The Montreal Canadiens have signed forward Florian Xhekaj, the younger brother of defenseman Arber Xhekaj, to a three-year entry-level contract.
The 19-year-old (who turns 20 on 27 June 2024) finished the season with 34 goals and 65 points in 63 games for the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Brantford Bulldogs this season. He also added five points in six playoff games. Throughout his two-year OHL career, he scored 47 goals and 90 points. Brantford was eliminated from the playoffs over the weekend, which allows Xhekaj to join the American Hockey League (AHL) Laval Rocket for the stretch run to the playoffs.
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Xhekaj went unselected in his first year of NHL Draft eligibility in 2022. He then joined the Bulldogs for the 2022-23 season as they moved from his hometown of Hamilton, Ontario, to Brantford. He proved enough that season to impress the Canadiens enough to want to select him with one of their fourth-round picks at 101st overall. In a behind-the-scenes video of a scouting meeting ahead of the 2023 NHL Draft in Nashville, Nick Bobrov — the co-director of amateur scouting — described Florian as a “unicorn” and added: “To me, I’d personally like to walk away with that guy.” Considering that Xhekaj was an “overager” at the time, it’s clear from the video that they saw Arber’s younger brother as a steal at that ranking and were certain the younger Xhekaj would not be available past the 101st pick.
At 6-foot-2 and 175 pounds, Florian has NHL size. He is also a player who thrives in physical contests, much like his older brother. His 34-goal season is evidence of two things: his strong shot and ability to crash the net and score in tightly contested spaces. Florian will need time before making his way to the NHL to become the first pair of brothers to dress for Montreal since Andrei and Sergei Kostitsyn did so in the 2009-10 season. Montreal continues to build for the future, looking to add size and grit to their lineup, and when his bloodlines are taken into consideration, it’s a low-risk move, especially with a fourth-round pick.
Xhekaj is only the second member of the 2023 draft class, after David Reinbacher, to sign an entry-level contract with Montreal. Florian is now signed to an amateur tryout (ATO) contract and is slated to join the Laval Rocket for the remainder of the 2023-24 season. His entry-level deal with the Canadiens will take effect in 2024-25. His arrival to Laval comes at an opportune time for both the player and the team, as Laval is in a hard-fought race for the fifth and final playoff spot in the AHL North Division. His arrival brings scoring depth, size and grit that the team has needed to help earn their third consecutive playoff appearance.