Rotation: Brendan Gallagher is in the same boat as Patrik Laine

Jonathan Di Gregorio
Rotation: Brendan Gallagher is in the same boat as Patrik Laine
Credit: Brendan Gallagher est encore sous contrat pour trois saisons... et il est inéchangeable.

With their playoff berth secured for a week now, the Habs have the luxury of resting certain players for the remainder of the season by rotating their lineup, in addition to trying out some new lineups.

For example, tonight, Zachary Bolduc took Joe Veleno's spot on the line.

However, one player is not part of the current rotation and is missing his fourth straight game tonight. That player is Brendan Gallagher.

One might wonder if Gallagher is frustrated with his current role on the Canadiens.

As my colleague Maxime Truman points out, it's likely no coincidence that neither he nor Patrik Laine were in the locker room for the commemorative photo marking Cole Caufield's 50th goal.

According to the Habs' explanation, the two had already left the locker room before the media arrived, but it seems to me that an event like this for a teammate is a good reason to wait and celebrate with the team.

Already after Tuesday's game, Martin St-Louis said it wasn't an easy situation for the forward to be in.

That number 11 was left out isn't surprising in itself.

The Canadiens had a surplus of forwards with the return of Kirby Dach and Alexandre Texier. Furthermore, Gallagher had shown signs of fatigue and a decline in performance in recent weeks.

However, the fact that he might miss all remaining games until the end of the season is more surprising, and one has to wonder how the team plans to use him during the playoffs.

Yes, this rest could be beneficial for him, but at the same time, you want your player in game shape to start the playoffs if the Habs plan to use him.

And even though Gallagher had slowed down a bit in recent weeks, he's the kind of energetic, veteran player the team is likely to need in the playoffs.

There's also the possibility that this is masking an injury, but I don't get the impression that's currently the case.

It'll be interesting to see whether or not the Canadiens decide to play Gallagher for the final stretch of the season, and that could give us some clues about the team's plans for him heading into the playoffs.

In fact, we shouldn't rule out the possibility that the forward has played his last game with the Habs, but only time will tell.


In a nutshell

– The fans want more.

– The Bruins tie the game.

– What a dunk!

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