Brendan Gallagher’s usage comes into question as calls for change grow
Photo credit: All Montreal Hockey / NHL
The debate surrounding Brendan Gallagher has just taken a new turn in Montreal.
On the podcast The Sick Podcast, Tony Marinaro and Éric Bélanger outright suggested that Gallagher should watch certain games from above rather than play every night. It must be said that the numbers speak for themselves this season.
Gallagher has only 1 goal and 9 assists for 10 points, with a minus-2 differential, despite more than 13 minutes of ice time per game since the start of the 2025-2026 schedule.
For his sake and for the team’s, he should be spared, among other things, from back-to-back games involving time-zone travel.” – Pat Bouchard
For a player who once recorded two seasons of more than 30 goals and over 50 points, the gap is striking. At 33 years old, with a contract of 6.5 million dollars per season that runs until 2026-2027, every appearance Gallagher makes also affects the club’s salary-cap management.
It is no longer just a matter of prestige or a glorious past; it is a matter of mathematics for a team looking to progress in the Atlantic Division. At the same time, we are not talking about a temporary player. Gallagher reached the 800-game mark in the NHL earlier this year, all in a Canadiens uniform, and he still wears an «A» on his jersey. He is a franchise figure, a face of the Bell Centre for more than a decade.
Why Gallagher May Need a Managed Role as the Canadiens Push for the Playoffs
This is where the idea of “protecting” him comes into play. Not removing him from the lineup to humiliate him, but rather offering him targeted rest days-skipping a game in a demanding schedule or avoiding certain tougher road trips-as the Canadiens have already done with other veterans by clearly designating those absences as treatment or rest days.
Montreal is fighting neck and neck for a playoff spot in a division where the Lightning, Bruins, Red Wings, Senators, and Canadiens are all separated by a narrow margin of points.
A better-managed Gallagher could remain useful in the locker room, in key moments, and in front of the media, without carrying the same workload he did at 25. For a player who has the CH tattooed on his heart, what matters may be less about playing every game and more about finishing the journey in Montreal the right way.
In the end, it is Martin St-Louis and the management group who will have to decide. Continue as if nothing is wrong, or accept that a longtime warrior needs a different plan for the final two years of his contract.
One thing is certain: no one wants Brendan Gallagher’s last image in Montreal to be that of a veteran running out of steam.
Previously on All Montreal Hockey
