Renaud Lavoie: No doubt Arber Xhekaj will be there at the start of next training camp

Tanner Pearson (UFA), Jesse Ylönen (RFA), Colin White (UFA) and Chris Wideman (UFA) will be out of contract this summer.

Their respective agreements expire at the end of the current season…

And chances are, none of these players will be back with the Habs next summer.

Kent Hughes should therefore have a more “relaxed” summer than last year… But he will still have to consider the case of Arber Xhekaj, who will be a free agent with compensation in the coming months.

One wonders what his next deal will look like. The defenseman has proved he can be a good NHL player…

But the defenseman has also demonstrated certain shortcomings in his overall game, which may affect the value of his contract.

Norman Flynn, for example, would like to go with a bridge contract, a 3-year deal that would allow the Sheriff to earn between $1.5 and $2 million per season :

Xhekaj won’t be free as a bird, which could limit his negotiating power with Kent Hughes.

Contract negotiations can sometimes be complicated between a young player like Xhekaj and an NHL team, as was the case with Trevor Zegras last summer…

But Renaud Lavoie was reassuring this morning in his BPM Sports column.

One thing is clear. Arber Xhekaj, in September when the Canadiens’ camp starts, he’ll be there. That’s undeniable. – Renaud Lavoie

What helps is that Xhekaj wants to play for the Habs and the Habs really like him.

This suggests that negotiations won’t necessarily be very difficult, much to the delight of management and fans alike.

Much like Norman Flynn said, I expect Xhekaj to sign a bridge contract because he hasn’t yet proven he’s a regular in the NHL.

The idea of securing him long-term is attractive because he has great potential, but there’s also a risk attached to all this. And Kent Hughes can’t handcuff himself to his payroll by giving big bucks to a guy who’s still developing and had to go through the AHL to help his progression.

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– Enjoy your reading.

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