Despite a 6-4 loss in their first road game of the season, there were some encouraging signs from the Montreal Canadiens in Boston. They had some important young players get involved in the scoring, and played a far closer game at five-on-five than they had against Toronto the night prior. Almost everything looked slightly improved from the season opener, and while the result wasn’t the same, they should be happy to see those small improvements.
One thing that was present in both of their games, however, was Brendan Gallagher playing some of the best hockey we’ve seen from him in recent memory.
This effort drew the Habs within a goal relatively late in the game, and gave them a shot at completing the comeback. It was an ill-fated comeback in the end, but some truly excellent work from Gallagher and Jake Evans nonetheless. This was Gallagher’s second goal of the night, and he currently sits tied with Cole Caufield for the early team lead on that front.
Gallagher was one of the only players to keep his head above water at five-on-five against the Leafs, and his statistical performance against Boston also went well beyond his two goals. While he was on the ice, the Canadiens held a 72.55% expected goals-for, and his forechecking was reminiscent of the Gallagher of old. He was tenacious, battling along the walls and in the corners, and of course getting to his favourite spot on the ice, the front of the net.
There is no sugar coating the fact that he’s lost a step compared to the player he once was, and that his price tag is a bit higher than would befit his recent years of service. That said, he looks rejuvenated through a few games this season, and has clearly found a way to adapt his play to work even with that lost step. Through two games, he has been one of their very best forwards, and that is no small feat given how the team has looked around him at times.
If he can maintain this level of play moving forward, he’s going to be an incredibly useful bottom-six player for this team. It’s unlikely that he can get back to what he was at his peak, but it has been quite fun to watch him turn the clock back a little in the early goings of this season.
Click the play button below to listen to your full Bottom Six Minutes, also available wherever you get your podcasts. We will return following Saturday night’s first meeting with the Ottawa Senators.