In the Habs Room: ‘That’s the Gally we love,’ coach Kirk Muller says

“Listen, this was a character win with our group,” Muller said after the game. “I thought it started right from the first shift tonight with Phil’s line and the intensity that Gally brought. I think that was our response from losing last game. They were ready to go. They set the tone that first shift.”

Gallagher finally ended his eight-game scoring slump at 11:30 of the second period when he batted a pass from Nick Suzuki in out of mid-air during a power play to give the Canadiens a 3-2 lead. It was Gallagher’s 37th shot of the postseason, the most of any player, and he let out a scream after one finally went in.

“He’s been getting tons of chances and he’s kind of been getting down on himself for not scoring,” Suzuki said after the game. “But it’s nice to get that monkey off his back there and I was really happy. It was not the greatest pass by me, but he found a way to put it in.”

Gallagher had only 13:07 of ice time in the Canadiens’ 2-0 loss in Game 4 and didn’t play much in the third period. He wasn’t happy about it. In Game 5, Gallagher played right from the first shift like he was pissed off — really pissed off.

Gallagher always plays like Dennis the Menace on skates, but for Game 6 he put a few more rocks in his slingshot. He finished with 18:02 of ice time and, as usual, gave his 100-per-cent effort.

The Canadiens’ Brendan Gallagher, with a bloody mouth, complains to the referee in third period about no penalty being called during Game 5 of playoff series against the Philadelphia Flyers Wednesday night at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena. Elsa/Getty Images

At 5-foot-9, Gallagher didn’t make it to the NHL without facing many obstacles and fighting through them all. He made it more on grit and determination than anything else, along with his willingness to go into the dirty areas to score goals. He was standing in the crease (where else?) when he batted in the pass from Suzuki.

Gallagher was an unstoppable force in this game, chirping Flyers players throughout. In the third period, he was cross-checked in the mouth by the Flyers’ Matt Niskanen, drawing blood but no penalty.

“That’s the Gally we love,” Muller said. “And that’s what he can bring to a team. He brought guys into the fight. He’s a competitor, he’s a proud player. He plays hard, he works for every goal he gets and I thought he had an exceptional game tonight.”

A couple of hours after the game, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reported that Gallagher might have suffered a jaw fracture, which if true would be very bad news for the Canadiens.