Corey Perry Continues Quest For Second Stanley Cup With LA Kings
Corey Perry is coming off of his best postseason in a decade
At 40 years old, Corey Perry was one of the elder statesmen of this year's crop of free agents, and considering how well he played in the Stanley Cup Final this season, it's no surprise that he was off the market pretty quickly.
His new home? Well, it's close to one of his old homes, as the long-time Anaheim Duck is headed back to Southern California, but this time, he's going to be a member of the Los Angeles Kings.
According to Sportsnet, Perry signed a one-year, $2 million deal with the Kings, whose general manager happens to be Ken Holland, who previously led the Edmonton Oilers and signed Perry there partway through the 2023-24 NHL season.
It's a good deal for all parties involved. The Kings get a low-risk deal for a player who, despite his age, appeared in 81 games and put up 30 points last season. Not bad, but Perry really came alive in the playoffs, with 14 points (10G, 4A), which made for his most productive postseason in a decade.
There's also no doubt that Perry is going to be hungry to win another Stanley Cup.
After a strong 2024-25 regular season and Stanley Cup Playoffs, Corey Perry has signed a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Kings. (Getty Images)
Sure, he won a Cup with the Ducks back in 2007, but he has famously appeared in five of the last six Stanley Cup Finals as a member of four different teams — the Stars, Canadiens, Lightning, and Oilers — and has lost all of them.
That's brutal, and you can understand why Perry — who still clearly has some gas in the tank — doesn't want to give up the chase.
As for the Kings, they're not one of the first teams you'd think of as far as Western Conference Stanley Cup contenders, but they should be able to make the postseason, especially seeing as they play in a Pacific Division that was pretty underwhelming last season.
Could they make a surprise run? Absolutely.
They're an interesting mix of vets from the Kings' Cup wins in 2012 and 2014, like Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty, along with a slew of younger players and solid goaltending from Darcy Kuemper.
Perry will certainly help on this front as well.