Who is more NHL ready now, Arber Xhekaj or Logan Mailloux?

Who is more NHL ready now, Arber Xhekaj or Logan Mailloux?

Written by Fred Arshoff

Edited by Judy Pitcher

Research by J D Lagrange

Photo Merge by Marlene Wall

First of all before diving into this article thanks are due to three people. I’ll start with my editor Judy Pitcher for her excellent editing of my articles. I’d also like to thank J D Lagrange for his research for article and last but certainly not least Marlene Wall for her excellent photo merges when needed. A tip of my hat to the three of you.

I decided to write this article as several people were discussing who is more NHL ready right now. I always like to give my point of view in an article where I can also submit data to show my reasons.

First of all, I feel Logan Mailloux will be a better defenseman than Xhekaj, long term. In the 2021 NHL Entry Draft Mailloux was selected in the 1st round at 31st overall by GM Marc Bergevin. Arber Xhekaj was undrafted and signed as a Free Agent in the 2021-22 season by Marc Bergevin. A 1st round pick is normally better than an undrafted player and we are looking at the same year as well.

When looking at playing experience and development, we must take into account that Mailloux was suspended for the entire 2021-22 season. While Arber Xhekaj played for the Hamilton Bulldogs of the OHL, this gained him a year of development.

During the 2022-23 season Xhekaj played 51 games with the HABS, this gave him NHL experience and development. In the same season Mailloux played 59 games with the London Knights of the OHL. I won’t go into statistics as they are two very different levels of play. Mailloux was older, bigger and most likely stronger than his opponents. I don’t like the idea of trying to compare apples to oranges.

Now let’s look at the 2023-24 season where Mailloux has played the entire 32 games with the Laval Rocket. Xhekaj played 17 games with the HABS prior to getting injured. Upon returning off IR, Xhekaj was loaned to the Rocket where he has since played 12 games.

Let’s look at some stats based on play with the Laval Rocket so we are comparing apples to apples. Arber Xhekaj has 3G 7A 10Points in 12 GP and is a +3. Logan Mailloux is a season -7 and is a +4 in his last 12 games. Arber Xhekaj has as many points as Trudeau(30GP), Condotta(31GP), Andersson(16GP). He is 2pts behind Stephens(16GP) and 3pts behind Kidney(18GP). He is a defenseman, remember. Presently, I feel if a call-up is needed, it should be Xhekaj due to his NHL experience. Long term, I still feel Mailloux will develop into a better defenseman than Xhekaj.

JUDY’S THOUGHTS

I disagree with Fred, prior to Arber Xhekaj being loaned to Laval, Logan Mailloux was a defensive liability with a -7 stat. His improved play has coincided with his being paired with Xhekaj. Since then he is a +4 and Arber Xhekaj is a +3. Just because Xhekaj was undrafted does not mean he is a player with less value. Remember Hall of Famer and Coach Martin St Louis was UNDRAFTED. There are often diamonds in the rough and we know that Arber Xhekaj has a very strong work ethic and stands up for his team mates. So to automatically discount his talent and value is in my opinion a disservice to the player. Also, remember Marc Bergevin picked BOTH players, so he obviously saw something in Arber. Also, during the HABS 2021 playoff run we had the “4 Clydesdales”, 4 big, hard-hitting defensemen who could also score goals when needed. I don’t see that with our young defense core at the moment. Every team that goes far in the playoffs has those types of players. The kids play bigger and with more confidence when Xhekaj is there, because they know he has their backs and they won’t get pushed around, as is currently happening.

Kent Hughes made the right draft pick when he selected Juraj Slafkovsky

Kent Hughes made the right draft pick when he selected Juraj Slafkovsky

Written by Fred Arshoff

Edited by Judy Pitcher

Research by J D Lagrange

Photo Merge by Marlene Wall

DISCLAIMER

This article was written in the morning of January 6, 2024, so any stats that occurred that night are not included.

have to thank three people for their help on this article. First my editor Judy Pitcher for her excellent editing of my articles. Second, thanks to J D Lagrange for the stats to back me up. Last but not least Marlene Wall for the excellent photo merge on such short notice. A tip of my hat to you, Judy, J D and Marlene.

I decided to write this article after seeing stats posted by J D Lagrange.

