Jonatan Berggren’s play-making abilities will benefit Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings may be experiencing a rougher end to the 2021-22 season. There is still plenty of excitement in the talent that is on its way to the NHL level. One of the players to be most excited about is the Swedish product, Jonatan Berggren.

It was quite the journey for Berggren to get to North American leagues. Like literally, he got lost on his way to Grand Rapids due to a map malfunction. All jokes aside, Berggren had spent the last three seasons overseas in Sweden.

After earning his shot to play here in North America, Berggren has made the most of it and performed well at the AHL level with the Grand Rapids Griffins. There have been some questions about Berggren getting called up due to his excellent performance.

The Red Wings have done an impeccable job working with him on his development and ensuring his transition into the AHL from the Swedish leagues was swift and smooth. The statistics indeed show that.

Detroit Red Wings Jonatan Berggren’s play-making is going to be elite.

Berggren has been on fire in the AHL. While he may not be a goal-scorer as much as he is a playmaker, he has been performing well. With the Grand Rapids Griffins in 2021-22, Berggren has 15 goals and 30 assists for a team-leading 45 points over 59 games.

The 30 assists play to Berggren’s style as a play-making forward. If his abilities are showing at the AHL level, there’s good reason to believe he will be able to make the jump to the NHL and showcase similar skills. However, this is not a sure bet because players fail to adjust all the time.

But, the most significant jump for Berggren had to be coming overseas, and his ability to still stay true to his play style and be great for the Griffins has to leave the organization optimistic for his future. He’s an offensive forward who makes the most of his chances in the offensive zone, creating chances for teammates.

Berggren often finds the open man and does a good job using his puck-handling and hockey IQ to create space for himself or others by drawing defenders and then allowing for high-danger scoring chances.

The Red Wings were wise to take their time with Berggren, whose development appears to have come a long way. He may not be a top-line scoring threat, but he will be an offensive forward who can anchor a second or third line and help create scoring chances alongside a sniper/sharpshooting forward.