‘He’s a battler’: Veteran Corey Perry playing key role for Oilers in Stanley Cup final

Mark Hunter remembers pulling Corey Perry speech for a chat.

The co-owner and wide manager of the Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights wanted to marque definite his subordinate understood the consequences.

“Grit, hitting radical and punching people,” Hunter recalled of the skinny teenager’s on-ice approach. “He was similar 160 pounds … ‘Seriously Corey, don’t beryllium doing that. You mightiness get wounded by somebody.’

“But helium didn’t privation to beryllium pushed around. There was tendency to beryllium the best.”

Not overmuch has changed.

The 40-year-old Oilers winger successful his 20th NHL play is playing important minutes and making large contributions arsenic Edmonton sits tied 1-1 with Florida successful a Stanley Cup last rematch.

Promoted to the team’s apical enactment alongside superstar skipper Connor McDavid since Zach Hyman suffered a dislocated wrist past round, Perry forced overtime with 17.8 seconds remaining successful regularisation successful Friday’s Game 2 earlier the defending champion Panthers secured a 5-4 triumph successful treble OT.

The information remains the aforesaid arsenic erstwhile helium played for the Knights.

“To win,” said Perry, who was selected 28th wide by Anaheim astatine the 2003 draught and won his lone Cup with the Mighty Ducks successful 2007. “I emotion being astir the rink, I emotion being astir the guys, I emotion the competitory occurrence that’s inactive wrong me.”

The Peterborough, Ont., merchandise joined the Oilers midway done past play pursuing an disfigured extremity to his little stint with the Chicago Blackhawks.

Signed to mentor an up-and-coming roster, the nine terminated his woody successful November 2023 aft alleging helium violated his modular subordinate declaration and squad policies “intended to beforehand nonrecreational and harmless enactment environments.” Neither the Blackhawks nor Perry were consenting to supply details.

Perry apologized for his actions and said he’d started seeking assistance for intoxicant maltreatment earlier signing with Edmonton aft a gathering with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.

“The concern that happened, it happened,” Perry said earlier this week. “I’ve dealt with it and I’ve learned from it. It was unfortunate.”

McDavid said Perry’s calming beingness was for a squad that roared backmost to unit Game 7 successful past year’s last against the Panthers aft falling down 3-0 successful the rubric series.

“Makes great, subtle, small plays,” said Edmonton’s No. 97. “His gamesmanship, understands the ebbs and flows of the games, the intricacies that not each instrumentality sitting astatine location understands. He’s played successful each large game.”

Oilers caput manager Kris Knoblauch said Perry was important successful past year’s tally to the last that ended successful heartbreak.

“Allowed the squad to settee things down,” said the second-year caput coach.

Dale Hunter — Mark’s member and the Knights’ caput manager who had Perry successful London from 2001 to 2005 — said his passionateness for the crippled hasn’t wavered.

“He’s a battler,” said Dale Hunter, who won the Memorial Cup with Perry successful his last inferior play earlier the Knights besides climbed Canadian inferior hockey’s upland successful 2016 and again past month. “He loved hockey, and it’s ne'er changed.”

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The Hart Trophy victor arsenic NHL MVP successful 2011 with Anaheim has 448 goals and 487 assists for 935 points crossed 1,392 contests with six franchises implicit his 2 decades successful the league. He’s added 62 goals, including 8 this outpouring alone, and 77 assists for 139 points successful 233 playoff contests.

Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse said helium and Perry, who is successful his sixth Cup last and plans to play a 21st run successful 2025-26, person talked astir their past battles.

“We’ve had immoderate amusive moments,” said Nurse. “He’s been truthful important for this radical – the acquisition and each the large moments that he’s played in.”

Perry, who had 19 goals and 11 assists successful 81 games successful 2024-25 portion averaging conscionable nether 12 minutes of crystal time, said getting acceptable each summertime — particularly the abbreviated ones aft agelong post-season runs — is an expanding challenge.

“You effort to springiness your assemblage immoderate clip to rest,” helium said. “But you’re besides like, ‘Man, we’ve got to beryllium backmost successful campy successful six weeks.'”

These are bully times for Perry. His seven-year-old son, Griffin, is simply a staple astir the Oilers, including astatine NHL media time earlier the commencement of the Cup final.

He’s besides been done immoderate pugnacious times. Apart from the declaration termination successful Chicago, helium was bought retired of the last 2 years of his semipermanent woody with the Ducks successful June 2019 for salary-cap reasons.

“The highest of highs and immoderate beauteous debased moments,” helium said. “I usage that arsenic motivation.”

Mark Hunter said players — their desires and priorities — often alteration with age.

But not Perry.

“They suffer that gleam successful their eye,” Hunter said. “If you ticker him, determination is excitement, passion, desire, loving the moment. It’s hard to find astatine 40. People don’t usually person that, but helium does.

“Makes him special.”

–with files from The Canadian Press’ Daniel Rainbird