Perry Set To Join Exclusive Hockey Group
If Team Canada and Corey Perry are able to win the World Cup, one of hockey’s most elite groups will double in size. In an article by The Hockey News’ Ken Campbell, he points out that only Perry’s former teammate and current Ducks assistant coach Scott Niedermayer has won a Stanley Cup, Olympic Gold Medal, World Championship, World Junior Championship, Memorial Cup, and World Cup. With everything else all checked off, Perry just needs three wins to join his friend in hockey’s winningest (albeit obscure) group.
Perry, who was a late addition to Team Canada following the injury of Jeff Carter, is just happy to be on the team and hasn’t given much thought to his potential history-making achievement. Ironically, it all began with him being a late addition to another team. Perry barely made Canada’s World Junior team in 2005, where he played alongside future team mate Ryan Getzlaf, Sidney Crosby, tournament MVP Patrice Bergeron and more on one of the best World Junior teams of all-time. After easily taking the Junior tournament, Perry returned to the OHL’s London Knights, where he finished off a 130-point season with help from Dave Bolland, Marc Methot, and more and then led the team, with a stellar playoff performance, to the Memorial Cup title. Perry made his NHL debut the next year, in 2005-06, and just one year later, he contributed 44 regular season points and 15 postseason points en route to the 2007 Stanley Cup championship. With the stats and titles to back him up, Perry was an easy choice for Team Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and again in 2014 in Sochi, winning a gold medal at each Games. Finally, Perry won a World Championship for Canada this past spring, joining the team after the Ducks were upset early in the playoffs.
Perry, who is also a three-time All-Star, Hart winner, and Maurice Richard winner, among many other accolades, still holds on to his humility. Although he is on the cusp of joining a group that Bobby Orr, Wayne Gretzky, and Mario Lemieux could not even make it in to, his sights are still just set on helping out his team mates and winning for his country. He’s grateful just to be on the team and to get the chance to enjoy the opportunity. Perry is a proven winner, and don’t be surprised to see his name join more elite groups as his decorated career continues.
Snapshots: Price, World Cup
The World Cup of Hockey exhibition round kicked off on Thursday, with Russia beating Czech Republic, Finland defeating Sweden, and Team North America shutting out Team Europe. Though we’re only one day into the pre-tournament action, there have already been some injury concerns. With that in mind, the eyes of the hockey world will be on Team Canada goaltender Carey Price when the Canadians take on the United States in the first game of back-to-back exhibition contests. Price will make his hotly anticipated first start since November.
When asked about Price, Team Canada coach Mike Babcock said he expects him “to be great”, before asking that needed any elaboration.
USA left winger and Montreal Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty told TSN’s Mark Masters that, on a personal level, he’s happy to see Price “put on the pads again… because I know he suffered last year”. Pacioretty said he wasn’t able to share any secrets on scoring on Price because “there are no secrets on how to beat Carey”.
- Speaking of players competing against their NHL goaltenders, Team Canada forward Steven Stamkos and American goaltender Ben Bishop have been teammates in Tampa Bay for three and a half seasons, so Bishop has seen plenty of Stamkos in practice. However, Stamkos claims he shoots different spots in practice and that he’s going to “ring one by [Bishop]’s head first” then shoot somewhere else next.
- Also from the Team Canada camp, Coach Babcock confirmed that Corey Perry and Jay Bouwmeester will be healthy scratches tonight. Both men were injury replacements, for Jeff Carter and Duncan Keith respectively. Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston spoke with Babcock about how he plans on telling NHL stars that they will be scratched: “I’m just going to tell them. I’ve found in life when someone’s giving me bad news I like it fast.”
- Despite beating Team Europe pretty soundly last night, Team North America changed up their lines this morning. ESPN’s Craig Custance reported Flames RFA Johnny Gaudreau and Sabres sophomore Jack Eichel are now on the top line with captain Connor McDavid. Coach Todd McLellan said they will be making adjustments, and “the overall vision and hockey IQ” of McDavid, Eichel, and Gaudreau made it easy to put them together.