‘Brothers fight:’ Oilers’ Evander Kane, Corey Perry speak for first time since Saturday night spat

Below is both Perry and Kane’s full transcripts from their media availabilites Monday.

Perry

Question: You appeared to be animated regarding something during the game in Calgary, possibly with Evander. Could you tell us about what was going on.

Perry: Brothers fight. Just trying to bring out the best in everybody. We weren’t playing our best hockey, and just frustrations and emotions boiled over — that’s all.

Question: How often would conversations like that happen the cameras don’t catch?

Perry: It’s not uncommon. You come in here, you probably see a little bit more, but camera’s caught it. We moved on. We talked about it, apologized, and that’s it.

Question: How much is it about holding each other accountable, making sure everybody is ready to go?

Perry: That’s what makes a team work, right? That’s how you win. You hold everybody accountable. You push everybody’s buttons, you do what ever you have to do to get the best out of everybody. At that point, it was something him and I had, but it could be anybody. It doesn’t matter who it is, you’re just trying to be better and win each game.

Question: Is it more important for that stuff to come out maybe now, than maybe in November, October, where stuff’s getting real now?

Perry: Stuff is getting real. We’ve got what, six games left now? Whatever it is. Going forward, you’re going to have to get better and emotions are going to get higher, the intensity is going to get higher and anxiety levels are going to get higher as we move along here. It’s how you manage those.

Question: Do you feel the need to show that more, considering how much experience you’ve gone through and how many times you’ve gone to the cup final?

Perry: I don’t know. Maybe certain points it might come out. If it needs to be said, it’s whatever. You look around here, there’s lots of experience here. They’ve gone to the conference final, they’ve had big moments on big stages. It’s just the next hurdle we want to get over and that’s what we’re working towards.

Question: What was Evander’s reaction like?

Perry: I’m not going to get into it.

Question: When mistakes are made late in the season, you want to nip them in the bud so that if you make the same mistake in the playoffs, that’s where you’re really getting burned?

Perry: You have to. In the playoffs, everything is under a microscope. A 3-2 game could be in game seven, and all of a sudden your season is over. You eliminate those now, you push forward, you try to get those out of the game, and find the right way to play. As of late, we’ve been doing a pretty good job.

Kane

Question: How are things with Corey?

Kane: I mean, they’re fine. We’re partners in the Masters pool tomorrow, so there you go.

Question: Cameras catch something like that, it’s obviously going to get some attention, but how often do maybe things like that happen behind the scenes we maybe don’t see? Is it just things teams go through and this one was a little more public?

Kane: I mean, everything is public when you play in Canada, right? Conversations and frustrations happen all the time. I think the world we live in, everybody is very sensitive and safe and soft, for lack of a better term. So I think when guys, two veteran guys specifically, show a little emotion, people are uncomfortable. I think me and him, we’re the least uncomfortable in those situations. I don’t know what he said, but I think it helped our team. We had a great third period.

Question: He said brothers fight, you guys talked it out and you’re good.

Kane: Yeah, I think like I said, it was the heat of the moment. Cameras are always looking at me, specifically, these days, and I guess I have to enjoy it.

Question: Okay, you opened that can of worms, I’ll ask ya. It’s been a couple of times the cameras have shown this sort of thing —.

Kane: I mean yeah, you talked about it on your podcast, and what not. People look for it for clicks and storylines. Like I said, at the end of the day, I think I got to start getting paid for some of these clicks and storylines. Whenever you guys want to present me with a cheque, I’d be more than happy to accept it.

Question: How quickly does that get patched over, or as you were saying, it’s more common than we realize that you don’t even to say anything?

Kane: Oh yeah, I think it depends. I think it’s pretty common, for the most part. Guys have conversations, whether it’s in the room, on the bench, whether it’s in practice or what not. When it’s over, it’s over. We move on, and get ready for the next play, or the next shift.

Question: Is it more important that stuff happens right before the playoffs, to get everything out than say in October or November?

Kane: If you asked us in October or November we’d probably say it’s pretty important now, but I think it’s just an in-season thing that happens whether it’s now or in the playoffs. Things happen, guys are competitive and want to win and make each other better. That’s one of many examples of how you can.

Question: You know what successful playoff hockey is supposed to look like. What would you say about this grou[s rounding into form and hitting stride in time for that?

Kane: You’ve seen good teams recently throughout the league struggle down the stretch, or haven’t had their best game, or haven’t played the way they have been for the majority of the season. I think you obviously want to feel good heading into the playoffs, and have your game in tip-top shape. At the same time, when the regular season ends and the playoffs start, it’s a clean slate. It’s a new season, and as much as we want to talk about having our game in the right order, which you do, none of that matters in game one. It’s all about what you do in game one, then game two, and game three and so on. It’s a different season.