Prospect Info: Florian Xhekaj

[Sorinth]

In the last 14 years what do we have 2 players that made an impact past the 2nd round, Gally and Evans. We are overdue for some good luck.

If we use 300 NHL games as the threshold then a generic 3rd round pick has 16.9% odds of reaching that while a 7th round pick is at 6.4%

Excluding the most recent 5 drafts because it's too soon to say (Dobes for example) then we made 51 such picks. I'd say Jordan Harris, Cayden Fleury, and Michael Pezzetta have a feasibly chance to hit 300 games, and there's also Cayden Primeau to consider who might not get 300 NHL games but as a goalie the threshold should probably be half or even less that of a skater.

So we are looking at between a 3.9% - 11.8% hit rate with those picks. So we might be a little on the low side but probably not by all that much.

If you want to look at different metrics rather then 300 games this is where I'm getting my odds

Success Rates of NHL Draft Picks - The Hockey Writers NHL Entry Draft Latest News, Analysis & More

Scouting and luck combine to make for a successful draft in the NHL. Here are the success rates of the top 32 picks & each individual round.

thehockeywriters.com

 

[BenchBrawl]

What's great with this guy is that:

1) We get to keep one of the best fighters in the league in his brother, since we are more likely to keep both if one is valuable when the other struggles.

2) If he can be super aggressive in the NHL, he will make all our tall players feel bigger. Slafkovsky, Dach especially, might benefit from a "Lucic" to play more on the aggressive side themselves.

Not saying Florian will reach Lucic's level of intimidation and aggression, but still.

 

[HuGo Sham]

good read

https://ici.radio-canada.ca/sports/2166843/licorne-florian-xhekaj-rocket-laval

 

[Sasha Orlov]

Love this player

 

[HabsAddict]

So far LX loses or ties as many fights as he wins because his fight card includes heavyweights. At 190 or so, that's middleweight in the NHL.

Given how he plays, that may cause X to come to his defense which even though i love it, it's hard to coach.

LX needs to learn to tone down and pick his spots. I want him to gain stregnth and develop into a smarter Tom Wilson. I don't want to have a sideshow of LX stirring up a mess and X coming in to fix it. As fun as thst may be, i don't want the Habs Hanson brothers.

We wont wait long. This September will be very interesting....as long as we don't have Armia and Dvo getting resigned.

 

[BenchBrawl]

So far LX loses or ties as many fights as he wins because his fight card includes heavyweights. At 190 or so, that's middleweight in the NHL.

Given how he plays, that may cause X to come to his defense which even though i love it, it's hard to coach.

LX needs to learn to tone down and pick his spots. I want him to gain stregnth and develop into a smarter Tom Wilson. I don't want to have a sideshow of LX stirring up a mess and X coming in to fix it. As fun as thst may be, i don't want the Habs Hanson brothers.

We wont wait long. This September will be very interesting....as long as we don't have Armia and Dvo getting resigned.

I mean I don't want this to cost us key playoff games, but to say that I don't want this... I do want this.

 

[Trabdy2]

With F. Xhekaj it's just going to be about pace. Can he be quick enough and react quick enough to be effective at the NHL level. I think he's gonna have a strong camp this fall, but he'll probably need another year in Laval.

I saw something similar with Heineman in the 2023-2024 season where the tools seemed to be there but the pace wasn't quite where it needed to be for the NHL. Florian, I think, is on a similar path to be effective in a bottom six role.

 

[Kimota]

Arber did make a difference that game.

Next game, the referees neutered the Habs.

There's that. But I think the Caps had too much sandpapers for the Habs to handle.

 

[rickthegoon]

Laval kennel is breeding pitbulls like Little X that are so mean and tough, they’re not just chasing the Calder—they’re ready to chew it up and bury it in the backyard!

Yes indeed, there has been a Wolfpack mentality on that team since the start of the season. Fun to watch!

 

[jrom]

I took marshal arts in my 20s and my sensi wanted us to experience other "arts". I was in the 240 lb range and some little 150 pound mutt was using my face for a punching bag. The point of that experience was close up self defense and countering. I love to see X and LX take those kinds of lessons to develop better and more accurate punching then flailing at helmets as well as a bit of bob and weave from taking straight on shots to the face.

All the need is to work on the basics part time for a couple of months. It can save knuckles and noses...

Arber did some boxing in the past, honestly I would prefer for him to spend the summer working on his D play so he can grab that 3rd LD spot and never let it go. He needs to be come good enough to play on PK2.

 

[HabsAddict]

Arber did some boxing in the past, honestly I would prefer for him to spend the summer working on his D play so he can grab that 3rd LD spot and never let it go. He needs to be come good enough to play on PK2.

I'm not advocating taking up the summer in a ring, just some some basics so they don't flail away busting knuckles on helmets and take shots to the head.

