Last night, after the game against the Dallas Stars in which young defenseman Arber Xhekaj scored his first career NHL goal, Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis made an important statement about his young, rugged back.
It goes back to what we've been saying for a while now: Arber is more than just a "strongman" who scares opposing players. He's an interesting hockey player, with the potential to become a solid all-around defenseman.
From the way St. Louis was talking yesterday, with this statement, but also with a few other small comments, you can see that the head coach is really starting to see Xhekaj as a regular NHL defenseman. It says a lot about his intentions and we love it! It looks like Xhekaj is really not going to leave the Montreal Canadiens' lineup anytime soon.
Even with the possible return of Joel Edmundson, and Mike Matheson, do you think Arber Xhekaj should absolutely stay in the lineup?