Andrew Phillip Peeke (born March 17, 1998) is an American professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

defenseman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the la ...

who is currently playing for the

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL). Peeke was selected 34th overall by the Blue Jackets in the

2016 NHL Entry Draft The 2016 NHL Entry Draft was the 54th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on June 24–25, 2016 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York. The first three selections were Auston Matthews going to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Patrik Laine go ...

Early life

Peeke was born on March 17, 1998, in

Parkland, Florida Parkland is a suburban city, 42 miles northwest of Miami, in northern Broward County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of Parkland was 34,670. Parkland is part of the Miami metropolitan area, which was home to 6,166 ...

, to parents Mary Ruth and Cliff. He began skating by the age of three and played ice hockey in the Junior Panthers program alongside baseball. Growing up, he was a fan of the

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern ...

but favored Shea Weber. While playing with the Florida Panthers Alliance program, he helped their Major AAA team win the 2010 Early Bird Tournament Bantam A championship. However, due to the lack of ice hockey opportunities in Florida, Peeke moved to

South Kent, Connecticut South Kent is a village located in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States, alongside the border with New York, and within and part of Kent, Connecticut. South Kent has its own Post Office whose ZIP code is 06785. South Kent is also home to ...

, when he was 14 to skate with the Selects Hockey Academy.

Playing career

Peeke played three seasons with the South Kent Prep School (USPHL) before being drafted by the

Green Bay Gamblers The Green Bay Gamblers are a Junior ice hockey#Tier I, Tier I junior ice hockey team in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). They play in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, at the Resch Center. History Professional hockey in Gre ...

of the

United States Hockey League The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the midwestern United States, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. The USHL is strictly ...

(USHL) and finishing his schooling at

Ashwaubenon High School Ashwaubenon High School is a public high school located in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin. A community pool and performing arts center are also housed within the school. History In 2008, the school made national and international headlines after it was ...

. During his time in the USPHL, he was named their Defensive Player of the Year and committed to play

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

ice hockey with the

Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey The Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey team is the college ice hockey team of the University of Notre Dame, competing at the NCAA Division I level as an associate member of the Big Ten Conference. The Irish play their home games at Com ...

team. Upon joining the Gamblers for their 2015–16 season, he became their youngest defenseman on the roster at the age of 17. Peeke played one season with the Gamblers, during which he recorded four goals and 26 assists for 30 points through 56 games. He also finished the season being named to the 2016 recipient of the USHL Scholar-Athlete Award and USHL All-Academic Team.

Collegiate

Peeke played for the

team for three seasons while majoring in management consulting. Prior to joining the team, he was drafted 34th overall by the

in the

, becoming the 13th American selected in the draft. Upon joining the Fighting Irish for the 2016–17 season, Peeke recorded 14 points in 40 games as the program transitioned from the

Hockey East The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference which operates entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. Hockey East came into existence in 1984 for ...

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

. Before and during his rookie season, Peeke was encouraged by Blue Jackets management to work on his skating, shot, and release. Following his rookie season, he earned praise from the Jackets development coach Chris Clark for exceeding their expectations. He returned to the Fighting Irish the following season for his sophomore campaign, where he set a new career-high in goals scored with five. Peeke served as

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

for the

team during the 2018–19 season.

Professional

Following his junior season with Notre Dame, Peeke was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 1, 2019. He scored his first career goal on February 16, 2020 against the New Jersey Devils. On August 9, 2021, Peeke signed a two-year, $1.575 million contract extension to remain with the Blue Jackets.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honours

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peeke, Andrew 1998 births Living people Cleveland Monsters players Columbus Blue Jackets draft picks Columbus Blue Jackets players Green Bay Gamblers players Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey players American men's ice hockey defensemen People from Parkland, Florida Ice hockey people from Florida Sportspeople from Broward County, Florida