Even before I felt Kent Hughes made the right choice. I’d like to explain why. Before seeing the stats when Shane wright was drafted, it appeared to me that he had an attitude problem.No professional team needs a player with an attitude issue. You have to play as a team and win or lose as a team.

In the 2022-23 season, in the only game he played against the HABS, gave the team the “FINGER” after scoring his only goal. That made me even happier that the HABS didn’t pick him up as the 1st overall. If his attitude problem is due to his agent telling him how great he is, I don’t know nor will we ever find out. Wright was passed over by 3 teams going 4th overall to the Seattle Kraken It seems they felt his stats weren’t all that met the eye, there were issues with him.

At the draft the HABS did have sports psychologists ask Wright the hard questions to gage his attitude and see where he sees himself down the road. The HABS do that to many of the players, as attitude is important. That’s what I like about the HABS, they are looking at more than the data(analytics) but, all aspects of the player.

In the 2022-23 season after 8 games the Seattle Kraken sent Wright to the Coachella Valley Firebirds in the AHL where he played another 8 games before being sent back down to the Windsor Spitfires who had his OHL rights. He was then loaned to Team Canada for the WJC where he scored 4 goals 3 assists for 7 points in 7 games. With the Windsor Spitfires his stats picked up, he scored 15 goals 22 assists for 37 points in 20 games. In 11 NHL games since his draft, Wright has scored 1 goal 1 assist for 2 points. GM Kent Hughes chose not to lend Juraj Slafkovsky to Team Slovakia for the WJC, feeling his development was better served staying in the HABS line-up. Juraj Slafkovsky has 8 goals 16 assists for 24 points in his 77 NHL games.

Although, not the best numbers, his play has greatly improved and his numbers are picking up since being put on the line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. I felt that although he was a rookie last season, he should have been on a top line, as he is a top line player. What I liked last season was even when he was playing on a lower line and not getting much ice-time, he never complained, which came out in the Media.

Now let’s compare Wright’s numbers to players on the Laval Rocket, the HABS AHL affiliate. Wright is currently playing for the Coachella Valley Firebirds, the Seattle Kraken’s AHL affiliate. So here we will compare apples to apples. Shane Wright, the guy many HABS fans wanted with the #1 overall pick, instead of Juraj Slafkovsky, has 18 points in the AHL. MEANWHILE….

Joshua Roy: 27 points Logan Mailloux: 19 points -Xavier Simoneau: 17 points -Sean Farrell: 16 points

I feel Kent Hughes made the right choice in picking Juraj Slafkovsky, which will help the HABS in the long term with out the attitude issues.

I’d also like to wish Juraj Slafkovsky the best of luck in his long future with the HABS.

Judy’s thoughts

think Wright’s attitude issues are go back further than his agent. For most of his life he was told he was exceptional, even getting “EXCEPTIONAL STATUS” at 15 to move up and play junior for the OHL Kingston Frontenacs. For years before his draft year he was told he would be the #1 draft pick. When he wasn’t picked first his attitude did not improve.

Emil Heineman recalled by HABS on January 5, 2024

Emil Heineman recalled by HABS on January 5, 2024

Written by Fred Arshoff

Edited by Judy Pitcher

DISCLAIMER

This article was written on January 5, 2024 before the HABS announced the January 6, 2024 line-up changes.

As many of you may have heard late Friday morning January 5, 2024 the HABS have recalled Emil Heineman from the Laval Rocket on an emergency basis. This means he can be loaned back to the Rocket once the HABS have a full compliment of players. The HABS were short a forward when Christian Dvorak suffered a season ending injury. Dvorak will undergo surgery on January 6, 2024. As soon as Dvorak got injured the first thing that came to mind was to recall Heineman from the Rocket , as they did on December 13, 2023 due to injuries to the HABS forwards.

For more information on the December 13, 2023 call-up, please see my article at: https://montrealsportsblog.wordpress.com/2023/12/21/why-emil-heineman-was-called-up-and-not-joshua-roy//  

During his call-up he played very well and made no mistakes. While up with the HABS he played in 2 games and although he had no points, he was a +1, to me that’s a key factor. In his 10 games with Laval this season (he missed games due to injury) he was a +7, showing he is a consistent plus player.

