Montreal Canadiens breakout stars READY for NHL Top 100 spots? Will Xhekaj cancel Xhekaj? Makar deal

Montreal Canadiens players surge into Top 100 NHLers conversation as breakout stars like Cole Caufield and Jakub Dobeš turn heads with standout performances. Are the Habs building the league’s next powerhouse? Laura Saba and Ian Boisvert spotlight Canadiens’ leap forward, dissect the inclusion of Nick Suzuki, Lane Hutson, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Ivan Demidov among the league’s elite, and debate fan perceptions versus national recognition.
 The discussion intensifies around the future of Arber Xhekaj—is his role now threatened by rising forward Florian Xhekaj? Salary cap mastery comes to the forefront as hosts compare Cale Makar’s record-setting $20.4M contract to Montreal’s cost-effective top line. Plus, could you build a winner with 2.2 Lane Hutsons or two prime Carey Prices instead of a single iconic superstar? Insightful, energetic, and Habs-focused, this episode sets the stage for the most exciting Montreal Canadiens season in decades. 00:00 Speculating NHL player contracts 04:44 Concern about Canadiens' prospect depth 07:58 Dobeš Breakout Season 10:53 Florian Xhekaj vs Arber Xhekaj 15:28 Discussing Florian Xhekaj’s NHL potential 16:06 Roster changes and training camp battles 20:15 Florida's expected response to Montreal 24:49 Cale Makar's impact on the team 26:48 Discussing Montreal Canadiens' challenges 31:45 Resigning Cale Makar for future success 33:32 Signing Key Players to Long-Term Deals 35:49 Wrap-up and listener thanks Photo credit: David Kirouac - Imagn Images Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms… 🎧 https://link.chtbl.com/LOCanadiens?sid=YouTube Locked On NHL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Prospects & More 🎧 https://linktr.ee/LockedOnNHL Find Locked On Canadiens anywhere:https://lintr.ee/LockedOnCanadiens Also make sure to follow Locked on Canadiens and their hosts on Bluesky! Locked on Canadiens: https://bsky.app/profile/lockedoncanadiens.bsky.social Find Ian on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/maybeitsian.bsky.social Find Laura on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theactivestick.bsky.social #NHLHockey #MontrealCanadiens #Habs #nhl #nationalhockeyleague #canadiensmtl #canadiens Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Indeed Now, you can speed up your hiring process with a $75 Sponsored Job Credit. Just go to https://indeed.com/podcast right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Terms and conditions apply. FanDuel College football Saturdays are already packed with reasons to get excited, and this season, FanDuel is giving fans even more ways to get in on every matchup. Join all the action at https://FANDUEL.COM FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.