When it comes to the playoffs, the opponent will never want to overlook the X-factor that Corey Perry provides.
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And while it backfired on him on Wednesday, earning him a two-minute minor for blatant goalie interference en route to a 5-4 overtime defeat to the Los Angeles Kings in Game 2 of their Western Conference First Round playoff series, Perry is no stranger to this kind of trouble.
And the precise reason the Edmonton Oilers, hoping for a great, long post-season run, acquired the disgraced former veteran of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Call it the oilers’ version of value-added grit, something they are fully aware they have been severely missing in their past two postseason runs.
He’s the kind of guy who knows how to push the envelope, and does it as well as any player out there right now. And he usually gets away with it too, more often than not, getting under the skin of the opposition whenever possible before skating away, scot-free — aside from the odd mitt in the face, of course.
Only this time, the envelope would have needed to be about four feet long.
This one didn’t look great Wednesday. Perry had his stick slashed out of his hands before having a leg jut out in front of him, tripping up the Oilers forward momentarily just as everyone in the building saw the lightbulb go off above his helmet.
While he was still well in front of the Kings crease, Perry took the innocuous trip-up as a green light to fall a few extra feet, hands first onto goalie Cam Talbot.
An on-ice official had his arm up before Perry could say, “Oh, Sherry.”
The thing is, the intended result was still achieved, as the Kings continue to wonder what’s coming next from Perry during their opening-round playoff series, which switches to L.A. for Games 3 and 4 beginning Friday.
“I don’t know, it’s a balancing act,” Perry said prior to Wednesday’s puck drop. “You’ve just got to pick your spots and it will fall where it falls.”
Be it right on top of the opposing goalie, or somewhere else as equally under the Kings’ skin?
“I don’t know, it’s just something that’s always been engrained in me,” Perry said of his disruptive aura. “It’s just something I have fun with and it’s part of the game within the game.”