The Chicago Blackhawks knew that they wanted to add a veteran presence during the off-season. Instead of stopping at one, they added multiple.
One of the prominent ones is Tyler Bertuzzi who came into the year with over 400 games of NHL experience over eight years. During that time, he scored 113 goals and had 148 assists for 261 points.
On Thursday night, Bertuzzi scored his first goal of the season and first with the Chicago Blackhawks. That now means that Bertuzzi has scored with four of the Original Six NHL franchises.
Before playing with the Chicago Blackhawks, he played for the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Bertuzzi is signed with Chicago for four years so it will be a while before a new team is on his radar but you have to wonder if the New York Rangers or Montreal Canadiens would be in the mix.
What is it that makes these teams want Bertuzzi? For one, he is a super pest on the ice. Opponents don’t love playing against him because of the physicality, attitude, and grit he plays with.
In addition, the man can provide offense to a team that was starving for goals in 2023-24. He may not put up star-level totals but he’s a great middle six-forward who plays with an edge.
The Blackhawks are going to rely on him to bring all of that this season. They have a lot of young players who could use a veteran who knows how to lead by example and not be pushed around on the ice.
There is enough talent in his game to be on a power play with stars like Connor Bedard and Teuvo Teravainen who assisted on his first Blackhawks goal. It is a skill to play with guys as creative as Bedard and Teravainen. Bertuzzi has that ability.
Chicago is certainly happy that the Original Six team he currently plays for is the Blackhawks because he is going to help them win some games this year.
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