I Want the Playoffs for Brendan Gallagher More Than Anyone on This Team

A week ago, playoff hockey coming back to Montreal for the first time since 2021 seemed like a sure thing. Now, following a three-game losing streak and one game to go, the Canadiens will have their fourth and final chance to clinch their spot in the postseason on their own terms in their regular season finale on home ice against the Carolina Hurricanes.

For the city, the franchise, and the fans, a loss would be heartbreaking, but with this young core, the future does look bright for the team. However, one guy who may not have many cracks left at playing postseason hockey is the player I have watched since he was the captain of my hometown Vancouver Giants, thirteen-year veteran and heartbeat of the team, Brendan Gallagher. Gallagher is the guy I want this playoff berth so badly for.

For years, Gallagher has struggled to remain healthy and find the back of the net, but this season, he is about to play in all 82 games for the first time since the 2018-19 season, and he cracked the 20-goal mark for the first time since the 2019-20 campaign. This season, Gallagher’s been everything management and the coaching staff could have asked for a young Canadiens team who don't have many players with much experience going through the ups and downs of an NHL season. At 32, he’s not the 30-goal scorer he was once, but this season has shown that Gallagher can indeed still play at a high level.

Game 82 isn’t just about this playoff drought; it’s about giving some of the key young pieces on this team a chance to experience something special: playing playoff hockey in a jam-packed Bell Centre. While there are players from that team in 2021 who went to the Stanley Cup Final, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the building was not even 25% full. Gallagher is the only player on this Canadiens roster who knows what it's like to play playoff hockey in a sold-out building in Montreal.

Not to mention how much Gallagher and his family have been through off the ice this season. In March, Gallagher announced that his mother had passed away from cancer, showing how much he has had to carry off the ice while being looked at as one of the leaders in the Canadiens locker room. Even with everything going on off the ice, Gallagher has put his heart and soul into this Canadiens season, like he has his entire Canadiens career.

One point would lock up the second wild-card spot, while a loss in regulation, with a Columbus win in regulation on Thursday, would end the season for the Canadiens. While everyone wants to see this young core in the playoffs, there is nobody I want the Habs to clinch a berth for more than Gallagher.

Nobody on this team has been through more ups and downs with this franchise or put their body on the line more than 11 and I pray he gets to play in the postseason at least one more time with this team.