When people talk about the big trade this offseason that the Dallas Stars made with the Boston Bruins, the focus is usually centered around two people — Loui Eriksson and Tyler Seguin. There’s a lot to like about Seguin, and losing Eriksson definitely hurt. But Dallas also got another intriguing piece in that trade — Rich Peverley.
Peverley has versatility. He can play in a top six capacity, and doesn’t look out of place on a third line checking line. He can play center — his faceoff percentage of 58.4% last season would have made him by far and away the leader on last year’s Stars team in that category. He can play wing and score goals. He’s seen time on both the penalty kill and powerplay in Boston.
But where does he fit in Dallas’ lineup? That’s still a relative question mark, since he missed the preseason after having a procedure done to correct an irregular heartbeat. We didn’t get to see how coach Lindy Ruff utilized Peverley in game situations.
Looking at the current roster, it is most likely that he is not going to slot into that top line with Seguin and Jamie Benn if Erik Cole continues the chemistry he’s had in the preseason with those two, like many had projected in the summer he might.
He’s probably going to start somewhere in the top nine, and most likely at wing. Hopefully he can improve the penalty kill that looked terrible at times in the preseason. He’ll need to earn his ice time, however, with many rookies having a strong showing in the preseason. Ruff has already shown that if you work hard and have a good outing, that he’ll give more minutes to those guys. Peverley will have to do the same to crack the top three lines out of the gate.