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Red Wings sign Tyler Bertuzzi to 2-year contract

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Great news as I headed to the rink this morning:

RED WINGS RE-SIGN TYLER BERTUZZI TO TWO-YEAR CONTRACT  … 2020 NHL All-Star Has Skated in 208 NHL Games Since 2016-17 …DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today re-signed left wing Tyler Bertuzzi to a two-year contract.

Bertuzzi, 26, was limited to nine games with the Red Wings in 2020-21 due to injury but logged seven points (5-2-7) and four penalty minutes. Bertuzzi was coming off a career season with the Red Wings in 2019-20, setting career highs in assists (27), points (48) and penalty minutes (40) while posting his second-straight 21-goal campaign, which led the team, and finishing as one of two players to skate in all 71 games (along with Dylan Larkin). The 6-foot-1, 199-pound winger has appeared in 208 games with the Red Wings since making his NHL debut during the 2016-17 campaign, totaling 126 points (54-72-126) and 119 penalty minutes. Originally a second round pick (58th overall) of the Red Wings in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Bertuzzi was also Detroit’s representative at the 2020 NHL All-Star Game.

The Sudbury, Ontario, native has accrued six professional seasons between Detroit and the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins. In parts of four seasons with the Griffins (2014-18), Bertuzzi tallied 82 points (32-50-82), a plus-15 rating and 204 penalty minutes in 137 regular-season games. He also posted 39 points (23-16-39), a plus-12 rating and 68 penalty minutes in 42 career AHL postseason games. Bertuzzi helped the Griffins win the 2017 Calder Cup Championship, as he won the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy awarded to the most-valuable player of the playoffs after posting 19 points (9-10-19) in 19 postseason contests. Prior to turning pro, Bertuzzi skated four seasons with the Ontario Hockey League’s Guelph Storm, earning 172 points (72-100-172), a plus-35 rating and 325 penalty minutes over 201 games from 2011-15. Bertuzzi won an OHL championship with the Storm in 2014 alongside fellow Red Wings forwards Robby Fabbri and Pius Suter, and was named an OHL Second-Team All-Star the following season after notching 98 points (43-55-98) in 68 games in his final season of major junior hockey.

Continue reading Red Wings sign Tyler Bertuzzi to 2-year contract →

Monroe: Toledo Walleye’s Shane Berschbach retires

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe reports sad news for Toledo Walleye fans this morning:

Future Toledo hockey hall of famer Shane Berschbach, a star forward for the Walleye, has decided to retire.

Berschbach, who played six seasons for the Toledo Walleye, announced his retirement via Instagram on Saturday. The speedy forward is the organization’s leader in every significant offensive category.

Berschbach, who turned 30 in May, is the Walleye’s all-time leader in games played (376).

The native of Clawson, Mich., also retires as the team’s career leader in points (393), goals scored (116), and assists (277).

Continued

Our all-time leader in…

games played,
goals,
assists,
and points.

Thank you for everything, #10. ? pic.twitter.com/GvhI0HycTM— Toledo Walleye (@ToledoWalleye) July 31, 2021

A pair of podcasts of note: OctoPulse offers a Cross Hanas interview; Red & White Authority’s Regner interviews Edvinsson, Cossa and Mazur

Of podcast-related note this morning:

  1. The Detroit News posted its latest “Octopulse” podcast, in which Ted Kulfan discusses the Red Wings’ free agency moves, Kulfan interviews Wings prospect Cross Hanas, whose dad was once given a try-out with the Red Wings, and the podcast summarizes the interviews given by several of the Wings’ free agency and draft additions:

2. And DetroitRedWings.com’s Art Regner interviews Simon Edvinsson, Sebastian Cossa and Carter Mazur just after the players were drafted this past weekend in the latest episode of “The Red & White Authority”:

A bit of a ramble about the Wings’ ‘potential’ for the 2021-2022 season

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The Red Wings aren’t done making moves this summer–mostly because there are restricted free agents to re-sign, and because, according to my surgically-repaired gut, anyway, the team will probably add another forward or two before all is said and done…

But when I look at the team’s depth charts on PuckPedia and CapFriendly, I’m very satisfied with the State of the Franchise.

With perhaps the exception of Frans Nielsen, most of Ken Holland’s doofiest contractual mistakes have been expunged from the roster. The guys who left to “chase Cups” (as hard as it was to say goodbye to them) have left the roster leaner, meaner, and much younger…

And te few additions made via trades and free agency would seem to indicate that a relatively healthy Red Wings team will finally start turning its ship around after wallowing in “heavy weather” for the past half-a-decade.

Playing in a stacked Atlantic Division, the Wings aren’t likely to make a deep playoff run next season, but they’re at least somewhat likely to be more competitive, and that’s exciting by present-day Red Wings standards.

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan examined each and every one of the NHL’s 32 teams to deem “winners,” “losers” and “flat-liners” of the offseason thus far, and Kulfan offers this take on the Red Wings’ offseason moves (again, “thus far”) in a subscriber-only article. Kulfan places the Wings in the “winners'” category for the following reasons:

Detroit — The Wings aren’t going to be playoff contenders — yet. And who knows how good goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic and forward Pius Suter will turn out to be. But the potential of those two, the immediate help of defenseman Nick Leddy, and two quality first-round draft picks (defenseman Simon Edvinsson, goaltender Sebastian Cossa), make for another step forward.

Kulfan continues (paywall); I can’t say that I’m absolutely ecstatic about the number of wins my gallbladder-less gut says the Wings will earn this upcoming season, but I’m excited about the team’s promise and potential (both short and long-term) for the first time in a long time, and that’s pretty cool.

Press release: Red Wings, Pistons, Big Sean and Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins to launch program supporting esports careers

This press release from GamingLyfe.com (a website I admittedly do not frequent) is a little convoluted, but the long story short is this:

The Red Wings and the Pistons, along with the Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan, Big Sean, and a gentleman named Tyler “Ninja” Blevins are collaborating on a program that will help kids pursue careers in sports, entertainment, and yes, “esports.”

How will the Red Wings be involved? That’s a very good question, and here’s the answer:

Detroit Red Wings team up with The Children’s Foundation to deliver year-round programming

As part of their landmark Learn, Play, Score program, the Detroit Red Wings are teaming up with The Children’s Foundation and BGCSM to introduce Esports + Hockey. The program will provide year-round hockey connectivity for young BGCSM members across metro Detroit through hands-on learning experiences, esports engagement, and workforce development. Additional details about this program will be announced later.

“The Red Wings are excited to continue growing the impact of Learn, Play, Score in the city of Detroit through the Esports + Hockey program with The Children’s Foundation and Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan,” said Kevin Brown, director of community impact for the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers. “We can’t wait to announce the details of this groundbreaking, year-round interactive program soon.”

Continued; esports is a real career path for some younger folks (and not so young folks) these days, so it’s pretty cool to know that the Red Wings are supporting that particular endeavor.

Impressions from Friday at the World Junior Summer Showcase (and interviews with Carter Mazur and Red Savage)

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At the World Junior Summer Showcase in Plymouth, Michigan today:

  1. Carter Mazur had a goal as Team USA White defeated an Eemil Viro-less Finland (assistant coach Mikko Koivu said that Viro’s injury was minor in nature) 5-4 in overtime. Mazur scored USA White’s 2-2 goal at the 8:56 mark of the 2nd period:

Carter Mazur (DET) scores on a solo rush to make it 2-2. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/gQULMxy3LX— Lassi Alanen (@lassialanen) July 30, 2021

Mazur spoke with myself and The Athletic’s Max Bultman after the game:

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Winged Wheel Podcast interviews Alex Nedeljkovic

Enjoy: