Canadiens: What To Expect From David Reinbacher
This should be the year David Reinbacher makes the Montreal Canadiens’ roster, and if all goes according to plan, he should play an important role in the end.
Video Transcript
The Canadians still have some restricted free agents, left to deal with this off season, so Zach Bolduc, Arber Xhekaj, Sasha Pastujov.
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I mean, of all of those guys, Corinne, what do you think that the Habs should do with these remaining RFAs?
Because time’s ticking here.
Well, the most interesting case if you ask me is Arber Xhekaj, and what’s interesting about this situation is that there’s interest for him around the league.
He can bring a lot to a team.
He’s got a big physicality factor, but Martin St-Louis just doesn’t trust him.
So you know, when he played in the playoffs, there was one game, I think, against Buffalo where he played under two minutes.
I mean, that’s, that’s not great.
And Xhekaj could actually have filed for arbitration this summer, but he elected not to.
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By choosing not to go for arbitration, he left himself open for offer sheets, and I think that’s a way of saying, “I’d like a new beginning elsewhere,” because he’s not really getting a chance in Montreal.
He’s been there in a duel with Kaiden Guhle for years now, and Adam Engstrom is inviting himself to the table now.
So I think for Montreal, the smart thing to do in considering the coach isn’t trusting Xhekaj much would be to actually trade him, to get something in return, because it, it’s not a sustainable situation.
And his agent was on TSN 690 the other day saying, “At the end of the day, the Canadiens will do what’s best for the Canadiens, and Arber Xhekaj will do what’s best for Arber Xhekaj.”
And for a 25-year-old guy, I don’t think staying put and being the seventh defenseman i- is what’s best for you, so.
