GARDEN CITY — Brendan Gallagher pounded his heart and looked skyward after scoring a goal earlier this week.
The Montreal Canadiens forward revealed why Thursday.
Gallagher said he's been playing through an emotional time since his mother, Della, died earlier this month after a long battle with brain cancer.
"Really proud of her and her fight and her courage and everything she taught," Gallagher told reporters. "Everything I am is from her, so it's a special relationship.
"She'll be missed, but she's with us every day, and there won't be a day that I don't think of her."
Gallagher, who spoke in the hours before Montreal's game against the New York Islanders, remembered his mother for her love of sports and competitive nature — a trait she passed down.
Della Gallagher died while the Canadiens were on a road trip in Calgary, where they played the Flames on March 8. She had been battling stage 4 brain cancer since her diagnosis in August 2021, with doctors originally giving her six to 18 months.
"She was so strong, so courageous and, really, just the best mom," Brendan Gallagher said. "There's so many memories that I'm thankful for, grateful for, but our whole lives she really did so much for us as a family.
"In the end, you try to cherish the memories that you do have, hold them dear."
The 32-year-old winger said it has been a difficult few days for him and his family, but the Canadiens have provided support.
While in Vancouver for a game on March 11, the team arranged a 45-minute bus trip to his family home.
"Just spent some time with us unexpectedly," he said. "They're helping us get through it. They're a huge part of it, and the organization is taking care of us and doing everything that they can to help us out. I've kind of been dealing with it, and hockey's my safe place. That's where I feel like I'm comfortable. I know that's what she'd love me to do right now."
When Gallagher sealed Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators with an empty-net goal, his thoughts immediately turned to his mother, whose funeral was the next day.
"It kind of hit me right away," he said. "First time the puck went in and, you know, I wasn't gonna be able to call her, talk to her about it."
Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis experienced a similar moment when his mom died in 2014.
St. Louis, then a player for the New York Rangers, famously scored on Mother's Day shortly after her death during a playoff series with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
"Going on the ice was your sanctuary, it helps you deal with a lot of things," St. Louis said. "It brought me back to that moment, for sure. I had a lot of support from my team, they helped me get through it, and we’ve done the same thing for Gally.
"I think our family spirit here helped Gally, I think continuing to play helped Gally and his family."
The news comes days after Gallagher and his wife, Emma Fortin, announced the birth of their daughter, Everly Mona Della Gallagher.
"We have a little girl who shares my mom's name now, which is really special," he said. "Our daughter's certainly going to grow up knowing who her grandma was, knowing what her grandma was all about and her passions.
"She'll be proud to carry that name."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 20, 2025.
The Canadian Press
