(Chicago) If we could sum up Brendan Gallagher in a single image, it would undoubtedly be this 2015 game against the New York Islanders where he almost lost a finger, or several, after blocking a shot.
Posted at 4:43 p.m.
If we could sum up the same player with another image, it might be that January 2017 game where he blocked another shot, this time from teammate Shea Weber. After the first incident, and after the second as well, one would have thought that Gallagher was going to want to avoid putting himself in front of a net like that, that he was going to want to change his style of play to something less reckless.
But no.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
This match in November 2015 where Brendan Gallagher seriously injured his hand
In this new year, in a corner of the United Center in Chicago, Gallagher is still there, in one piece. He shrugs when we talk about the first time he almost lost a hand, and the second time.
“There are things like that that will happen when you play in this league for a long time,” he begins by explaining in his usual calm tone. You have to be tough to play in the National League, because it’s not an easy league. You have to know how to sacrifice your body. »
On this short Thursday in Chicago, Gallagher is as straight as an oak tree, despite the two incidents mentioned above, and despite all the other small injuries that we don’t see but that he has accumulated since his first skates with the Canadian, in 2012-2013.
No, it’s not at 32 that he’s going to start becoming a player he’s not.
We cannot forget who we are. If I’m still in this league, it’s for a reason. There are things I can’t do as well as others, but there are also things I do better than others. I can’t change who I am.
Brendan Gallagher
-What he is, again and again, is a bit the same as the one who was drafted by the Canadian in 2010, with a distant fifth round choice. Of all the teammates he encountered during his first season with the club, he is obviously the only one left, the only one who was able to resist the passage of time.
“We have to deserve what happens to us in this league… We arrive, we get a grace period, a bit to prove ourselves. I was just trying to prove that I deserved to stay when I got here… There were several good moments, but the first was probably when I put on this sweater for the first time. Everyone knows this team, its history, the tradition that comes with all that. Even today, for me, it remains special to be able to put on this sweater. »
He still talks about the Canadian with this fire in his eyes. He still talks about the times he came very close, in 2014 and then in 2021, and he confides his love for the city and its supporters. Today’s Canadian is certainly not a Cup contender, but Gallagher is not going to make a Raymond Bourque of himself and demand to be sent elsewhere to get closer to the big trophy.
On this subject, he swears that the current reconstruction does not undermine his morale.
“Because my job remains the same… This part is not going to change. Our current situation does not mean that we are wasting our days. You have to show the young people the way, you have to see them grow, and I find this role to be pleasant. I don’t take it lightly… Obviously, moments like those of 2014 [finale de l’Est] or 2021 [finale de la Coupe Stanley] are moments we want to experience. We are all competitors, that’s what motivates us. It can change quickly; I remember that in 2014 and 2021, no one saw us going this far.
“I understand how things work in this league, I know that there are business decisions that are made, but I can tell you that I love being part of this team. It’s a big part of me, and I don’t want it to end anytime soon. »
In the immediate future, the contract which unites him with the club takes him to 2027. Next? If it’s up to him, Brendan Gallagher will continue. Because he would like to have a ring, of course, but also because he would not mind reaching the prestigious plateau of 1000 career matches played.
“Someone pointed that out to me the other day. If I make it through to the end of this contract, I will have played a total of 998 games in the league… so I think I’ll have to play at least another season after that! »
Dach vs. Dach
We have rarely seen Kirby Dach as smiling as Thursday morning in Chicago. The Canadiens’ forward has just scored three goals in his last three games, which undoubtedly helps put his smile back on his face, but what’s more, the Blackhawks, who will welcome the Canadiens here this Friday evening, have only just recalled his brother Colton Dach, two years younger. The Blackhawks’ Dach would therefore be playing his first NHL game this Friday, which of course pleases the Canadian’s Dach. “I never played with him or against him,” explained the CH striker. So for it to happen in the NHL is pretty cool. »
