Detroit Red Wings forward faces reality of being the odd man out of the lineup
Photo credit: Iron Mountain Daily News
Red Wings forward Jonatan Berggren has been the odd man out of the lineup in recent games, and he knows his performance must improve in order to get more ice time.
It's now been a week since Detroit Red Wings forward Jonatan Berggren has been on the ice, finding himself a healthy scratch for the last 3 games while Dominik Shine has been given more playing time.
Is Todd McLellan trying to send him a message?? Apparently not, as he put it.
No message for Bergy. He's very capable of filling in. I think he fits the top three lines better than he does the fourth line.
McLellan continued:
He's a talented young man. Just sometimes your number isn't called and you gotta figure out a way to get back in there and steal ice time from teammates. We all preach team, but sometimes you gotta steal from your teammate. And if you're doing a real good job, you're stealing from a teammate and you're getting more.
Berggren has 19 points (10G, 9A) in 61 games this year, but has seen his ice time and even presence in the lineup reduced thanks to the emergence of both Marco Kasper and Elmer Soderblom.
When Elmer (Soderblom) showed up and when (Marco Kasper) started playing really well, they started to steal a little bit of his ice time. But no, Johnny's. Berggy's very capable of playing and he will play.
Berggren scored 15 goals in 67 games as a rookie in 2022-23, but only skated in 12 games last year while mostly playing for the Grand Rapids Griffins.
He has a total of 53 points (27G, 26A) in 140 career NHL games. He's also set to become a restricted free agent at year's end.
| POLL | ||
MARS 14 | 149 ANSWERS Detroit Red Wings forward faces reality of being the odd man out of the lineup Is Jonatan Berggren a long-term piece of the puzzle for the Red Wings? | ||
| Yes | 74 | 49.7 % |
| No | 75 | 50.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
