End of an Era in Montreal: Brendan Gallagher Says Goodbye to the Canadiens Organization

Three days after falling to the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final, the Canadiens returned to Montreal for their season-ending media availability on Monday. Canadiens General Manager Kent Hughes and Executive Vice President Jeff Gorton were quite happy with the progress they saw from their group throughout the year, finishing the regular season with 106 points and reaching the Eastern Conference Final. 

However in order to take that next step during the 2026-27 season, there are some changes the club will need to make, both Hughes and Gorton acknowledged that. One of those changes involves veteran forward Brendan Gallagher, who has one year remaining on his contract, but it appears that his time with the Montreal Canadiens has come to a close.

Brendan Gallagher's time with the Montreal Canadiens is coming to an end

After 14 seasons and 990 games (regular season and Stanley Cup Playoffs combined), it's the end of an era in Montreal as veteran forward Brendan Gallagher is set to leave the Canadiens organization via trade in the weeks to come.

When meeting with reporters on Monday, Gallagher, who was understandably very emotional, said that it's clear his time with the Montreal Canadiens is over and that if it were up to him, he would remain a Hab for the rest of his career.

"The fans right from Day 1, it's been truly a privilege to play in front of them. It's an opportunity that not a lot of players in this league, I've got to do it for 14 years now and it's not lost on me how special it was to call the Bell Centre home. The very first time I stepped foot in this organization, you know, the management, coaches, teammates I've had along the years, there's been some ups and downs, but I don't have a single regret. It's pretty clear I'll be kind of moving on here." Gallagher said to reporters.

Gallagher, 34, has a full no-movement clause and a modified no-trade clause (six-team no-trade list) as part of his contract, so he'll have to waive to facilitate any move, something he knows he'll be doing in the near future. While meeting with the media today, Gallagher touched on that and the control he has on where he'll play next.

As for where his next landing spot could be, Gallagher said that he's going to sit down with his representation and his wife, Emma, to discuss their next steps. One team to keep an eye on is the Vancouver Canucks, given that Gallagher lived in the city when he moved there from Alberta at age 12. Gallagher even spent four seasons with the Western Hockey League's Vancouver Giants before making the jump to professional hockey with the Canadiens & their AHL affiliate at the time, the Hamilton Bulldogs, for the 2012-13 season.

Gallagher said that he would certainly welcome the opportunity to play for the Vancouver Canucks, however they won't be the only team trying to get their hands on the former veteran forward. While the last thing on the mind of Canadiens fans right now is what they could get in return for Gallagher, if the Canadiens are willing to retain a portion of his salary next season, they may receive something of value, potentially a third round pick, in my opinion.

Along with the Vancouver Canucks, a couple other teams that I'm keeping my eye on as potential landing spots for Brendan Gallagher are the Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers. Both Chicago and Philadelphia are young, entering the 2025-26 season as the first and fifth youngest teams in the National Hockey League, respectively. 

While the Flyers got over the hump and into the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year, they could use another veteran and leadership piece like Gallagher. Not to mention he also has some chemistry with current Flyer and former Canadiens centerman Christian Dvorak. As for Chicago, it's the same, the need for a veteran and leader, someone that can help their young core get back to the playoffs and can offer some extremely valuable advice given his experience. According to PuckPedia, Chicago is projected to have $40.16 million USD in available cap space for the 2026-27 campaign, while the Flyers are around $37.5 million USD.

It wasn't the ending that Brendan Gallagher likely envisioned for his time as a Montreal Canadien, sitting in the press box for what was his third career Conference Final. Given how dominant the Hurricanes were in this series and knowing that Game 5 was probably their final game, it would've been nice to see Gallagher suit up for the Canadiens one final time, but at the end of the day, hockey is a business, and Montreal needed a win to keep their season alive.

Perhaps in the future, once Gallagher calls time on his professional hockey career, the Canadiens can bring him back & sign him to a one-day contract to retire as a Hab.