1948, then won the consolation championship at the Minnesota State High School League tournament, with Peterson winning two games as their goaltender. Peterson attended Hamline University to play football, and earned a teacher's degree. He was a top-scoring placekicker in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and also played offensive and defensive guard. He also played hockey at Hamline in addition to football, and also played semi-professional hockey for per game. Coach John Mariucci signed Peterson to play for the Minneapolis Millers in the American Amateur Hockey League, during the 1951–52 season. Peterson returned to the Millers for the 1952–53 season, now in the Central Hockey League, and later played for the Minneapolis Bungalows in the Minnesota Hockey League during the 1954–55 season. Minnesota high school coaching In 1953, Peterson began teaching business and coaching basketball at Braham, Minnesota, then moved to Minneapolis North High School in 1954. After one season of coaching hockey at Minneapolis North, he became head coach of hockey and assistant coach of football at Southwest High School in 1955. He also served as the school's first soccer coach, and taught business classes including typing, shorthand, and bookkeeping. He coached hockey at Southwest High School from 1955 to 1982, and retired as a teacher in 1984. Peterson maximized practice time for the senior hockey team by maintaining an outdoor rink at Pershing Park with assistance from the players, rather than travelling longer distances to an indoor rink. He also made goaltender masks for high school players. Peterson's teams at Southwest High School qualified for 14 Minnesota State High School League tournaments, including one state championship, one second-place finish, two third-place results, and one consolation championship. His 1969–70 team had an undefeated season, and won the state championship versus Edina High School. United States national coaching Peterson began working for the Amateur Hockey Association of the United States (AHAUS) in the mid-1970s, writing a manual on coaching goaltenders. He served as an assistant coach to Lou Vairo on the United States men's junior team at the 1983 World Junior Championships. Peterson later served as the goaltending coach for Vairo on the United States men's team which placed seventh in ice hockey at the 1984 Winter Olympics. As head coach of the United States men's team at Ice Hockey World Championships, Peterson led them in 1985, 1986, and 1987. He also served as head coach of the United States