Right from Dvorak getting injured, I didn’t like the 11 forwards 7 defensemen formation Martin St Louis was employing, instead of calling up a forward. Going with this formation, players often lose chemistry with their line mates. If a player is double shifted, you have to wait longer to get ice-time and you lose the rhythm of the game. For defensemen working with the same partner, you know what they will do in any given situation but, changing defense partners might mean taking a second or two to anticipate what they will be doing. That two second adjustment could lead to a 2-on-1 or a breakaway. It’s always best in my opinion to maintain the same forward lines and defensive pairings, to keep everyone in sync.

With the call-up of Emil Heineman, I believe Johnathan Kovacevic becomes a healthy scratch, unless another defenseman gets injured or is ill on game day.

I’d like to wish Emil Heineman the best of luck on this call-up and the best of luck in his future NHL career, hopefully all with the HABS.

SOURCE

Emil Heineman STATS

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/emil-heineman#:~:text=Emil%20Heineman’s%20salary%20is%20%24925%2C000,16%2C%202001.

When will Arber Xhekaj be recalled by the HABS?

When will Arber Xhekaj be recalled by the HABS?

Written by Fred Arshoff

Edited and Researched by Judy Pitcher

First of all I’d like to thank my editor Judy Pitcher for her always excellent editing of my articles and her research on the NCAA defensemen on the HABS roster. A tip of my hat to you, Judy.

I decided to write this article, as Martine McGuire and many others on social media are asking, “When will Arber Xhekaj be recalled by the HABS?” I’ll give my point of view, as I always do, in the form of an article so everyone knows my thoughts.

As most of you know by now the HABS loaned Arber Xhekaj to the Laval Rocket when he came off the IR list on December 4, 2023. 

For more information on this, please see my article at: https://montrealsportsblog.wordpress.com/2023/12/14/arber-xhekaj-loaned-to-the-laval-rocket-on-december-4-2023/

When the HABS loaned Xhekaj to the Rocket after he returned from injury, they spoke to him about certain aspects of his game they wanted him to improve upon. Of course that information was not made available to the Media. My guess is they wanted him to be more disciplined, as in the 17 games he played before he was injured, he had 47 minutes in penalties. Xhekaj’s other stats were quite good, he had 1 goal 2 assists for 3 points and was a +1 and you do want your defensemen to be on the plus side.

Let’sbe honest, every time he takes a penalty without taking an opposition player with him, he leaves the team playing shorthanded. Chances are the team’s most offensive players won’t be on the ice, thus losing goal scoring. I do like the way he sticks up for his team mates and is not afraid to drop the gloves to do so. What I don’t like is all those penalties, especially if he isn’t taking an opposing player with him.

He lost his job when the HABS started getting injuries on defense. First, Justin Barron, who had been the 7th defenseman, was pressed into service and has played well and does not deserve to be taken out of the line-up. Then when other injuries to defensemen occurred, including Xhekaj’s, HABS called up Jayden Struble whose play has exceeded everyone’s expectation. There is no way to send Struble back to Laval after the way he as been playing, without risking him losing his confidence.

What I feel will be needed for Xhekaj to be recalled to the HABS would be another rash of injuries to the defensemen . With the return of Harris that made Johnathan Kovacevic the 7th and Gustav Lindstrom the 8th defenseman. I do feel that Arber Xhekaj is a better defenseman than Lindstrom.

The HABS may wish to have Xhekaj playing major minutes in Laval to learn to be more disciplined and continue his development, as he is only in his 2nd year as a professional player.

I’m not sure if it is a coincidence that several players in the HABS defense core all played in the NCAA prior to turning professional. Players like Mike Matheson, Johnathan Kovacevic, Jordan Harris and Jayden Struble all had their start in the NCAA, with both Jordan Harris and Jayden Struble being team mates at Northeastern. Arber Xhekaj wa an undrafted defenseman with the Hamilton Bulldogs of the OHL prior to being signed by the HABS. I don’t know if GM Kent Hughes or Coach Martin St Louis have a preference for players from the NCAA.

At the end of the 2023-24 season Arber Xhekaj becomes an RFA.

