The status quo maintains that Max Pacioretty should be the captain of the Montreal Canadiens next year. He’s been the most consistent scorer over the course of the past few seasons, and has refined his two-way game with the help of Michel Therrien’s defensive system. However, I’ve heard murmurs across the league that a candidate that should not be overlooked is Brendan Gallagher, and I’m one of the few who believes that he deserves to wear the “C… during the 2015-2016 season.
During the Habs’ annual charity golf tournament that takes place before the start of every regular season, Tomas Plekanec, Max Pacioretty, PK Subban and Andrei Markov were introduced as the alternate captains for 2014-2015. It was believed that it was up to one of them to demonstrate exemplary leadership, as this would surely lead to a promotion for one of them the following year. The problem is that one player emerged as being the most consistent, hard working and persistent forward during both the regular season and the playoffs, and he was not wearing a letter on his jersey.
That player is Brendan Gallagher.
Gallagher has done well in continuously developing his game since his entry into the NHL, much like Pacioretty. While he did not put up close to 40 goals as his linemate did, he’s shown signs of progress that should bring a smile to both Michel Therrien and Marc Bergevin’s faces. He managed to score 15 goals in his first 44 games in the major leagues, followed with 19- and 24-goal seasons. If the captaincy choice was strictly a numbers’ game, there’s no doubt Pacioretty would be the man for the job, but Gallagher brings a certain edge to his game that is very hard to find across the National Hockey League.
While not the biggest player around, he is always working as hard as his diminutive body can push him, and has never taken a single shift off unless it was to treat an injury. Otherwise, Gallagher is the definition of playing with “heart and soul…, and he’s undoubtedly got the “CH… tattooed on his heart. I cannot stress enough how incredibly hard he works, although I’m fully aware of the extent that this subject has been spoken and written about.
The problem is not whether he deserves to be the captain of this team or not. Rather, his age and a certain degree of politics come into play, and that’s what I’d like to discuss.
At age 23, he is still very young and has not entered his prime yet. There is still a long way for him to go in terms of what he has left to learn about hockey, and his body might wear out sooner than anyone expects if he keeps heading to the front of the net and crashing the goaltenders’ creases as he so often does. He takes a beating from his opponents, as he’s also seen as a pest with a non-stop motor. It’s almost as though he enjoys not only getting in other players’ faces, especially goalies, but the scrums that ensue immediately after. I do not recall the last time I’ve seen someone on the Canadiens work as hard as he does and get to the dirty areas, especially at such a young age. I believe, however, that he can easily be a 30-goal scorer in this league, especially once he develops the strength that men develop during their prime years.
The main issue with his age, however, is that he’s younger than all 4 alternate captains, and this is where the politics come into play.
Bergevin and Therrien named 4 veterans, surely with the hopes that one of them will emerge as the one true captain the following year. While they might stand by that philosophy, they must be scratching their heads because of the tremendous season Gallagher had. The problem is that it would cause a stir in the locker room if they were to select #11 as their captain, because they would essentially tell one of their veterans (Markov, in my opinion) that they won’t require their services as an official leader anymore, and there is no way that will go over smoothly. Veteran hockey players have a certain pride, and this would surely hurt their egos.
In all, I would argue that Brendan Gallagher should be this team’s captain. I believe he would be a tremendous leader, striking a healthy balance between being a vocal and a quiet (exemplary) leadership. Giving him the “C… might motivate him to work even harder, if that’s at all possible, and I’m certain he will not have any issues adapting to the pressures of being captain of the NHL’s most storied franchise. I also believe that he’s very well liked in the locker room, and while it might take some adjusting, most veterans would be hard-pressed to argue his selection.
He’s great with the media, is always present and ready to answer questions, and flashes a genuine smile that shows what kind of character and devotion he has.
Oh.
And the ladies love him, for some reason…