Canadiens’ Florian Xhekaj out two weeks with lower-body injury

Tough news for one of Montreal’s young depth pieces.

On Friday, the Montreal Canadiens announced that forward Florian Xhekaj is going to be out for the next two weeks with a lower-body injury.

The team didn’t specify how the younger of the two Xhekaj brothers was hurt to begin with. However, after missing last Saturday’s shootout win against the Detroit Red Wings, the 22-year-old reportedly had noticeable pain in practice on Monday and left the ice early. He has since missed two more contests, which saw the Canadiens defeat the Buffalo Sabres in a shootout on Tuesday, before losing to the Washington Capitals, 5-4, the following night.

Xhekaj has appeared in just two games so far this season, but has yet to register a point. He has a plus/minus of -4 while averaging 7:36 of ice time per game.

The Hamilton, Ont. native first cracked the Habs lineup last season, appearing in five games and picking up his first NHL point, an assist in his first game with the big club in a win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Nov. 22. Xhekaj’s short tenure with the Canadiens saw him finish with a -1 rating, an average time on ice of 9:36 and seven penalty minutes – five of which came from a fight against the Maple Leafs’ Dakota Mermis in his NHL debut.

Most of Xhekaj’s professional career has been spent with the Canadiens’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Laval Rocket. Over two full seasons with the team, he has amassed 357 penalty minutes in the regular season, plus another 93 in the Calder Cup Playoffs. In 136 regular-season games with Laval, Xhekaj has posted 41 goals and 23 assists for 64 points, with another five points in 18 postseason contests.

Xhekaj is in the final season of his three-year, entry-level contract, which carries an NHL cap hit of $941,667.

The Canadiens (3-3-1) face off against the Sabres at the Bell Centre again on Saturday night.