Photo credit: Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images
In a recent article, former-Oiler Corey Perry spoke about what it was like playing alongside some of the best hockey players in the world.
Asked specifically about Connor McDavid and Leo Draisaitl, the player with the no-quit attitude had this to say:
It’s hard, because you’ve got to think faster than they do. They already know what they’re doing before they do it. You’ve got to see the play before they get the puck. That’s where it gets hard. It’s not the playing hockey – it’s reading the situations, reading the play. That’s one thing that’s probably kept me in this league: my IQ.
– Corey Perry
Ex-Oiler demonstrates longevity and hockey smarts
When you lose a step, as inevitably happens when you’re 40 and playing in a young man’s game, it’s experience and 21-years of accumulated wisdom that you depend upon mostly.
And in the 2024-25 post-season, we saw precisely how Perry used this to excel and help the Oilers reach within two wins of hoisting a Stanley Cup.
In 22 games, he scored 10 goals and 4 assists, playing a hard, physical game, and managing to keep pace with the younger, more-talented superstars.
Corey has been difficult to replace, if he even can be, with his combination of grit, work ethic and hockey-IQ.
In the offseason, he signed a one-year, $2M deal with the LA Kings as a free agent, a Pacific Division rival, no less.
Coincidentally, the Kings are 3rd in the Pacific, 4-points ahead of the Oilers. There is a strong possibility that they will again meet in the playoffs.
Then we’ll see Corey Perry once more, except in the black and white, and not the blue and orange.
Previously on Edmonton Hockey Daily
POLL
6 HOURS AGO | 176 ANSWERS
Corey Perry reveals the toughest part about playing with Oilers
Should Oilers have re-signed Corey Perry for this season?
