from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

The 28-year-old Slovak had 44 points last season, although this season he has only 18 points in 52 games on a Carolina Hurricanes team that’s near the bottom of the standings.

He’s also a left-handed blueliner, and a few of the playoff-bound clubs are more focused on a right-handed shot. That’s where the Edmonton Oilers' Jeff Petry comes into the picture.

Petry had played much better over the past month and his stock certainly rises with Franson -- another right-handed shot -- already dealt.

My guess is Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish would like to get a second-round pick plus another asset in return for Petry. Whether he’ll get his price met will be determined over the next two weeks. But you can bet that some of the teams who struck out on Franson are now circling back to Edmonton on Petry.

Zbynek Michalek, 32, is also right-handed and he’s another pending UFA blueliner who's going to be dealt before the March 2 deadline by the Arizona Coyotes.

read on