Report: Edmonton Oilers on the verge of signing Corey Perry

gamehuzc January 21, 2024

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The Edmonton Oilers are reportedly close to reaching an agreement with veteran forward Corey Perry, according to several reports, or different versions of the same report.

David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period initially described the negotiations as having “traction,” then a “deal” a short while later.NHL Network joined the party with a banner that read “SIGNED,” but the hockey team has not yet provided an official statement.

Nearer to home, TSN’s Ryan Rishaug, an Oilers insider, adds:

Or, considering recent history of Oilers news surfacing on a Sunday morning and swiftly being verified, it might happen in as little as five minutes.

The terms of the deal have not been disclosed, but the Oilers could only benefit if it came close to the NHL minimum—a long cry from the $4 million he took on in a one-year contract with the Chicago Blackhawks last summer.

Why would Corey Perry be desired by the Oilers? With a winning streak of 13 games, the team is in good spirits. Every member of the roster contributes in some way, and there is a strong sense of teamwork among the players. On the other hand, Perry’s contract was terminated by the Blackhawks due to his alleged disruptive behavior during a team off-ice event. To his credit, he took full responsibility for the issue and stepped away from the game for many weeks to process “my struggles with alcohol.”

During those weeks, there has been a lot of conjecture about where he will go next, and Edmonton has come up a lot.

On the one hand, it makes perfect sense. With the exception of one assistant coach, none of the current members of the team have ever won a Stanley Cup. Back in his sophomore season with the Anaheim Ducks in 2006–07, Perry checked that box. Many years later, he was the winner of three conference titles in three separate seasons while playing for three different teams: Tampa Bay, Dallas, and Montreal.

The 38-year-old right winger is the only active player with the most Stanley Cup playoff games played; his 124 postseason points, 71 assists, and 53 goals all rank in the top 10. With 1273 games played, 421 goals and 471 assists during the regular season, those figures provide an outstanding conclusion. For someone who was on the verge of being dealt to Edmonton 21 (!) years ago and had the deal collapse at the last minute, this is quite an impressive career.

Perry has won many more championships than just one Stanley Cup. He is only the second person in hockey history to win the Olympic gold medal, the World Junior gold, the Stanley Cup gold, the World Championship gold, and the World Cup of Hockey gold. He is one of just thirty members of the prestigious Triple Gold Club. The other is Scott Niedermayer, a former colleague of Perry’s with the Anaheim Ducks.

To put it briefly, Perry was a top-tier player for a considerable amount of time and is still reportedly in great demand by elite hockey teams. Even though he isn’t the same Hart Trophy/Rocket Richard Trophy winner he was more than ten years ago, he is still a gruff player whose sardonic demeanor and overall edginess are almost legendary. Once a player who consistently scored 100 points every year, he played up to 95 minutes in Tampa just the previous season despite having much less ice time.

He adds the bulk to balance the nasty at 6’3 and 208 pounds. Since Nick Bjugstad and Klim Kostin both left Edmonton’s bottom six together last summer, both components have been in short supply.

The one thing he lacks is speed. Perry was renowned more for his drive than his speed even at his best. He has consistently produced his best work in and around the blue paint since his junior days with the London Knights. He also possesses an amazing ability to control the puck in confined spaces.

In order to create room for him on the roster—and more importantly, in the starting lineup—who may the Oilers bench?The former may be seventh defenseman Philip Kemp, who has been observing from the press box as Edmonton’s starting six have been a regular presence on the ice in the short term. However, a 13/7/2 split is more likely when the club returns on the road following their 9-day break at the end of the month, which means a seasoned forward like Adam Erne, Connor Brown, or Sam Gagner can get cut and end up on the waiver wire. Erne is the most likely wager, given that an injury won’t be required to settle the issue. (Note: as of Sunday at noon MDT, nobody had been waived.) Erne, who established himself as Edmonton’s most physical player in the bottom six, has already found himself in the press box in recent games.

Regarding the lineup for the game, which of the 12 forwards playing in Calgary on Saturday has the shortest rope? While Brown’s offensive slump continues, he has made a substantial contribution to Edmonton’s elite penalty kill team. Regarding Gagner, all he accomplished was to score the game-winning goal—his fifth in just 20 games this season. That puts the bottom six at a 20-goal pace.

Having said that, every general manager would like to have “too much depth,” particularly when making postseason plans. If the rumors are accurate and Corey Perry signs with the Edmonton Oilers, that might actually happen.