Player Discussion Brendan Gallagher

[LyricalLyricist]

Well, I'm responding to your question regarding the aura of negativity around him, but if we want to talk about trading him, that's a different topic altogether. First of all, I don't think he is really that tradeable unless the habs literally want to dump him, and that means a meager return. The habs best move is to stick with him, and hope he resolves whatever is ailing him. This is no slam dunk though.

The post you quoted from me brought up the notion of a trade. The negativity reached the point of "quick, get rid of him" which is crazy.

He is tradeable, how isn't he?

Buffalo is asking for Sergachev for Kane apparently but we can't trade a better attitude, generally healthier and more productive player who makes half the money? Please.

Our best move is to keep him because he'll be fine. An ideal 2nd line RW IMO. Radulov and Gallagher are great as a 1-2 combo on RW.

 

[Hackett]

The post you quoted from me brought up the notion of a trade. The negativity reached the point of "quick, get rid of him" which is crazy.

He is tradeable, how isn't he?

Buffalo is asking for Sergachev for Kane apparently but we can't trade a better attitude, generally healthier and more productive player who makes half the money? Please.

Our best move is to keep him because he'll be fine. An ideal 2nd line RW IMO. Radulov and Gallagher are great as a 1-2 combo on RW.

He's not tradeable in the sense that I highly doubt a GM is going to pick him up for a reasonable return from a Montreal POV at this time.

Here's a guy who is undersized and needs to play balls to the wall to be an asset. He's got to have more wear and tear than the average player in his mid 20's. He's also coming off 2 major hand injuries and is locked into a contract for another 4 seasons. If I'm another GM, I'm looking at this player as a risky venture. So yeah, you can get a return.... just to don't expect the same value as he would fetch in the past.

With that in mind, why explore trading him in the first place? I'd rather stick it out, and see if he can regain his form from a risk/reward perspective.

 

[Chili]

The video review does not explain his struggles. His board game is ineffective today, and that used to be a major strength of his. We can't blame that on video review.

I first heard the video review angle from the player himself last fall in a radio interview, before he was struggling and (from memory) unprompted by the question he had been asked.

What were his strengths then in the past if not in front of the net?

He's average defensively, doesn't win a lot of puck battles that I see, he's not a finesse player, average passing skills. His main strength was his work in front of the opposition net.

And we could probably make a nice list of guys who have had short careers doing that job.

He used to draw penalties but at a certain point the refs seem to stop calling them as well.

Don't know what direction this is going but it does seem headed south at this point.

 

[angusyoung]

Hoping he'll regain his former form,but at this point would prefer big Mac in the same role.

 

[lamp9post]

I'm hoping that Gallagher can turn things around here as he gets back into game shape. I thought he had his best game since coming back on Saturday so hopefully he can build off that. He looked faster and more effective on the forecheck. And hopefully he remains on a line with Lehkonen and Galchenyuk and the three of them start to gain some chemistry. All three have been in a slump but I've been encouraged by their play lately.

Having said all that, we need to move away from players like Gallagher who have limited tools and skills. Players like this rely on puck luck and the opposition making mistakes and simply don't have the ability to create anything themselves. This group includes the likes of Plekanec, DD, and Gallagher. Having too many players like this in the lineup makes defending easy for the opposition and results in too few goals scored.

Hoping he'll regain his former form,but at this point would prefer big Mac in the same role.

Agreed. Mac is an example of a guy with tools. He's got the size and reach you can't teach and he's a beast along the wall. He can cause more havoc in front of the net and is better at maintaining the cycle down low.

 

[Rapala]

Hoping he'll regain his former form,but at this point would prefer big Mac in the same role.

Mac is still behind most plays.
He is okay when he gets there but he rarely does.
It's a little bit disappointing...
I honestly saw more out of Fred Gauthier the other night.

 

[Hackett]

I first heard the video review angle from the player himself last fall in a radio interview, before he was struggling and (from memory) unprompted by the question he had been asked.

What were his strengths then in the past if not in front of the net?

He's average defensively, doesn't win a lot of puck battles that I see, he's not a finesse player, average passing skills. His main strength was his work in front of the opposition net.

And we could probably make a nice list of guys who have had short careers doing that job.

He used to draw penalties but at a certain point the refs seem to stop calling them as well.

Don't know what direction this is going but it does seem headed south at this point.

As I said, his other big strength aside from net play was his game along the boards. He was elusive in the trenches, and was pretty difficult to knock off the puck. He could establish possession by winning loose pucks. It's why he often was a guy you could plug on any line as he had an ability to get guys going more often than others.

.... But we fundamentally disagree on his board play. I think he has been good at it historically, but its obviously not the case this year.

 

[zzoo]

If Gallagher and Lehkonen go on breakaway 2-on-0, I think that they couldn't even score. Gallagher is terrible. And Lehkonen is the most unopportunist player that I've ever seen. He has a lot of scoring chances, but couldn't bury them.

 

[crazyd]

Mac is still behind most plays.
He is okay when he gets there but he rarely does.
It's a little bit disappointing...
I honestly saw more out of Fred Gauthier the other night.

Great observation! Indeed, Mac's development is starting to worry me...a lot. Stamina/Energy seems to be lacking for the NHL level. He is more like a spectator than a player on the ice.

If he turns out to be another 1 round pick bust, he will join a long list of bad picks in recent years from MTL's recruitment team. This could be very well the end of Timmins.

