Ten months ago there was talk in some circles of a possible Rich Peverley comeback. However it would have been a long shot at best. Ultimately after discussing the situation with his doctors Peverley decided to officially retire before the start of the 2015-16 season.
Saturday night the Stars honored Rich Peverley with “Pevs Protects Night” to raise funds and awareness for the American Heart Association through the Dallas Stars Foundation.
Rich Peverley collapsed during a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 10, 2014. His heart stopped and emergency technicians and Stars trainers had to restart it. Doctors said the quick work saved Peverley’s life.
Peverley, 33, joined the Stars along with Tyler Seguin after winning a Cup in Boston. Prior to Boston, Peverley had stints with Nashville and Atlanta (now Winnipeg).
While Peverley was waiting to hear if he would be able to continue his playing career, he helped the Texas Stars coaching staff in Cedar Park. He also worked as the Dallas Stars “eye in the sky” from the press box during NHL games. He is now the Player Development Coordinator for the Dallas Stars.
Rich Peverley and Pevs Protects Night
Peverley was in the locker room to announce the Stars’ starters vs the St Louis Blues on Saturday. He also dropped the first puck.
Along with the medical people who came to his aid, it was a heart defibrillator which was vital in Peverley’s miraculous recovery. Now, Peverley is giving back by influencing awareness and funds so other people will have the same resources available, if needed.
Here is the mission statement from Peverley’s website:
“Our mission is to raise funds to purchase Automated External Defibrillators (AED) to be placed within communities so that others will be given a chance for a second life. In addition, we would like to help educate and train community members of all ages to feel comfortable and confident in using AED’s.”
Visit Rich Peverley’s website to find out more about how you can help.
Also, for Saturday night’s game, the Stars sold limited edition co-branded Pevs Protects merchandise to raise money for the American Heart Association. Stars’ anthem singer Celena Ray sent out the following tweet modeling some of the gear and praising Peverley.
https://twitter.com/CelenaRae1/status/708859683046428672
Heart Statistics and Potential AED Impact
As of 2015, according to the American Heart Association, heart disease remains the number one global cause of death with 17.3 Million deaths each year.
The annual report includes a chapter on Sudden Cardiac Arrest. According to the report, about 326,200 people experienced out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) in the U.S. in 2011. (This compares with a reported incidence of 424,000 in the AHA’s Heart and Stroke Statistics–2014 Update.) Of those treated by emergency medical services, 10.6 percent survived. Of the 19,300 bystander-witnessed cases in which individuals had a heart rhythm that could be treated effectively with a defibrillator (ventricular fibrillation-VF or ventricular tachycardia-VT), 31.4 percent survived.
Stars Suffer Overtime Loss
Despite the ceremony and festivities the game itself was a loss.
The Stars rallied from a 4-2 deficit to tie the game late in 3rd, but lost to St. Louis 5-4 in overtime when Alex Pietrangelo beat Antti Niemi from the slot area. Despite the loss, the Stars picked up a point and remain tied with the Blues for first overall in the Central Division and Western Conference with 91 points each.
Niemi had another poor performance overall. His game must improve down the stretch. If not, the pressure will all be on Kari Lehtonen’s shoulders.
On a positive note, the Stars got 3 out of 4 points this weekend. Also, Jason Spezza has now scored a goal in six consecutive games. If he can make it seven in seven games it will be a new Dallas Stars record.
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