About Bert
I was surprised – to say the least – by the Red Wing decision to sign Todd Bertuzzi to a one year contract at $1.5 MM. I don’t think he is a useful player any more, not at any price. Mirtle isn’t enthusiastic about the deal either but finds this rationale:
Last season, the Flames needed Bertuzzi to patrol a scoring line and played him appropriately, an average of 18:36 minutes a game and the most ice time he’d seen in three years. Despite lining up with Calgary’s top players and often being sheltered against the oppositions’, he was still a big-time minus (last on the team at minus-13) and really didn’t produce enough offence to merit his role…
Bertuzzi’s no 18 minute a night power forward anymore, but can he log 13 and stand in front of the net on the power play? Why not?
I agree with the first paragraph completely. Bertuzzi makes too many mistakes and takes too many penalties to justify a roster spot unless he produces offence and he doesn’t produce enough offence any more, even with 18 minutes of quality ice time. While the mistakes and penalties will decline with the ice time, they will not decline as much as the scoring will fall off. I thought Bertuzzi was a net liability last year in Calgary and I think he will be a bigger liability in Detroit next year. (On the other hand, if I was a Red Wing fan, I’d figure Ken Holland saw something in Bert I couldn’t see and applaud. Even from afar, one questions a Ken Holland move with some trepidation.)
Since I’m not a Red Wing fan, I wonder whether Holland will do any better at the “we’re cutting talent because of the salary cap” dance than anyone else. I’ve seen the “Wings are dead” show too often to believe they are going to dive down the standings and so I’ll be shocked if Detroit is ordinary next season. Like I was shocked by Ottawa…
Hossa out. Bertuzzi in. Ouch.
This really came out of the blue to us Wings fans. I know for a fact the Wings have liked Bertuzzi since his performance in the 2002 playoffs. It has been a long time since 2002, however they do seem like a team that sees something in a player and doesn’t mind giving that player some chances no one else is willing to offer. One blurb I just saw was that Holland was impressed with the level of conditioning Bertuzzi had committed to during this off-season. Maybe they like finding a guy who is getting desperate about his career? Work ethic may be their bellwether.
http://sacrificethebody.blogspot.com/2009/08/today-detroit-red-wings-announced.html
As I mentioned both on my blog and over at Mirtle’s, to me, there is no possible way in which Bertuzzi succeeds enough to justify the fact that he is going to help keep Abdelkader and to a lesser extent, Helm, from getting the time they have earned on the big club.
For Bertuzzi to be on the team, before injuries, 2 of probably Helm, Eaves, Abdelkader have to go to Grand Rapids. Given that Helm and Abby can still go up and down easily, that probably pushes them out. Maybe Abby isn’t quite ready to make it to the big club on a regular basis, but Helm has damn sure earned it over the last two playoff runs. For either one of them to sit a minute for a worthless Todd Bertuzzi is ridiculous.
One blurb I just saw was that Holland was impressed with the level of conditioning Bertuzzi had committed to during this off-season. Maybe they like finding a guy who is getting desperate about his career? Work ethic may be their bellwether.
Bertuzzi is not a lazy player, he is a dumb player. He takes bad penalties at bad times and he’ll drive you crazy turning the wrong way when he doesn’t have the puck. To me that’s one of the surprising things about the signing. Detroit is nothing if not disciplined and they signed a guy who is arguably the most undisciplined player in the league.
That said, he does do things few other guys can. He can still bust to the net with a great move or use his strength to create scoring chances. But he’s lost a step and he just doesn’t do it often enough any more. He was just as dumb when he was a force in Vancouver but nobody cared about the weaknesses. Now? There is a balancing and – in my view – he’s flipped negative.
I think Holland hopes that the Red Wing game generates enough chances for him that he scores enough to offset his mistakes. I hear what Joe is saying – I’d rather have Taylor Pyatt because while Pyatt wouldn’t contribute much, he’s not a liability either. On the other hand, Bertuzzi is much more likely than Pyatt (Helm, etc) to score 25 goals. And that’s what Holland thinks he needs.
If it works out for Holland, he gets a decent scoring forward at a great price. If Bertuzzi is worse than ordinary – and he makes more bad plays than good ones – then the Red Wings get closer to ordinary themselves.
