Montreal Canadiens Call Up Defenseman

The Montreal Canadiens have called up Arber Xhekaj to their NHL roster.

Xhekaj was recently sent down to the AHL due to salary cap reasons, but with Paul Byron's placement on LTIR, it opened up the space for Xhekaj to get called back up to the NHL. The 21-year-old had a very impressive training cap, so it isn't surprising to see him get a chance with the Canadiens. The 6-foot-4, 238-pound d-man will provide Montreal with far more toughness and grit. That's never a bad thing for a rebuilding squad.

Xhekaj spent this past season with the Hamilton Bulldogs, where he had six goals to go along with 11 assists in 33 games. Let's see what the Hamilton native does as a Canadien from here.

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