Corey Perry traded to his former team, the Tampa Bay Lightning from Los Angeles Kings
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Daniel Lucente
Mar 6, 2026 (12:25)
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Photo credit: Griffin Hooper-Imagn Images
Elliotte Friedman says former Oiler Corey Perry is going from Los Angeles to Tampa Bay, and this deadline swing hits both teams right in the nerves.
Perry is 40, a 2003 first-round pick, 28th overall by Anaheim, and he is on a one-year Kings contract with a $2 million cap hit through this season.
That deal carries a $4 million AAV because of bonuses, expires this summer, and PuckPedia lists an NTC on the contract.
The return and any salary retention were still not public on the official NHL trade tracker when Friedman's post started flying around.
Corey Perry had 11-17-28 in 50 Kings games, and the former Oiler was still doing his usual dirty work around the crease and on the man advantage.
That is why Tampa Bay makes sense.
The Lightning are 38-18-4 and chasing the East from the top of the Atlantic, so adding another net-front pest for the stretch run is a very Tampa move.
Corey Perry gives Tampa Bay more bite
Lightning fans will love the edge, and Kings fans will hate that this move makes perfect hockey sense.
Perry does not need top-six pace now. He needs offensive-zone starts, second-unit power-play time, and license to make life ugly between the pipes.
Tampa already scores 3.45 goals per game, so this is about playoff texture as much as raw offense.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, sits at 25-22-14 after firing Jim Hiller for D.J. Smith, so moving a pending UFA fits the bigger reset.
It also says the Kings are looking past one nice win and toward a cleaner roster map for the next few months.
For Tampa, the next checkpoint is Saturday in Toronto. Perry could step into that game and instantly help a power play or a late-game forecheck.
This one feels simple, blunt, and very March, Tampa gets meaner, and Perry gets one more real shot at a spring that matters.
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| POLL | ||
MARS 6|171 ANSWERS Corey Perry traded to his former team, the Tampa Bay Lightning from Los Angeles Kings Should Tampa Bay trust Corey Perry for one more playoff push? | ||
| Yes | 129 | 75.4 % |
| No | 42 | 24.6 % |
| List of polls | ||