[Must Watch] Florian Xhekaj's mom's priceless reaction after debutant bloodies Dakota Mermis in no-holds barred brawl during fiery Habs-Leafs clash

Following his elder brother's footsteps, Florian Xhekaj dropped the mitts in his NHL debut for the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday in their 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 6'3'' winger also recorded an assist in the game, his ever point in the big leagues.

In the third period, with 5:34 left to play, Xhekaj got into a physical tangle with the Leafs' Dakota Mermis, following a scrum. The two traded several punches before it was halted by the referees.

As Xhekaj headed for the bench, hyping up the Bell Centre on the way, the cameras intercut between his brother, Arber Xhekaj, and parents, Simona Xhekaj and Jack Xhekaj's reaction. While his brother and father were pleased, his mother had little expression on her face. She later gave a slight shake of the head.

Simona Xhekaj has been very excited for her son's debut since he was called up from the Laval Rockets. She had posted a sweet motivational message after his debut was announced.

"How is one supposed to feel? Congratulations Flo. If you believe, you achieve. Dreams sure do come true. And yes, You bet I will see it with my own eyes," she had written on her X account on Thursday.

Simona Xhekaj, a former athlete herself, according to her X account, must have been proud of Florian earning his first point via an assist on Josh Anderson's goal in the second period that gave Montreal a 4-0 lead. He finished the game with a plus-one rating and had two shots on goal, while blocking one.

Florian Xhekaj makes feelings known about his NHL debut

Xhekaj has earned a reputation for a big physical presence while suiting for the Laval Rockets. Last season, he had 175 penalty minutes in 69 games of the regular season of the American Hockey League and a further 59 penalty minutes in 10 playoff games. For him, his debut, which contained a fight, made it memorable.

“That was awesome,” he said during his media scrum after the game on Saturday. “It was an unbelievable first game. I don’t think I could ask for a better first one. They (his teammates) were pretty fired up. I was fired up. It’s good to see that they liked it. It kind of fired up our bench; fired up our crowd. I had so much adrenaline.”

Despite his physical play, Xhekaj earned the call-up after scoring 35 points in 2024-25 with a plus-10 rating. He could be well used as a bottom-six forward by the Habs. They broke a five-game losing streak as a result.

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Edited by R. Nikhil Parshy