It shouldn't come as a shock, then, that the 31-year-old blueliner is equally serious at the rink.
"He's a competitor. If he doesn't do something perfect on the ice, he shows that. He'll smash his stick. I've seen so many broken sticks by Jeff, it's amazing. We take them all back to the center and we hang them up," attested Mozes. "This is in the middle of June and July. He takes a lot of pride in what he does. He wants to be better than you are, better than he is, and push himself to a new level. The competitor in him is what makes him great."
According to Mozes, the Michigan State University grad has also stepped up his fitness game since departing for Montreal last summer.
"He's very proactive this year, more so than in the past. He sees the overall benefits of that," mentioned Mozes, who has received numerous e-mails from the Habs' No. 26 inquiring about in-season workout programs. "He realizes that "plateau" is not really a word, whether it be from on-the-ice training or off-the-ice training. It's one of those things where you're going to follow a certain protocol and make sure that you know your body and make sure that you get better throughout the season so you don't hit that wall."
So far, so good, obviously. Petry ranks fourth on the roster - and first among Canadiens defenseman - with 34 points through 50 games.
He also ranks second on the squad by averaging 23:37 of ice time per outing.
"He's a very dedicated person to making sure that he has success on the ice," described Mozes. "He does it for his family. He does it to have a legacy behind his name and carry on that Petry name."