Defenseman Karl Alzner is generating interest from many teams ahead of the July 1st free agency. The Vancouver Canucks, Chicago Blackhawks, Dallas Stars, and Toronto Maple Leafs are all rumored to have been interested in Alzner.

Now it seems that the Montreal Canadiens are interested the Burnaby, British Columbia native and the longtime Caps defenseman has an interest back.

In a phone interview with the Journal de Montreal, Alzner elaborated on his plans on July 1.

“I’m interested, really interested in the Canadiens,” Alzner said the Journal as translated by friend of the blog Kelly Swor. “We will talk to Bergevin. I can not deny that.”

Last summer, the Canadiens made the shocking trade of PK Subban for Shea Weber. Throughout the season, Weber was paired with Andrei Markov who is seeking a new contract this offseason, Alexei Emelin who was picked by Vegas in the expansion draft, and Nathan Beaulieu who was traded to the Buffalo Sabres.

The Canadiens are now looking for a partner to play the left side of Weber and Alzner could slot right in.

Alzner also has connections to few guys that currently play for Montreal. “I’m originally from British Columbia, like Carey Price, Shea Weber and Jordie Benn,” Alzner said to the Journal. “Certainly it would be a plus. I know the guys a bit. When you already have connections with some players, the transition is always better.”

Although he was aware of the contract trouble the Capitals were going to be in, Alzner wasn’t set on leaving Washington when doing a radio interview with Calgary’s Boomer & Warrener. There may have been some conversations with the Caps, but for now they have stalled.

“From what I understand, it’s stalled with Washington,” Alzner said. “I do not know the whole situation since the loss of Nate Schmidt to Vegas. He’s a left-handed defender like me. I do not know if it could change plans, but I have not had any discussions with the Capitals in the last few days. ”

For now, Alzner awaits July 1st eagerly. He will visit the Bell Center, the Canadiens training facility in Brossard, and Montreal soon, but was hesitant to confirm.

“I can not comment on that information,” Alzner said while laughing. “But I guess I have the right to say it’s true!”

Headline photo: Amanda Bowen. Translations by Kelly Swor.