Last season, Teddy Blueger was a huge part of the Vancouver Canucks revival. He helped drag an historically bad penalty kill toward something like respectability and matched a career-high in points. That no doubt played a big part in his new two-year, $3.6 million deal signed today.
New Deal, Same Job for Teddy Blueger
The 30-year-old Blueger came to the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins and found his role early. Already 24 as an NHL rookie, he embraced his fourth-line spot and worked to keep it. He isn’t a big scorer but provides some offence in limited ice time. He’s scored 41 times with 126 points in 336 regular season games, which is good enough for a bottom-six player.
With former Penguins management now running Vancouver, their familiarity with Blueger undoubtedly encouraged him to come West. That one year, $1.9 million contract was a pay cut, but also let him come back from an indifferent 2022-23. He has agreed to take another cut of $100K per season in exchange for two years of security.
There was the benefit of contributing to an extremely effective third line during the regular season. That boosted his points and helped the team’s bottom line as the Canucks had their third-best season ever. That helped Blueger’s reputation for scoring, but his real job was shoring up their defensive play. That’s his bread and butter and what will keep him in the league for a long time.
What to Expect
Teddy Blueger added a Stanley Cup ring to his resume two seasons ago with the Vegas Golden Knights, though in minimal minutes. Last year, he helped fortify the Canucks for their playoff run, and no doubt is being looked to for the same now. He returns to play an expected role on the team’s fourth line, easing pressure for them to seek out another centre.
Expect Blueger to be the first forward over the boards on the penalty kill again. He’s not the biggest or fastest forward out there, but he thinks the game well and has good anticipation. Two of his six goals last season were short-handed, though he was probably as surprised as the goalies he got them. He’s not even a temporary option to move up the lineup, but don’t expect that of him and he’ll reward you.
Main Photo: Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports
