Born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Cory Sarich was a junior standout with the local Blades of the WHL and was picked 27th overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft. In 1998 he recorded 48 points and was named to the WHL West Second All-Star team. After parts of four seasons in Saskatoon and a brief stint with the Seattle Thunderbirds, Sarich spent most of his rookie pro season with the AHL's Rochester Americans. After parts of two seasons with the Sabres organization, Sarich was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning during the 1999-00 season. Upon his arrival in Tampa Bay, Sarich gradually became more comfortable with his new surroundings and with increased ice-time and notched a career high 14 points during the 2002-03 season.



Comming off a career year offensively in 2002-03, Sarich bettered those totals in 2003-04 (3-16-19) and was a key player in Tampa Bay's run to the 2004 Stanley Cup title. Appeared in all 23 games, setting career bests in games played, penalty minutes, and shots … Recorded 12 penalty minutes for a personal season high in Game 3 @ CGY 5/29 … Logged more than 30 minutes of ice time (30:09) in Game 6 @ PHI 5/20 … Recorded his 2nd point of the playoffs in Game 2 4/25 vs. MTL ... Registered 5 penalty minutes with a fight in Game 1 vs. MTL ... Recorded his 3rd career playoff point, his 1st of the season with an assist in Game 3 vs. New York.