Detroit Red Wings Re-sign RFA Jonatan Berggren

FINALLY! Steve Yzerman gave us something to talk about. That being him re-signing Jonatan Berggren to a one-year "prove it" deal worth $825,000.

This is a prove-it deal, but it's likely a bit more than that. In most Red Wings fan opinions, Berggren has already proved that he's good enough to be a regular NHLer and it was no secret that he knew it too.

It was widely reported by those inside and outside the normal Red Wings news sphere that Berggren was unhappy with being in the AHL. Who could blame him? His first season with the Red Wing was originally as an injury call-up during the 2022-23 campaign. However, he made it stick in a big way. The 2018 second-round pick blew up in his official rookie season, recording 15 goals and 13 assists for 28 points in 67 games with the Red Wings.

Unfortunately, the Red Wings were log-jammed at every position with established NHLers last season. Meaning if Berggren wanted a spot on the roster again, he had to make a massive statement at training camp and in preseason. Something he wasn't able to do. His offensive upside was the same as we all saw in his rookie campaign, but his defensive lapses were just too big and too many to give the Red Wings' front office confidence that he would be better than any of their free agent signings.

Where does Berggren fall in the Red Wings Lineup?

It's no secret that the Red Wings lineup for the 2024-25 season is packed once again. But there is one specific hole that Berggren can and likely will fill. The bottom nine-goal scorer is something that every NHL team needs in their lineup. A guy who can be relied upon to score 15-20 goals a season while only playing 10-13 minutes a night. In past years the Red Wings had guys such as Darren Helm, Dan Cleary, and Valtteri Filppula filled these roles nicely. Last season that role was filled by Daniel Sprong and he filled it exceptionally well. With his departure from the team in the offseason there is a big need for consistent goal scoring in the bottom six.

While guys like Andrew Copp and Michael Rasmussen are likely to score double-digit goals this season, their roles will largely be in a shutdown role. Joe Veleno has proven he can hit double-digit goals but is far more sporadic in his goal-scoring. Berggren has shown he can score on a more consistent basis than Veleno but just as much, if not, more than Rassmussen and Copp.

His biggest issue is with his defensive ability. That being that they largely don't exist, so putting him with Veleno and Tyler Motte seems like the likely and logical option. Regardless of where he plays, he will play with the Red Wings this season. I'm sure that he, much like the rest of us, wants to prove that he is the real deal.