Arber Xhekaj Is Getting The Job Done

Arber Xhekaj is an interesting player for the Montreal Canadiens. I like his aggressiveness and I like his brand of defense. He’s a player who has to have controlled minutes, but that’s ok. He’s playing a good role on the blueline.

At 24, with Brendan Guhle out, he talked about everyone on the blueline stepping up. So that means more minutes for him and his minutes have jumped. This increase in minutes, hopefully, doesn’t mean a big increase in turnovers. He must manage that better especially since he will have a bigger role now. That’s one of my expectations for him. 

Xhekaj isn’t a player you expect offense from and that has never been something I expect him to provide. He had eight hits against Winnipeg and two against Minnesota. Sometimes the flow of the game dictates that and the fact that he’s willing to ratchet it up is good. He averages 2.54 hits per game and that’s great. According to Hockey Fights, he’s dropped the gloves four times so his PIMS are in line. No issue there.

The 6’4” blueliner can skate and it helps him line up hits and play good defense. His defensive zone coverage has and will continue to improve. He just turned 24, and I think there is more for him to learn. He has currently played 143 games, so reaching 200 will be easy for him to reach. He’s been a big success as an undrafted player.