Hockey

“For Arber Xhekaj, a first-round pick is the only thing the Habs would accept.”
Félix Forget
“For Arber Xhekaj, a first-round pick is the only thing the Habs would accept.”
Credit: Getty Images

Arber Xhekaj is a popular guy in Montreal. The defenseman, who is also one of the NHL's most fearsome tough guys, is a crowd favorite because of his style of play, but also because of his history.He came out of nowhere, after all, and we know he was a Habs fan as a little guy.But even so, the idea of trading him is one that just won't die. We know there's a surplus of young left-handed defensemen in the organization, and Xhekaj doesn't always seem to be in Martin St-Louis' good graces. The question, though, is what is Arber Xhekaj worth? And according to Brian Wilde, who talked about it on Tony Marinaro's Sick Podcast, he's worth a second-round pick…But at that price. the Habs won't be willing to trade him: to get him out of Montreal, they'll need a first-round pick.

Basically, what Wilde is explaining is that the Habs are well aware that they have a special player on their hands. And in reality, going after yet another second-round pick (especially with a maturing core) doesn't really interest the Canadiens,because after all, a second-round pick rarely becomes a player like Xhekaj. AndWilde makes another good point: Xhekaj's case in Montreal goes beyond the hockey plan. We're talking about a guy who's extremely popular in town, and trading him for a pittance risks frustrating the fans more than anything else.And yes, that's a factor we have to consider.It's not impossible that Xhekaj could be traded, of course. If he has a good season and shows more consistency, maybe a team will suddenly want to take a chance and make an offer Kent Hughes can't refuse.But no, I don't expect to see him leave any time soon.Overtime]- One wonders if this opens the door to Russian participation.

– Luke Kunin in Florida.

📝

– That's a good one.

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