Although he had only a minor role with the Red Wings last season and has waiver exemption remaining, the team expects winger Tyler Bertuzzi to break camp with the big club in October, writes Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press. Bertuzzi played in just seven games with Detroit in 2016-17 and averaged just nine minutes per game but played quite well with AHL Grand Rapids in the playoffs where he collected 19 points (9-10-19) in 19 contests.
St. James adds that there are those in the organization who believe the 22-year-old would be best suited to start in the minors once again but both GM Ken Holland and head coach Jeff Blashill are among those who would like to see him start with the Red Wings. The fact that Bertuzzi is on a league minimum contract will certainly help his case considering their current salary cap situation. However, because of that and his waiver exemption, there’s a good chance that Bertuzzi will be forced to go back and forth a lot during the year in an effort to open up a bit of wiggle room during the season.
More from the Atlantic Division:
- Lightning forward Vladislav Namestnikov has switched agencies as he has joined Gold Star Sports Management according to agent Dan Milstein (Twitter link). He previously had been with Newport. The timing of this is notable as Namestnikov is entering the final year of his bridge contract and will be set to enter restricted free agency with arbitration rights next summer. His qualifying offer will check in just north of $1.93MM.
- Although Frederik Gauthier’s recovery from his hamstring surgery back in May is going well, there remains no firm timetable as to when he could return, notes Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star. He resumed skating for the first time last week. At the time of the surgery, the speculation was that it would be at least six months before he’d be ready to return to game action. When he does recover, the former first round pick will likely be headed for the AHL level once again.