Perry combines a 6-foot-3 frame with a long reach and powerful skating stride to get past defenders. But the Peterborough, Ontario, native is also one of the NHL's biggest agitators; he has gotten under the skin of rivals by doing things such as spraying water in opponents' gloves and grabbing their sticks.

However, Perry, selected by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the first round (No. 28) of the 2003 NHL Draft, also became one of the best goal-scorers of his generation. He became the third player from his draft class to reach 300 goals when he scored against the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 11, 2015. Perry then scored No. 301 two nights later to move past Paul Kariya into second place in Anaheim history, behind Teemu Selanne.

At age 20, Perry began his NHL career in 2005-06 with at least one point in each of his first four games, including his first goal Oct. 10, 2005. He was later demoted to the minors for six weeks but returned to the NHL to stay in January 2006 and finished the season by scoring 12 goals and 19 points in Anaheim's last 41 games. He also played in 11 of the Ducks' 16 games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and had three assists.

Perry played all 82 games in 2006-07, bumping up his offensive totals to 17 goals and 44 points, then played a key role in the Ducks' run to the first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history. He tied for second on the team with 15 points, and the last of his six playoff goals capped Anaheim's Cup-clinching 6-2 win against the Ottawa Senators in Game 5 of the Final.

Perry played in his first NHL All-Star Game in 2008-09. He led the Ducks in goals and finished second on the team in scoring in 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10. Perry led the NHL with 50 goals in 2010-11, when he finished third with 98 points and was voted winner of the Hart Trophy as the League's most valuable player.

Perry was second in the NHL in 2013-14 with 43 goals, beginning a streak of three seasons in which he finished in the top 10.

He had knee surgery in September 2018 and was limited to 31 games in 2018-19, the last of his 14 seasons with Anaheim. Perry signed with the Dallas Stars as a free agent July 1, 2019. He played his 1,000th NHL game Nov. 13, 2019, but scored just five goals and 21 points in 57 games. However, his scoring touch returned during the Stanley Cup Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning, when he scored three goals. However, Perry and the Stars would lose that series in six games.

After the season he signed one-year, $750,000 contract with the Montreal Canadiens.

With the Canadiens, Perry scored 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 49 regular-season games. He then scored 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 22 playoff games to help Montreal advance to the Cup Final for the first time since 1993. But for the second season in a row, Perry fell short at the hands of the Lightning, this time losing in five games.

On July 29, 2021, Perry decided to join the team he had lost to the previous two seasons, signing a two-year, $2 million contract with Tampa Bay.

Perry also has had plenty of international success. He was a member of Canada's gold medal-winning Olympic teams in 2010 and 2014, and he helped Canada win the 2016 IIHF World Championship. Perry also played on Canada's gold medal-winning team at the 2005 World Junior Championship and helped London of the Ontario Hockey League win the Memorial Cup that year.

Perry scored his 400th NHL goal when the Lightning defeated the Edmonton Oilers 5-3 on Feb. 23, 2022. Following another season with Tampa Bay, he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks on June 29, 2023, for a seventh-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and signed a one-year, $4 million contract the next day.

Perry signed a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Edmonton Oilers on Jan. 22, 2024, a deal that included performance bonuses. He signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Los Angeles Kings on July 1, 2025, and returned to the Lightning via trade March 6, 2026.