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CALGARY —
For all the reasons Todd Bertuzzi chose to make his NHL next stop in Calgary, the primary factor was not the money, but the opportunity — to play with Flames' captain Jarome Iginla.
"I gotta to say, Jarome is 100 per cent why I'm a Calgary Flame," said Bertuzzi. "I had great talks with him. Everything he said about the organization and the city was nothing but positive. Haven't talked to my family, we decided it was a good opportunity for us and we couldn't pass it by."
Bertuzzi signed a one-year, $1.95 million deal with the Flames Monday, after he received a buyout from the final year of his contract with the Anaheim Ducks about 10 days ago, making him an unrestricted free agent. General manager Darryl Sutter also stressed that Iginla's input into the decision was a significant reason why he opted to sign Bertuzzi for his NHL team — that and the fact he agreed to come for one season, for modest dollars, on a team that will be at or near the NHL salary cap of $56.7 million for the upcoming season.
Apart from the fact that both are represented by the same agents, Newport Sports, Bertuzzi and Iginla have a history dating back to the 2006 Canadian Olympic team and a couple of NHL all-star games, but Sutter suggested their familiarity stemmed more from playing against each other as opposed to with each other — and that a mutual respect had developed as a result.
Todd Bertuzzi of the Anaheim Ducks looks on in the third period against the Los Angeles Kings at the Staples Center on Sept. 15, 2007. (Andrew D. Bernstein/Getty Images)
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"I've always appreciated the way Jarome has carried himself and how he's played in that market," said Bertuzzi. "I'm pretty sure there are many times he could have taken off somewhere else but he wanted to stick around and play there; he's had so much fun there. My conversations with him were very positive. It'll be nice to be in the dressing room with him now.
"Jarome knows me pretty well and what I stand for and what I hope to get out of this."
Bertuzzi's days as public enemy No. 1 in Calgary, even pre-date the Steve Moore incident. The Flames and the Canucks developed a significant rivalry prior to the lockout, jockeying for position in the Northwest Division and played a memorable seven-game playoff series in 2004 that propelled Calgary to its first Stanley Cup final appearance in 15 years.
Bertuzzi said he hoped it wouldn't take "too long" to win the fans over.
"The last thing you want to do is be a home guy and get booed," he said. "But you know what? It's a great Canadian market; and they're passionate about their hockey. I'm excited to come there. It's always been a fun rink for me to play in, especially the amount of games we've had against Calgary in playoffs and so — hopefully, it won't take too long."
While Sutter said he would he satisfied with production comparable to what Owen Nolan provided Calgary last season (32 points), Bertuzzi suggested he believed he was still capable of becoming an elite-level player again.
"Absolutely," said Bertuzzi. "I wouldn't be playing. I would have announced my retirement then.
"Moving around that much, moving my family that much, it takes its toll on your family. It'd be selfish for me to continue doing something like that. Calgary's giving me an opportunity to come in and to get some ice time and play. I still think I can get back up there and contribute what they need."
Bertuzzi said he was caught off guard "a little" by Anaheim's decision to buy him out after only one season, in which he scored 40 points in 68 games. Although plagued by a chronic back problem, Bertuzzi said it gave him no issues last season; the 14 games he missed were as a result of a concussion.
"I thought that coming in there, I thought I was going to get an opportunity of playing with (Ryan) Getzlaf and (Corey) Perry and I only played a handful of games with them," said Bertuzzi. "I think the writing was on the wall in the end."
Sutter said he didn't think there was too much risk involved in signing Bertuzzi.
"The size of our forwards (smallish) was really important," said Sutter, "the ability to play two positions. It gives us a lot of different options, with Cammalleri being a centre and a left winger; with Bertuzzi being a left winger and a right winger. I just think it's a different look and a different fit. Then I look at our power play. Even though we have the elements of Phaneuf and Iginla on it, I still think you put Cammalleri on there now and Bertuzzi, it gives you a totally different look — and it makes a big difference.
"Again, it goes back to understanding where the player's at. I don't think you're expecting Todd to come in and be a 30 or 40-goal guy. That's not relevant. That's if he was a $4 million or a $5 million player. What's relevant is, what we are going to pay him and where we think he fits, it's a really good fit for us. And that's how Jarome felt also. And that's good. That's a good thing. I think Jarome, if you asked him, wouldn't look at it like four or five years ago, he'd look at it as right now."
Bertuzzi has amassed 793 games over the course of his 12 seasons in the NHL. During that period, he has accumulated 580 points from 240 goals and 340 assists. Last season with the Anaheim Ducks, Bertuzzi recorded 40 points, including 14 goals in 68 games. He has recorded 50-plus points in six of his last eight seasons including a 97 point performance in the 2002-03 campaign. The 33-year-old has played in at least 68 games in six of his last eight seasons.
