Arriving Late to the Todd Bertuzzi Blog Party

I'm still not sure what to think of the Detroit Red Wings acquiring Todd Bertuzzi yesterday. I can't pretend that I've cared very much about hockey this season. In fact, this might be my first Red Wings-related post of the season. Maybe that will change during the playoffs, after which I'll look at myself in the mirror and ask myself when I became "that kind" of hockey fan.

Big Al probably best echoed my thoughts in his live blog of the trading deadline. At the time, I thought what Bertuzzi did to Steve Moore should perhaps result in a lifetime ban from the NHL. But both the NHL and the province of British Columbia thought he served a proper sentence for his actions, so if those institutions say he can play hockey, what does my opinion matter?

When I wrote a magazine preview of this year's Red Wings, each "expert" I talked to said not to judge the team Detroit began the season with. Ken Holland was biding his time, watching what he had, and holding onto his valued salary cap space until the trading deadline. Then, once Holland saw what his team needed - in this case, the kind of power forward they were lacking when Brendan Shanahan left for New York - he'd do what he always does: make a move to fill a need.

And if Bertuzzi can be anywhere near his 2002-03 form (when he racked up 97 points), then the Red Wings' power forward cup will runneth over, and this deal will look like a frickin' steal. (That Kyle Calder trade ain't lookin' so bad right now, either.)

With that back injury, however, I can't help but wonder if this is Uwe Krupp, part deux.