You can preach culture all you want, but until you make changes to it, it doesn’t really matter all that much.

Ryan Johnson, Daniel Sedin, and Henrik Sedin have talked plenty about improving the Canucks’ culture since they came aboard, and on Monday, they made a roster move that should do just that.

On Monday morning, the Canucks acquired Brendan Gallagher from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for future considerations.

There were plenty of rumours swirling around Gallagher and the Canucks this month after Gallagher appeared in just three playoff games for the Montreal Canadiens. On locker clean-out day, Gallagher said the quiet part out loud and made it clear that he was anticipating that he’d be moved this offseason. He also wasn’t shy about his desire to return home and play for his hometown Canucks. Although he was born in Alberta, Gallagher moved to Vancouver before his teenage years and played minor hockey with the South Delta Storm. He then spent his junior career with the Vancouver Giants, where he was a fan favourite and captain for the 2011-12 season.

“Brendan is a quality individual and a very good hockey player,” Ryan Johnson said in the Canucks’ press release. “We love the way he competes and leads by example. Bringing in veterans like Brendan will help us set the standard for our younger guys to follow. We are excited to add someone who has ties to the Lower Mainland, wants to be here with the Canucks, and knows firsthand how passionate and knowledgeable our hockey market is in Vancouver. This is an important acquisition for our hockey club.”

There’s lots to chew on here, but let’s start with the Habs angle. Could they have gotten a late-round pick from another team in a Gallagher trade where they were willing to retain 50% of his contract? Probably. But instead of going down that route or buying the player out (which, it’s worth mentioning, would have cost them more than just retaining 50%), they did right by the player and sent him to a team and city they knew he’d be comfortable in.

Gallagher has a young family, and with his wife currently pregnant with their second child, the family is going to add another member right around when hockey season starts. Being able to play in the place that he and his family already call home during the offseason is the Canadiens doing right by a player who has been an absolute warrior for them since they drafted him in the 5th round back in 2010.

At the end of the day, Gallagher’s acquisition represents minimal downside for the Canucks. At this time last year, they gave up a fifth-round pick to take on the full weight of Evander Kane’s contract — a contract and a player that no team wanted to touch at the trade deadline. The Gallagher acquisition is far from that. This is a high-quality individual joining a young team with low expectations, who the Canucks can be confident will push their young players in the right direction.

Further, the Canucks have the unique opportunity to retain 50% of Gallagher’s remaining salary at the trade deadline. That means that if he plays well enough, the Canucks can shop a $1.5 million rental to playoff teams that may be looking to add experienced depth to their roster ahead of the gauntlet that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs. At worst, the Canucks paid nothing to bring in a hometown kid with a great work ethic who will push them in a positive direction during what’s going to be a season filled with plenty of losses. At best, they acquired a player who they’ll be able to turn into an asset at the trade deadline, which is obviously good for their rebuild.

Stick taps to our colleagues Rick Dhaliwal and Don Taylor, who had Gallagher on their show last week, which gives us some quotes to chew on already.

When asked what it would mean to be a Canuck:

“There’s so much that goes into that that would be good for, for me and my family. Obviously, you know, my wife is pregnant right now. By the time next season starts, we’re gonna have two little ones under two. So having family around is something that I have to think about when making this decision. But on top of that, I grew up in Vancouver. I know what that city’s like when the team’s winning and the team’s doing well. It’s such a special place. And for the majority of the last couple decades, that team has been a very good team, and I know how special of a city it is. So, you know, obviously just knowing that and obviously growing up in the area, it would be nice.”

On how he could help the Canucks having gone through a rebuild in Montreal:

“I just think one of the most important things is culture. You see rebuilds that go well, you see [others] that seem to take forever. You have to have the right people around, and culture’s something you need from day one and that you can’t lose. You need to have it. I mean, these are young players that are going to grow up and be the cornerstone of your franchise for hopefully a decade or longer, and you want them to understand from a young age, the right way to do things. And that was something that I was so fortunate about as a young player here in Montreal. I came in and the group of guys that we had was so good to me and taught me so much. And, you know, there’s some players around the league that just don’t have that. If you want to rebuild or retool or whatever you want to call it, to go well, I think culture is just the number one thing that you have to prioritize.”

Gallagher will meet with the Vancouver media at 11:30 AM PT, and we will have full coverage of that right here on CanucksArmy.com.