David Perron tattooed the Blues logo and the city of St. Louis onto his heart. The Quebecer, who was drafted in the first round by that team in 2007 and won the Stanley Cup in 2019, didn’t expect to leave Missouri.

“I experienced that exit pretty hard,” Perron said in a corridor at Little Caesars Arena, very close to the Red Wings’ lavish dressing room. It’s still new to me. I see pictures of me wearing the Wings jersey and I still find it unusual.

“I will need time. I dedicated myself body and soul to the blues. I had established important relationships with this organization. I had taken my status with the Blues to another level, I wasn’t just a passing player. I won a championship there. I had realized my dream. It wasn’t an easy pill to swallow when I realized there was no place for me in St. Louis.

For the first time in his career, Perron signed his name under a contract with a team other than the Blues. Although he has sported the colors of the Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Anaheim Ducks and Vegas Golden Knights, the winger has always signed his contracts with a Blues general manager (Larry Pleau and Doug Armstrong).

The end of a reconstruction

In Detroit, Number 57 agreed to a two-year, $9.5 million ($4.75 million per season average) pact.

“The Red Wings want to kick the boat out and I believe in the team’s vision,” Perron said. There are other teams that go deeper, but that’s no longer the case with the Wings. There are good youngsters and the team wants to win. And when [le DG] Steve Yzerman calling you, it just looked up. I also know he believes in the value of a veteran. When the Red Wings had big machines, they always relied on good veterans like Yzerman, [Kirk] maltby, [Kris] Drape, [Nicklas] lid current, [Johan] Franzen and others.

“Away from hockey, I’ve found a home in Birmingham, a suburb 30 minutes from Detroit. It’s an extraordinary place.”

Trump for the power play

On the eve of his first game with the Red Wings, Perron found himself on the right wing with Andrew Copp and Jakub Vrana. He also practiced numerical superiority within the first unit.

“With our powerplay stats [16,3 % et 26e rang de la LNH], we needed help,” said head coach Derek Lalonde. David will help the team with this. But he’s also won with the Blues. He can also understand our young players. He had to become a more complete attacker, more committed to a game system, and in addition to being a very good person, he also has a contagious energy.

Perron, now 34, showed no signs of slowing down last season in St. Louis with 57 points (27 goals, 30 assists) in 67 games. In his last five seasons, since he was 29 and older, he has maintained a very high performance at .89 points per game (287 points in 321 games).

IN NOTEBOOK…

Filip Zadina, sixth overall pick of the 2018 draft, will be watching the Red Wings’ first game of the campaign from the press box despite being in excellent health. The 22-year-old forward has yet to take off in Detroit. Last season, the Czech had 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 71 games. At the 2018 auction, the Canadiens drafted Jesperi Kotkaniemi in third place while the Ottawa Senators landed Brady Tkachuk on the fourth homer.

Derek Lalonde, former assistant to Jon Cooper in Tampa, won the Stanley Cup with the Lightning in 2020 and 2021. The 50-year-old will be officiating his first NHL game as head coach with the Red Wings. The American spoke this morning about his love for the … Expos. Originally from Brasher Falls in upstate New York, Lalonde often made the trip (about 1h30) to Montreal. Tim Raines was his favorite player and he has fond memories of ice cream in the little Olympic Stadium baseball helmets.

David Perron isn’t the only Quebecer in the Red Wings dressing room. He will speak in French with 22-year-old Montreal native Joe Veleno. Detroit’s 2018 first-round pick will occupy the fourth center position this season.

The Red Wings have concocted a third trio of big boys. Michael Rasmussen (6’6″) will play in the middle with Swedes Elmer Soderblom (6’6″) and Oskar Sundqvist (6’3″). Soderblom, a 21-year-old rookie, scored in Frölunda, Sweden last season 21 goals in 52 games.