NHL Rumors: Florida Panthers Interested In Veteran Defenseman

According to Pierre LeBrun, the Florida Panthers are interested in Montreal Canadiens defenseman Ben Chiarot.

Chiarot is viewed as one of the better rental candidates for this season's trade deadline. The 30-year-old has one year remaining on his contract and Montreal is already way out of playoff contention - as their 7-23-7 record shows. When seeing as how the Panthers could use an upgrade on the left side of their defense, it makes sense that they'd be interested in him.

Chiarot is a veteran defenseman who just had a lengthy playoff run with the Canadiens this past season. It's been a year of ups and downs for him this campaign, though. In 31 games, he has five goals and two assists. With that, he has a minus-11 rating, but Montreal's struggles as a collective unit certainly has a played a role in that.

The Panthers won't be the only team in on Chiarot, as many others would also benefit from adding a 6'3" defenseman who plays a physical game. Whether he ends up in Florida or elsewhere, don't be surprised to see him moved soon.