SOURCE

ARBER XHEKAJ stats

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/arber-xhekaj

JUDY’S THOUGHS

Although I like Justin Barron, I feel he has been a defensive liability, making mistakes and causing turnovers in his own end. He is good offensively but often gets caught up in the opposing team’s end when a puck gets turned over and can’t get back in time to defend his part of the ice, leaving one defenseman to defend our end of the ice. Also, since Arber has been away other teams are pushing around our players mercilessly with no one standing up for them. When Slaf got hit on Thursday night no one took on Noesen, except Caufield. Where was the pushback? We need Xhekaj, because even when he doesn’t fight, other teams don’t take such liberties with our players. Our players play bigger when they know Xhekaj has their six!

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Laval Rocket sign Kasimir Kaskasuo to a PTO

Laval Rocket sign Kasimir Kaskasuo to a PTO

Written by Fred Arshoff

Edited by Judy Pitcher

First of all I’d like to thank my editor Judy Pitcher for her always excellent editing of my articles. A tip of my hat hat to you, Judy.

DISCLAIMER

This article was written prior to the Laval Rocket game on Friday December 22, 2023. Thus, stats for that game are not included in this article.

For those who may not have heard, on Monday December 18, 2023 the Laval Rocket signed Finnish goaltender Kasimir Kaskasuo to a PTO(professional try-out) contract.

In some ways I was surprised by this and in other ways I wasn’t.

I was surprised because since becoming GM of the HABS and Rocket, Kent Hughes has not given out any PTO’s for Laval. The reason I wasn’t surprised is that the goaltending in Laval has been very bad this season. Although, you can’t put all the blame on goalies Jakub Dobes(under HABS contract) or Strauss Mann.

The Laval forwards haven’t been doing all they could to help defend their end of the ice and causing many turnovers and give-a-ways.

What lead to Laval needing a goalie?

Last season the Rocket had two experienced goalies in Cayden Primeau(now playing with the HABS) and Kevin Poulin who has since retired. An experienced goalie can often overcome mistakes made by a young defense corp, but two young goalies with relatively no professional hockey experience have a difficult time covering up those errors in their own end. Besides Jakub Dobes and Strauss Mann, the Rocket also have Joe Vrbetic.Although Vrbetic is under an AHL contract with Laval, he has played most of this season with the Trois Rivieres Lions of the ECHL. In the few games Vrbetic has played in Laval he looked shakey. I’m sure that if Hockey Operations thought Vrbetic could solve the Laval goalie problem, he would have been promoted.

Let’s look at the goalie stats this season, although as I said, all the bad numbers aren’t solely on the goalies themselves. I’ll start with Jakub Dobes, so far this season he has a GAA 3.83 and a SV% 0,886 in 16 games. He has also been pulled from several games after giving up 5 goals in under 2 periods

Now, let’s look at Strauss Mann, he has a GAA 3.67 and a SV% 0.879 in 14 games. There has also been several games where he has been pulled after giving up 6+ goals.

What does Kasimir Kaskasuo bring to the Laval Rocket?

Kasimir Kaskasuo is a 30 year old Finnish goaltender who was undrafted in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. What he brings to Laval is experience.In 2014-15 he played for the University of Minnesota-Duluth of the NCAA, he had a GAA 2.30 and a SV% 0.917 in 36 games. The following season, again with Minnesota-Duluth he had a GAA 1.92 and a SV%0.923 in 39 games. His AHL experience has been with the Toronto Marlies the Toronto Maple Leafs’ affiliate. In the 2018-19 season with the Marlies he had a GAA 3.07 and a SV% 0.896 in 30 games. In 2019-20, again with the Marlies, he had a GAA 2.79 and a SV% 0.909 in 27 games. In 2019-20 he also played 1 game in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs where he had a GAA 6.00 and a SV% 0.842 but in 2020-21 he again played 1 game in the NHL this time with the Nashville Predators where he had a GAA 0.00 and a SV% 1.00. In 2021-22 he returned to Finland where he played with Leksand IF of the SHL where he had a GAA 2.64 and a SV% 0.910 in 46 games. In 2022-23 he continued to play for Leksand IF where he had a GAA 3.30 and a SV% 0.880.

I will admit he is still a project to work on, but a team can never have too many goalies.

SOURCES

Jakub Dobes STATS

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/jakub-dobes

Strauss Mann STATS

https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/288166/strauss-mann 

Kasimir Kaskasuo STATS

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/kasimir-kaskasuo#:~:text=The%20contract%20has%20a%20cap%20hit%20of%20%24675%2C000 

Judy’s Source – Kasimir Kaskasuo

https://www/eliteprosects.com/player/kasimir-kaskasuo.

