Iwas very surprised Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis decided to make Arber Xhekaj a healthy scratch for Thursday night’s 4-2 win over the Penguins in Pittsburgh.

Xhekaj logged a season-high 16:01 of ice time in Tuesday night’s 6-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Bell Centre and wasn’t on the ice for any goals against. I thought Jayden Struble would sit out to make room for Adam Engstrom after he struggled against the Lightning, finishing the game minus-2.

Xhekaj had been playing with more confidence over his last five games and said he had stopped playing with a fear of making mistakes. It reminded me of Victor Mete’s comments after the Ottawa Senators claimed him off waivers from the Canadiens in 2021, saying it was hard for young defencemen when the coach is always “breathi

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