The Montreal Canadiens recalled defenseman Arber Xhekaj from the American League on Monday afternoon.
The 22-year-old Ontario native returned to form with the Laval Rocket starting December 6 after recovering from an upper body injury. The robust player shone in his first appearance at the farm club with 11 points in 17 games and 34 penalty minutes.
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Xhekaj played his last game with the Habs on November 16th, receiving a solid check from Ivan Barbashev of the Vegas Golden Knights. He was quite discreet in the scoring charts with three points in 17 games.
Earlier in the day, the Canadian announced he had traded defenseman Justin Barron to the Rockets and placed forward Mitchell Stephens' name on waivers.
The Bleu-Blanc-Rouge will face the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday evening.