The Montreal Canadiens are watching the Stanley Cup Final just like 30 of the 32 NHL teams around the league. A year ago they were in the middle of it, ultimately losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning after an incredible playoff run.
There are a few familiar faces in the final this year though. A total of four former Canadiens players are suiting up in this year’s final.
The Tampa Bay Lightning have Ryan McDonagh and Mikhail Sergachev who barely played at all in a Canadiens sweater, but were first round picks of the team. Corey Perry is also skating for the Lightning after playing a season for the Habs in 2020-21.
On the other side of the ice is the Avalanche and trade deadline pickup Artturi Lehkonen. The Canadiens sent Lehkonen to Denver in the minutes before the deadline for Justin Barron and a second round pick.
So, Habs teammates from last season Perry and Lehkonen and going head to head in this year’s Cup Final. Both have had impacts on their team’s winning games already as well.
Interestingly, Perry set a new Stanley Cup Final record in the process, in part due to his time with the Canadiens.
Lehkonen scored the Avs third goal in Game 1 and they eventually would win 4-3 in overtime. Perry scored last night in Game 3, helping the Lightning breathe new life into the series with a statement 6-2 win after a blowout 7-0 loss in Game 2.
He scored a very Corey Perry-ish goal by going to the net and banging in a rebound from the crease. He didn’t cross check anyone or bump into any goalies on the way, so maybe it wasn’t that much of a Corey Perry Goal.
Corey Perry really wants to win in the finals againpic.twitter.com/qUjWU8MxtS
— Sports by Tampa Bay Times (@TBTimes_Sports) June 21, 2022
At the same moment, Perry set a little bit of history. He became the first player to score a Stanley Cup Final goal with four different teams in his career. He has one with the Lightning, he scored one (on a beauty shot) with the Canadiens last season.
Quel tir de Corey Perry.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) July 3, 2021
What a shot by Corey Perry.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/dhdCOJF9mr
Perry also had three goals in the 2020 Stanley Cup Final while a member of the Dallas Stars. Back in 2007, when Perry won the Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks, he scored a pair of goals in a five game series win over the Ottawa Senators.
It has never happened before that a player scored in the Stanley Cup Final with four different organizations. A number of players had done it with three different teams, including former Canadiens Ab MacDonald, Claude Lemieux and Mike Keane. But Perry is the first to do it with four teams.
Corey Perry or Scorey “#StanleyCup Final” Perry?
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) June 21, 2022
Perry scored the @TBLightning’s fourth goal of the second period. The last team to score as many goals in a single frame in a Final game was Boston in 2019 (P3 of Game 6). #NHLStats: https://t.co/WF3XQy7NMn pic.twitter.com/KjFuMg8TvZ
Perry has bounced around the league the past three seasons after a long, successful career with the Anaheim Ducks. But he is obviously making the most of it as he keeps scoring in the Stanley Cup Final with every new team he joins.
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