Why Emil Heineman was called up to the HABS and not Joshua Roy

Why Emil Heineman was called up to the HABS and not Joshua Roy

Written by Fred Arshoff

Edited by Judy Pitcher

First of all I would like to thank my editor Judy Pitcher for her editing of this and all previous articles. A tip of my hat hat to you Judy.

DISCLAIMER

This article was written before tonight’s game in Minnesota, as it appears that Emil Heineman will draw in to play. 

I decided to write this article, as several people on social media were surprised and didn’t understand why the HABS called up Emil Heineman and not Joshua Roy. As always I prefer to answer in the form of an article, so everyone knows my thoughts. Right off the top I will say, I feel this was the right call-up at this time and where he may end up playing if dressed for a game.

For those who may not recall on December 13, 2023 the HABS called up Emil Heineman after announcing that Tanner Pearson would be put on IR after sustaining a hand injury.

Examining the situation, we see that with the exception of Kirby Dach, all the HABS forwards’ injuries are to third line players.So to replace a third line player, it is best to call up a third line player.

The third line is usually a team’s checking line used to shutdown opponent’s top forward lines.

Since Emil Heineman has been with the Laval Rocket, he has been playing on the third line. The only time Heineman has played on a first line was during the HABS training camp, where he played beside Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. This entire season with Laval Joshua Roy has played on the top forward line, that is where goals are supposed to come from.

Let’s look at the plus/minus stat for each player this season while with Laval, so we are comparing apples to apples and not apples to oranges.

In 7 games with Laval Heineman, who missed games due to injury, is a -6. However, in 25 games with the Rocket Roy is a -16. If you are looking for a player to play on a shutdown line, you need a player who is better defensively. From these stats we clearly see Heineman is the better defensive player. If the HABS were looking for offensive production, then definitely call up Joshua Roy.

The only drawback for Heineman at the moment, is since being called up, he has been a healthy scratch, thus slowing down his development. I do understand what Martin St Louis is doing, you don’t change your line-up after winning games and hope it doesn’t change the team chemistry. For Joshua Roy staying in Laval where he plays top minutes continues his development.

Although we do want to see Joshua Roy playing with the HABS at some point, Kent Hughes made the right decision with this call up.

SOURCES

Emil Heineman called up after Tanner Pearson injury

https://montrealgazette.com/sports/hockey/nhl/hockey-inside-out/canadiens-recall-emil-heineman-put-tanner-pearson-on-ir 

EMIL HEINEMAN STATS

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/emil-heineman

JOSHUA ROY STATS

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/joshua-roy

HABS Top Goalie prospect Jacob Fowler

HABS Top Goalie prospect Jacob Fowler

Written by Fred Arshoff

Edited by Judy Pitcher

I

First of all many thanks to my editor Judy Pitcher for her excellent editing of this and all previous articles. A tip of my hat to you, Judy.

I decided to write this article as at the age of just 19, Jacob Fowler has already shown so much potential. I believe he will be the HABS starting goalie in a few years.

Jacob Fowler was born on November 4, 2004 in Melbourne, Florida, USA. He is 6’2″(187cm) and weighs 206lbs(93.4kg), he is a goalie that catches left. Fowler was drafted by HABS GM Kent Hughes in the 3rd round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft at 69th overall.

Presently, Fowler is not under contract with the HABS but is on their reserve list.Fowler plays in the NCAA for Boston University. The NCAA rules say that no player can have any income from the sport they play, thus he is unable to attend the rookie camps until he has left Boston University. He can attend the development camp which usually occurs immediately after the NHL draft but must pay for it on his

So far this 2023-24 season in the NCAA at Boston University he has very impressive stats. He has a GAA 2.04 and SV% 0.930 in 13 games. Fowler’s record as of November 25, 2023 is 10-2-1. He also performs well under pressure, while playing in the USHL his GAA 1.36 and SV% 0.952 in 9 playoff games.

Personally, I can’t wait to see him play for the HABS in a few years once he is fully developed. Let’s remember that goalies usually take longer to develop than other players.

SOURCE

JACOB FOWLER STATS

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/jacob-fowler