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Owen Beck and Florian Xhekaj stand out to close the season

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Owen Beck and Florian Xhekaj stand out to close the season
Credit: Capture d'écran / Screenshot

While all eyes of Montreal Canadiens fans are on David Reinbacher, who had another strong game today with a point, the Habs’ other prospects continue to perform well.

Yesterday, Oliver Kapanen, the Tricolore’s second-round pick in 2021, continued his fine play in Finland’s Liiga playoffs.

And on Sunday, prospects Florian Xhekaj and Owen Beck wrapped up their respective OHL seasons.

And let’s just say they didn’t pull any punches.

To begin with, Xhekaj and the Brantford Bulldogs easily disposed of the Ottawa 67s by a score of 5-1.

Arber Xhekaj’s younger brother played a part in all five of his team’s goals, collecting two goals and three assists in the victory.

Here’s his last goal of the season, his 34ᵉ:

What a precise shot.

He finished his season with a very good 65 points in 63 games, including 34 goals.

This was his first junior season with a point-per-game pace.

Not only did he prove that he’s got quite a shot, but his great physical presence shouldn’t be ignored, as he probably plays as intensely as his big brother.

As for Owen Beck, he entered the game with an active streak of 19 consecutive games with at least one point.

Well, the Habs’ handsome, versatile prospect completed his final junior season with a 20ᵉ straight game with at least one point.

In that streak, he amassed 34 points, as he collected a goal and an assist in today’s game.

Here’s his first point of the game, his goal, scored with a surgically accurate shot.

Wow.

His team, the Saginaw Spirit, easily disposed of their opponents, the Sault Sainte-Marie Greyhounds, by a score of 9-2.

Beck not only scored two points, but also surpassed the 80-point mark in just 57 games this season. He played for the Peterborough Petes, before being traded to the Spirit.

The Petes knew Beck was one of the most watched prospects in the OHL this season, so they decided to trade him to the next Memorial Cup hosts.

Once again, Beck will be looking to make it to the Grand Finals, a goal he was unable to achieve due to the Petes’ elimination in the Memorial Cup semi-finals last year.

Now that the season is over for Xhekaj and Beck, we’ll be able to focus on the playoffs around the world and follow all the Habs’ hopefuls in action.


Highlights

– Barron buys himself some points with his excellent game on Sunday.

– Zach Hyman becomes the second player after Auston Matthews to reach this plateau this season. Sam Reinhart is close too, scoring his 49th of the season tonight.

– It’s almost impossible to stop Canada’s best player at this height.

– It’s been a long time since we’ve seen this in the NHL. It’s the first time since the 2006-07 season, when Joe Thornton collected 92 assists.

– This is only the second time in NHL history that this has happened.

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