Xhekaj (shoulder) will miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on his left shoulder.
Xhekaj played in 44 games for the Canadians this season, recording three goals and seven assists. He's expected to be ready for the start of the 2024-25 campaign.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Unavailable Sunday
Rotowire
Xhekaj (upper body) will not play Sunday against the Rangers, per the NHL's media site.
Xhekaj has now missed two straight games and the team hasn't provided much of an update on his status. The 23-year-old blueliner has just one point in his last 10 appearances. Montreal's next game is Tuesday against the Flyers.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Not available Saturday
Rotowire
Xhekaj (upper body) will not be in the lineup Saturday versus the Maple Leafs.
Xhekaj may have been injured in Thursday's game against Tampa Bay. The rugged defenseman has 10 points, 81 PIM, 125 hits and 49 blocked shots in 44 games this season. Look for Justin Barron to replace him in the lineup.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Logs assist in win
Rotowire
Xhekaj had an assist, three shots on net, two blocks and three hits in Tuesday's 3-0 win over Columbus.
Xhekaj's slapshot was deflected home by Joshua Roy, giving Montreal a 3-0 lead six minutes into the game. It was the third assist in last six contest for Xhekaj, whose game has come around since partnering up with veteran David Savard on the second pair.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Slides assist, fights in loss
Rotowire
Xhekaj had an assist, four shots on net, three blocks, five hits and a five-minute major penalty in Saturday's 4-3 shootout loss to Tampa Bay.
Xhekaj picked up the secondary helper on a Josh Anderson tally that gave Montreal a 3-2 lead early in the third period. It was the second straight game with an assist for Xhekaj. He leads Montreal with 65 PIM in just 30 games.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Goals in two straight
Rotowire
Xhekaj scored a goal on four shots along with one block and four hits in Wednesday's 3-2 loss to Buffalo.
Xhekaj put Montreal on the board first, taking advantage of a puck that squirted out from behind the net and burying a slapper midway through the first period. It was the second consecutive game with a goal for Xhekaj, who got himself a new partner on defense in David Savard. Xhekaj has three goals and three assists over 25 games this campaign.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Scores in loss
Rotowire
Xhekaj scored a goal on three shots and had one hit over 16:35 of ice time in Saturday's 4-3 loss to Washington.
Xhekaj unloaded a bomb from the point that eluded Darcy Kuemper for Montreal's first goal. It was the second goal of the season for Xhekaj and his first since being recalled from AHL Laval in late January. He's been in and out of the lineup since the recall, but Xhekaj is playing regularly now with Jordan Harris (upper body) sidelined.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Rings post for assist
Rotowire
Xhekaj had an assist and two blocked shots over 12:29 of ice time in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Capitals.
Xhekaj had one missed shot but it made a lot of noise, caroming off the post and onto the stick of Nick Suzuki, who scored his second goal in a span of 57 seconds. The helper was Xhekaj's first point since being recalled from AHL Laval on Jan. 22.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Scratched Saturday
Rotowire
Xhekaj was a healthy scratch for Saturday's game against the Penguins.
Xhekaj had played in two straight games after a call-up from AHL Laval before taking a seat in the press box Saturday. Jordan Harris returned to the active lineup in place of Xhekaj.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: In lineup Tuesday
Rotowire
Xhekaj had one block, three hits and two penalty minutes over 16:25 of ice time in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to Ottawa.
Xhekaj rejoined the parent club after spending the last seven weeks in the AHL. He served on the third pair and was on ice for Montreal's lone goal. Xhekaj plays with an edge and could be useful for fantasy leagues that value hits and PIM.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Recalled from AHL
Rotowire
Xhekaj was brought up from AHL Laval on Monday.
Xhekaj has one goal, two assists, 14 shots on net, 41 hits, 12 blocked shots and 47 PIM in 17 NHL outings this season. He could be back in the lineup Tuesday against Ottawa after Justin Barron was demoted to the minors Monday.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Headed for minors
Rotowire
Xhekaj (upper body) was activated off injured reserve and then sent down to AHL Laval on Monday.
