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Arber Xhekaj of the Canadiens delivered a brutal cross-check to Sabres' Konsta Helenius during a chaotic play, which went unnoticed by many. This incident adds to Xhekaj's reputation for physicality in the ongoing Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj dished out nasty cross-check that no one saw on chaotic play to Sabres' Konsta Helenius originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Arber Xhekaj is almost certainly going to hear boos at every opportunity when the Montreal Canadiens return to Buffalo to take on the Sabres in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
It seems in every game, Xhekaj has gotten himself into the mix not with his play on the ice but with his brutal physicality.
He crushed Sam Carrick with a punch to the head at the end of Game 3.
His harshest moment in Game 4 may have been overlooked at the time, though.
It came on the play when Konsta Helenius went to the front of the net, Jack Quinn scored on a rebound after review, but then the refs affirmed a Montreal challenge for goalie interference that wiped out the goal.
Arber Xhekaj delivered a nasty cross-check to Sabres' Konsta Helenius during a chaotic play that many spectators did not see.
Xhekaj's physicality has drawn attention and likely will lead to boos from Sabres fans as the Canadiens continue their playoff series.
In addition to the cross-check on Helenius, Xhekaj also punched Sam Carrick in the head at the end of Game 3.

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Well while everyone was focused on the action in front of the net, Helenius was skating past the play when Xhekaj crushed him with a cross check to the back of his head.
Here's a look:
In some ways, that's just the cost of doing business in the crease.
In other ways, it's a bit much, and if the referees had seen it, it may not have gone unpunished.
Xhekaj is out there to be that player for Montreal. He's their sixth of six active defensemen, and he doesn't get as many shifts as the rest. When he takes the ice, he's supposed to hit people. That's certainly what he does.