At 40 years old, new Los Angeles Kings veteran winger free agent signing Corey Perry isn't going to be the scorer around the net that he once was in the past couple of decades in the NHL and in the postseason. But Perry scoring 19 goals and 30 total points this past season in the 2024-25 campaign was still a very productive and effective season for a player in their 20th campaign in the league.
Seeing former Edmonton Oilers, Anaheim Ducks, and Tampa Bay Lightning winger Perry now playing for the Kings in an LA uniform is going to be odd for this upcoming season in the 2025-26 campaign.
Perry brings the grit, postseason experience, and veteran leadership to the locker room to give this Kings team an edge, especially to help mentor the younger players on this squad for this upcoming season. He is a Stanley Cup winner with the Ducks in 2007, a Hart Trophy winner, and was part of the Oilers teams that made it to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals in the past two years.
Corey Perry 2024-25 player season recap
2024-25 season stats: 81 games played, 19 goals, 11 assists, 30 points, +12
2024-25 advanced stats: 19.2 shooting %, 8.6 5-on-5 shooting %, 1.9 points/60, 3.7 point shares, 1.5 WAR
2024-25 possession metrics (with Kings): 54.4 CF%, 53.7 SCF%, 102.8 PDO, 51.8 HDCF%
In the past season and a half with the Oilers in Edmonton, Perry scored over 25 goals and over 40 points. He showed longevity and valuable production on the power play for the Oilers this past season, scoring four power play goals and averaging nearly a dozen minutes in average time on the ice.
Perry was extremely valuable for the Kings this past postseason in the West. He scored double-digit playoff goals for the Oilers for the first time in a decade (since the 2014-15 season with the Ducks in the 2015 playoffs).
Corey Perry 2025-26 Los Angeles Kings season preview
Despite him being viewed as the hated opposition by Kings' fans over the past decade or so, Perry is a valuable signing addition for LA for this upcoming season in the Pacific Division. Perry can help give the Kings' young players more grit and a physical edge this postseason in the spring of 2026.
Being able to have a player with the type of scoring experience and proven postseason production on the fourth line for head coach Jim Hiller and the Kings this upcoming campaign in the playoffs is underrated. This is why new general manager Ken Holland and the Kings signed Perry to a one year contract (worth around $2 million in average annual value) to bring more physicality and proven experience to the team for this upcoming postseason.