A Brotherhood Unites with the Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1 in a shootout in their pre-season opener Monday night. However, Tuesday night, the Habs faithful got to see the Xhekaj brothers, Arber and Florian, suit up in the same jersey for the first time.
It was a special night for the Xhekaj family. Their mom, Simona Xhekaj, made sure not to miss it, sharing a picture on X of her driving into Montreal ahead of the game.
A special night called for a special moment. Younger brother Florian snapped home his first of the pre-season halfway through the opening period to make it 2-0 Montreal.
Florian’s offense has developed significantly. He set a franchise rookie record with the Laval Rocket in the AHL last season with 24 goals, and became the first AHL rookie since the 2013-14 season to record 20 or more goals and accumulate 150 or more penalty minutes in a single season.
Of course, like his older brother, he’s known for his physically abrasive style of play, so it wasn’t all that surprising to see him drop the gloves with NHL heavyweight Nicholas Deslauriers. Although I’m sure Mama Simona would have rather seen her son choose a lesser combatant.
Arber also got in on the physical action in the second period, mixing it with Philadelphia Flyers forward Rodrigo Abols, but unfortunately, he took an extra roughing penalty on the altercation, and Philadelphia scored on the ensuing powerplay.
Montreal won the hockey game 4-2, with Arber sealing the game with an empty-netter. What a night for the Xhekaj family. Brothers united together in the same jersey for the first time, and both get on the scoresheet with goals.
The Xhekaj brothers are products of the OHL, and both spent time with the Bulldogs organization.
Arber spent three seasons in the league, spending most of his time with the Kitchener Rangers, recording 317 penalty minutes in 183 combined regular season and playoff games in his OHL tenure.
The Bulldogs acquired the big, rugged blueliner to aid them in…
