'We’re at least three years away from seeing Florian Xhekaj as a support center in Montreal'

Basu says that Xhekaj may need another year in Laval to fine-tune his game, and then he may make the jump to the NHL as a winger to ease his transition a bit. And it’s after (at least) one full season on the wing that Basu sees Xhekaj becoming the supporting center player the Habs see in him.

I suspect that’s a pretty conservative timetable and that we may see Xhekaj at center on a fourth line in Montreal sooner than that(if the Habs considered recalling him in the last playoffs, will they really wait that long before inserting him into their line-up?), but Basu is right about one thing: wait before assuming that he’ll definitely be center of the fourth line next year.

He’s a promising prospect who’s obviously the talk of Montreal because of his last name and his style of play, but that doesn’t mean you have to jump the gun.

Going for a veteran to take on the role of left-handed center back in 2025-26 makes more sense (the names of Nico Sturm and Radek Faksa were mentioned in the podcast), and it would allow Xhekaj to take his time and be ready when he’s eventually called upon to occupy that chair.

I have a feeling that next year, we’ll see him play center in Laval or wing in Montreal… before seeing him play center in Montreal in 2026-27. That said, if it takes another year, it’s not the end of the world: the important thing is that he’s ready when his turn comes.

Overtime

– Pierre-Luc Dubois had fun this year.

– Great Ovechkin.

– Please note.

– Classic.

– Pole for Oscar Piastri at Imola.