Luke Richardson and Corey Perry only overlapped for one abbreviated season in Montreal, but they each came away from the Canadiens’ 2021 Stanley Cup Final run extremely impressed by each other.
So when the Blackhawks became aware of Perry’s availability this summer, Richardson was eager to reunite with the 38-year-old veteran forward, and general manager Kyle Davidson was able to make it happen.
“He’s a winner,” Richardson said. “He’s going to help guys on our team, just like he [helped] guys in Montreal — guys like Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki. He had a big footprint on making them what they are today. That’s why I thought, when they brought [Perry’s] name up, he would be a great fit for us right now.”
Indeed, Perry played well in those 2021 playoffs — producing 10 points in 22 games — but Caufield and Suzuki truly emerged as young stars during those couple of months, with Perry’s influence factoring in. Caufield, who had just 10 games of NHL experience before that postseason, tallied 12 points in 20 games and Suzuki, in his second NHL season, tallied 16 in 22.
Richardson also recalled a specific story in which Perry taught young Canadiens defenseman Alexander Romanov (who has since been traded to the Islanders) a valuable lesson.
“[Corey would] be in front of the net every day, [practicing] his tips,” Richardson said. “There aren’t two pucks in a row that he doesn’t get a stick on. It’s like nine out of 10. ‘Romy’ was floating in some wristers and [Corey was] like, ‘Hey, shoot the puck!’ Then [Romanov] ripped one high over the glass, and [Corey] stopped and went out and said, ‘What are you doing? That’s high-sticking. I want it between here and here, and hard.’
“So [Romanov was] getting good instruction. Coaches instruct, but when players and Cup winners like Corey Perry give you direction, that goes a long way.”
Perry, meanwhile, remembered talking to Caufield and Suzuki about how to handle the rigors of the NHL on a day-to-day basis and helping them find their niches in the league and on the Canadiens’ roster.
He still thinks back to his experience as a rookie on the 2005-06 Ducks, receiving advice from the likes of Teemu Selanne and Scott and Rob Niedermayer, and tries to pass that along to the next generation coming in now.
Connor Bedard will surely be hearing all about it soon. Perry said he has already watched “many games” from Bedard’s junior-hockey career to get a sense of the teenage superstar he’ll soon help acclimate.
“This game goes by fast,” Perry said Friday. “I still remember walking into that [Ducks] dressing room and they said, ‘Don’t take it for granted. Make sure you remember everything and soak it all in because it goes by fast.’
“I didn’t really understand what they were talking about, but [now I] really do. You really take it in and you see what they’re talking about. That’s something I’ll pass on to these young guys.”
When the Ducks bought out Perry’s contract in 2018, he admitted he wasn’t sure where his career was headed. But he has proven he can still bring substantial value as a mercenary bouncing around the league — from the Stars to Canadiens to Lightning — in recent years.
The past two seasons in Tampa, he missed only one out of 193 total regular- and postseason games while chipping in some offense (he has produced 40 and 25 points the past two regular seasons), effectively limiting scoring chances against (his defensive analytics are solid) and annoying and pestering opponents endlessly (as he has for decades).
The Lightning’s seemingly constant salary-cap constraints meant he knew he wouldn’t return there this summer, though. After the Hawks acquired his rights during the draft, Davidson and Richardson gave him a sales pitch — and a $4 million contract offer — he couldn’t refuse. He believes he has a few years left in his tank.
“You never want to hear, ‘We’re going to go in a different direction,’” Perry said. “I heard it in Anaheim when they bought me out. It’s something that fuels me.”
He added later: “It’s probably a great compliment to have [that] you’re hated by the opposition, in opposing rinks, and you’re loved at home.”
Hawks fans are well-acquainted with that aspect of Perry; many still resent him due to his antics during the 2015 Western Conference Final in particular. After years of boos every time he touched the puck inside the United Center, some awkward reconciliation might be necessary during the first few home games next season.
But Perry has grown accustomed to smoothing over relations with former enemies. He’ll have to do exactly that with new Hawks teammate Nick Foligno, for example, after fighting him during the 2021 playoffs. He’s optimistic he’ll win over Hawks fans, too.
“Everywhere I’ve gone the last few years, it has been that way,” Perry said. “There have been some heated moments, myself against this team. But I’m happy to be on this side [and] excited to see where this season goes.”