There have been three main names involved in trade rumours for the Montreal Canadiens, and Jeff Petry hasn’t been one of them. Does that ever change?
Trade talk has mostly been around the forwards of the Montreal Canadiens. Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec, and Andrew Shaw, which is still a surprise to me, have been the harborers of the most buzz regarding player movement out of Montreal. The defence corps has been relatively safe from trade talk.
Granted some names have been thrown around in passing by frustrated fans, but no insider or analyst has strongly considered the Habs moving one of their blueliners. Victor Mete and Jakub Jerabek would be interesting pieces for other teams, but management would be foolish to play with the idea of moving either of them.
Additionally, Jordie Benn and David Schlemko have had okay seasons but not enough to justify a team giving up assets for them. Shea Weber is a story for another time considering a trade involving him may be difficult on the Habs end. Not for of lack of interest, but fit, especially on the financial side of things.
Which brings us to Jeff Petry. Is he being made available? If we keep to the idea that the only safe players on the team are Mete and Carey Price – and even that’s up for debate – it’s possible that Petry could be moved as well. However, I don’t think Marc Bergevin should jump at the chance to do it.
Like anything trade wise, it depends on the price. The 30-year-old has three more years left at $5.5 million. He’s also stepped up as the team’s top defenceman with the number of games Weber has missed this season. That being said, would management put themselves in that position again?
The whole season we’ve all identified that the Montreal Canadiens do not have enough skill and puck movement on the backend anymore. Most importantly, he’s a right-shot which is valued in top four defencemen nowadays. Ironically, that may make the urge to trade him even greater as teams are willing to pay above and beyond for that.
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Fans have their eye on Noah Juulsen who is growing every game in the AHL, but the Habs would be wise not to rush him. Perhaps management gets a second first round pick and their lucky enough to select a Noah Dobson who does it all on defence and also shoots right.
If Montreal wants to trade Petry, it would be wise to get a similar but younger player in return. However, if an organization already has something like that, then why move them? That was more of a rhetorical question.
Even if a young centre was offered, it may still not be wise to make the move. The Habs have traded from a position of weakness to address another weakness before, and it’s bitten them. Not every player on the roster needs to go. I agree that the bigger names are going to draw a lot of attention, but Petry may be one they keep safe.
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Should the Habs trade Petry? What would you want in return? Let us know in the comments below.