 

[Mike8]

Gallagher sporting a 4.8% shooting %.

Came into this season with a 10.2% shooting percentage.

Gallagher averaging 2.7 shots per game.

Came into this season averaging 2.9 shots per game.


Shooting at his normal 10.2% shooting percentage with his 124 shots would give him 12.6 goals, compared to his current 6 in 46 games, on pace for 22 goals.

What does all this mean? Nothing, really, since he's also playing badly and had surgery, it's impossible to know if this is the new Gallagher. But those are pretty surprising numbers.

 

[SB164]

Gallagher is starting to look more and more confident. If he could be the player that we know he is, and regain his offensive touch, it would obviously be a huge boost for the Habs going into the playoffs. When he's on, he's a legit top 6 talent.

 

[japhi]

Gallagher is starting to look more and more confident. If he could be the player that we know he is, and regain his offensive touch, it would obviously be a huge boost for the Habs going into the playoffs. When he's on, he's a legit top 6 talent.

He will revert back to his regular production. He is no more done or ruined than AG was 5 games ago or Max was to start the year - the chicken littles around here and very quick to write off players.

In top 6 mins with top 6 players he's still a 25/25 guy. A couple fluke injuries set him back but he's the same player he was and seems to be getting going. Created a ton of chances last night.

 

[Rapala]

He will revert back to his regular production. He is no more done or ruined than AG was 5 games ago or Max was to start the year - the chicken littles around here and very quick to write off players.

In top 6 mins with top 6 players he's still a 25/25 guy. A couple fluke injuries set him back but he's the same player he was and seems to be getting going. Created a ton of chances last night.

Gallagher's best game in over a year for sure. I commented in the GDT he didn't lose a battle all night long against anyone. It always amazes me what a lucky goal can do for a slumping athlete.
But the signs were all there before last night's game I mentioned in the previous GDT "Gallagher's coming...

 

[Chili]

He looked like a different player last night, first on the puck, some good passes and one real hard shot on goal. Best for me was working very hard to get the puck out of the zone on one play near the blueline. Didn't like the hit though on Lundqvist because it encourages retaliation on Price.

Hopefully he can build off that game.

 

[Roadhouse]

Must be more comfortable using his left hand + MT is gone = Gally on the rise....

 

[Rapala]

He looked like a different player last night, first on the puck, some good passes and one real hard shot on goal. Best for me was working very hard to get the puck out of the zone on one play near the blueline. Didn't like the hit though on Lundqvist because it encourages retaliation on Price.

Hopefully he can build off that game.

meh.
He slid into him on one knee off balance.
Not quite like Kreider's slide into second base spikes up to break up the double play.
There is a reason they took that play out of baseball you know.

 

[TheAntiPrice]

His best game of the season last night despite not getting on the scoresheet. He has to play hockey with his skates like last night rather than his stick like he's been trying to do to be effective.

 

[Chili]

meh.
He slid into him on one knee off balance.
Not quite like Kreider's slide into second base spikes up to break up the double play.
There is a reason they took that play out of baseball you know.

What matters there is what the other team thinks and they clearly took exception.

The Habs hopes rest again on Price, so I wouldn't encourage someone running him in a game already won, especially against a team that injured him in the past.

Beisbol been berry berry goo to me.

 

[the]

Julien woke up and took away his PP minutes and put him on the 3rd line...result? He had one of his best game in a long while!

He's been playing better recently, hopefully he can keep this up...

 

[Paddyjack]

Julien woke up and took away his PP minutes and put him on the 3rd line...result? He had one of his best game in a long while!

He's been playing better recently, hopefully he can keep this up...

I always thought that Gallagher was more suited for a 3rd line role, and the kind of guy who can switch to top 6 when needed. He is valuable for that reason. He is effective to go in front of the net but as the years go by, his body will be less and less healthy and as team management go, 3rd line will be less pressure for him while remaining an excellent player.

 

[Andrei79]

I always thought that Gallagher was more suited for a 3rd line role, and the kind of guy who can switch to top 6 when needed. He is valuable for that reason. He is effective to go in front of the net but as the years go by, his body will be less and less healthy and as team management go, 3rd line will be less pressure for him while remaining an excellent player.

I don't know about that. When he plays like he can like he's done the last two nights and last year, he's easily a top 6 player.

 

[Paddyjack]

I don't know about that. When he plays like he can like he's done the last two nights and last year, he's easily a top 6 player.

The reason I disagree is because Gallagher has become a unidimensional player, i.e. is effective in front of the net, but other than that he is average. Many times I saw him enter with the puck on the wing and then the play is dead and the puck is lost. It may have been less noticable tonight because as a third liner he was not facing top D pair.

Don't get me wrong, I love Gally. However I'm concerned his past successes was thriving on a dump and chase system from MT, and it may not happen under CJ. Or, his multiple injuries make him less prone to fight along the board.

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

and just like that Gallagher is on a 4 game point streak

 

[le_sean]

I like that Methot was more concerned about hitting Gallagher than he was about playing hockey.

 

[Adam Michaels]

I like that Methot was more concerned about hitting Gallagher than he was about playing hockey.

He and Gallagher have a mini-rivalry going on. Love seeing the little Gallagher always get the upper hand in it.

But they do have a lot of respect for each other. They had real nice words for each other two years ago when we played them in the first round.