While it may not be the most noteworthy name or someone the Detroit Red Wings faithful remember, Jonathan Bernier was a part of the team’s lengthy rebuild. After 14 seasons in the NHL with six different organizations, Bernier has decided to hang ’em up and call it a career.
Bernier has retired from the National Hockey League (NHL), capping off a lengthy career as a netminder. He spent three years with the Detroit Red Wings organization and was with them during some of their worst years.
He served as a big piece of the puzzle for them between the pipes and ended up being a part of the trade that brought Alex Nedeljkovic in from the Carolina Hurricanes. While that’s a topic for another time, Nedeljkovic working out, that is, Bernier calling it a career deserves something.
Bernier may not have shown up and performed to Vezina winning levels, but nobody asked that. The Red Wings were just hoping that Bernier would jump into the blue paint and keep the opposing team to a couple of goals or less.
Amid the rebuild, it was a tall ask, and not for Bernier but for the on-ice product in front of him. He did his job and often kept the team in games, which is all the Red Wings could ask of him.
Former Detroit Red Wings goalie Jonathan Bernier retires.
While his career highlights may not come from his time in Detroit, he deserves a tip of the cap for sticking with it and patrolling the crease for the three seasons he wore the winged wheel jersey. Bernier’s best performance in Detroit came in the COVID-19 shortened season, where he played in 46 games, posting a .907 save percentage and a 2.95 goals-against average.
Over his whole time in Detroit, Bernier played in 105 games, managing a 33-51-9 record while posting a .908 save percentage and 3.02 goals-against average for the Red Wings. Again, the stats are nothing to write home about, but he deserves a tip of the cap for being a casualty of the rebuild, being left out to dry between the pipes often.
Outside of his time in Detroit, Bernier wore a Los Angeles Kings uniform most of his career. That included the 2012-13 season, where the Kings won the Stanley Cup championship. He served as a backup to Jonathan Quick, another long-time veteran of the NHL and 2022-23 Stanley Cup champion as part of the Vegas Golden Knights.
While a hip injury seemingly ended his career, Bernier had a more than productive career, spending over a decade in the NHL as one of the serviceable options between the pipes. Whether a proven backup or fringe starter, Bernier was a solid option.
Congratulations to Bernier on a great career. Tip the cap to the 35-year-old netminder who gave his all on a horrendous rebuilding Red Wings team.