#49 -Rich Peverley -A gentleman and a scholar.

Feb 8, 2012; Buffalo, NY, USA; Boston Bruins right wing Rich Peverley (49) during play against the Buffalo Sabres at the First Niagara Center. Sabres beat the Bruins 6-0. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-US PRESSWIRE

Normally, I introduce a player by letting Bruins Nation know what round and what selection of what year did a player get picked in the NHL Entry Draft. Peverley is not one of those players though. Peverley IS one of those players that kept his NCAA eligibility and played four years at Saint Lawrence University. As a Skating Saint, Peveley led his team in points three out of the four years.

Peverley never was drafted, and earned a slot on the roster of a hockey club by skill and dedication. Peverley’s first year in professional hockey was with the East Coast Hockey League’s (ECHL) South Carolina Stingrays. He spent the entire 2004-2005 season in the ECHL, save for a single game for the Washington Capitals AHL affiliate Portland Pirates.  Peverley spent the next year bouncing between leagues and clubs.  He played in the Milwaukee Admirals(AHL-Nashville), and the Reading Royals(ECHL-LA Kings).

The 2006-2007 season found Rich Peverley a full time member of the Predators club.  He was leading the Admirals in scoring.  In 66 games he notched sixty-eight points(thirty goals) and tallied sixty-two penalty minutes. This led the Predators organization to believe that he had what it took to move up. On January 17, 2007 Rich Peverley was signed to the Nashville Predators.  He played his first NHL game in March,  and played in thirteen games for the Nashville Predators that season.

Peverley split the 2007-08 season  between the NHL and the AHL, playing in forty five games for the Admirals, and logging fifty-four points(fourteen goals).  In thirty-three games for the Predators, he scored his first NHL goal on January 24, 2008 against the Phoenix Coyotes. He ended up with ten NHL points(five goals). He also earned his first NHL postseason experience, playing in six games against the Detroit Red Wings(who won the Cup that year).

The 2008-2009 season started out alright for Peverley. He had put up nine points in twenty-seven games. However, the Predators fell out of love with Peverley and put him on waivers. He got a lucky break though. On January 10, 2009, Peverley was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Thrashers(now Winnipeg Jets). The switch to Atlanta had jump started his career. He quickly put up thirty-five points in thirty-nine games for the remainder of the 2008–09 season. He ended up earning a two- year, $2.6 million contract with the Thrashers at the end of the season. The next two seasons he scored thirty six goals for the Thrashers.

On February 18, 2011, Peverley was traded to the Boston Bruins with Boris Valabik for Blake Wheeler and Mark Stuart. Peverley wasted no time with his new team, scoring his first goal in an away game against Edmonton on February 27th. In his twenty three games in the regular season with Boston, he put up seven total points(four goals). Peverley also saw his first post season games since playing with the Predators. He scored his first post season goal on April 18, 2011 in a game against Montreal. In total, Peverley played in all twenty five post season games that year. He put up twelve points(four of them goals) to help the Bruins earn their first Stanley Cup Championship in thirty-nine years.

The 2011-2012 season saw Peverley still in Black and Gold. He earned a respectable eleven goals(forty two points total). He was one of shining players in last season’s playoffs though. He put up five points(three of them goals) in our early departure from the post season by the Washington Capitals. Peverley filled in for an injured Patrice Bergeron at the end of the season. Takes a big man to fill Bergy’s skates, but if coach Claude Julien thought he could do it, that’s high praise indeed.

Barring a lockout, the Bruins are on track to obliterate all comers for the Northeast Division title(again), and are serious contenders to be the 2013 Stanley Cup Champions.

During his first two seasons with the Thrashers, Peverley played in 121 games logging 90 points on 35 goals and 55 assists. During the 2009-10 season he set career highs in games played, points, goals, and assists.1 On October 20, 2010, Peverley played in his 200th NHL game, and on December 15 scored his 50th career goal in a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.5