Corey Perry gives the Oilers three legit scoring lines

Gone are the days when you could say the Edmonton Oilers are a one-line team.

With Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch once again splitting up Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl onto separate lines, the team is sending a message that they will not continue to rely on a single line to get the job done.

In fact, with the addition of Corey Perry, you could easily say that the Oilers now have three bonafide lines that can produce offence at a reliable rate. The 38-year-old veteran pest played his first game in an Oilers jersey right before the NHL All-Star break.

Though he couldn’t get on the scoresheet in a 4-1 victory over the Nashville Predators, Perry showed off some good chemistry with linemates Ryan McLeod and Dylan Holloway, including a beautiful pass from behind the Nashville net. He also wasted no time showing off why he is one of the most hated players in the NHL.

corey perry is already mixing it up with the oilers. pic.twitter.com/hiJkjG6zCl

— zach (@zjlaing) January 27, 2024

The trio is a bit peculiar on the surface. Both McLeod and Holloway are notable in that they play a very fast game and tend to default to passing the puck. This compared with Perry’s slower pace and playmaking ability might make it seem like a mismatch on paper, but things are changing quickly.

McLeod has recently changed up his game to become more of a shooting threat, scoring seven goals throughout Edmonton’s 16-game winning streak. As his shooting confidence grows, so too will his scoring chances as Perry will be able to set him up in ways that very few of his previous linemates, save for Draisaitl, ever could.

The results haven’t quite been there for the 22-year-old Holloway quite yet, but his game is showing positive signs of something bubbling to the surface. He has been getting his fair share of chances on net and there’s no question he has the toolset to be a productive forward in the NHL. The feeling is that Holloway is due to break out at any moment.

Perry himself said after his first game that he felt good playing with the two younger players, despite the difference in speed.

“I thought we had a little bit of chemistry early on,” Perry told reporters. “We’re talking quite a bit on the bench, on the ice, so that helps.”

Corey Perry’s Oilers debut vs. NSH:

2 Shots, 12:44 TOI & had that early shift crashing the net (Perry special)

On a line with Holloway & Brown at practice today (we’ll see if Kane’s return changes that). #Oilers

Last Saturday (question by @NHLHodgkinson), playing with 71 & 55: pic.twitter.com/o1OJyyooko

— Tony Brar (@TonyBrarOTV) February 5, 2024

If that first game was an indication of things to come, the Oilers could very well have their deepest top three lines in over a decade. Not only will teams have to face the two-headed monster of McDavid and Draisaitl on the top two lines, but also a third line that combines speed and skill.