Prospect Info: Florian Xhekaj

[montreal]

Kids a beast... even with the ref hanging off him he couldn't be contained. Not smart on his part though

if you watch the vid or maybe it was the last game but there was a play where he was battling along the boards at the offensive bluleline and with 1 hand on his stick he pushed the puck over to his teammate while holding off the defender with his other hand. I slowed it down as it was impressive how much strength he showed but had the presence of mind to set up his teammate.

He's easily one of the most impressive prospects i've seen this year.

 

[Habs13]

if you watch the vid or maybe it was the last game but there was a play where he was battling along the boards at the offensive bluleline and with 1 hand on his stick he pushed the puck over to his teammate while holding off the defender with his other hand. I slowed it down as it was impressive how much strength he showed but had the presence of mind to set up his teammate.

He's easily one of the most impressive prospects i've seen this year.

Love to read that - and from you! Who watches a lot of prospect games. Very good news.

What do you think his NHL ceiling could be?

 

[montreal]

Love to read that - and from you! Who watches a lot of prospect games. Very good news.

What do you think his NHL ceiling could be?

it's too early to say, last year in the one game I saw he looked terrible, now he looks like a bull on skates. He will need to work on some things but he's taken a huge leap in his development in a short time frame.

 

[Rapala]

it's too early to say, last year in the one game I saw he looked terrible, now he looks like a bull on skates. He will need to work on some things but he's taken a huge leap in his development in a short time frame.

"Sky rockets in flight afternoon delight"

 

[Scintillating10]

Suspended 2 games

Hopefully he learns from it

 

[Rapala]

Hopefully he learns from it

Meh Beck got a few himself. Taking edge off is a lot better than having to put edge on.

 

[Adam Michaels]

The only problem with Xhekah in the AHL next year is he will 100% get 4th line minutes, he won't have much of a chance to work on his offense

He could start on the 4th line. The key would be if he moves up the line-up.

Evans started as Laval's 4C when he turned pro. By the end of the season, he worked his way up to 1C.

Same with RHP. Started at the bottom and worked his way up as the season went on.

Davidson was a 4th liner/healthy scratch at the start. He is now in the Top-6.

Trudeau was a 3rd pair/healthy scratch at the start of last year. Was on their top pair by the end.

It doesn't matter where you start, it matters how you progress. Unless of course you're Mysak under JF Houle.

 

[angusyoung]

7:22 is the hit, but it's the stuff after the hit that got him the 2 games.

Makes sense,the hit was not as intense as it could have been,seen worse.

 

[jrom]

Meh Beck got a few himself. Taking edge off is a lot better than having to put edge on.

Better to tame a tiger then to paint stripes on a cat

 

[Miller Time]

That abuse of official was a bullshit call. He was reaching over to hit the Steelhead and grazed the official. 2 games for the hit is reasonable although the Steelhead wasn't hurt.

Absolutely not.

Fully deserved suspension. Play tough not out of control. He'll learn, his brother is going through that and is seeing the benefits of controlled & focused aggression.

If he can harness that emotional energy, size, and competitiveness, and keep refining his puck & game sense skills, he could blow the roof off his expected ceiling

 

[The Real Timo]

Bring the second X, baby! X on D, X up front, unleash them and have the other teams run!

I want to see Habs being bullies. Enough of that creamepuffness we've been witnessing for the past 30 years.

Absolutely not.

Fully deserved suspension. Play tough not out of control. He'll learn, his brother is going through that and is seeing the benefits of controlled & focused aggression.

If he can harness that emotional energy, size, and competitiveness, and keep refining his puck & game sense skills, he could blow the roof off his expected ceiling

That what I am afraid of. Once he enters MSL's realm he'll have the full "better people" program thrown at him and boom, he'll be just another good boi. I want Habs to be nasty. And feared.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Better to tame a tiger then to paint stripes on a cat

Well said. Easier to reign someone in rather then try to push someone.

 

[TomKosto]

Better be a warrior in a garden, then a gardiner at war.

 

[The Real Timo]

B

Well said. Easier to reign someone in rather then try to push someone.

Even better to let the tiger loose.

 

[Rapala]

Nice to see a very good article about Florian on NHL.com. Not going unnoticed for a reason.

 

[A Loyal Demidog]

If there was a re-draft, would Xhekaj make the 1st round at this point in time? Or still nah, 2nd/3rd round?

 

[Team_Spirit]

CHL notebook: Younger Xhekaj aiming to join brother with Canadiens | NHL.com

Productive Brantford center on track to make 'dream come true' reality

www.nhl.com

 

[John B]

If there was a re-draft, would Xhekaj make the 1st round at this point in time? Or still nah, 2nd/3rd round?

