DON'T BET AGAINST GALLAGHER, THE CANADIENS' HEART AND SOUL
Veteran winger pumped that team is `playing better hockey' under St. Louis
Brendan Gallagher will never give up.
So I wasn't surprised how he answered my question after the Canadiens lost 6-3 to the Arizona Coyotes Tuesday night at the Bell Centre.
The Canadiens fell behind 5-1 before Cole Caufield scored twice in eight seconds late in the second period, putting them back in the game. The Canadiens kept fighting until an empty-netter in the third period sealed the win for the Coyotes.
In the previous two games, the Canadiens fought back from a 3-1 third-period deficit against the Seattle Kraken Saturday at the Bell Centre before losing 4-3 in a shootout and battled back from a 3-2 deficit in the third period Sunday in Philadelphia before beating the Flyers 4-3 in overtime.
The Canadiens' transformation since Martin St. Louis took over as head coach from Dominique Ducharme has been remarkable. They were 8-30-7 under Ducharme and are 8-6-1 with St. Louis. They also don't give up, the way they did in Ducharme's last game as head coach — an embarrassing 7-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils at the Bell Centre on Feb. 8.
I asked Gallagher Tuesday night if he could explain the transformation.
“I'll correct you a little bit,” Gallagher said. “I'll never use the words `give up' because we're professional athletes with a lot of pride. But I know what you're saying. We didn't find a way to claw back in and a lot of that is just belief. Now we're at the point where we've done it a couple of times and we have so much trust in what we're doing and we've seen the results that when you do get behind — because you've been able to do it before — you always believe you can come back.
“When things aren't going well and aren't going your way — as much as you say it, as much as you want to be able to do it — when that belief isn't there, you don't stand a chance. I'll never say that guys were giving up or quitting. I think we're just playing better hockey.”
This has been a difficult season for Gallagher, who has 5-9-14 totals in 42 games and has only one goal in his last 23 games. It's also the first season of a six-year, Us$39-million contract for the 29-year-old with an annual salary-cap hit of $6.5 million — the highest of any forward on the team. Gallagher also has a no-trade clause that allows his to submit a list of six teams he won't go to.
Nick Suzuki will surpass Gallagher as the highest-paid forward on the Canadiens next season when his eight-year, Us$63-million contract kicks in with a salary-cap hit of $7.875 million.
That's if Gallagher is still with the Canadiens.
In a one-on-one interview with Sportsnet's Eric Engels last week, Canadiens GM Kent Hughes was asked about Gallagher's status ahead of Monday's NHL trade deadline.
“I don't really have much to say about Gally,” Hughes said. “He's been a big contributor to this organization for a long time, and he has a long-term contract. He works like crazy. When you look at him, he missed a few great chances, but he's averaging close to 30 career goals a season.”
Gallagher had back-to-back 30-goal seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19 without missing a game. He was on pace for a third straight 30-goal season in 201920 with 15 goals in 40 games before suffering a concussion, which ended his streak of playing in 229 consecutive games. Gallagher finished that season with 22 goals in 59 games.
Gallagher was underpaid during that period with a $3.75 million salary-cap hit on a sixyear, Us$22.5-million contract, but he never complained. He has earned every dollar he has made in the NHL with 100-percent effort every night. His new contract rewarded him for what he had done in the past, but the question now is what can he do in the future?
Hughes would be smart to shop Gallagher around to see what he can get before Monday, because it certainly looks like he's on the downside of his career. However, I'm not ready to bet against Gallagher being able to bounce back. People have been betting against the five-foot-nine winger because of his size since he started playing hockey.
Gallagher battled through a groin injury during the Canadiens' run to the Stanley Cup final last season. The image of him leaving the ice during Game 1 against Tampa Bay with blood gushing down his face after having his head smashed into the ice during a scuffle with Lightning defenceman Mikhail Sergachev epitomizes Gallagher's career with the Canadiens. He has shed a lot of blood for the bleu-blancrouge.
Gallagher is a workout freak and the short off-season after playing through a groin injury didn't help him coming into this season. Neither did the loss of centre Phillip Danault to the Los Angeles Kings.
With a longer off-season this summer and the proper time to work out, I wouldn't be surprised to see Gallagher bounce back next season, whether it's with the Canadiens or another team.
It would be nice to see — wherever he's playing.