Perry signs two-year, $2 million contract with Lightning

Corey Perry
signed a two-year, $2 million contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday.

The 36-year-old forward was an unrestricted free agent. He scored 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 49 regular-season games for the Montreal Canadiens last season, and 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 22 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
"At the end of the day, they came with a two-year offer," Perry said Friday. "It's something I wanted to have and it's something I jumped at right away."
Perry lost to the Lightning in the Stanley Cup Final each of the past two seasons, with the Canadiens last season (five games) and the Dallas Stars in 2020 (six games).
"I think obviously their winning culture in the past few years," Perry said. "Coming into a team that I've seen firsthand, the last two years. At the end of the day, where I'm at in my career, I want to win. I want to be a part of that and I'm looking forward to it.
"But once you get there, I've talked to a few guys already, you say your congratulations and you move on. I mean, there's not much else you can do. I'm trying to help the Tampa Bay Lightning win another Stanley Cup."

Selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round (No. 28) of the 2003 NHL Draft, Perry has scored 818 points (386 goals, 432 assists) in 1,094 regular-season games for the Canadiens, Stars and Ducks, and 108 points (45 goals, 63 assists) in 167 playoff games. He won the Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007.
"Sometimes when you win it so young you take it for granted," Perry said. "I said that this year in Montreal. I said it when we were down 3-1 to Toronto [in the Stanley Cup First Round]. You never know if you're going to get this chance again. You may not make the playoffs ever again. You never know where this could go. And we used that for motivation.
"When you're 22 years old and you get your name on the Cup, you have no idea. You think it's going to happen every single season, but it took me 14 years to get back. You have to come into the season and you have to do everything possible to put yourself in the right position. We're looking to do that again in Tampa."
Perry won the Rocket Richard Trophy as the NHL leader in goals (50) in 2010-11 and the Hart Trophy voted as NHL most valuable player that season, when he was third in scoring with 98 points in 82 games for the Ducks.
"I like helping younger guys along the way," Perry said. "I was a younger guy and I had great support around me in Anaheim my first three seasons. I had Teemu Selanne, Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger, Rob Niedermayer and the list goes on. So I learned a lot from them, what it takes to be in this league, how to stay in this league and prepare yourself each and every day. I'm just trying to pass on whatever I can to help the young guys."
The Lightning also re-signed defenseman Cal Foote to a two-year, $1.7 million contract Thursday. It has an average annual value of $850,000. The 22-year-old scored three points (one goal, two assists) as a rookie last season. He was selected by the Lightning with the No. 14 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft.
The Lightning on Wednesday signed forward Brayden Point to an eight-year, $76 million contract extension ($9.5 million average annual value) that begins next season, goalie Brian Elliott to a one-year, $900,000 contract and defenseman Zach Bogosian to a three-year, $2.55 million contract ($850,000 AAV).
NHL.com independent correspondent Corey Long contributed to this report