Arber Xhekaj: Elliotte Friedman wonders if the Flyers called the Habs

If Elliotte Friedman is to be believed, interest in Arber Xhekaj’s services is rife throughout the National League.

Speaking to Sportsnet on Saturday evening, the journalist revealed that several teams have called the Habs to inquire about the pugilist’s availability…

And Friedman went on to reassure all the team’s fans that the Habs are not interested in trading the young defenseman who is so beloved in Montreal.

Xhekaj’s name seems to be quite popular, because Friedman talked about him again in the recent episode of his 32 Thoughts podcast .

This time, the journalist wondered if the Flyers had called the Habs to try and get the defenseman (whether in the Cutter Gauthier deal or not) because Xhekaj really fits into the “bad boy” culture in Philly :

Arber has the mentality of a fighter, a guy who’s willing to hurt you to help his team in one way or another… And when you think of a club that made its mark in the past because of its toughness, you think of the Philadelphia Flyers.

I’m too young to have lived through the Broad Street Bullies era, but I would have paid good money to attend a Flyers game in those days.

But in his podcast, Elliotte Friedman repeated once again that Xhekaj isn’t going anywhere because he’s not available right now.

That doesn’t stop clubs from calling Kent Hughes to have a chat, we agree… But the answer won’t change even if clubs keep calling.

What I’m wondering is, what’s his value on the market if he’s in such high demand?

But whatever his value, it’s also fascinating how popular Xhekaj’s name has become in the NHL, even though he’s never been drafted by an NHL club…

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