DETROIT, October 27, 2020 – Detroit Red Wings left wing Tyler Bertuzzi today was awarded a one-year, $3.5 million contract. The terms of the contract were based on the ruling of an independent arbitrator who heard the case on October 25 and issued the decision today.
Bertuzzi, 25, has played parts of four NHL seasons with the Red Wings and enjoyed a career year in 2019-20, setting career highs in assists (27), points (48) and penalty minutes (40) while posting his second-straight 21-goal campaign and skating in all 71 games. Bertuzzi led the team in goals and was second in assists and points, while also ranking among Red Wings leaders with three power-play goals (T5th), 14 power-play points (T1st), 129 shots (3rd), a 16.3 shooting percentage (1st) and 19:19 average time on ice (6th overall/2nd among forwards). The 6-foot-1, 199-pound forward and 2020 NHL All-Star began the 2019-20 season with his first career four-point game (2-2-4) on Oct. 5, 2019 at Nashville and racked up 20 points (8-12-20) in Detroit’s first 21 games and ended the campaign on a three-game point streak, which included his second four-point outing of the season in a March 8 win over Tampa Bay. Bertuzzi has skated in 199 career games with the Red Wings, totaling 119 points (49-70-119) and 115 penalty minutes.
Originally drafted by Detroit in the second round (58th overall) in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Bertuzzi spent parts of four seasons with the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins from 2014-18, accumulating 82 points (32-50-82), a plus-15 rating and 204 penalty minutes in 137 regular-season games. The Sudbury, Ontario, native also posted 39 points (23-16-39), a plus-12 rating and 68 penalty minutes in 42 career postseason games at the AHL level. Bertuzzi was a key figure in the Griffins capturing the 2017 Calder Cup Championship, as he won the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy awarded to the most-valuable player of the AHL 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 forward Robby Fabbri, 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.
