Shea Weber is a captain of the past, but the things he did for the Montreal Canadiens are immeasurable.
Nick Suzuki the current Habs captain, might not be what he is today without the things that he learned from Weber. Despite playing different positions, Weber displayed toughness and an IQ for the defensive side of the game that few could match. This rubbed off on many of the young players on the team.
But, to think that there may never be another player, in Montreal or the league that dominates the game defensively like Weber is pretty wild. Although he wasn't incredibly quick on his skates, his awareness and positioning allowed him to thrive and rarely get beat. He also impacted the game with a shot, that many feared because of the sheer ferociousness of it.
Shooting pucks through the net on the power play, then lining up to block shots on the top penalty kill tell you just how important Weber was to the team. He could guide, teach and thrive, doing so on a nightly basis. Zdeno Chara was feared because he was unmatched, and while Weber wasn't of the same stature, there are few who dominated at the same like Chara, but Weber is up there.
Who could do what Weber did?
In my eyes, I only see one player who could do what Weber does, impacting the game through all three zones. Arber Xhekaj comes to mind, and yes he is more mobile than Weber, but in Weber's heyday, he could move pretty smoothly for a big man. Xhekaj hasn't had the opportunity to shoot a lot of pucks, but he has a story where he puck the puck through the net just like Weber.
Weber did it with a slapshot, whereas Arber did it with a wrister, but the similarities go beyond the heavy shot. Xhekaj continues to carve a stout defensive game, but his physical attributes are eerily similar to those of Weber (6-foot-4 and 240 lbs), Weber might have been five pounds lighter. But Xhekaj defends with his positioning, smart defensive stick and if all else fails he hammers guys into the boards and skates off with the puck, sound familiar?
I'm not suggesting that Xhekaj will become a number-one shutdown defender, who will be relied on for all purposes. But I don't think that many other players present so many similarities to Weber, as Xhekaj does. If he can become half the player that Weber was, he will have a very successful and long career.