see what that goal meant to Gallagher, as he let out an emphatic scream before his teammates joined him to celebrate. The Canadiens made an improbable comeback, taking down the Maple Leafs in 7 games.

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