For much of the 2023-24 NHL season, Toronto Maple Leafs winger Tyler Bertuzzi had been a major disappointment after signing a one-year deal with the team during this past offseason.
His tenure with the Toronto Maple Leafs went from bad to worse when he was subsequently demoted from the top line in late October, all the way to some of his late period benching due to poor play in early November.
At the rate in which he was going, it certainly looked like the $5.5 million signing was heading towards the bust category in no time.
However, despite the criticism, Bertuzzi was actually playing well the whole time – his numbers were excellent even when he wasn’t scoring, and unlike Domi, Klingberg and Reaves, he did not deserve the criticism he was getting.
Toronto Maple Leafs Winger Tyler Bertuzzi Beginning to Prove His Doubters Wrong
In the past few games, Bertuzzi has started to get the results his strong play has deserved.
Playing on a line with captain John Tavares and William Nylander, he appears to be beginning to develop some chemistry with the duo.
In his past five games, Bertuzzi has put up two goals and three assists for five points while averaging over 16 minutes of ice time. More importantly, he has played with greater discipline, taking only one minor penalty in the process.
His improved play was most apparent in his recent game against the Detroit Red Wings this past Friday when he went hard to the net to score the first goal of the game for the Leafs to get them back to within one. Then he followed that up later with a solid check behind the net that led to his beautiful cross-crease feed to Tavares to set up the game-winner as the Leafs prevailed 3-2.
More impressively, his game has reached another level since joining the second line, as his 5-on-5 expected goal rate has jumped above 61% and his scoring chances rate above 65% when playing with Tavares and Nylander. (All stats from naturalstattrick.com)
As a result, albeit a small sample size, the Bertuzzi that the Leafs expected all along when they added him to their roster this offseason is slowly beginning to materialize, with his impact becoming more significant by the day as the team approaches the quarter mark of the season.
Overall, it looks like the Leafs have found the perfect combinations now for their top two lines, with consistent production coming from them every night.
But most of all, it wouldn’t have happened if Bertuzzi hadn’t been moved to the line where he has turned his season around and is prospering right now. So for the success for both the Leafs and Bertuzzi himself, let’s keep it that way.