The Montreal Canadiens defense has been struggling without Noah Dobson. We all know what Lane Hutson did for the game-winning goal, ripping one goal past Tampa Bay Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy 2:09 into overtime. However, despite limited ice time, Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj is showing why he can be a force in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
There have always been high hopes for Xhekaj. He was the perfect defender for Montreal as they got to this point in their rebuild. Given how the game changes in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Xhekaj’s style fits, especially with his physical play. Earlier in his career and this season, he found himself out of the lineup, due to his limited skills on the ice. Not to mention physically crossing the line would hurt his team.
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It was always going to be a loaded lineup with the Canadiens bringing in Dobson and already drafting Logan Mailloux and David Reinbacher. Mailloux is in St. Louis; However, with Mike Matheson extended and Alexandre Carrier brought in last year, Xhekaj became the sixth or seventh defenseman.
He was trying to do more, than just play his game to stay in the lineup. However, as Jim Biringer of NHLRumors.com and Full Press Media noted on TSN Radio in Montreal, if Arber Xhekaj just plays his game, he’s a successful player.
Writing for NHLRumors.com
Host: “And talk about Arber Xhekaj here, and he’s got a little cult following here in Montreal, like a little bit of a wrestling scene. So I guess there’s my wrestling of the day, but Jim focused on Xhekaj specifically, what did he do with his game and how comfortable he looked? Because I was on record saying I thought it was the best Canadiens uniform ever.”
Jim Biringer: “Yes. He was very composed, he played within himself. He didn’t do too much. I think that’s when Arber Xhekaj plays the best hockey, right? If he doesn’t try to do a lot and do what he has to do, he throws his body around, jumps a few times, which is good, but he didn’t get hurt, because his players back to Canadins surrounded him. he stayed with him, he didn’t take stupid penalties, he played a physical game, and I think he understands that with the growing year past and this year too, don’t try to do too much.
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That’s where he gets into trouble, and it’s a common theme. I like what Xhekaj is doing. He had some good hits, he just played good hockey on the road, and that’s all you have to do. He shouldn’t just try to do too many things, because that’s what most players do. They try to do more things than they should. Just play your game.
It’s like what we’re seeing with Kaiden Guhle and (Jayden) Struble and all those guys, play your game, and the team will benefit from it. And I like what I saw from Xhekaj. You just sit there. And when beatings and extracurriculars happen. He was there to protect his teammates, but he didn’t cross the line. And that’s a very smart player. Arber Xhekaj is showing the maturity that got him into trouble at the beginning of the season.”
You see controlled aggression and understanding from Xhekaj about when to step in and be aggressive and when to sit back and live to fight another day. However, instead of looking for a trade outside of Montreal, he worked on his game with skill coaches, as you can see, his first pass and skating have improved.
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He’s learning the game better than ever. It comes to a point, as head coach Martin St. Louis told the media, when he understood what his role was in the team.
“Arber knows that when he entered the league, we weren’t deep, and we had five players on defense. He was able to get a lot of distance and experience early, and you can’t buy that; you have to get it every game. Now, with all the defensemen we have, he’s real but also a competitor, so it’s normal that he wants to be honest and bring a lot of things on Saturday, when the St. Canadiens held an optional skate before Game 4 on Sunday.
It’s about the players understanding that if they want to be part of something special, they have to improve and level up to be successful or find themselves in another team. There’s a reason why teams wanted to trade him, and the Montreal Canadiens always said no.
If Arber Xhekaj continues to play his style of game, it will be difficult to remove him from the list.
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