Petry: There's more to shooting than meets the eye

MONTREAL - Jeff Petry has always taken great pride in his shooting ability, but it wasn't until he firmly established himself in the NHL ranks that he could really hone it on a regular basis.

"Back in Junior and college, I thought it was really good. Then when I came to the NHL, I kind of put it on the back burner to focus on other things that I needed to do to stay there," explained Petry, who registered his first goal of the season in Tuesday night's win over the Calgary Flames at the Bell Centre, which also happened to be his 100th career point in a Habs uniform. "It's something that I got into again over the last few years - and getting power play time, knowing that I have to use the shot and get pucks to the net, I've started to work on it again."
That work certainly paid off when it came time for the 30-year-old defensemen to wind up and blast a one-timer past Flames goaltender David Rittich while the Canadiens were up a man.
The shot was an absolute howitzer that deflected off Rittich and into the back of the net.

Goals like that are a direct result of the time and effort Petry puts into fine-turning his shooting game during the offseason.
"Living five minutes from Orchard Lake [where Petry attended high school in Michigan], they have a couple of shooting rooms. I usually go up there or do it at the gym with the weighted pucks in the summer after a workout," said Petry, who scored a career-high 12 goals during the 2017-18 campaign. "I'd say at least two days a week I'm shooting off-ice just working on my shot. I try to shoot a lot of weighted pucks early on in the summer and then go to the regular ones as the season gets closer."

There's a lot more to shooting than simply letting pucks fly, of course.
"It's not always about the big slap shot. During the summer, I've worked with my power skating coach on walking the line and when that opening's there between two guys coming out, having a quick release," mentioned the Michigan State University grad. "I don't think it's gotten any harder over the years, I just think it's more about trusting it, using it and just shooting. It's about getting the shots off - the more you shoot, the more you're going to score or get chances from rebounds."

Captain Shea Weber has also been a good resource for the nine-year veteran to turn to for advice in the shooting department.
"When he was healthy, we were always taking one-timers together after practice. I was feeding him and he was feeding me," said Petry, who currently leads the Canadiens with seven assists and sits tied for first with eight points through eight games. "He knows tendencies and where to shoot on the goalie and kind of get a read on passes - where it's a short pass and you can go short side, or if it's a long pass and the goalie's going to be there, you can try to put it back the other way. He's been helpful with little tips like that."

The Ann Arbor, MI native has averaged a team-leading 23:32 of ice time per outing so far this season. He's also the Habs' most-utilized player on the power play, logging 4:48 of ice time per game.
Dan Petry honored in the Great Lakes State
On Sunday, Petry's father, Dan, was honored when Orchard Lake St. Mary's High School officially dedicated "Dan Petry Field."
The former major league pitcher and 1984 World Series champion serves as an assistant coach with the squad. His other son, Matt, is beginning his ninth season as head coach.

"That was something special for the family. He's been a big part of my brother's and my life around sports, and he dedicates a lot of time to the school," concluded Petry. "For them to give him that honor is special and I think everyone recognizes all the work he puts in and how much he loves the school."