- Canadiens gave agent Gerry Johansson permission to facilitate a Brendan Gallagher trade
- The 34-year-old has one year left at $6.5 million with a full no-movement clause
- Read below for details and video of Gallagher’s emotional goodbye
Brendan Gallagher’s exit from Montreal is officially in motion.
The Canadiens gave his agent, Gerry Johansson, the green light to help facilitate a trade, per Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK. Here’s the report:
He has one year left on his deal at a $6.5 million cap hit, plus a full no-movement clause. No trade happens unless he approves the destination.
Monday already felt like the goodbye. An emotional Gallagher told reporters at his end-of-season availability in Brossard that his run with the only NHL team he’s ever known was ending.
“It’s pretty clear I’ll be kind of moving on here,” he said.
Watch the video of Gallagher’s farewell:
Gallagher spent most of Montreal’s run to the Eastern Conference Final in the press box. He dressed for just three playoff games as the Canadiens fell to Carolina in five.
His regular season wasn’t much kinder. He finished with 23 points in 77 games, the lowest full-season total of his 14-year career.
Montreal grabbed him in the fifth round of the 2010 draft and got 487 points in 911 games out of the pick. Fifth-rounders almost never give a franchise that kind of mileage.
A homecoming could be next. Gallagher played his junior hockey for the Vancouver Giants, and he said this week he’d welcome the chance to go home and suit up for the Canucks.
Wherever Johansson finds a deal, the no-movement clause means Gallagher picks the next jersey himself.
