Florian Xhekaj

July 2024 – The Xhekaj brothers are unicorns in their development. Florian Xhekaj’s development in the 2023-24 season saw him become a point-per-game forward in the OHL, as well as grow physically by over two inches and by nearly 20 pounds. It is no longer a stretch to envision Xhekaj as a dependable bottom-six NHLer, which could not be said at this time last year. The Montreal Canadiens clearly know something the public doesn’t with the Xhekaj’s, and things look to be on track for lightning to strike twice. Aaron Itovitch

Novemeber 2023 – Well, if there’s one thing to bet on with a Xhekaj, it’s that they’ll have a ridiculous development curve. Florian Xhekaj is a completely different player than he was last year, and while he still has several flaws in his game, he has made a ton of progress. Pushing towards a PPG in his D+2 season, the tools are there for Xhekaj to become an effective bottom-sixer. However, seeing the progress he has already made, and contrasting it with his older brothers’ development, maybe there’s something else there that we haven’t quite seen yet. Aaron Itovitch

July 2023 – Nobody at Bridgestone Arena expected Florian Xhekaj to be drafted in the fourth round, except for Canadiens management. The overager OHL bottom-sixer’s first year in Major Junior saw him put up far under a half a point-per-game, and no stat truly glares off the point sheet other than PIM’s (and a worrying +/-). The Canadiens are clearly hoping for a logic-defying development curve, similar to Florian’s older brother Arber, but using a fourth round pick on Florian can only truly be described as a nepotism pick. He likely would have been available deep into the draft, and possibly wouldn’t have been drafted at all. We will see how Xhekaj performs in his D+2 in Brantford, but as it stands right now, it is hard to imagine him being anything more than a low-impact NHL bottom-sixer. Aaron Itovitch