MONTREAL - After suffering a broken jaw in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinal against the Philadelphia Flyers, Brendan Gallagher had to undergo surgery and was unable to participate in the sixth and final game of the series. After getting eliminated, general manager Bergevin revealed that the Habs alternate captain had also suffered a tear in his hip during the Qualifying Round against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
On Monday afternoon, Gallagher addressed the media via conference call to give an update on his recovery. Read on for some highlights of what he said.
On his recovery from jaw surgery and from his hip injury:
"My health is coming along nicely. I still haven't really been able to do all that much, but I'm getting there. I'm past the uncomfortable stage of a broken jaw. I'm able to eat a little bit more. Just got a few more dental procedures to go, and I should be all through that. And in terms of the hip, I've been coming along nicely. Just slowly getting back into physio and hopefully within the next week or two I can get back in the gym and start going again on my summer training and get ready for next year.
Video: Brendan Gallagher on his recovery
"When it all happened in the Pittsburgh series I wasn't all that sure. That was kind of tough to get through. But once we had those four days off and we got to prepare for Philly, I think that really helped. I was able to feel more confident with it and I was pretty sure I was going to be alright; I just needed some time to heal. That's what I've been giving it here; it's been probably around a month, and it's made some improvements. At the moment, I don't think I'll need to go back for another surgery."
On the impact that Max Domi has had on his squad:
"Well, Max is a competitive guy. You can see when he gets going. When he's feeling good about himself and he's contributing, he is such an important piece to our team. The first year probably went a little bit better than last year in terms of points, but I don't think you can look at that. You can just look at the impact he has and when he's on, he's somebody that we definitely rely on and can carry our team."
On his line and on center Phillip Danault's desire to continue contributing at both ends of the ice:
"The three of us together are a good line; I don't think anyone can argue the success we've had playing against top lines. Assuming that the three of us were staying together: if there was another line that's better and that deserves that opportunity, all that's going to mean is that we have a better team and we have a better chance of winning. I can only speak for myself, but whatever role I'm in - and I'm sure Phil and Tuna [Tomas Tatar] feel the exact same way - we just want to be in a winning environment.
"[Danault] has earned that opportunity in the last few seasons to have that chance to fight for that role and play in those offensive situations. I think he's obviously a very proven defensive player, but I think he can continue to contribute on the offensive end. He's such a smart player, such a competitive player that he's not going to give up that opportunity. I think people are probably reading into it a little bit too much, but knowing what Phil's all about, he just wants the opportunity to compete."
On the what the Canadiens' unexpected success in the postseason could mean for the future:
"I've always hated moral victories, and that's what it kind of feels like. We won one playoff series and we weren't able to get the result. You play that same style and you can expect a different result. For us going forward, you have to look back at the regular season and include that in last year, and it wasn't good enough. Improvements definitely need to be made. Is it possible? Yes, we saw that in a short period how effective our team can be when we play a certain way. But it's consistency, and you have to be able to do that through an 82-game season."
His thoughts on entering the final year of his contract and how the team's current situation might affect his mindset for negotiations:
"There are so many positive signs. I talked about our goaltender [Carey Price]. You can't forget the importance of Webs [Shea Weber] back there. You look at the young centermen with Suzy and KK. If you look back at even [Suzuki's] Junior career, he's a guy who truly enjoys those big moments and scoring big goals at big times. That's really a characteristic that you can't teach in a player; they either have it or they don't so anyone who could step up, that's someone you want on your team.
"And with KK, you still have to remember how young he is; he played at 18. He's going into his third season, but he's a 20-year-old kid; you can see the strides he's making. The strides that these players are going to be able to make, it definitely affects your decision-making and it's a positive sign for sure."
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