(Tampa) “I don’t know if he’s going to play for much longer… an earthworm, how long does it live? »
No doubt, Jon Cooper was in top form on this beautiful Wednesday morning in Tampa. The Lightning coach is still pretty good, but this time he was maybe even better, if that’s possible.
He was just asked what Corey Perry brings to his club, and true to form, Cooper didn’t have to be asked twice, as he is by far the most entertaining coach in this league.
It’s no coincidence that Corey Perry has made the Stanley Cup Finals three years in a row. This guy is a spark plug, and he has that quiet strength that comes to calm everyone on the bench.
Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper
Perry, once dubbed the Earthworm in Anaheim — because of his propensity to get on opponents’ nerves — has been in Tampa for two seasons, after a brief one-season stint with the Canadiens.
At 37, he is obviously no longer the player of yesteryear, who flirted with 100-point seasons, but he remains an important player in this locker room. “A voice that comes to calm the rest of the group, added Jon Cooper. I can assume he was also like that with the Canadiens and the Stars just before…”
Perry, of course, has not forgotten his only year with the Canadiens. He often does very well with Carey Price, Shea Weber, “two guys for whom we all wanted to win”, he specifies.
Well then, barely a year later, the merry-go-round was already over, and the veteran forward was heading for Tampa Bay.
“It was a different season when I was with the Canadiens… there was COVID-19 which forced us to play in sometimes empty arenas, sometimes almost empty. Everything was closed, my family wasn’t there… but it was special to play in Montreal.
“I didn’t have a contract in my pocket for the following year and I didn’t know what was going to happen, but we were trying to win for these two guys. It was only later that we learned that Shea wasn’t coming back, and that it might be the end for Price as well. So we played for their victory. »
Perry, who is making $1 million this season, is out of contract for next season. It doesn’t seem to bother him too much. Obviously, he’s doing great in Tampa, and he could probably leave with the peace of mind of someone who’s already won.
“As long as I’m having fun…I’m going one day at a time and also one year at a time,” he concluded.