Breaking news this afternoon is that the Lightning made another move to solidify depth and strengthen the team in one way or another. Free agent defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron has been signed to a 1-year, two-way contract.
Mike Corcoran, reporting via Twitter, told his followers that Bergeron would be reporting to the Norfolk Admirals for conditioning.
Undersized, Bergeron fits into Guy Boucher’s system as a puck moving, offensive defenseman. But the move does ultimately make one wonder what is going to happen next with the Lightning roster. The Bolt sare carrying 3 goalies and the plan was to carry 8 defensemen… What should we look for in a move to get the roster into a perfect balance? Will we see another move on the blueline? Or perhaps a longer range plan that clears a roster spot in exchange for a low draft choice?
This is shaping up to be a very interesting second half, regardless.
We’ll provide the press release when it becomes available. Afer the jump, you’ll find two videos of note
[Note by John Fontana, 01/04/11 7:31 PM EST ]Press release now included.
On the power play…
And one highlighted defensive effort:
TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning signed defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron to a one-year, two-way contract today, Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced.
Bergeron, 5-foot-9, 198 pounds, played in 60 games with the Montreal Canadiens last season, recording 13 goals and 34 points. He led all Montreal defensemen in goals and was tied for the lead in points. Bergeron was tied for the team lead for game-winning goals with four and third for power play goals with seven. He was tied for ninth in the NHL for goals among defensemen. Bergeron also played in three games with Montreal’s AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs, notching six assists.
A native of Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, Bergeron has played in 399 career NHL games with the Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, Anaheim Ducks, Minnesota Wild and the Canadiens. He has amassed 75 goals, 43 power play goals and 194 points. During the previous two seasons the offensive defenseman has ranked tied for fourth in the NHL among defensemen in goals with 27 and fifth for goals per game with .205. Bergeron has eclipsed the 10-goal barrier on three occasions since the 2005-06 season (2005-06, 15; 2008-09, 14; 2009-10, 13). Bergeron has also played in 43 career Stanley Cup Playoff games, recording five goals and 12 points, including 19 games last season with Montreal.
Bergeron was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Oilers on July 20, 2001.