 

[HabsAddict]

Here is EXACTLY what I'm talking about....

Lucic is back and tucked....waiting for an opening and just knock the snot out of him...

That is not by accident, that is someone who has boxing lessons on tuck and timing. With the power X has, he'd KO him and probably hold him from dropping on the ice.

 

[BozoTheClown]

Here is EXACTLY what I'm talking about....

Lucic is back and tucked....waiting for an opening and just knock the snot out of him...

That is not by accident, that is someone who has boxing lessons on tuck and timing. With the power X has, he'd KO him and probably hold him from dropping on the ice.

Lucic could also take a punch. Incredible jaw on the guy.

 

[Paradoxe]

With F. Xhekaj it's just going to be about pace. Can he be quick enough and react quick enough to be effective at the NHL level. I think he's gonna have a strong camp this fall, but he'll probably need another year in Laval.

I saw something similar with Heineman in the 2023-2024 season where the tools seemed to be there but the pace wasn't quite where it needed to be for the NHL. Florian, I think, is on a similar path to be effective in a bottom six role.

This! I think you nailed it.

 

[Paradoxe]

Arber did some boxing in the past, honestly I would prefer for him to spend the summer working on his D play so he can grab that 3rd LD spot and never let it go. He needs to be come good enough to play on PK2.

All that time lost with Laraque, poor decision, because when he came back he thought he was a tank.

Never ever again let one of the kids near Laraque!

 

[JJ68]

Here is EXACTLY what I'm talking about....

Lucic is back and tucked....waiting for an opening and just knock the snot out of him...

That is not by accident, that is someone who has boxing lessons on tuck and timing. With the power X has, he'd KO him and probably hold him from dropping on the ice.

im not sure what you are implying because I love X but Looch is from a different era where there were much tougher players in more quantity.

Even right now if Looch were in the NHL he'd be the top guy.

 

[Kimota]

Lucic could also take a punch. Incredible jaw on the guy.

Sometime I am wondering if that's not the key to be a good fighter. Because if you can take a punch, you're not afraid to get punched and so you don't spend all your energy in trying to not get punched. I noticed that when Jack came in the Habs he was going all out and that was his success throwing bombs. But at some point he seemed afraid to get punched and he spends too much trying to not get punched so it become like a wrestling match. And then he wants it to end quickly and throws the guy to the ground. And his brother is the same. I hope that is not BGL's influence. Because Jack was fine early on.

Don't get obsessed with preventing guys from hitting you, let them jab and then that lets you go all out to demolish them. Arber and Florian are big boys, they should be able to take a punch.

 

[BozoTheClown]

Sometime I am wondering if that's not the key to be a good fighter. Because if you can take a punch, you're not afraid to get punched and so you don't spend all your energy in trying to not get punched. I noticed that when Jack came in the Habs he was going all out and that was his success throwing bombs. But at some point he seemed afraid to get punched and he spends too much trying to not get punched so it become like a wrestling match. And then he wants it to end quickly and throws the guy to the ground. And his brother is the same. I hope that is not BGL's influence. Because Jack was fine early on.

Don't get obsessed with preventing guys from hitting you, let them jab and then that lets you go all out to demolish them. Arber and Florian are big boys, they should be able to take a punch.

Having a good jaw is definitely an advantage. Take a guy like Domi that was 4-6 inches shorter and 20-40 pounds lighter than many he fought and still ended up winning more than losing and it’s because he could take a punch. You can also look at Brian McGrattan’s fights and noticed how many punch he takes in some fights and still ended up the winner because he could take more damage. Compliment Lucic size and strength that was bigger and stronger than the average NHL player with a strong jaw and good fighting techniques and you have a scary man.

I wish Lucic and Laraque went at it just one time.

 

[Emkay]

Are you serious? Do you honestly believe the Caps players will have been scare of a 20 years kid?

This argument misses the whole point to be honest... The goal isn't to scare them into making them stop, these players just enable you to do the same. The Caps weren't bullying the Habs to stop them from retaliating, they just did it because it's hard to play against. You're not doing it to make them stop, you're just making your own team harder to play against.

 

[Tyson]

This argument misses the whole point to be honest... The goal isn't to scare them into making them stop, these players just enable you to do the same. The Caps weren't bullying the Habs to stop them from retaliating, they just did it because it's hard to play against. You're not doing it to make them stop, you're just making your own team harder to play against.

Exactly why guys like F Xhekaj have an important role that can't be diminished because they aren't top 6 players. You need Adam Lowry, Marcus Foligno types in order to build a winner.

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

Sometime I am wondering if that's not the key to be a good fighter. Because if you can take a punch, you're not afraid to get punched and so you don't spend all your energy in trying to not get punched. I noticed that when Jack came in the Habs he was going all out and that was his success throwing bombs. But at some point he seemed afraid to get punched and he spends too much trying to not get punched so it become like a wrestling match. And then he wants it to end quickly and throws the guy to the ground. And his brother is the same. I hope that is not BGL's influence. Because Jack was fine early on.

