Three Cons Of The Edmonton Oilers Signing Corey Perry 

With the Edmonton Oilers signing if Corey Perry now official. It may not be all good news for the team and Perry.

Sep 28, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA;  Chicago Blackhawks forward Corey Perry (94) warms up before a
Sep 28, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Blackhawks forward Corey Perry (94) warms up before a / Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports
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May 4, 2022; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning forward Corey Perry (10) taunts the Toronto
May 4, 2022; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning forward Corey Perry (10) taunts the Toronto / John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

The hot and fresh news around the Edmonton Oilers these days is all about the signing of free agent Corey Perry. While Perry will help with the Oilers depth and experience there are some cons that he may bring. 

With his contract coming in at a cap hit of $775000 for the one season there isn’t much more you could hope for when it comes to bringing in a veteran depth forward at the deadline. If the Oilers were to trade for a player like this it would have likely cost them a 3rd or even a second round pick. So getting him for nothing but the cap hit is a huge win in my opinion.

In this article, I will go through and break down 3 bad things about signing Corey Perry. Before I get into this, I personally think the signing of Corey Perry is a good thing. 

1-3 in Stanley Cup Finals

Of all the “bad” baggage that Perry brings this has to be the strangest one that I have seen people complain about on social media. 

Yes, Perry has lost a majority of the time he went to the Cup finals, but at least he made the Cup Finals. You can’t singly blame Perry for those losses, just like he didn’t single-handedly carry his team to the cup final. 

For the Edmonton Oilers before this signing the only player I can think of they have that has gone to a Cup final was Brett Kulak and I am pretty sure they don’t have a single Stanley Cup winner on the team. 

The more players the Oilers have with long playoff run experience the better off this team will be in the long run. Perry could not make a difference on the ice, but the difference he will make off the ice will be very much worth it. 

Nov 16, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Blackhawks forward Corey Perry (94), forward Philipp
Nov 16, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Blackhawks forward Corey Perry (94), forward Philipp / Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports

Off-Ice Incidents

This is the biggest potential issue for Perry when it comes to signing with the Edmonton Oilers. There is no secret that the reason his contract was terminated by the Blackhawks was due to an off-ice incident. I assume it wasn’t an illegal one or there would have been more than just a contract termination.

There are a ton of rumours around what it is that he did. I am personally not going to dive down the rabbit whole that is internet fed rumours. If you really want to do that on your own time go right ahead. Just make sure that you are aware that pretty much most of it is not real, but made up to get clicks and shares on the which ever site you are on.

I assume the Oilers did their due diligence before they signed Perry when it comes to what caused the termination. Just as they did when they signed Evander Kane. People, myself included, were concerned about Kane off the ice and right now they are going to be worried about Perry off the ice. 

The only way for this issue to go away is if Perry openly talks about what happened to get his contract terminated. Till then there will always be a bit of a dark cloud around Perry. As I mentioned earlier it can’t be anything super serious as there was no legal action against him.

Another point around this is how will the rest of the team react to hearing what he did. Perry telling the public is one thing, but I am 100% sure that he will have to tell his teammates what he did before they can fully bring him into the locker room. This is more important than what the public thinks of him.

If his teammates aren’t willing to accept him off the ice they certainly aren’t going to try their hardest to play with him on the ice. Assuming he will either be on the 3rd or 4th line means he will have to prove himself on and off the ice if he wants to be accepted as an Edmonton Oilers player.

Nov 9, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; Chicago Blackhawks right wing Corey Perry (94) is congratulated
Nov 9, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; Chicago Blackhawks right wing Corey Perry (94) is congratulated / Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Ruining Excellent Edmonton Oilers Chemistry

There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that the Edmonton Oilers are the hottest team in the NHL right now. They have won their last 14 games and looking at the upcoming schedule they may not lose a game at all this month.

This brings up the statement, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. With the way the Oilers are playing right now why would they look to bring someone in to disrupt what they have going? Is Corey Perry an upgrade on pretty much everyone in the bottom six? Yes, he is, but that doesn’t mean you bring him into a team that has won 14 in a row.

Perry is expected to make his Oilers debut on Saturday. If they were to lose that game would it be because Corey Perry is in the lineup? Likely not, but there is no way people aren’t going to say that. The only way it would be Perry’s fault is if he actually was responsible for the game winning goal.

As much as out would for the streak to end with Perry, I still think what he will bring to this team in the playoffs will be much more important. He has a playing style that can take over a game or even a series. The Oilers already have a few players who can do that, but the more of that type the better in my opinion.

NEXT. Next. Talk of Edmonton Oilers winning streak being tainted is ridiculous. dark

The Oilers Look To Make It 15

The Edmonton Oilers are back in action against Perry’s former team the Chicago Blackhawks. If they are able to win tonight, which they should, the Oilers will extend their franchise setting win record and move one game closer to the 92-93 Pittsburgh Penguins, 17 game record.

The way the Oilers are handling teams below them in the standing I have no reason to think this will be a challenging game for them. They have proven they can beat the Hawks a couple of times this season already, tonight should be no different.

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