I’ve always generally liked the Red Wings but have become more of an active and emotionally involved fan over the last two seasons or so, and so I’m obviously disappointed and perplexed by this move. I don’t think there’s much more to add regarding the shortcomings of Bert’s game that hasn’t been covered. Given the availability of cheap talent available, I think this signing is an egregious mistake. I do believe that part of it is Holland seeing the Red Wings get pushed around physically by ANA and to a lesser extent PIT, though this was almost exclusively via ‘dirty’ or what should be illegal physical play and not legitimate strength on the puck puck, in the corners plays, which DET had in spades. I think Holland figured that of all the potential skill/offensive players that he could have signed, no one was going to have that physical/dirty element to it like Bertuzzi. But still, with the likes of Prospal, Afinogenov, Sykora, and even Tom’s boy Pyatt available for cheap, this is a terrible signing. I would have loved to see Afinogenov get a shot on Datsyuk’s wing, they played together in Dynamo during the lockout.
On the other hand, if I was a Red Wing fan, I’d figure Ken Holland saw something in Bert I couldn’t see and applaud. Even from afar, one questions a Ken Holland move with some trepidation.
To my eyes, the bulk of the Red Wings’ success has come from great drafting and their ability to retain established players through either having more money to spend in the old days or the ability to finagle the cap/get players to take less in the new days. And I’m not sure that Holland should be given all that much credit for either of these (what does signing Datsyuk at the right time have to do with assessing the value/talent of free agents?). Talent procurement at the pro level, something that I’d be more inclined to say reflects on Holland’s abilities, has been unspectacular.
Given that Helm and Abby can still go up and down easily, that probably pushes them out.
You can bet the house that Helm will be up the whole season. He was one of their best and most effective players all playoffs and Babcock knows it and certainly said almost as much. There’s no chance Helm sees another game in Grand Rapids. What a player.
I think people are putting too much emphasis on his potential impact in the lineup. If he rarely plays, he can’t drag the team down much, and if he plays as poorly as some are predicting, Babcock will just bench him entirely.
Even from afar, one questions a Ken Holland move with some trepidation.
No kidding.
I think people are putting too much emphasis on his potential impact in the lineup. If he rarely plays, he can’t drag the team down much, and if he plays as poorly as some are predicting, Babcock will just bench him entirely.
Yes but that roster space could have been used on someone who could potentially contribute, e.g., Prospal, Afinogenov, Sykora, or Pyatt. Heck, or even Blair Betts. If I was Holland, I would have said to Maltby, “look, I appreciate everything you’ve done for this franchise, you can either retire and be assigned as a coach somewhere in the organization, or we’re sending you to Grand Rapids for the season, maybe you’ll be called up in the playoffs.” Then I would have signed Betts to shore up the PK and given Prospal and Afinogenov the money he gave to Williams and Bertuzzi. That would have been a great summer considering the key losses. (I would also have gone for Axelsson instead of Betts).
Even from afar, one questions a Ken Holland move with some trepidation.
No kidding.
Sigh.
You know, you’re right in that Prospal could have been a good fit, but I think he’s looking for just pure size up front. That’s why there were all those Grier rumours for a few weeks there.
Bert obviously got badly outscored in the minutes he played in Calgary; Detroit obviously feels he can be more of a break even player in their lineup in a more limited role. I bet he scores just fine on the power play.
I think people are putting too much emphasis on his potential impact in the lineup. If he rarely plays, he can’t drag the team down much, and if he plays as poorly as some are predicting, Babcock will just bench him entirely.
I agree as to your first point. No single player can have a large impact. Good teams drop a notch or more because several players take a step down because they are declining or hurt or are replaced by an inferior player. A series of small impacts adds up to the large impact.
That said, I don’t see how you limit the role while giving him lots of power play time. They did not hire him for his defense. They hired him because he can score. They have to try to maximise that so they will play him with good players. He’ll get a regular shift, plus power play time. Or he will get nothing.
I’m late to the commenting party, but I wonder what this says about the condition of Holmstrom? He had some injury issues last year, I wonder if he will have to reduce his playing time. I see this move as gaining a big body to park in front of the net, perhaps on the 2nd PP unit. That and some nominal 4th line time is all I see Bertuzzi bringing to the Wings. Unless Holmstrom is in worse shape than we thought.
As a life-long Blues fan, and with apologies to rajeev, anything that takes the Wings down a notch is OK in my book. But to echo James and Tom, I worry. I’m not about to count the Wings out.