Arber Xhekaj no longer controls his own destiny

How can we explain that Struble has been used more as a sixth defenseman than Xhekaj was before he was removed from the lineup? It’s quite simple: seven of Struble’s 16 shifts were in the third period, when the Canadiens were leading by two, three, or four goals.

Which brings me to the main point of today’s article: Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble no longer really control their own destiny.

Xhekaj played poorly during his five-game streak, but since the team was winning, Martin St-Louis didn’t dare remove him from the lineup. Except that after the loss in Minnesota, Xhekaj paid the price. He was replaced by Jayden Struble.

The Canadiens are currently playing with five defensemen (Hutson, Matheson, Dobson, Carrier, and Guhle), paired with a sixth interchangeable defenseman. This sixth defenseman will always be the least-used player, and if the game is close, he will only play six or seven minutes.

Even if he plays well, that sixth defenseman will be replaced (in the next game) by the one waiting in the wings in case of a loss.

In short, if the team loses, the coach feels compelled to do something… and it’s always Xhekaj or Struble who gets the boot.

At this point, I think it should be settled with a good fight in practice! Oh, wait…

Put yourself in the shoes of one of the two defensemen mentioned above; no matter how good you are and how well you play, your fate depends not on your performance, but rather on that of your teammates. If Cole Caufield has his eye on the prize, you’re more likely to play in the next game.

We can all agree that if the habs were playing tomorrow night, Struble would still be in the lineup and Xhekaj would be on the sidelines.

Not being in control of your own destiny and being dependent on collective success—rather than your individual performance—must be tough for a top-level athlete.

But then again, when you’re paid over $1 million a year, I guess the burden is relative, some would say. That’s the life of a millionaire athlete—but not a superstar—who makes a career in a team sport, I guess…

Overtime

Jeff Gorton told Eric Engels that yes, the rotation between Xhekaj and Struble will continue. As long as the other five defensemen stay healthy…

“It’s clear that we have five players who play more than most teams. Some nights, Arber or Struble will get more playing time, but these guys are in a delicate situation. Right now, they’re fighting for a single spot, and that’s a lot of pressure. And if you don’t play much, it gets harder and harder. But we really appreciate Arber and Struble. We also have some promising young players coming up that we like a lot. We’ll make decisions about each of them as they come up, but we have a lot of confidence in Arber and Struble and what they bring to the table, so we don’t feel an immediate need to bring in another player.” – Jeff Gorton to Sportsnet

It sounds like a president of hockey operations who will look at all options to bring in a (right-handed?) defenseman to complete his top six for the playoffs. Both on the trade market and in Laval.

When I told you that Xhekaj and Struble weren’t in control of their own destiny and that it was unfair…