It's hard to say. Like any draft there will be players who regress and others who blossom and others who seem to hit a wall in their D+1 year. Xhekaj was an early 4th rounder, so it wouldn't be crazy to think he would go somewhere in the 3rd round if there were a re-draft. There are other prospects who were drafted after Xhekaj that might also be considered to go higher then where they were chosen. Habs prospects Konyushov, Volokhin, and Eriksson are having strong seasons as well. Rodwin Dionicio is also having another good season in the OHL. I'm sure there are others as I don't get to see all these players or follow their progress.

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

It's hard to say. Like any draft there will be players who regress and others who blossom and others who seem to hit a wall in their D+1 year. Xhekaj was an early 4th rounder, so it wouldn't be crazy to think he would go somewhere in the 3rd round if there were a re-draft. There are other prospects who were drafted after Xhekaj that might also be considered to go higher then where they were chosen. Habs prospects Konyushov, Volokhin, and Eriksson are having strong seasons as well. Rodwin Dionicio is also having another good season in the OHL. I'm sure there are others as I don't get to see all these players or follow their progress.

There is absolutely no doubt that he would be at least a 2nd rounder in a re-draft as he is just too projectable as an NHLer at this point. His age is what likely keeps him out of the first round.

 

[montreal]

If there was a re-draft, would Xhekaj make the 1st round at this point in time? Or still nah, 2nd/3rd round?

1st rounder no question.

 

[John B]

There is absolutely no doubt that he would be at least a 2nd rounder in a re-draft as he is just too projectable as an NHLer at this point. His age is what likely keeps him out of the first round.

I'll take your word for it. Like I said, I don't follow all the prospects that closely. All I know is that there are a lot of Habs prospects from the last draft that looks like they would be chosen earlier in a re-draft. I'm sure there are other prospects from other teams as well.

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

1st rounder no question.

Considering his age you have to seriously look at where his offensive production lines up. He could be a late first rounder but I would certainly hesitate to proclaim him to be a no doubter as a 1st rounder in a re-draft. We are still talking about a kid who is in his D+2 from an age perspective who is under a ppg and is 6th on his team with a 0.948 ppg avg. Now, I am the last one too put too much value into stats but there have to be questions as to why he isn't producing more given his enormous physical advantages. Given his sudden growth there may be an answer to be gleened from this but I do think that there are enough upside questions to push him into the second round. If he was in his D+1 I am totally on board with your statement and even though I acknowledge that he could very well sneak into the 1st round in a re-draft I think it is less evident than you have stated that it would be a certainty.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

There is no way he's a 1st rounder in a re-draft. He was an overager when drafted. He would at best be a mid to late 2nd rounder.

 

[montreal]

Considering his age you have to seriously look at where his offensive production lines up. He could be a late first rounder but I would certainly hesitate to proclaim him to be a no doubter as a 1st rounder in a re-draft. We are still talking about a kid who is in his D+2 from an age perspective who is under a ppg and is 6th on his team with a 0.948 ppg avg. Now, I am the last one too put too much value into stats but there have to be questions as to why he isn't producing more given his enormous physical advantages. Given his sudden growth there may be an answer to be gleened from this but I do think that there are enough upside questions to push him into the second round. If he was in his D+1 I am totally on board with your statement and even though I acknowledge that he could very well sneak into the 1st round in a re-draft I think it is less evident than you have stated that it would be a certainty.

He's a no doubt 1st round pick, you have a 6'4 center that is showing he can handle the position from the get go in all facets while being a monster physically and plays a power game like Lucic. GM's always will overrate size to begin with so from what i've seen it's a slam dunk to be a 1st rounder, I can't believe what i've seen from him this year, I'm extremely impressed.

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

He's a no doubt 1st round pick, you have a 6'4 center that is showing he can handle the position from the get go in all facets while being a monster physically and plays a power game like Lucic. GM's always will overrate size to begin with so from what i've seen it's a slam dunk to be a 1st rounder, I can't believe what i've seen from him this year, I'm extremely impressed.

I am impressed as well but the kid turns 20 in July. I still think he is more likely to play low in the lineup if he makes it but he has shown a lot of progression this season.

I just went and looked at the draft and I have to conclude that he is very unlikely to be a 1st rounder in a redraft as there are very strong prospects all the way through the first round and plenty of 2nd and 3rd rounders who have substantially raised their stock. Calling him a slam dunk first rounder is more ideological than it is based on a comprehensive comparison of who the top 32 prospects are in last years draft.