'Hopefully He's a Little Nicer to His Teammates': Connor McDavid Jokes About Newest Oiler
Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid gave his thoughts on Corey Perry.
EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Oilers are ready to continue climbing up the leaderboard for longest winning streak in the NHL. If they win tonight it will be their 14th win in a row. The last team to achieve that was the team they play tonight - the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The projected lineup tonight does not include the latest addition to the Oilers team. Corey Perry is projected to play in Saturday's game. That should give him enough time to get a couple more practices in before hitting the ice for a single game. After that game the Oilers go on a nine-day break for the All-Star game and it's various festivities.
While Perry has similar characteristics to fellow teammate Evander Kane - he brings some things to the table that Kane doesn't. Connor McDavid is aware of that and mentioned a few things to the press (along with The Hockey News), "[He] brings a lot of experience, a lot of leadership. Intangible qualities that you can't just teach."
For a team looking for it's first Stanley Cup in over three decades, acquiring a player who has done it before is a big deal. Especially for one like Perry, who many dub his playing style as "playoff hockey."
Reflecting on having Duncan Keith on the Oilers roster two post seasons ago, McDavid spoke about the influence that having a Stanley Cup winning player had on the locker room.
"It's really important." McDavid added that Keith was, "just a calming voice. We really leaned on him when we were heading to LA down 3-2 needing to win a road game. He can calm the group down."
Of course McDavid was asked about how it felt to have Perry playing with him rather than against him, "definitely rather have him on our side than play against him."
"You always hear that, hate to play against him love to play with him. You always hear that about certain players and he would certainly fit that category."
McDavid is looking forward to Perry getting into the lineup and contributing in the way that only Perry can. He brings a quality that is needed for the group to go on a deep playoff run.
There is a certain confidence you need when you play playoff hockey, and McDavid talked about that "x-factor". "[He'll] definitely give us a lot of personality on the ice and a lot of that nastiness sometimes that you need, at the right time."
"Now you have to practice against him," Ryan Rishaug chipped in at the end of the availability. McDavid had the perfect response.
"Yah, hopefully he's a little nicer to his teammates."
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbMIO1zhPR0[/embed]
Visit the Striking Oil Podcast website
Subscribe to the Striking Oil Podcast YouTube Channel
Bookmark The Hockey News Edmonton Oilers team site to never miss an update on the Oilers.
Around the NHL