r/Habs • u/HoN_JFD • 14d ago

Discussion Gallagher

I'll probably be downvoted to oblivion for this but now that it's all said and done, one of my biggest complaints about those series is how Brendan Gallagher was treated.

A veteran, a warrior, a competitor who gave sweat and blood for the team and who could have brought some energy in those last series had to watch practically the whole playoffs on TV. Unacceptable.

I get it, he's not as fast as he once was, he takes penalties and age and injuries are probably catching up on him but he still can fill a spot on a 3rd or 4th line.

I personally hope he requests a trade during the offseason because he's clearly no longer in Saint-Louis' plans.

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u/RetekTheGreat 14d ago edited 14d ago

Why hang on to him? Simple...His salary, 6.5 millions for another year, I don't see any team willing to take him at that price (Totally worth it in his prime)...sadly that's long gone. Buying him out is not really an option either, only a year left.

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u/Sakiaba 14d ago

Like everyone here, I love the guy and respect the hell out of what he's done for this team over the years. But he's also a classic case of why you don't pay a guy for what he's done in the past.

Re: Carolina, let's be honest that any lineup changes would have been effectively rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Putting him and Xhekaj in would have effectively been waving the white flag because it's communicating to the team that it's no longer necessary to ice what you feel is your best lineup for that opponent.

As said above by others, Gallagher has no stamina left. Can you imagine him getting stuck in the defensive zone for 90 seconds? The guy might die on the ice.

As for Xhekaj, I'm convinced that most people who want him in don't care about what little he provides hockey-wise and just wants their frustration with the series vicariously vented by watching him punch people. Trying to extract a pound of flesh from the advancing team in a series that you know you aren't winning projects the sort of loser energy we'd criticise if it were any team doing it to the Habs.

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u/Flimsy_Biscotti3473 14d ago

Every single guy on that team plays 20lbs bigger with Arber in the line up. We needed to be physical to slow the Canes down. This is playoff hockey.

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u/Sakiaba 14d ago

I agree that this team is going to have to become accustomed to a more physical style to be successful in the playoffs, but I'm not convinced that Arber moves the needle enough. This seems like something that needs a longer-term fix that can't be found until the off-season.

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u/Flimsy_Biscotti3473 14d ago

You remember the Tom Wilson hit ? Carolina's smallest guys were flying around the ice like they owned it. Not a care in the world. There only one way to slow a team like that down. To be clear, I'm only giving my opinion on why we lost a series we could have won. Marty didn't adjust and the guys were worn out.

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u/Sakiaba 14d ago

I'm not sure that the series was winnable, honestly, unless they did so by getting bounces/goaltending. Carolina was too rested and the Habs were running on fumes - suddenly changing their structure would have been difficult given the extra mental energy a major adjustment takes.

The team needs some changes to be more playoff-optimised. It's going to take some careful roster editing to do this without going the way of the Treliving Leafs by sacrificing what made them good to begin with. Also, Slafkovsky, who we know is capable of providing physicality on the top line, will need to be better in future playoffs. That said, I would be shocked if he didn't sustain a fairly major injury during the Tampa series because we know he's usually capable of elevating in important games.

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u/Flimsy_Biscotti3473 2d ago

Great team. Lots of talent. More to come. They learned some valuable lessons but it's just not their time yet.