Hours after watching teammate Rich Peverley collapse on the bench due to a cardiac incident, the Dallas Stars are set to hit the ice Tuesday for a game against the St. Louis Blues.
According to captain Jamie Benn, the knowledge that Peverley is recovering and doing well in hospital is a comfort to the rest of the guys on the squad.
“It’s a big relief,” Benn told Mike Heika of the Star Tribune. “We were pretty scared there. Once we found out that he was good and stable, it was a very big relief. He’s in good hands. It’s something you never want to see. Obviously, Rich is a big part of this team. We’re obviously a family in here, and we never want to see someone go down like that.”
Veteran forward Vernon Fiddler added he expects Peverley to be rooting his teammates on when they face the Blues. “It’s an emotional roller coaster, but we know Pevs would want to be out here and he’s not going to want us to sit back and watch,’’ he said. “He’s going to want to go after them, and that’s the approach we’re taking.’’
The team, however, will be playing without 23-year old forward Alex Chiasson, who suffered an anxiety attack in light of Peverley's collapse and was also sent to hospital. “(Chiasson) was shaken by the whole event; emotionally shaken,” Ruff said. “He wasn’t doing very well, so we thought best to get him under some care. He’s going to be fine, but Alex was really stressed by it.”
Fiddler added "as a team, we’ll work through it," and they'll begin the process of resuming game action Tuesday in St. Louis.