Brendan Gallagher breaks down in tears when discussing his future.

The Montreal Canadiens had their locker room cleanout day on Monday and it proved to be an extremely emotional day for fans of the franchise.

While most of the talk in and around the team was fairly typical of a locker room cleanout, when reporters reached Habs veteran Brendan Gallagher things would take a drastic turn. Gallagher has of course been out of the lineup for several weeks now, last playing all the way back on May 3rd during a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Gallagher was asked about his future with the franchise and before a single word could leave his lips his head dropped and tears began to stream down his face.

"Sorry," said Gallagher overcome with emotion. "I'm very fortunate."

Gallagher took another long pause before speaking again.

"I just had a thought about my mom," said Gallagher speaking of his mother's passing. "And I thought about how my teammates supported me through that."

Gallagher would actually end his media availability early at this point, stepping away from the microphones and cameras and asking for a moment to compose himself. You can see the incredibly emotional moment in the short clip below:

Just prior to this emotional moment, Gallagher had confirmed that he would not be back with the Canadiens next season.

"There's been ups and downs but I have no regrets," said Gallagher. "It's pretty clear I'll be moving on here."

If you would like to hear his full media availability you can do so here: