'If Arber Xhekaj doesn’t hit his opponent, he’s useless'

It’s rough as a comment, but it’s hard to disagree.

It was a second straight game without a check for the defenseman. In 19 games this season, the defenseman has only hit the opposition 27 times (1.4 checks per game).

And apart from his toughness, the Sheriff doesn’t offer the Habs much. His defensive play is decent at best, he often makes bad decisions, he’s often undisciplined and his only assist of the season came in the second game of the season against the Detroit Red Wings.

I used to think that one of Arber’s problems was that he played like a player who risked losing his position if he made a mistake, but if the injury to Kaiden Guhle has shown us anything, it’s that this wasn’t the problem.

Since Arber has been playing every night with the team, it seems his overall game has regressed.

In short, if Jayden Struble continues to throw down the gloves and look good in physical games, the Habs may be hard-pressed to justify a roster spot for their sheriff when Guhle returns to action.

Overtime

– A beautiful tribute.

– Whew!

– Nice deflection.

– What a trade.