Detroit Red Wings as MCU characters: Jonatan Berggren

Picture it. Colorado Springs, Colorado. The year is 2014.

My sister, the lover of all things fantasy and action, drags me to another superhero movie. 

Much like my aunt, I preferred nonfiction stories with real-life heroes. A bunch of 30+-year-old men running around in tights and a cape wasn’t my jam. They were dramatic, boring, and out of touch with ordinary folk.

Begrudgingly, I sat through one of the silliest movies I have seen to date. 

It didn’t quite make sense, and it took a while for me to appreciate it. 

A guy dancing around, seemingly lip-syncing (later we find out he’s not actually lip-syncing, but he’s singing very poorly), beating up a few space rats in the process.

The opening was as quirky as the rest of the film (and franchise). In terms of superhero movies, it was a breath of fresh air.

As my love of watching the Detroit Red Wings grew, so too did my enjoyment of watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

For anyone who missed my comparison of the Detroit Red Wings to the cartoon version of Mulan, here’s a link to it. I enjoy drawing parallels between movies and real life. For example, my Disney character is Tantor (the elephant from the 1999 rendition of Tarzan).

Since I’ve grown into my role as a fan of both MCU movies and the Detroit Red Wings, I’ve had fun thinking about the Detroit Red Wings players (and prospects) as MCU characters.

Here is a comparison of who might Jonatan Berggren be in the MCU

**There will be spoilers in these posts**

Please note that not every facet of the player and MCU character is identical, but I try to find as many similarities as I can.

Jonatan Berggren

The quickest and second easiest comparison for me between the Detroit Red Wings and MCU characters is Jonatan Berggren as Star-Lord or Peter Quill.

To people not well-acquainted with either individual, they seem goofy, undisciplined, and poor decision-makers.

I think back to the initial scene where Quill is dancing around with the space rats and it kind of reminds me of watching Berggren on the ice. He’s all over the place. 

In a game where players seem pretty serious (compared to the other big sports in North America) and well-structured, Berggren is all over the place. He seemingly dances throughout every zone with or without the puck on his stick. 

Furthermore, at the end of the first movie, Quill attempts to have a dance-off with the main villain of this particular film. 

In reality, it was a diversion for fellow Guardians to get a weapon ready to use on the main villain.

Similarly, Berggren makes these wild moves, wheeling and dealing in the offensive zone. All the while, he’s paying attention to his teammates, allowing them the time they need to set up and awaiting Berggren’s perfect, usually lethal pass.

Sometimes Berggren doesn’t make the wisest decisions. Just as MCU fans were outraged at Quill’s decision to punch Thanos in the head, Detroit Red Wings fans weren’t happy with the decisions Berggren made during his few games in a Winged Wheel during the 2023-24 campaign. 

Granted the stakes are completely different, but I think both groups of fans could be a bit shortsighted at times.

Quill learned of the events surrounding his partner, which led to the undisciplined reaction. 

On the other hand, Berggren was asked to play in the NHL against one of the Stanley Cup-contending teams while the team was in one of its freefalls of the season. As much as Berggren struggled to find space on the ice, keep pace, or thread pucks through traffic, his teammates did him no favors. No one was in a good position on the ice or had the ability to accept a pass. Often times, the puck was found in their feet or ping-ponging off their stick to the opponent.

Was Quill to blame? Sure, but the mistake was completely understandable. Were the mishaps from Berggren bad? Of course, but they were understandable all things considered.

Much like fans thought it might be the last time that we see Quill in the MCU (at least played by Chris Pratt) before the latest installment was released, fans learned that Quill would return to the MCU, Detroit Red Wings fans thought last season was Berggren’s swan song in the Winged Wheel. However, he is expected to sign before training camp starts.

Ironically, the supposed diva who rejected his contract offer is the only one of the three restricted free agents (RFAs) in North America before signing a contract.