Anaheim Ducks: Corey Perry’s time is coming to an end

After fourteen seasons with the Anaheim Ducks, Corey Perry’s time will be coming to an end as the franchise and player are set to part ways.

According to TSN‘s Pierre LeBrun, Corey Perry and the Anaheim Ducks are preparing to part ways, either by trade or buyout. Perry is 34 years old and is coming off a season where he missed 51 games due to an MCL tear he suffered in a preseason training session. After getting surgery, he returned for 31 games where he put up just 6 goals and 4 assists.

Perry’s production has been shrinking every year as he gets older and the league gets faster. As a player who was never a prolific skater, it has become harder and harder for him to find the same success as before, especially after his major injury.

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With his sharp decline in production and massive contract (he has two years left at 8.6 per season), it has become an obstacle for general manager Bob Murray as he attempts to rebuild the Ducks. The Ducks have a lot of promising young players coming up and Perry is taking a top line spot from someone like Sam Steel or Troy Terry.

Perry is one of the greatest players to ever put on the Anaheim Ducks uniform. His 988 games played with the team is the most in franchise history and is second in Ducks’ goals (372) behind only Teemu Selanne.

It’s unfortunate to see his time with the Ducks end this way, but in the salary cap era, teams have to be ruthless in order to remain competitive. The departure of Perry could open up a spot for young players.

The Ducks have already been talking to other teams for the possibility of a trade and it’s no question that Anaheim will have to retain part of his salary in order to make him movable.

Perry is a physical pest that gets under opponents’ skins and he is one of the best in the league at tipping pucks into the net.

He would be an interesting piece to add to a team with a struggling powerplay as he can be assigned to block the goaltender’s vision and tip pucks in.

Teams like the Montreal Canadiens and Columbus Blue Jackets could use a boost on their power play and Perry can also provide some veteran leadership support in the locker room. At a reduced price, it would be a very interesting move.

If the Ducks decide to buy him out, Perry will become a free agent and then even more teams will be interested to see if they can sign the veteran to a short and relatively cheap deal.

After the Washington Capitals won the Stanley Cup with the performance of Tom Wilson, teams have been scrambling to find their own version of him. While Perry might not have the same production he used to, his physical presence is still a factor and many teams will be interested in him.