Xhekaj was sidelined for seven games due to his upper-body issue but will have to continue to wait before returning the the NHL lineup following his demotion. Prior to getting hurt, the Ontario native managed just three points in 17 outings and shouldn't be expected to offer much in the way of offensive upside, though he's also produced 41 hits and 47 PIM this season.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Added to IR
Rotowire
Xhekaj (upper body) was placed on injured reserve Friday.
The designation is retroactive to Xhekaj's last game, which was Nov. 16 against Vegas, so he can be activated whenever he is cleared to return. The blueliner did not travel with the team on the road. In a corresponding move, Montreal recalled Joel Armia from AHL Laval, and he will join the team for Saturday afternoon's tilt against the Kings.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Won't travel with team
Rotowire
Xhekaj (upper body) won't travel with his teammates Monday to California ahead of the Canadiens' three-game road trip, Arpon Basu of The Athletic reports.
As a result, Xhekaj is likely to miss Montreal's next three games, starting with Wednesday's contest versus Anaheim. He has picked up one goal, two assists, 47 PIM, 12 blocked shots and 41 hits across 17 outings this season. Montreal brought up Jayden Struble from AHL Laval on Monday to serve as an extra defender for the road trip.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Unavailable Saturday
Rotowire
Xhekaj (upper body) won't play Saturday against Boston, Stu Cowan of The Montreal Gazette reports.
Xhekaj is listed as day-to-day after sustaining an upper-body injury in Thursday's 6-5 loss to Vegas. He has supplied one goal, two assists, 47 PIM, 12 blocked shots and 41 hits in 17 games this season. Xhekaj will be replaced in the lineup by Jordan Harris (upper body), who will return from a two-game absence.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Not practicing Friday
Rotowire
Xhekaj (upper body) is missing from practice Friday, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports.
Xhekaj was injured in the second period Thursday against the Golden Knights and did not return. The defenseman has lots of fantasy value if your league uses PIM and hits as categories as he has 47 and 41 respectively in just 17 games. He is questionable at this time to play Saturday versus Boston.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Won't finish Thursday's game
Rotowire
Xhekaj suffered an upper-body injury and won't return to Thursday's game versus the Golden Knights.
Xhekaj appeared to injure his left shoulder after sustaining a hit. It's not his surgically repaired right shoulder, which was an injury that ended his 2022-23 campaign prematurely. The 22-year-old defenseman can be considered day-to-day until another update is available.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Pots first of season
Rotowire
Xhekaj scored a goal on two shots in Sunday's 5-2 loss to Vancouver. The defenseman added one blocked shot and one hit to his line over 15:22 of ice time.
Xhekaj danced through several Vancouver defenders to score his first goal of the season with just 49 seconds left. The blueliner is mostly known for the edge with which he plays and racks up fantasy-worthy hits and penalty minutes. He leads the Habs with 47 PIM and is second at 38 hits.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Chips in with assist in win
Rotowire
Xhekaj posted an assist in Monday's 3-1 road victory against the Sabres.
The point was his first since also posting an apple in the wild 6-5 shootout loss Oct. 11 against the Maple Leafs. He also had a plus-1 rating, two shots on goal and a minor penalty Monday, giving him at least one infraction in four of five games this season. Xhekaj has 23 PIM through five outings, helping fantasy managers in formats rewarding bad behavior.
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Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj: Whistled early and often
Rotowire
Xhekaj had an assist, three hits and 17 PIM in Wednesday's 6-5 shootout loss to Toronto.
Xhekaj is no stranger to the physical side of hockey and wasted little time mixing it up. All three of his penalties -- two minutes for instigating a fight, five minutes for fighting and a 10-minute misconduct -- were assessed in the first period for his brawl with noted tough guy Ryan Reaves. Xhekaj later produced an assist in the third period when his shot from the point was tipped in by Alex Newhook. Xhekaj had 159 hits and 101 PIM over 51 games in 2022-23.
