Jeff Petry drawing strong interest from teams around the NHL

The National Hockey League's trade deadline is exactly six weeks away and talks are expected to heat up over the next couple of weeks. One name that has been in the rumour mill is Montreal Canadiens defenceman Jeff Petry, who according to some insiders, has requested a trade.

During an appearance on TSN690 radio in Montreal, Darren Dreger said that there is a strong market for the 34-year-old.

"There is a strong market for Jeff Petry. I keep getting asked about him by some clubs with interest. Because they're looking at Jeff Petry and the body of work. They're thinking back to his influence in helping Montreal to the Stanley Cup Final last year and less so about the games, the shifts where he hasn't been nearly as good this year and at time has been vilified," Dreger said.

He added, "When I look at the available players, of course Ben Chiarot with an expiring contract, your unrestricted free agents are definitely going to draw interest. I'm not as surprised as many might be at the amount of interest initially there is right now in Jeff Petry."

The Ann Arbor, Michigan native has looked a fraction of what he has been over the last four years. After four straight years of 40+ points, Petry's production has significantly dropped as he's only put up six points (one goal, five assists) in 37 games this season.

Other than Petry, Ben Chiarot, Artturi Lehkonen, Brett Kulak, Chris Wideman and possibly even Mathieu Perreault are strong contenders to be dealt by 3pm ET on Monday, March 21st.

The Canadiens will be one of the busiest teams over the next six weeks as newly-hired general manager Kent Hughes will look to put his fingerprint on the organization and start building for the future.

Source: TSN 690 (begins at 4:37 mark)

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