Could Arber Xhekaj Sit Out On Tuesday?

On Saturday night, Arber Xhekaj played a season-low 6:37, and Martin St. Louis opted to play the game with 5 defensemen rotating after Xhekaj took two interference penalties that could have easily been avoided. The first one was slightly arguable, where he held a Canucks forward back at the offensive blueline, but it was called and sent the Canucks to the power play. They didn’t score on the man advantage, but it was clear that Xhekaj put the Habs in some trouble and didn’t play too much afterwards.

Bad penalties happen, but a player must make sure not to make the same mistake later in the game. Unfortunately, midway through the 2nd period, he took another interference penalty by setting a screen for his partner in the defensive zone, while the Canadiens had the puck. This was an unacceptable penalty for Xhekaj to take, and the result took some momentum away from the Habs, who were finally starting to find their groove in the game. Luckily for the Habs, Canucks forward Linus Karlsson took an interference penalty of his own, and the Canadiens were out of trouble afterwards.

Nonetheless, the damage was done by Xhekaj, and he would not see another shift in the game once his penalty expired. Xhekaj seemed to already be on a very short leash with St. Louis and his coaching staff, as he is currently averaging 4:27 per game, less than Jayden Struble, who has the next lowest Time On Ice so far this season. Now, after making mistakes that almost cost the Habs on multiple occasions, it will be hard for him to gain the trust moving forward.

Xhekaj has been struggling to gain the Canadiens’ coaching staff ever since he had a tough game during the team’s home opener against the Seattle Kraken. Instead of proving that he belongs in the lineup, like Struble has over the last few games with the injury to Kaiden Guhle, Xhekaj has not contributed much of anything for the team. He has just one hit and 2 shots on goal during the 3 games on the Western Canada Road Trip. It’s clear that Xhekaj is playing not to make a mistake and is not using the main asset that makes him a unique defenseman for the Habs. Xhekaj also has just one fight on the season, but instead of giving the Habs momentum, it gave the New York Rangers a boost last Saturday.

With that being said, Xhekaj is not doing what the Canadiens needed of him right now, and it may be a good idea to give Marc Del Gaizo a game so that Xhekaj can take a step back and bring his game back to what it was in the preseason. Sitting one game in the press box may do him good.

Would you scratch Xhekaj on Tuesday night against the Kraken?