Don't get obsessed with preventing guys from hitting you, let them jab and then that lets you go all out to demolish them. Arber and Florian are big boys, they should be able to take a punch.

So you think Arber should willingly go out there and increase the odds of him getting injured in a fight????????? Do you also boo boxers for blocking of dodging punches?

This isn't the WWE and he doesn't fight for your entertainment value. He fights to stand up for his teammates and the best way to do that is to win fights and definitely to not risk getting knocked out. Are you not aware of the deaths/suicides from former NHL enforcers due to long term brain injuries and their attempts to mitigate/end the suffering? Arber can't come out of the gates like he did with Kassian in every fight or he absolutely will get severely knocked out sooner or later. Was it a fun, guilty pleasure for myself to see that? Yes, absolutely but to not be aware of the unnecessary risk and to advocate for that to be more common is to not at all understand what is actually happening there.

Fighting in hockey is and always has been stupid in the sense that the penalties are far too lenient and the narratives coming from the hockey fight advocates are cavemen level dumb. I am not saying that I do not love to watch a good scrap but I am aware that it is something that needs to be removed from the game and much more harshly punished when it does happen just as it is in other sports that are not sanctioned combat sports that don't take place on a surface made of ice with combatants who often do not have the proper training to protect themselves as well as the fact that they are wearing finely sharpened 12" blades on their feet.

Sorry if this sounds like I am coming at you too strong as that is not my intention. You may very well have a more nuanced opinion on the subject matter than I realize.....just reacting to this narrative in a more general sense as I have heard it many times before.

 

[rahad]

This argument misses the whole point to be honest... The goal isn't to scare them into making them stop, these players just enable you to do the same. The Caps weren't bullying the Habs to stop them from retaliating, they just did it because it's hard to play against. You're not doing it to make them stop, you're just making your own team harder to play against.

Do you believe Florian will have been capable of playing his playstyle of Hockey at the age of 20 in the NHL? It his his first season as a professional. Beck played 2 seasons in the OHL before playing in the AHL. He is one of the youngest player in Laval. Will he really have a impact with us playing 7-9mins?

He has not been recalled to play with us for the whole season. Do we know if he can keep up with NHL speed? Don't get me wrong, I love Florian and he would be perfect for us in the bottom 6. I just don't believe he is NHL ready(yet). We will see in the next camp. The gap of the AHL and NHL is huge. It would probably take him another year in the AHL to be ready for the NHL.

 

[Emkay]

Do you believe Florian will have been capable of playing his playstyle of Hockey at the age of 20 in the NHL? It his his first season as a professional. Beck played 2 seasons in the OHL before playing in the AHL. He is one of the youngest player in Laval. Will he really have a impact with us playing 7-9mins?

He has not been recalled to play with us for the whole season. Do we know if he can keep up with NHL speed? Don't get me wrong, I love Florian and he would be perfect for us in the bottom 6. I just don't believe he is NHL ready(yet). We will see in the next camp. The gap of the AHL and NHL is huge. It would probably take him another year in the AHL to be ready for the NHL.

Of course he'd have been capable of playing his style in the NHL, who the hell knows if it would've been effective or not at that level... but that wasn't the point I was trying to make anyway. If fact the actual point seems to have flown 6 feet over your head...

 

[HabsAddict]

The Rocket players need to be messured against AHL lifers that we are currently facing with the Checkers.

Anybody impressed by our boys? Unless there is a dramatic turnaround, nobody on the Rockets looks ready for NHL duty. Maybe emergency replacement, but certainly not ready to step into the NHL.

I like LX a lot. Love his game. But he's playing a very heavy game that is simply not NHL level. He's going to face a barrage of tough guys and fighters and likely lose. His record in the AHL in fights is a lot more average then most think, so stepping into NHL tough guys will be a problem.

Then we will have a situation where X feels like he needs to step in...and a circus erupts.

We NEED players like him, but it's not a straight path for LX to just jump into to the NHL.

 

[Tyson]

The Rocket players need to be messured against AHL lifers that we are currently facing with the Checkers.

Anybody impressed by our boys? Unless there is a dramatic turnaround, nobody on the Rockets looks ready for NHL duty. Maybe emergency replacement, but certainly not ready to step into the NHL.

I like LX a lot. Love his game. But he's playing a very heavy game that is simply not NHL level. He's going to face a barrage of tough guys and fighters and likely lose. His record in the AHL in fights is a lot more average then most think, so stepping into NHL tough guys will be a problem.

Then we will have a situation where X feels like he needs to step in...and a circus erupts.

We NEED players like him, but it's not a straight path for LX to just jump into to the NHL.

At least one more full season in the A for FX.