Having faced him each of the last two seasons in the Stanley Cup Final, the Tampa Bay Lightning had a pretty good idea what they were getting when they signed free agent forward Corey Perry during the offseason.
But even the most optimistic of Bolts couldn't have envisioned just how good Perry would slot into the Lightning lineup. At least so far anyway.
Perry, playing on a line with Lightning captain Steven Stamkos and 2021 Cup-clinching goal scorer Ross Colton, looked like a man who might have another 50-goal season in him to go with the one he produced during his Hart Trophy season with the Anaheim Ducks in 2010-11.
Okay, that might be pushing it.
Still, Perry has made a seamless transition from Bolts villain to beloved goal scorer in a rather short amount of time.
In Tampa Bay's 6-2 victory over the Florida Panthers Thursday night at AMALIE Arena, Perry scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner, to lift the Lightning to just their second win of the preseason.
He paces the Bolts for goals this preseason with four in three games.
"When you get up close and you see them every day, now you really get to fully see what the player has, like what is his entire skill set," Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said. "And often times when you're playing against them, that's not the skill set you're seeing. You're seeing why he has the nickname he has. You probably notice him a lot because he's always getting under your skin. He's just doing things that help you win games. But his skill set's magnificent. Pucks in tight and they're stuck to his stick. You see why he's made a living finding himself just around the net because he gets things done down there throughout different ways. You have a real appreciation for him and why teams want him on their side and why you're probably not surprised why teams have advanced far with him on their team. If you're talking about the skill he has in tight, you really get to see that when he's with you every day."
Perry scored the first of his two goals at 10:21 of the second period to break a 1-all tie, his goal coming just 32 seconds after the Panthers got on the board and leveled the score on Joe Thornton's rebound tally. Perry threw a puck at the net from below the goal line, bouncing it off the back of Florida netminder Spencer Knight and in to re-establish the Lightning advantage at 2-1.
Seven minutes later, Perry added to the Bolts lead and his goal count, taking a stretch pass from Mikhail Sergachev and roofing a backhander over Knight at the net on a breakaway to make it 3-1 Tampa Bay.
"The skill set it doesn't just fade away. It's there," Stamkos said of Perry. "This League is about opportunity. You come to a team where he's given that opportunity, he's an elite player still. You see the finishing capabilities. You see the way he thinks the game, where he puts the puck, where he goes to the net. He hasn't lost those senses. People seem to forget about it, good for them, we see it every day and we know what he can do. Looking forward to getting a chance to play on the same team as him this year after some good battles the past couple of years."
Stamkos scored a pair of power-play goals in the first minute of the third period to put the game out of reach. On a 5-on-3 power play, Stamkos cranked a one-timer from his office in the left circle 20 seconds into the period for a 4-1 Lightning lead. Just 26 seconds later, Nikita Kucherov threaded a pass from the right point to the left circle for another one-timer, Stamkos burying that one too from an identical spot as the first to make it 5-1.
"It probably doesn't mean a lot with the preseason games, but you take them. You take them anyway they come," Stamkos said of his two power-play goals. "It's nice to see the puck go in the net. If anything, get the timing. This was the first game with our power-play units out there, so nice to get a couple. You can practice it as much as you want, you get into those game situations and just get some timing down, it's nice."
Florida's Owen Tippett scored at 12:19 of the third to cut the Lightning lead to 5-2.
Pat Maroon added a late tally for the 6-2 final, the left winger finishing off a 2-on-1 rush with Taylor Raddysh for his second goal of the preseason.
The Lightning improved to 2-4-0 in exhibition games and finished the preseason 2-2-0 at home (Tuesday's game at Orlando's Amway Center was considered a home game for the Bolts).
Tampa Bay handed Florida (5-1-0) its first loss of the preseason.
"I thought tonight was a step in the right direction," Cooper said. "Guys are getting better. (The Panthers) didn't have their entire lineup in, but it's not for that. These games aren't about wins and losses. It's about getting each individual player ready and getting your team ready. Teams go about it in different ways. We're one of only four teams playing Tuesday night, and that's when we have to have our game ready. I think a big step today."
After neither team broke through in the first period, Anthony Cirelli got the scoring started with his breakaway goal at 3:25 of the second, Sergachev springing the center open with a stretch pass up the middle of the ice, the Russian defenseman finishing with a pair of assists on the night with near-identical plays.
Tampa Bay scored the opening goal for the first time in six games so far this preseason.
Brian Elliott started and played the entire game in net for the Bolts. He made 21-of-23 saves to pick up his first victory as a member of the Lightning.
Tampa Bay concludes the preseason Saturday when it travels to Sunrise to take on the Panthers again (6 p.m. puck drop), the final contest in three-straight games versus Florida to end the exhibition slate.
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Perry continuing to prove he's a fit in Tampa Bay - Official site of the Tampa Bay Lightning
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