As the newest member of the Edmonton Oilers, Corey Perry was in the hot seat on Monday, taking questions from reporters.
Shortly after it was officially announced that the Oilers and Perry had come to terms on a one-year contract, the veteran winger and GM Ken Holland hosted a press conference to clear the air.
As for how he ended up in Edmonton, the 38-year-old, once a Pacific Division rival as a member of the Anaheim Ducks, Perry revealed that despite there being “other suitors,” he chose the Oilers for multiple reasons.
One of which was his young son.
“It kept coming back here. When you have a six-year-old kid, and you have Connor McDavid on the team, you kind of follow the Edmonton Oilers a little bit,” he said.
The team’s stacked lineup and recent success also played a part.
“All jokes aside, this team is going in the right direction and not just because they’ve won 13 games in a row, but you can see where they’re going and their mindset and the vision they have. They want to win a Stanley Cup here,” he explained.
The Ontario native, who suited up for his first Oilers practice Monday morning, also credited a recent conversation with captain Connor McDavid for helping him come to a decision.
“You look at the pieces around that dressing room… There’s guys in there that can play this game and play it well. When you really get down to it, there’s a team in here that wants to win,” Perry said. “When I talked to Connor [McDavid] before I ended up coming here and signing, he mentioned all the great things that dressing room has. It spoke volumes for me coming here.”
While expressing gratitude for the new opportunity, Perry also acknowledged his rocky road back to the NHL. Upon briefly acknowledging his recent contract termination with the Chicago Blackhawks following an “unknown incident” back in November, Perry discussed working with people in the mental health field and how it’s made a “world of difference” over the past two months.
“Over the last two months, I’ve really had a chance to reflect and get the help and take full responsibility for what happened in Chicago, and try to better myself. Those are the things I’ve been working on. I’ve been working [with] people in the mental health field,” he explained. “It’s been a long time to get back to this spot, to be back on the ice with players, and the NHL.”
When asked when Perry could make his debut in the blue and orange, head coach Kris Knoblauch says he would like the veteran to practice for about a week and potentially play in Saturday’s bout against the Nashville Predators.