While he’s best known for laying out hits and intimidating opponents, Montreal Canadiens defenceman Arber Xhekaj’s shot is among the hardest in the NHL.
The 22-year-old’s bomb was on full display at the Canadiens’ annual skills competition on Sunday as he blew his teammates out of the water with a slapper clocking in at 107.2 miles per hour.
OUFFF
đź’Ą 107,2 mph #GoHabsGo | @RONAinc pic.twitter.com/Mt5MZ9BMex
— Canadiens MontrĂ©al (@CanadiensMTL) February 25, 2024
And after earning the bragging rights of his own locker room, it seem like Xhekaj’s got his eyes set on the history books, specifically former NHLer Zdeno Chara’s record of the hardest recorded shot in NHL history.
Back at the 2012 All-Star Game, the 6-foot-9 Boston Bruins captain blasted the puck 108.8 mph into the open net.
When asked if he sees himself one day surpassing Chara, Xhekaj told reporters that it’s “the next step.”
“I didn’t know I could get that close to him,” he said Sunday. “But I shot 107 which is pretty good so that’s the next step.”
While few were expecting the Hamilton native’s shot to be in that calibre, he admitted that the score was a surprise to him as well.
“I knew I could beat 100 [MPH] but I didn’t know I could get that high,” Xhekaj added. “When I got 105 [MPH] before that I thought that was the max I could get, but I guess not.”
Unfortunately, Xhekaj would need an All-Star nod of his own to have a legitimate shot at the NHL record books, as individual team competitions aren’t recognized as official league events.
If they were, Xhekaj’s clapper would rank third all-time next to Chara and ex-Canadiens captain Shea Weber, who came close to the top prize with an impressive 108.1 mph effort back in 2015.
In the meantime, he might want to go a little easier on Montreal’s goalies during practice.
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